: Transfer the image into that directory using an SFTP client. Move and rename the target image file to virtioa.qcow2 :
: Primarily used for simulating complex switching features in a virtual environment without needing physical Catalyst 9000 hardware.
If you are building a or Network Automation environment , cat9kvprd171201prd9qcow2 (Release 17.12.01) is an excellent, stable choice. It represents a sweet spot of stability and modern feature support. cat9kvprd171201prd9qcow2 best
: Ideal for testing configurations in GNS3 , EVE-NG , or Cisco Modeling Labs (CML) .
The Cisco Catalyst 9000v Go to product viewer dialog for this item. : Transfer the image into that directory using
: Use KVM/QEMU for the best compatibility with the .qcow2 format.
Supports up to 25 ports (24 network + 1 management) depending on the boot mode Key Capabilities and Limitations It represents a sweet spot of stability and
The .qcow2 format is optimized for KVM-based hypervisors and is widely used in network simulation platforms like Cisco Modeling Labs (CML) , GNS3 , and EVE-NG . To achieve the best performance, users should adhere to the following resource allocations: UADP Mode Requirement Silicon One Mode Requirement RAM Hypervisor KVM / QEMU KVM / QEMU Why This Image is Considered "Best" for Labs
The is the absolute best software version for building modern, enterprise-grade network simulations. Released as part of Cisco’s ongoing virtual refplat updates, this exact QCOW2 image allows network engineers, CCIE candidates, and administrators to mirror physical Catalyst 9000 hardware environments directly within virtual sandboxes like EVE-NG and GNS3 . Key Specifications Specification Filename cat9kv-prd-17.12.01prd9.qcow2 OS Version Cisco IOS-XE 17.12.01 (Dublin) Platform Catalyst 9000v Virtual Switch File Format QEMU Copy-On-Write 2 (QCOW2) Minimum RAM 16 GB per node (24 GB recommended) vCPU Requirements 2 vCPUs minimum Why the 17.12.01 Image is Best for Labs