So 2524 is EOL...

So 2524 is EOL and I can't find ANY reseller that sells IOS software for the 2524. Now, tell me, why in the world isn't this information made more apparent in this forum's FAQs? Wouldn't it be relevant for prospective CCNA students to know that the routers you purchase off Ebay could possibly be EOL and that if they are, that you'll have to spends hundreds or even thousands of dollars (I've looked up the prices) purchasing the latest software for these routers? I mean, it's like Cisco wants to FORCE me to illegally obtain their IOS; I can't find it anyway for sale online and even if I could, why on earth would an end user pay $1000 for it?

Seriously, is there any chance I'm going to be able to update my 2524 routers (which are currently all 11.x IOSes) without obtaining it illegally? I'm literally at my wits end with this garbage.

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RTmarc

Should have gone to Ciscokits.com.

Bill Kaster

^ Not helpful, but thanks.

RTmarc

You actually expect people to feel sorry for you? You should have read the details of exactly what you were purchasing before you gave them your payment information. Also, it's not like there isn't page after page of information on what IOS is being used for testing. Your failure to prepare is no one's fault but your own. Don't attack people for trying to offer you a solution.

IBTL

Bill Kaster

"Should have gone to Ciscokits" is not a solution to the problem. FYI.

And I did read the details of exactly what I was purchasing; a 2524 router. I wasn't under any illusion what it was capable of, and was fully aware that a 12.x IOS would be needed for it. I prepared plenty and, if you hadn't jumped to such a foolish conclusion about what I (a person you've never met) knows, you wouldn't look, well, the way you do right now.

Bill Kaster

But again, it is not made apparent in these forums that IOSes are so difficult to come buy with older routers. A FAQ should be started on that. Nor is it apparent that you absolutely MUST buy a router with an updated IOS or else pay hundreds/thousands for one. A FAQ should be made on that too. I'm not blaming this web site, I'm just saying for user's sake who haven't worked in the routing field professionally (though I've been in hardware for years), this information would have been quite useful beforehand.

RTmarc

I'm not going to argue this any further with you. The details of the router you bought off of ebay should have listed the IOS version in the product description. Once again, if you would have checked on this prior to purchase you would have known that an upgrade was necessary and the process therein.

Ciscokits is a solution in your circumstances. It's going to be cheaper to replace your current router with one of theirs which comes preloaded with a newer version of IOS; that is unless obtain an illegal copy from someone.

I'm done.

Darthn3ss

"should have gone to ciscokits"

yes, you should have gone to ciscokits, where they would have sent you a router with a modern IOS and a disk with a few more IOS's on it.

Bill Kaster

RTmarc wrote:

I'm not going to argue this any further with you. The details of the router you bought off of ebay should have listed the IOS version in the product description. Once again, if you would have checked on this prior to purchase you would have known that an upgrade was necessary and the process therein.

I did check, thanks.

Darthn3ss

if you knew they came with 11.x IOS's and you looked up the price for the up to date ios, whyd you bother buying them?

dtlokee

RTmarc wrote:

I'm not going to argue this any further with you. The details of the router you bought off of ebay should have listed the IOS version in the product description. Once again, if you would have checked on this prior to purchase you would have known that an upgrade was necessary and the process therein.

Ciscokits is a solution in your circumstances. It's going to be cheaper to replace your current router with one of theirs which comes preloaded with a newer version of IOS; that is unless obtain an illegal copy from someone.

I'm done.

Seriously? You are going to call Ciscokits a solution, but obtaining a copy from "someone" is illegal? I hate to tell you the disc full of IOS from Ciscokits is illegal also. The newer version of the IOS they preloaded it with? It’s illegal. They probably pass it off as "licensing is the responsibility of the buyer"

I’m not saying that everyone who has a home lab does it the right way. Most likely 99.9% do it the wrong way. But the Ciscokits method is no better than downloading it from a FTP server somewhere on the web.

mikej412

Bill Kaster wrote:

t is not made apparent in these forums that IOSes are so difficult to come buy with older routers. A FAQ should be started on that.

