4331 do I have enough slots

[Keith Abbott]

Hi Group,

I am attempting to assist in the setup of a 4331, but am not very conversant with the 4000 series and have a few questions Im hoping someone will be able to answer.

I need to add a FXS port to a 4331 already containing  a NIM-1MFT-T1/E1 and a, NIM-2FXO, to support a connection to a paging system.

Do I have room to install a 2-port FXS NIM? 

I dont think I do without adding a SM-X adapter, is that correct?

If that is the case, and since the cost of a carrier plus the cost of an FXS card would exceed the cost of a 4fxo2fxs nim, it seems a better option just to replace the 2-port fxo.

Q2: I noticed when trying to find answers for the question above, this field notice on the 4000 series.:

Field Notice: FN - 64321 - Network Interface Module Functionality Issue with Cisco IOS Releases Earlier than IOS-XE 16.5

which states that IOS XE versions earlier than 16.5 will not recognize the gen4 FXO/FXS cards.

I get the following information from a show ver:

Cisco IOS XE Software, Version 03.16.05.S - Extended Support Release
Cisco IOS Software, ISR Software (X86_64_LINUX_IOSD-UNIVERSALK9-M), Version 15.5(3)S5, RELEASE SOFTWARE (fc2)

The part that confuses me is that the IOS XE version (3.16.05) doesnt in any way resemble the minimum required version (16.5).

Since the router does recognize the 2-port fxo card I presume I dont need to worry about this issue. But can someone explain the apparent IOS version discrepancy?

Q3: If I change the 2-fxo to the 4fxo2fxs card, do I need a PVDM card to go with it? There seemed to be an indication that you dont with the Gen4 cards. There is a PVDM4-32 installed on the T1 card.

The router is at a remote site, making visualization and figuring all of this out somewhat more difficult.

I appreciate any help you can give in helping me wade through it.

thanks

w

[Keith Abbott · Accepted solution]

I will answer my own questions in case anyone has similar questions in the future: Q1 - No - there are only 2 NIM slots available on a 4331. One can, if needed - acquire an SM-X adaptor that will allow 2 additional NIM slots, however the cost of the card plus the adaptor made it more preferable to replace the 2FXO with a 4FXO/2FXS NIM. Theyre quite a bit more expensive than just adding a 2FXS NIM, but less expensive than the 2FXS plus Adapter. Q2 - still dont know this one Q3 - no you do not specifically need a PVDM card for the Gen4 FXO or FXS NIMs. However if those are the only NIMs present on the gateway, and you want conferencing and/or transcoding capability, you will need a PVDM on the motherboard