<\/span><\/h3>\nCisco offers several licensing tiers tailored to individual study or enterprise teams:
\n* CML Personal:<\/strong> Designed for individual engineers and certification candidates. It supports up to 20 concurrent virtual nodes.
\n* CML Personal Plus:<\/strong> Expands concurrent capacity to 40 nodes, suitable for large CCIE enterprise infrastructure simulations.
\n* CML Enterprise \/ Education:<\/strong> Multi-user, role-based licensing designed for corporate teams, higher education labs, and training centers with centralized administration and flexible node scaling.<\/p>\n<\/span>Step 2: Purchase Through the Cisco Learning Network Store<\/span><\/h3>\n\n- Navigate to the official Cisco Learning Network (CLN) Store.<\/li>\n
- Select Cisco Modeling Labs – Personal<\/strong> or Personal Plus<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
- Complete the checkout process using your Cisco.com (CCO) credentials. Subscriptions are billed annually.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
<\/span>Step 3: Download the Required Software Packages<\/span><\/h3>\nAfter purchase confirmation, open your order history in the CLN Store or log into Cisco Software Central to download two essential files:
\n1. The CML Base Virtual Appliance:<\/strong> Download the .ova<\/code> file (for VMware Workstation, Fusion, or ESXi) or the .iso<\/code> file (if performing a bare-metal installation on dedicated server hardware).
\n2. The Reference Platforms and Images (Refplat) ISO:<\/strong> A large image file (often 20 GB to 30 GB) containing the virtual software images for Cisco IOSv, IOSvL2, NX-OSv, IOS-XRv, ASAv, CoreOS, and Ubuntu desktop nodes.<\/p>\n<\/span>Step 4: Retrieve Your Smart Licensing Token<\/span><\/h3>\nIn your CLN Store account, navigate to the My Account<\/strong> section and open the Cisco Modeling Labs<\/strong> dashboard. Copy the alphanumeric registration token provided for your subscription. Keep this token accessible, as you will bind it to your installation to unlock node execution.<\/p>\nKey Takeaway: Securing both the base OVA appliance and the complete Reference Platform ISO during procurement ensures you have all required network operating system images ready for deployment without secondary downloads.<\/em><\/p>\n
\n<\/span>Hardware and System Requirements FAQ<\/span><\/h2>\nBecause CML runs genuine virtual machines inside a nested KVM hypervisor on Linux, allocating adequate host compute capacity is vital for stable simulations.<\/p>\n
<\/span>What are the minimum and recommended hardware specifications for CML?<\/span><\/h3>\n\n- Minimum Specifications (Light labs up to 5\u20138 lightweight nodes):<\/strong><\/li>\n
- CPU:<\/strong> 4 physical x86_64 cores with virtualization extensions (Intel VT-x or AMD-V).<\/li>\n
- RAM:<\/strong> 16 GB of physical host memory (at least 12 GB dedicated to the CML VM).<\/li>\n
- Storage:<\/strong> 40 GB free disk space for the base system, plus an additional 35 GB for reference platform images.<\/li>\n
- Recommended Specifications (15\u201320+ nodes, including NX-OS and XRv):<\/strong><\/li>\n
- CPU:<\/strong> 8+ physical cores (16 threads), such as modern Intel Core i7\/i9, AMD Ryzen 7\/9, or Intel Xeon\/AMD EPYC.<\/li>\n
- RAM:<\/strong> 32 GB to 64 GB of physical host memory (allocating 24 GB to 48 GB directly to the CML VM).<\/li>\n
- Storage:<\/strong> 150+ GB of fast solid-state storage (NVMe SSD recommended) to handle concurrent disk reads during node boot storms.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
<\/span>Which hypervisors and host platforms are officially supported?<\/span><\/h3>\nCML is packaged as an x86_64 appliance running Ubuntu Linux with kernel-based virtualization (KVM). Supported environments include:
\n* Type-2 Hypervisors (Desktop):<\/strong> VMware Workstation Pro \/ Player on Windows and Linux; VMware Fusion Pro on Intel-based macOS.
