Last updated:
19-JAN-2016

Using Routers with Cisco dCloud

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How Routers Work with Cisco dCloud

Routers manage the network communication among components of an active dCloud session. Routers that are built into dCloud content start and work automatically as a session becomes active, with no additional work from you.

You can also use a router that you provide with some dCloud sessions. Most often, you provide a router to manage connections between an active session and endpoints that you plug into or connect wirelessly to the router, such as your laptop, IP phones, or video conference equipment.

To set up your router for dCloud use, you connect the router to the Internet, add it to dCloud, and then configure it with customized configuration files that you download from dCloud. You need to add and configure a router for dCloud use only once for each router.

After configuration, your router connects automatically to any session to which you add it. You do not need to perform any additional actions to start the IPSec VPN tunnel that connects the session and router. It can take up to 5 minutes after the session becomes active for the VPN tunnel and session/router connection to be fully operational. The connection is initiated automatically when you do either of the following:

  • Connect your laptop to the router using a wired or wireless connection and initiate traffic to the virtual machines in an active dCloud session.
  • Connect an IP phone, a video conferencing device, or another device to the router’s switch ports.

You include your configured router in a dCloud session by selecting it when you schedule a session and by adding the router to an active session. You can also share your configured router with other dCloud users. Added users can include your router in a dCloud session if the router is not in use by you or others which whom you shared it.

Because space for user-provided router configurations is limited, routers that are not used for 6 months are automatically removed from Cisco dCloud.

Supported and Recommended Routers

Supported routers are the router models that you can select when adding a router to dCloud and that were tested with Cisco dCloud. Recommended routers are the subset of supported router models that are best suited for use with different dCloud content types.

For lists of supported and recommended routers, see:

  • Supported Routers for the router models tested with dCloud. The list includes the configuration tested for each router model, including the Cisco router and AP IOS versions and the physical router ports used to connect the router to the Internet and to external devices including laptops, IP phones, and VXC devices.
  • Recommended Routers for the subset of router models recommended for dCloud use. The list includes router and component product numbers and prices to help you order a router to use with dCloud.
  • Routers Recommended for dCloud Architectures for router models recommended for use with different dCloud content types.

Ways to Configure a Router for dCloud Use

You can use several different methods to configure your router for Cisco dCloud. All methods involve applying a customized dCloud configuration to your router. The customized configuration files are generated when you add your router to dCloud, and you download the configuration files to use to configure your router for dCloud.

If you are not familiar with configuring routers, we recommend that you use the dCloud Router Configuration Tool to configure your router.

If you are familiar with configuring routers, you can configure your router using the dCloud configuration files and any approach you normally use. Router Configuration Methods for Cisco dCloud lists a few different methods you can use to configure a router for dCloud use and links to configuration steps for each method.

Using Newer Router IOS Versions with dCloud

The Supported Routers list includes the Cisco IOS version installed on each router model during dCloud testing. A newer Cisco IOS version may be installed on or available for your router. If you encounter problems using a newer Cisco IOS version, contact Cisco dCloud Support.

Routers used with Cisco dCloud must support Cisco® Easy VPN. At this time, routers running Cisco IOS XE do not support Easy VPN and cannot be used to connect endpoints to Cisco dCloud.

Unsupported Router Use with dCloud

You can add an unsupported router to Cisco dCloud by selecting a supported router model and entering the serial number (SN) of your router. You will need to download the generated configuration files and then manually edit them to make the unsupported router work on Cisco dCloud.

The Cisco dCloud Team does not provide support for configuring or troubleshooting unsupported routers.

CVO Router Use with dCloud

If you are a Cisco Virtual Office (CVO) user and your laptop connects to the Internet through a CVO-issued router:

  • Use the public Ethernet ports on your CVO router to connect to an active dCloud session
  • Before logging on to Cisco dCloud to use an active session, log off from programs on the Cisco internal network and disconnect from your Cisco work VPN

Router Ports for Internet and Device Connections

For the router ports to use for cable connections to the Internet and to devices, refer to the router model and then to these columns in the Supported Routers list:

  • External/Internet Port: Port to use to cable the router to the Internet connection.
  • Switch Ports: Ports to use to cable the router to laptops, IP phones, and video conference (VXC) devices.

Wireless Product Regulatory Domain and Approval

Some dCloud content requires user-provided wireless routers. Users are responsible for verifying approval of these wireless routers for use in their individual countries.

To verify approval and to identify the regulatory domain that corresponds to a particular country, see http://www.cisco.com/go/aironet/compliance.