Licensing changes in IOS 15 target use of illicit Cisco IOS emulators
Licensing changes in IOS 15 target users of illicit Cisco IOS emulators.
"With the release of IOS 15, users will need to punch a registration key into every machine running it to verify the software license. Cisco licenses its IOS feature sets at the time of purchase and when users purchase upgrade licenses at a later date. But students and professionals who have sought to experiment and practice at home -- but didn't want to pay thousands of dollars to do so -- had found a loophole years ago.
As long as you had a Cisco Connection Online (CCO) account, or knew someone who would share one, you could update any router with any feature set without Cisco's checking the license, according to users. Those same IOS software images could be used in a free and powerful Cisco IOS emulator, such as Dynamips, to give users the same experience as working on an actual Cisco router.
"The problem is at the upper certification levels, you pretty much have to do practical labs using real hardware on your own. A lot of people can't afford to buy $10,000 to $20,000 worth of equipment to practice on," said Stretch, who is calling on the company to develop "educational" licenses that are feature-rich but limited in some performance, such as maximum throughput support.
In response to questions about the IOS 15 updates, Cisco issued a statement defending its changes and encouraging users who want to practice and learn -- without a Cisco IOS emulator -- to utilize its Learning Partner Training Program and Cisco Networking Academy."
So, good news or bad news?
