Managing Switch without License

[amessmann]

Hello Meraki Community,

I am looking into getting a used Meraki switch (MS42P) from eBay.

Is there a way to manage it without paying for a license? (other than the trial)

If not, what functionality can I expect from it without paying?

I would like to keep costs down as I am still in high school, and it's mainly a learning experience for me.

Thank you.

[kYutobi · Accepted solution]

1 - Beginning at 30 days to the end of term, a banner begins to display within the Meraki Dashboard system alerting the admin of the impending due date.

2 - Emails are also sent out to the admin email address -which you should remember to keep current- are mailed periodically as the end date approaches.

3 - When the license itself expires, your network does NOT immediately shut down. At that point, you enter a 30-day grace period where the network still works, but the Meraki Dashboard will give warning of the impending shutdown.

4 - If that 30-day grace period ends without the licensing being brought into compliance, the network ceases to function. The Meraki Dashboard will only allow access to the license area, and any users attempting to access the network will be given an error screen telling them to contact their administrator.

At any point in this process, and even after a shutdown, the Meraki network can be easily brought back into license by calling your authorized Meraki vendor, or purchasing a Meraki license manually through an authorized vendor. Unless you only have a handful of devices, we strongly suggest contacting your vendor directly. They'll help ensure you get the right number of licenses, for the right devices, without any confusion or mistakes.

[BrechtSchamp]

If you can claim it into a dashboard (which is only possible after the previous owner unclaimed it), then you can probably start a 30 day grace period. In those 30 days you'll be able to experiment with the configurations.

After the thirty days and the whole shebang mentioned by @kYutobi you won't be able to configure or monitor anything anymore, and the network may stop functioning altogether.

In short, if you want to learn and experiment you can probably get away without a license. In production, not so much.

[BrandonS]

Since your focus is learning you might try the free dashboard demo: https://meraki.cisco.com/form/demo

[BlakeRichardson]

@amessmann  I would suggest you attend the webinars which will give you access to certain free hardware with 3 years of licensing if you are eligible. 

Much easier than potentially wasting money on eBay

[Raelis]

Hello Everybody.

@BlakeRichardson where can I suscribe to those webminars? Cannot find it.

[BlakeRichardson]

https://meraki.cisco.com/webinars/

[Newwworldmonkey]

Hi all, so i wont be able to use the switch if I am not managing the switch through the portal...

Can i use it as a switch stand alone?

And can I then manager the switch through the console port or web browser?

Thx all!!

[cmr]

@Newwworldmonkey Meraki switches are only manageable through the dashboard and you need a license for that.  There is a local admin page but it is only really there if you need to set the local IP address to allow it to connect to the dashboard.

Without a license the switch is essentially a doorstop.

[KarstenI]

And to add to what @cmr said: It will be one of the most beautiful doorstop on the market. 😉

[Newwworldmonkey]

Thx, got it!

[gingerbrown]

Once I have it configured for my use case, as a switch just for my hifi streamer, I don't expect to need to use admin again. It won't actually stop working as a switch, connected to my local network without a license, will it?!

[cmr]

@gingerbrown after about 30 days without a license it will stop working if connected to the internet, not sure about what happens if it is disconnected.

[gingerbrown]

@cmr thanks for your reply. It will be connected to my router & to my streamer. I have no need to manage the switch, so what is the license for? Surely Cisco don’t want to charge me a license for data to flow through the switch to my streamer?!

I only logged into the admin portal to register the device, since my last secondhand Meraki became unusable because the previous owner could not release it from his network. 

[BrandonS]

@gingerbrown  yes it will stop passing traffic. Think of it like a phone or a light bulb that will not work if you don’t pay for the service. 

[gingerbrown]

Hi @BrandonS, thanks for your reply.

Ok, & what makes this switch different from my TP-Link PoE one? 
I pay Virgin Media to serve me a connection to the internet through my router. I don't pay TP-Link to enable the devices connected to its ports to access the internet too.  

[BrandonS]

Nothing is really technically different with the switch.  The difference is the business models between Cisco Meraki and TP-Link.  

Meraki is "all or nothing".  You either pay for the operation, software patches/updates, security, 24x7 support and hardware replacement warranty or you get nothing.

If you didn't know or understand this when you purchased Meraki I can understand your frustration, but that is how it is. It is becoming a trend and others are moving this way too.  

The justification/explanation is usually along the lines of keeping enough recurring revenue for the business to operate successfully and continue to provide security patches, support and hardware replacement while giving the end customer a quality product, piece of mind and ongoing support.  The converse would be TP-Link (or similar) that may have outdated software with known exploits that may never be patched and support that may not be available or responsive and no hardware replacement if it breaks. And maybe TP-Link can't sustain a business model with low margins and no recurring revenue so they go out of business or get sold to another company.  

I think there will always be a place for both business models, but more movement towards recurring revenue is definitely a current trend in industry.