I'm hoping someone out there can give a clear and concise answer or direct me to other resources. I've been under the impression that when a switch or router is purchased new (from Cisco or an authorized reseller) the buyer is only entitled to the software pre-installed (purchased). The customer can upgrade said software within the same feature set under one of the following conditions:
1. Purchase of new license;
2. Current service contract;
3. Deferral of current image by Cisco.
Today I received a replacement 3548XL from Cisco due to a recall. The installed image is newer than my existing image. I have no documentation, nor seen anything stating that I'm entitled to the newer image. On CCO I just found that several platform images can be downloaded without a CCO account, including a newer version of the image I just received from Cisco. Granted, the selection is much smaller than that with a valid CCO logon. Am I entitled to download the newest version? In the past I've only upgraded devices that I had current service contracts on.
Can someone please direct me to an official Cisco reference addressing their license (and upgrade) policy?
