Recovering from Corrupted Software
Switch software can be corrupted during an upgrade, by downloading the wrong file to the switch, and by deleting the image file. In all of these cases, the switch does not pass the power-on self-test (POST), and there is no connectivity.
This procedure uses the XMODEM protocol to recover from a corrupt or wrong image file. There are many software packages that support the XMODEM protocol, and this procedure is largely dependent on the emulation software you are using.
Follow these steps to recover from corrupted software:
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Step 1 Connect a PC with terminal-emulation software supporting the XMODEM protocol to the switch console port.
Step 2 Set the line speed on the emulation software to 9600 baud.
Step 3 Disconnect the switch power cord.
Step 4 Reconnect the power cord to the switch.
The software image does not load. The switch starts in boot loader mode, which is indicated by the switch# prompt.
Step 5 Use the boot loader to enter commands, and start the transfer.
switch# copy xmodem: flash:image_filename.bin
Step 6 When the XMODEM request appears, use the appropriate command on the terminal-emulation software to start the transfer and to copy the software image to Flash memory.
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Recovering from Lost or Forgotten Passwords on Non-LRE Catalyst 2950 Switches
Follow these steps if you have forgotten or lost the switch password on a non-LRE Catalyst 2950 switch:
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Step 1 Connect a terminal or PC with terminal emulation software to the console port. For more information, refer to the switch hardware installation guide.
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Note You can configure your switch for Telnet by following the procedure in the "Accessing the CLI" section 2-9.
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Step 2 Set the line speed on the emulation software to 9600 baud.
Step 3 Unplug the switch power cord.
Step 4 Press the Mode button, and at the same time, reconnect the power cord to the switch.
You can release the Mode button a second or two after the LED above port 1X turns off. Several lines of information about the software appear, as do instructions:
The system has been interrupted prior to initializing the flash file system. These commands will initialize the flash file system, and finish loading the operating system software:
flash_init
load_helper
boot
Step 5 Initialize the Flash file system:
switch# flash_init
Step 6 If you had set the console port speed to anything other than 9600, it has been reset to that particular speed. Change the emulation software line speed to match that of the switch console port.
Step 7 Load any helper files:
switch# load_helper
Step 8 Display the contents of Flash memory as in this example:
switch# dir flash:
Directory of flash:/
3 drwx 10176 Mar 01 2001 00:04:34 html
6 -rwx 2343 Mar 01 2001 03:18:16 config.text
171 -rwx 1667997 Mar 01 2001 00:02:39 c2950-i6q412-mz.121-14.EA1.bin
7 -rwx 3060 Mar 01 2001 00:14:20 vlan.dat
172 -rwx 100 Mar 01 2001 00:02:54 env_vars
7741440 bytes total (3884509 bytes free)
Step 9 Rename the configuration file to config.text.old.
This file contains the password definition.
switch# rename flash:config.text flash:config.text.old
Step 10 Boot the system:
switch# boot
You are prompted to start the setup program. Enter N at the prompt:
Continue with the configuration dialog? [yes/no]: N
Step 11 At the switch prompt, change to privileged EXEC mode:
switch> enable
Step 12 Rename the configuration file to its original name:
switch# rename flash:config.text.old flash:config.text
Step 13 Copy the configuration file into memory:
switch# copy flash:config.text system:running-config
Source filename [config.text]?
Destination filename [running-config]?
Press Return in response to the confirmation prompts.
The configuration file is now reloaded, and you can use the following normal commands to change the password.
Step 14 Enter global configuration mode:
switch# configure terminal
Step 15 Change the password:
switch(config)# enable secret <password>
or
switch(config)# enable password <password>
Step 16 Return to privileged EXEC mode:
switch(config)# exit
switch#
Step 17 Write the running configuration to the startup configuration file:
switch# copy running-config startup-config
The new password is now included in the startup configuration.