Overview

Cisco CSR (Cloud Service Router) 1000v is available on GNS3, and this article explains how to use CSR1000v on GNS3.

CSR1000v is available by importing an appliance from GNS3 Market Place. Importing Market Place’s appliance for CSR1000v makes it easy to create a template to run CSR1000v on QEMU on GNS3 VM server.

Note that this page is based on the following environment

Host OSWindows10 Pro
GNS3 version2.2.33.1
GNS3 VM version2.2.33.1
Virtualization HypervisorVMware Workstation 16.6.2

It is also assumed that the GNS3 VM server setup is complete.

Related article

See also the following article on setting up GNS3 VM server.

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Setting up the GNS3 VM server
https://www.n-study.com/en/how-to-use-gns3/gns3-vm-server-setup/
When using GNS3, it is recommended to use it on a VM server.This page describes how to set up a GNS3 VM server using VMware Workstation.

Procedures for using CSR1000v

The procedure for using CSR1000v on GNS3 is as follows

Step1:Download required files
Download the GNS3 appliance file and CSR1000v image file.
Step2:CSR1000v template creation (import of GNS3 appliance)
Import the appliance file to create the CSR1000v template.
Step3:Place in a project for use
The CSR1000v template is placed in the project for use.

Download required files

To create a CSR1000v template, download the following files

  • CSR1000v appliance(From GNS3 Market Place)
  • CSR1000v image file(From Cisco)

Download the appliance file for CSR1000v(cisco-csr1000v.gns3a) from GNS3 Market Place.

Link

GNS3 appliance file “cisco-csr1000v.gns3a”

https://gns3.com/marketplace/appliances/cisco-csr1000v

The version of CSR1000v supported by this appliance file is listed.

Select the version of CSR1000v you wish to use. [Download] links to the Cisco download page; download the appropriate CSR1000v from the Cisco website. The CSR1000v image file to be downloaded has the extension “.qcow2”.

Please note that in order to download CSR1000v, you must have a service contract for the appropriate account. It is not free.

CSR1000v template creation (import of GNS3 appliance)

Once you have downloaded the necessary files, the rest is easy. Import “cisco-csr1000v.gns3a” from the GNS3 menu [File] -> [Import appliance]. Then follow the on-screen instructions.

On the [Required files] screen, select the CSR1000v image file. Click [Import] to import the image file. Then select the image file you wish to use and proceed with [Next]. The CSR1000v image file will be copied from your local PC to the GNS3 VM.

Click [Finish] to complete appliance import.

Templates created by appliance import can be found at [Edit]->[Preferences]->[Qemu VMs]. The template created in this appliance file has a GigabitEthernet 4-port interface. You can change the name of the template and the number of interfaces if necessary.

Place in a project for use

Once you have created the CSR1000v template, place it in your project workspace and use it; CSR1000v takes quite a while to start up (about 3 minutes).

How to use GNS3