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Cisco :: How to Reimage 5500-X Firewalls to FTD

In this article, we will take a look at how to reimage the Cisco 5500-X series firewalls to Firepower Threat Defense (FTD). This article assumes that the reader is already familiar with ASA’s and Firepower, however, I will list some prerequisites below.

Prerequisites

  • Access to software.cisco.com to download the required images
  • Console access and access to a TFTP & HTTP server (These are required to transfer the image files to your device)
  • Most recent backup of device configurations (During the reimage the device configuration is wiped)
  • Ensure the device has a Solid State Drive (SSD) installed the following command will help you determine whether you do or not
show inventory
  • 3 GB or more of free space, typically 3.01 is sufficient to allow space for the boot image. Use the following command to determine the current space on you 5500-X series appliance
dir
  • If re-imaging a lower end ASA such as the 5506-X, 5508-X or 5516-X the default firmware needs to upgraded to 1.1.8 or greater. All mid-range ASA’s such as the 5512-X, 5515-X etc don’t need a firmware upgrade. Use the following command to check the firmware version
show module

Video Demonstration

NOTE: Please ensure before proceeding with the re-image of your device that you have permission to do so and that you’ve read the relevant Cisco documentation. It is also recommended that you have a maintenance window if performing the reimage on equipment that is within a live environment.

This demonstration is based on the re-image of a 5506-X ASA. Below are the versions of software used for this particular device in this demonstration.

  • Firmware: 1.1.14
  • Boot Image: 9.9.2.0
  • FTD Software: 6.2.3

Demonstration Setup

Topology for illustration purposes only
  • PC to ASA has IP connectivity via the ASA’s MGMT Interface
  • PC to ASA has a console connection to the ASA

iwiizkiid

Kelvin is a Cyber Security professional with years and experience working with organisations in different verticals, both large and small. He enjoys contributing to the Network Wizkid knowledge base and he also creates technical content. Kelvin enjoys learning new things and often does this by working on achieving new technical certifications. He holds many professional certifications and academically, he has achieved a Bachelors and Master's degree in both Computer Networks and Cyber Security.

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