\n* Type-1 Hypervisors (Bare-Metal):<\/strong> VMware ESXi (version 6.7, 7.0, 8.0, and newer).
\n* Bare-Metal Installation:<\/strong> Direct ISO installation on dedicated x86 server hardware without an intermediate hypervisor layer.<\/p>\n<\/span>Can Cisco Modeling Labs run natively on Apple Silicon (M-series) Macs?<\/span><\/h3>\nNo. CML virtualizes x86_64 machine architectures through KVM. Because Apple Silicon (M1 through M4 chips) utilizes ARM64 architecture, VMware Fusion on Apple Silicon cannot provide hardware-assisted nested x86 virtualization. Mac users with Apple Silicon hardware should deploy CML to a remote bare-metal server, an ESXi host, or an x86 cloud compute instance and access the CML web dashboard through their Mac browser.<\/p>\n
<\/span>How much memory does each virtual node require?<\/span><\/h3>\nMemory overhead varies significantly by platform:
\n* Cisco IOSv (Layer 3 Router):<\/strong> ~512 MB RAM, 1 vCPU
\n* Cisco IOSvL2 (Layer 2 Switch):<\/strong> ~1024 MB (1 GB) RAM, 1 vCPU
\n* Cisco ASAv (Firewall):<\/strong> ~2048 MB (2 GB) RAM, 1 vCPU
\n* Cisco CSR 1000v \/ Catalyst 8000v:<\/strong> ~3 GB to 4 GB RAM, 1\u20132 vCPUs
\n* Cisco NX-OSv 9000:<\/strong> ~8 GB to 10 GB RAM, 2 vCPUs
\n* Cisco IOS-XRv 9000:<\/strong> ~16 GB to 20 GB RAM, 2\u20134 vCPUs<\/p>\n<\/span>Why is nested virtualization required, and how is it enabled?<\/span><\/h3>\nCML operates as a virtual machine that itself spawns child virtual machines (the simulated routers and switches) using Linux KVM. Without nested virtualization, the host hypervisor blocks the CML virtual machine from exposing hardware virtualization CPU instructions. In VMware Workstation, this must be explicitly enabled by checking Virtualize Intel VT-x\/EPT or AMD-V\/RVI<\/strong> under the VM processor settings before initial boot.<\/p>\nKey Takeaway: Adequate physical RAM and enabling nested hardware virtualization in your hypervisor are absolute prerequisites for launching multi-node network simulations.<\/em><\/p>\n
\n<\/span>Deploying and Configuring the CML Virtual Appliance<\/span><\/h2>\nOnce your hardware meets the prerequisites, deploy the appliance, configure base networking, and initialize the underlying Linux subsystem.<\/p>\n
<\/span>Step 1: Import the CML OVA<\/span><\/h3>\n\n- Launch VMware Workstation, Fusion, or your ESXi vSphere Client.<\/li>\n
- Select File > Open<\/strong> (or Deploy OVF\/OVA Template<\/strong>) and select the downloaded CML
.ova<\/code> file.<\/li>\n- Assign a name to the virtual machine and choose a fast storage datastore.<\/li>\n
- Before powering on the VM, open its hardware settings:<\/li>\n
- Allocate CPU cores (minimum 4 cores, recommended 8+).<\/li>\n
- Ensure nested virtualization flags are enabled (Virtualize Intel VT-x\/EPT or AMD-V\/RVI<\/strong>).<\/li>\n
- Allocate RAM (e.g., 16 GB to 32 GB).<\/li>\n
- Set Network Adapter 1 to Bridged<\/strong> (to place CML directly on your local LAN) or NAT<\/strong> (to use your host machine\u2019s IP sharing).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
<\/span>Step 2: Mount the Reference Platform ISO<\/span><\/h3>\n\n- In the VM settings, locate the virtual CD\/DVD drive (or add a secondary virtual CD\/DVD drive).<\/li>\n
- Point the drive to the downloaded Reference Platform
.iso<\/code> file.<\/li>\n- Check the box to ensure Connected at power on<\/strong> is selected.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
<\/span>Step 3: Run the Initial Console Setup Wizard<\/span><\/h3>\n\n- Power on the virtual machine and open its console display.<\/li>\n
- The system will boot into the initial text-based configuration wizard.<\/li>\n
- Accept the End User License Agreement (EULA).<\/li>\n
- Define your administrator credentials:<\/li>\n
- System Administrator (
sysadmin<\/code>):<\/strong> Used for host-level Linux administration and Cockpit.<\/li>\n- Initial CML User (
admin<\/code>):<\/strong> Used to log into the primary HTML5 lab interface.<\/li>\n- Configure network settings: Select DHCP<\/strong> for automatic IP allocation or configure a Static IPv4 Address<\/strong>, subnet mask, default gateway, and DNS servers.<\/li>\n
- When prompted to copy the reference platforms, confirm the copy operation from the mounted ISO to local disk, or select to mount the ISO live.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
<\/span>Step 4: Verify Subsystem Status via Cockpit<\/span><\/h3>\nCML runs the Cockpit administrative console on port 9090<\/code> for Linux system maintenance:
\n1. Open a browser and navigate to https:\/\/<cml-ip-address>:9090<\/code>.
