Ordering a wic card for cisco 2620 router

[itguru]

I am going to order a 1 port dsu/csu wan interface card for my 2620 router w/ 12.4 IOS. In the ebay auction though, it only states that the card is compatible with up to the 12.2(2) ios. Is this really the case or will it work with the 12.4 ios?

Thank you,

itguru

 

[spidey07]

It depends. I think you need a WIC2. What is the exact part number of the WIC?

Go to cisco.com and search for "2620 hardware compatibility matrix" to see.

 

[cmetz]

itguru, Cisco officially only supports the second-generation T1 CSU WICs on the ISR/12.4 series. I've seen the first-generation ones work anyway. I wouldn't risk it for any sort of production network. Otherwise, it just depends on how much you have to spend to find out if it will work for your exact situation.

 

[itguru]

Originally posted by: spidey07
It depends. I think you need a WIC2. What is the exact part number of the WIC?

Go to cisco.com and search for "2620 hardware compatibility matrix" to see.

Thank you for your reply. I have found the wic card on cisco's site, and it does confirm that the wic card is supported for all 12.x IOS releases. CISCO1-PORT T1 DSU/CSU WAN INTERFACE CARD

 

[itguru]

Originally posted by: cmetz
itguru, Cisco officially only supports the second-generation T1 CSU WICs on the ISR/12.4 series. I've seen the first-generation ones work anyway. I wouldn't risk it for any sort of production network. Otherwise, it just depends on how much you have to spend to find out if it will work for your exact situation.

These are not in a production network. They are actually for a home lab. Worst case scenario, I have previous IOS versions.

So, they do work, they are just not supported officially by Cisco on the 12.4 IOS, correct?

 

[cmetz]

>So, they do work, they are just not supported officially by cisco, correct?

My understanding is that it *sometimes* works, and sometimes doesn't. It's not that it works intermittently, it's that some hardware+software versions will work fine and some will just not support it. This is second-hand information, so apply an appropriate amount of skepticism. Cisco's official line is clearly that the first-gen T1 CSU WICs are "not supported" on the ISRs.

Do also keep in mind that eBay is flooded with counterfeit first-gen T1 CSU WICs. Your odds of getting a genuine part cheap on eBay are not good (and eBay is doing it's usual nothing about the problem). Part of Cisco's motivation here is to just kill those off. The clones are fine for home lab use, not for production use.

I don't read the chart you link to as confirming what you think it confirms. The 2620 platform is not listed anywhere on the compatibility matrix.

 

[drebo]

The 2620 platform is not listed anywhere on the compatibility matrix.

Yes it is...it's write in the table.

 

[itguru]

Cmetz, thank you for your reply.

I assumed that under the hardware compatibility, when it said 2600 (Cisco IOS versions 11.3(4)T, all 12.x) that it would support the 2620's with the 12.4 IOS.

I am nervous about trying them now...

 

[itguru]

Originally posted by: drebo

The 2620 platform is not listed anywhere on the compatibility matrix.

Yes it is...it's write in the table.

Does it list the 12.4 ios in the table? I searched for it, but it wouldnt come up. I got a 404 error.

 

[mcmilljb]

There are 2 versions of the card (v1 or v2) and support depends on which 2600 model you have.

The 2600(non XM) use the first version, and the 2600XM uses v1 or v2.

Also there are some extra features with V2 - Link.

But with tiguru's first link, it does show wide support for the original version.

Also check to make sure you know which router you're getting. A 2600(non XM) only supports IOS 12.3 according to their website. The 2600XM and 2691 support 12.4 though.

 

[itguru]

I just wanted to put in an update on this thread.

I do have the 2620 non xm version. I have explained my situation to the person that I am purchasing the card from. They have stated that if it does not work, to send it back and I will get a full refund. So I have nothing to loose by trying it out to see if it works. I will keep everyone updated.

Thank you for all of the replies!

 

[cmetz]

itguru, sorry, I totally misread your post. I thought you were asking about 28xx / 12.4 support.

First-gen T1 CSU WICs work fine on 2620. I've never seen any problem (except for counterfit modules).

I didn't know straight 2620s supported 12.4. I thought 12.4 wouldn't fit - it's a lot bigger in flash and RAM needs. I think that's how I got confused, generally folks running 12.4 are using ISRs. (maybe it's just because I wouldn't run 12.4 willingly on a box that didn't have to run 12.4...)

In my experience, if a platform and a module run under one version of IOS (say, 12.2) and the newer version of IOS runs on that platform (say, 12.4), then there should be no reason why the modules would not also work *on that platform* with that version of 12.4. Cisco's usually very good about this kind of compatibility. And the T1 WIC is one of the most common/popular modules for a 2xxx router. I'd be very surprised if you encountered a problem.

 

[itguru]

Originally posted by: cmetz
itguru, sorry, I totally misread your post. I thought you were asking about 28xx / 12.4 support.

First-gen T1 CSU WICs work fine on 2620. I've never seen any problem (except for counterfit modules).

I didn't know straight 2620s supported 12.4. I thought 12.4 wouldn't fit - it's a lot bigger in flash and RAM needs. I think that's how I got confused, generally folks running 12.4 are using ISRs. (maybe it's just because I wouldn't run 12.4 willingly on a box that didn't have to run 12.4...)

In my experience, if a platform and a module run under one version of IOS (say, 12.2) and the newer version of IOS runs on that platform (say, 12.4), then there should be no reason why the modules would not also work *on that platform* with that version of 12.4. Cisco's usually very good about this kind of compatibility. And the T1 WIC is one of the most common/popular modules for a 2xxx router. I'd be very surprised if you encountered a problem.

Ok Thanks! I feel a lot better now. I will keep you posted when I receive them!

 

[cmetz]

Please let us know if there are any problems. I don't expect any, so if I'm wrong I'd like to know...

 

[itguru]

Just wanted to update this thread. I plugged in the wic cards, and they were detected right away. Absolutely no problems what so ever! Thank you to everyone for all of your input!