Cisco 2650 memory expansion options

[pheidius12]

Hi.

What memory  expansion options does the Cisco 2650 have? I am not asking about dram,  eprom, simm, or nvram. Is there any other way way besides the AIm Slot?  Is there a pmcia option?  In any case, is the AIM CF flash a place  where a second boot helper image could be stored?  Or can you externally  boot/ netboot a cicso2650 using an ip or console accessed boot helper  image? I want to be able to boot the router without rommon ever looking at the SIMM card.

thanks

[Leo Laohoo]

The 2600 will support AIM-VPN (1 slot internal) but you can't store any images into it.

Only the 2690 support CF.

Cisco 2600 Series Modular Access Routers

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/customer/prod/collateral/routers/ps259/product_data_sheet0900aecd800fa5be.html

[pheidius12]

Hi,

So is there any way to use an external ip boot loaader image, like from  another like router or tftp sever. Also what about the 2600 xm series? They apparently had 16 mb soldered to the main board. Can you store an image in that?

[Leo Laohoo]

Hi Kevin,

You mind telling us what you are trying to achieve?

[pheidius12]

LOL

Sure. I am trying to make this old board do what it really wasn't quite designed to do. I was hoping to set the rommon to boot to an external source. I was further hoping that when and while doing so that it would not ever look at the simm card installed untill it was booted enough to run copy commands on it. I have an abaandonware old game that used the same type of simm and I ws hoping to pull it so I cold run it under Mame. I am kinda starting to give up though, It wasn't until I was deep into this that I found that  the 2600 which used the same 5 volt simms doesn't hvae any other memory expnasion and the 2650 which does uses the 3 volt simm.

       I also hadn't noticed when I got excited about the project that the machine needed to load a boot helper image into flash. I can still try an experiment but I am going to assume that it will choke when it tries to do that on a foriegn simm and or distort the image I want to pull. I noticed last night that some 3600 models used 5 volt 80 pin simms but I  am also nervous that I m noticing that maybe the routers really don't boot from an external source so much as they look to a diferent source and then just latch onto what they need and still boot internally. I waa using kinda of a Mac Firewire tagert mode definition in my head when I read that the router could boot to a TFTp server.

So disabuse me of my wishful thinking if that is all I am running on please.

Do Cisco routers really fully boot to an external source even if you do have another flash source internally for the boot helper image?

Is there any back door like bootingbfrom another router from the same family or is that just kicking the can down the road?

In short, is there any avenue by which the router could boot and never look or use the internal 80 pin simm until asked to copy off what was on it, erase it, and write back what was on it?

Finally, if anyone happens to remember a regular ISP programmer/adapter/module that could read an 80 pin simm, let me know.

Thanks.

[pheidius12]

hi again,

I actually, found part of my own answer.

N.B. This will erase the flash so any other files stored there will  be lost. If you want to boot from the image on the TFTP server  without writing it to flash then use the command tftpdnld -r.  This will load the IOS on the TFTP server into router memory and boot  the router from it but the flash will remain unchanged.

So since there apears to be be no way to get any other flash to store the boot helper image on a 2600 I need to see if any 3600 series supported 80 pin simms. If they did then I can try to buy one used and run the experiiment.

[Leo Laohoo · Accepted solution]

In short, is there any avenue by which the router could boot and never look or use the internal 80 pin simm until asked to copy off what was on it, erase it, and write back what was on it?

Dude, I'm sooooo don't have anything bad to say about what you are doing.  Let me know if you got it working or not.  It's worth looking into.

As for "tftpdnld", I don't think it's supported in a 2650.  I know this command is supported on the 2690XM and up.

You can try to "download" the IOS via the console cable using XModem, particularly the switch command  "xmodem -r -s 115200".  This command means that the IOS will be loaded into the DRAM (-r switch) and the upload will be using high speed at 115200 bps (-s switch).

Xmodem Console Download Procedure Using ROMmon

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/customer/products/hw/routers/ps259/products_tech_note09186a008015bfac.shtml

Hope this helps.

Please don't forget to rate useful posts.  Thanks.

[pheidius12]

Hi,

Yes! Your post is very helpful.These old Cisco routers arn't too expensive so I am going to go ahead and buy a 3620 series. That should support the command and/or xmodem. It has an aditional place to store the boot helper image. I think it has a plug-in cf card or pmcia slot  I forget which. If you have any feedback like, "get a 3640 or 60 for x x reasons," and happen to see this this Eastern time morning shoot me off a post. Otherwise, I am going to get the 3620 to avoid any timing issues in their dual banks.

I will have the seller overnight it so I can play around with it by Monday.

[Leo Laohoo]

The 3600 use the PCMCIA (Type II) cards.

Personally, I wouldn't waste my resources on the 3600 series.  If you look at the specs for the 2690XM, 3725/3745 series routers, these models have external and internal CF flash.  Both use standard CF up to 2Gb and all you need to do is upgrade the DRAM.

Due to the release of the ISR G2, some administrators are contemplating of replacing some of the their 3700 series routers with ISR G1 or G2.  So keep an eye out for bargains.

[pheidius12]

hi,

The 2960 xm is probably why I bought a 2600 in the first place. I didn't run into the finer priint about the boot lelper image untl later.  The only problem with those two models is that they switched away form 5 volt simms in those models.

Thanks for the moral support. Just trying make old stuff keep older stuff  alive.

[Leo Laohoo]

If your query has been resolved, can you mark this topic as "Answered"?  Thanks.