How to upgrade from 7200 Series Router to 4500 ISR?

[Jake.Fritz]

Hello there,

I will be upgrading 7200 Series Router model to 4500 ISRs since the former one is already past End of Life. I have configured 4500s with the configuration what is present in 7200s and have sent the device to the remote location where it is to be installed. I have also taken running-configuration as a backup from the existing 7200 series. Since this upgrade impacts business ends, I want to ensure everything goes as smooth as possible, with minimal downtime.

The previous model 7200 has its interface and VLAN configuration issued on Interface Gig 1/0. While migrating, I plan on connecting the Ethernet cable to the same Gigabit Interface Gig1/0/0. Apart from this, I will have business folks standby for testing the migration for validation. 

Is there anything else that is required to ensure the migration goes successfully with minimal downtime? Thanks for you input.

[luis_cordova]

Hi @Jake.Fritz ,

Check this link:

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/routers/asr1000/technical_references/7200_Migration_Doc.html

Maybe can give you some ideas to keep in mind.

Regards

[Jake.Fritz]

Thank you Luis. I went through that already. That gives an a high level approach. I am looking for step by step if possible and any other things that I should be considerate while migrating to 4450s from 7200s.

[Deepak Kumar]

Hi,

I hope you verified the Incompatibility and Workaround Table before sent this router at the site. And Also hoping that you had verified all configuration as well.  If the above things are not verified then you must verify all required feature set and suitable IOS image and license. You can use the Feature Navigator for the same.

Now coming to migration point:

Before migrating the network, there is a phase called testing and testing can be done in one of two ways: prototype or
pilot. A prototype network is a subset of the full design, tested in an isolated environment. The prototype does not connect to the existing network. The benefit of using a prototype is that it allows testing of the network design before it is deployed before affecting a production network. A pilot site is an actual “live” location that serves as a test site before the solution is deployed to all locations in an enterprise. A pilot allows real-world problems to be discovered
before deploying a network design solution to the rest of the internetwork.

So If you want a minimum downtime. then a prototype testing is a good method for you but you need an extra WAN IP for this testing. If you have. Otherwise, you can remove the WAN and LAN from the existing router (don't shut down), connect all cables to the new router and test it. If you will notice anything wrong then restore the old router and try to tshoot the issue with the newly configured router. It will decrease downtime. 

Most important: This activity must perform with a proper downtime approval and after office hours (if possible). 

Regards,

Deepak Kumar

[Georg Pauwen]

Hello,

post the backup configuration you have taken from the 7600, as well as the new configuration from the 4500 ISR, so we can compare both and tell you if you might be missing something...

[paul driver]

Hello

from a physical migration point of view and if applicable have both devices running simultaneously then relocate the cabling and test-  if outage incurrs and your not able to rectify you can just relocate the cabling back to the old stable device.