\n2. Authenticate using the sysadmin<\/code> account created in Step 3.
\n3. Verify that CPU, RAM, and disk storage are recognized, and confirm that the cml2<\/code> system services are running without system-level errors.<\/p>\n<\/span>Step 5: Authorize Your CML License<\/span><\/h3>\n\n- Open a web browser and navigate to the main CML interface at
https:\/\/<cml-ip-address><\/code>.<\/li>\n- Log in with the
admin<\/code> credentials.<\/li>\n- From the top navigation menu, go to Tools > Licensing<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
- Click Register<\/strong> or Change Token<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
- Paste the Smart Licensing token retrieved from your Cisco Learning Network Store profile.<\/li>\n
- Click Register<\/strong>. After a short synchronization period with Cisco’s licensing servers, the status will shift to Authorized<\/strong> \/ In Compliance<\/strong>, unlocking full node execution.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Key Takeaway: Proper initial configuration via the text console paired with licensing verification in the web interface establishes a stable management foundation for running labs.<\/em><\/p>\n
\n<\/span>Building Your First Network Topology: A Step-by-Step Guide<\/span><\/h2>\nWith licensing active and the appliance running, you can create, link, boot, and configure simulated devices within the HTML5 workbench.<\/p>\n
+-----------------------+\n | CML Web Interface |\n | (Workbench Dashboard) |\n +-----------+-----------+\n |\n [ Add New Lab ]\n |\n v\n +-----------------------+\n | Drag & Drop Nodes |\n | (IOSv, IOSvL2, PC) |\n +-----------+-----------+\n |\n v\n +-----------------------+\n | Connect Interfaces |\n | (Gi0\/0 <----> Gi0\/0) |\n +-----------+-----------+\n |\n v\n +-----------------------+\n | Start Simulation |\n | (Boot Selected\/All) |\n +-----------+-----------+\n |\n v\n +-----------------------+\n | Open Device Consoles |\n | (HTML5 or Breakout) |\n +-----------------------+\n<\/code><\/pre>\n<\/span>Step 1: Create a New Lab Workbench<\/span><\/h3>\n\n- From the CML Dashboard, click the Add Lab<\/strong> button.<\/li>\n
- Click the newly created lab tile to open the canvas.<\/li>\n
- In the lower-left settings pane, assign a descriptive lab title (e.g.,
Branch-Routing-Validation<\/code>) and click Save<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/span>Step 2: Populate the Canvas with Nodes<\/span><\/h3>\n\n- Expand the Node Palette<\/strong> on the right side of the screen.<\/li>\n
- Locate the Cisco IOSv<\/strong> (Layer 3 router) icon. Drag and drop two instances onto the canvas (named
node-0<\/code> and node-1<\/code> by default).<\/li>\n- Drag an IOSvL2<\/strong> (Layer 2 switch) icon between the routers.<\/li>\n
- Select each node to view its properties in the bottom pane, where you can modify names, labels, and CPU\/memory allocations.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n