TechKnowSurge
Cisco CCNA 5.3 Cisco CCNA 2.8 Cisco CCST Networking 5.5 Cisco CCST Networking 5.4 Cisco CCST IT 6.1
TechKnowSurge Catalog Videos DEMO: Initial Configuration Dialog
VideoNetworkFree

DEMO: Initial Configuration Dialog

A brand-new or reset Cisco switch has no configuration and prompts for initial setup on first boot. This walkthrough covers using the setup dialog to assign a hostname, set enable and VTY passwords, configure a management IP on VLAN 1, and access the switch remotely via Telnet.

⚑ Complete this video to capture a CTF flag worth 1 point.

About this video

A Cisco switch that has never been configured, or one that has had its configuration wiped, will automatically prompt for initial setup when it first boots. The setup dialog walks through the core elements of basic switch management in a structured sequence, collecting a hostname, an encrypted enable secret, a plaintext enable password, and a virtual terminal password before moving on to interface configuration. While the dialog is a legitimate and supported method, many network engineers prefer to prepare their configurations in a separate document and paste them in directly, reducing the chance of input errors during live setup. That said, understanding how the wizard works provides important context for how Cisco IOS initializes a device from scratch. During the interface configuration phase, the dialog lists all available interfaces and prompts for a selection of the management interface, which is VLAN 1 in standard switch deployments. An IP address and subnet mask are assigned to that interface, giving the switch a presence on the network for out-of-band management. Once all parameters are entered, the dialog displays the resulting configuration and offers the option to save it to NVRAM, making it persistent across reboots. After saving, the switch can be accessed locally via the console using the enable secret, or remotely over Telnet using the configured management IP address and VTY password, with privileged EXEC access granted by entering the enable secret at the prompt.

What you'll learn

What's covered

Switch Initial Configuration

Aligned to

Cisco CCNA
5.3 Configure and verify device access control using local passwords
2.8 Describe network device management access
Cisco CCST Networking
5.5 Run basic show commands on a Cisco network device
5.4 Differentiate between different ways to access and collect data about network devices
Cisco CCST IT
6.1 Use remote access software to connect to end user devices

Key terms

Switch
A network device that connects devices within a LAN and forwards traffic based on MAC addresses.
Virtual LAN
VLAN
A logical grouping of network devices that behave as if they are on the same network regardless of physical location.
IP Address
A numerical label assigned to each device connected to a network that uses the Internet Protocol.
Default Gateway
The router that a device uses to send traffic to destinations outside its local network.
Enable Secret
A Cisco IOS command that sets an MD5-hashed password for privileged exec mode, taking precedence over enable password and stored as a hash in the running configuration.
VTY Lines
VTY
Virtual terminal lines on a Cisco device that allow multiple simultaneous remote management sessions over a network connection.

Topics

Cisco Ios Switch Configuration Initial Setup Dialog Vlan Management Telnet Network Device Management Networking

Transcript

Why the dialog appears

When you first get a device, it is not going to have any configurations on it. Also, when you delete those configurations and restart the device, it is not going to have any configurations on it either.

So it goes through its boot up process, and the first thing that comes up when we hit enter here is that it is going to ask us: would you like to go into the initial configuration dialog, yes or no?

This is a way that we can start setting up basic management of this switch. I could choose yes and it will step me through a little wizard that will set up the basic management of this switch, and that is what we are going to do here in a second.

I will mention that is typically not what I do. Typically what I will answer here is no, and then I will have my configs written out on a separate document and I will copy and paste them into my device. I just find it easier, and usually, because I am copying and pasting, there is less chance for error. But because I want to make sure that everybody understands what this process looks like, let us take a look at it.

Working through the setup wizard

Here I would type in yes, I want to go through this. Would you like to enter basic management setup? Yes, I want to set up the management for the switch.

What do I want to give this, the name of the switch? If I just hit enter, it is going to take whatever is in the bracket, which says switch, but I want to call this switch 1, so I am going to type in switch 1 and hit enter.

Next it is asking me for the enable secret. For the enable secret I am going to type in secure2 - that is the one that I did in the past. This is the enable secret, I hit enter.

Then it is asking me for the enable password, which is the same thing except it is just not encrypted, and it is really superseded by the other. So I will put it in here anyway, but there is really no place I am going to use this, because I have the enable secret. So I type in the secure1 in there.

Then it asks me for the virtual terminal password. What I used for the virtual terminal password was secure4, so let us just use the secure4.

Do I want to configure an SNMP network management? This is if I had a separate server that was collecting management information on this device. No, I do not want to do this. If I hit enter it just accepts the default of no, so that is what I am going to do.

Now it is listing out all of the interfaces that I have available on this switch, and it is going to ask me a question here in a second about which interface I want to use for my management interface. It is VLAN 1 that I will be using for my management interface, so I will type in VLAN 1.

Do I want to configure an IP address for it? If I hit enter right here, then I would not be configuring it, but I do want to, so I am going to type yes. The IP address for this interface - I am going to type in that address. It recognizes it is a class C and gives me a 255.255.255.0, which is what I want, so I am going to click yes on there.

Would you like to enable this switch as a cluster? No, I do not want to do that, so I am going to hit enter.

Saving the configuration

Now what it is doing is showing me the running configuration on here, or what I could save as the startup configuration. It is showing me: do you want to implement this, do you want to do this? I have got a few options here. The last one is save this configuration to NVRAM and exit, so that is what I want to do. I am going to click 2 - or actually I do not really need to type anything here, I can just hit enter, because the default is 2.

It is going to go through the saving, and I am going to type in enable and then I type in that enable secret password, so that is secure2. I am into the switch. So there you go, a fast way of configuring this.

Getting in over Telnet

Another way that I can do this is I can go and pull up a new session. I want a Telnet session, and I am going to type in the address, 192.168.74.2. I am going to click on open. It is going to open up the configuration, and it is asking for a password, and the password I set for there was secure4, so I typed that in. I am now into the switch.

I go into enable mode - that is secure2 for the password for that - and now I am in my privileged exec mode. So it could be a much faster way of getting in and configuring a switch. Although, once again, like I say, I like to have everything all typed out already, that I can double check and make sure I am getting everything correct, and then it is just a matter of copy and paste into the configuration. So typically I do not go down this route, but it is an option that is available for you.

About TechKnowSurge

TechKnowSurge builds IT and cybersecurity professionals through hands-on, concept-first training built around real understanding — not memorization. Free interactive tools, structured programs, and 25+ years of real-world experience, all in one place.

Explore free tools and programs →