Did you read the FAQ?

Remember this thread where you posted this?

Bill Kaster wrote:

My thread was locked and I was referred here to my question of how to obtain Cisco IOS. Except this thread really doesn't tell you how. So, uh, what's the deal? Call Cisco and pay?

This was

's response in that post -- did you use the search function to find the other posts that said the same thing?

Webmaster wrote:

Well, if it fits, it could work.

This is, as we mentioned several times in similar topics in these forums, why it's important to buy equipment that contains a current version. If you copy one from the other for educational purposes, fine that's up to you. I did that too in my home lab, but:

We do not tolerate illegal distribution of software in these forums (NOR BY PM), which includes Cisco IOS.

Rather than spending $1000 for a contract -- assuming it was available -- wouldn't common sense and the information above make buying a router on eBay for $25 that had the last IOS be a cheaper solution? It's still not "legal" -- but its a solution.

The reason your first thread got locked -- and the reason this thead will get locked or deleted -- is that someone will eventually take pity on you and post suggestions on how to illegally download IOS files.

Darthn3ss

dtlokee wrote:

RTmarc wrote:

I'm not going to argue this any further with you. The details of the router you bought off of ebay should have listed the IOS version in the product description. Once again, if you would have checked on this prior to purchase you would have known that an upgrade was necessary and the process therein.

Ciscokits is a solution in your circumstances. It's going to be cheaper to replace your current router with one of theirs which comes preloaded with a newer version of IOS; that is unless obtain an illegal copy from someone.

I'm done.

Seriously? You are going to call Ciscokits a solution, but obtaining a copy from "someone" is illegal? I hate to tell you the disc full of IOS from Ciscokits is illegal also. The newer version of the IOS they preloaded it with? It’s illegal. They probably pass it off as "licensing is the responsibility of the buyer"

I’m not saying that everyone who has a home lab does it the right way. Most likely 99.9% do it the wrong way. But the Ciscokits method is no better than downloading it from a FTP server somewhere on the web.

yeah that cisco kits disk is illegal, but i guess it feels better when its illegal product coming from a company? lol, i don't know really. doesn't the cisco kits disk also come with some software and ebooks?

Bill Kaster

Darthn3ss wrote:

if you knew they came with 11.x IOS's and you looked up the price for the up to date ios, whyd you bother buying them?

I didn't particularly care what IOS it came because I knew, from research, that I could upgrade my IOS and that I'd be keeping the router for a few years and want to upgrade the IOS during that time. However, what I didn't catch on to, and what was not reported in the FAQs here in any significant detail that I could find (again, not blaming this web site), is that if you want to upgrade your IOS you either 1) better have a router that isn't EOL because Cisco won't support EOLs, and more importantly 2) you must buy a router with the latest IOS already installed or be prepared to pay $1000+ to upgrade. Even if my router had come with 12.0 or 12.1, I wanted 12.3 eventually anyway, and now I'm finding out that it's impossible to find. So even IF I had the money to legally purchase a 12.3 OS for $1000+, they're not available from any of Cisco's resellers anyway.

RTmarc

dtlokee wrote:

RTmarc wrote:

I'm not going to argue this any further with you. The details of the router you bought off of ebay should have listed the IOS version in the product description. Once again, if you would have checked on this prior to purchase you would have known that an upgrade was necessary and the process therein.

Ciscokits is a solution in your circumstances. It's going to be cheaper to replace your current router with one of theirs which comes preloaded with a newer version of IOS; that is unless obtain an illegal copy from someone.

I'm done.

Seriously? You are going to call Ciscokits a solution, but obtaining a copy from "someone" is illegal? I hate to tell you the disc full of IOS from Ciscokits is illegal also. The newer version of the IOS they preloaded it with? It’s illegal. They probably pass it off as "licensing is the responsibility of the buyer"

I’m not saying that everyone who has a home lab does it the right way. Most likely 99.9% do it the wrong way. But the Ciscokits method is no better than downloading it from a FTP server somewhere on the web.

Hey, hear no evil, see no evil I suppose. To each his own when it comes to home lab / test environment. I can't say that all of my testing equipment software is exactly legitimate.

Bill Kaster

mikej412 wrote:

Bill Kaster wrote:

t is not made apparent in these forums that IOSes are so difficult to come buy with older routers. A FAQ should be started on that.

Did you read the FAQ?

Remember this thread where you posted this?

Bill Kaster wrote:

My thread was locked and I was referred here to my question of how to obtain Cisco IOS. Except this thread really doesn't tell you how. So, uh, what's the deal? Call Cisco and pay?

This was 's response in that post -- did you use the search function to find the other posts that said the same thing?

Webmaster wrote:

Well, if it fits, it could work.

This is, as we mentioned several times in similar topics in these forums, why it's important to buy equipment that contains a current version. If you copy one from the other for educational purposes, fine that's up to you. I did that too in my home lab, but:

We do not tolerate illegal distribution of software in these forums (NOR BY PM), which includes Cisco IOS.

Rather than spending $1000 for a contract -- assuming it was available -- wouldn't common sense and the information above make buying a router on eBay for $25 that had the last IOS be a cheaper solution? It's still not "legal" -- but its a solution.

The reason your first thread got locked -- and the reason this thead will get locked or deleted -- is that someone will eventually take pity on you and post suggestions on how to illegally download IOS files.

Yes, except there's no FAQ on that, and it was kind of a random off-hand comment by him, no? (btw, I had already purchased the routers before I made that thread). Here is what is listed in the FAQs under "I want to setup my own home lab, what should I buy and how do I set it up?":

- Home lab -- feeback
- Setting up a lab
- The "Matt George" guide to Cisco IOS
- Where to buy cisco lab kits
- Where to start?
- Hardware for CCNA?
- CCNA Home lab question
- What type of Router to purchase
- Home Lab Q
- What routers to buy for ccna?
- How to Setup a TFTP Server & Backup/Restore 2500 IOS

Now again, not blaming you guys, but no where could I find in those FAQs any mention of Cisco support for EOL products, and many of the FAQs suggest you buy EOL routers. This vital information isn't made abundantly clear; like by starting a FAQ that in big, bold letters says "Don't buy EOL routers if you want to upgrade your IOS" or "Buy only routers with the IOS you will want to use".

Also, again, I really do greatly appreciate this web site and am sorry for the minor outburst. I just had no idea it would be so difficult to find the software, even IF I had the money to pay for it, I can't find it anywhere anyway. Just seems like a glaringly important issue that newbs like myself might need to know about.

Bill Kaster

OK, so this thread has been very illuminating, I just had no idea it would be so difficult to find what seems like a minor detail. I was dead wrong, and thanks for the suggestions.

Bill Kaster

Perhaps this should be a FAQ now?

Webmaster

dtlokee wrote:

Seriously? You are going to call Ciscokits a solution, but obtaining a copy from "someone" is illegal? I hate to tell you the disc full of IOS from Ciscokits is illegal also. The newer version of the IOS they preloaded it with? It’s illegal. They probably pass it off as "licensing is the responsibility of the buyer"

I’m not saying that everyone who has a home lab does it the right way. Most likely 99.9% do it the wrong way. But the Ciscokits method is no better than downloading it from a FTP server somewhere on the web.

Actually, CiscoKits.com no longer provides the CD with multiple IOS versions/editions on it, but only a backup of the IOS that is on the router itself (so they don't have to resend the IOS when yet another customers erases the flash...). Which is no different than buying a router+IOS installed from an(other) eBay seller apart from the fact that CiscoKits.com is more reliable than the average eBay seller. They obviously cannot sell routers/switches without IOS to students.

So please, stop bashing the few advertisers we have left in this industry. If you have anything to complain about our advertisers at least have the decency to PM me.