Cisco SMARTnet Extended Service for ASR 1000 Advanced Enterprise

Elevate the reliability of your Cisco ASR 1000 deployments with Cisco SMARTnet Extended Service. This premium maintenance offering combines comprehensive hardware replacement, expert technical support, and proactive service delivery to minimize downtime and maximize network uptime. Designed for advanced enterprise environments, the Extended Service delivers peace of mind by ensuring you have rapid access to Cisco’s global support ecosystem, timely hardware replacement, and software update opportunities that keep your edge routing platform secure, up-to-date, and performing at peak levels. Whether you’re running mission-critical traffic through your ASR 1000 routers or supporting a large-scale data center backbone, SMARTnet Extended Service is a strategic investment in uptime, productivity, and IT operational confidence.

• 8x5xNext Business Day hardware coverage: This service ensures rapid hardware replacement during business hours and quick on-site remediation, so your network experiences minimal disruption even during critical maintenance windows. With Next Business Day response, you’re enabled to restore services faster, reducing the financial impact of downtime and keeping key business applications online when you need them most.
• Physical service sub-type for hands-on support: The Physical service sub-type emphasizes a tactile, on-site approach that accelerates issue diagnosis and remediation. A qualified technician will handle the hardware aspects, ensuring that replacement components or devices are correctly installed and validated, which translates into fewer follow-up visits and smoother service handoffs to your internal teams.
• Replacement service included to resolve problems quickly: Replacement hardware is included as part of the coverage, helping you avoid extended outages and unplanned procurement cycles. This feature is especially valuable for enterprises relying on high-availability routing capabilities, ensuring you can maintain service levels and meet aggressive SLAs while your primary equipment is repaired or replaced.
• Access to Cisco’s expert technical support and resources: Benefit from direct access to Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC), proven best-practice guidance, and software update opportunities. SMARTnet Extended Service keeps your ASR 1000 running with access to knowledge bases, product advisories, and timely software maintenance windows that help you implement security patches and performance enhancements.
• Designed for enterprise networks needing high availability: This solution targets business-critical networks where uptime matters. The Extended Service is crafted to support complex routing environments, ensuring continued connectivity, optimized performance, and a predictable maintenance cadence that aligns with enterprise IT strategies and compliance requirements.

Technical Details of Cisco SMARTnet Extended Service for ASR 1000 Advanced Enterprise

• Service type: Cisco SMARTnet Extended Service with on-site hardware replacement and ongoing technical support
• Coverage window: 8 hours per day, 5 days a week with Next Business Day hardware replacement
• Target platform: Cisco ASR 1000 series routers and related infrastructure in an enterprise environment
• What’s included: Hardware replacement, access to Cisco TAC, software updates, product advisories, and proactive support resources
• Benefits: Enhanced uptime, reduced mean time to repair (MTTR), prioritized technical assistance, and streamlined procurement and escalation processes

How to install Cisco SMARTnet Extended Service for ASR 1000

Activating SMARTnet Extended Service for your ASR 1000 deployment is a straightforward process designed to minimize disruption and accelerate entitlement activation. Follow these practical steps to ensure your device is properly covered and your service is fully provisioned:

Step 1: Verify eligibility and purchase or renew the extended service for your ASR 1000 devices through your Cisco account, partner portal, or authorized distributor. Confirm the exact model numbers, serials, and current support contracts to avoid gaps in coverage. The renewal or purchase should align with your enterprise maintenance calendar and renewal strategy.

Step 2: Gather required service identifiers. Collect the serial numbers of the ASR 1000 routers, SKU or UPC references if applicable, and the contract or PO numbers associated with the renewal. This information is essential for entitlement verification and rapid activation within Cisco’s service portal.

Step 3: Activate the entitlement in Cisco’s support portal. Once the purchase is completed, log in to the Cisco service portal and apply the SMARTnet Extended Service entitlement to the corresponding devices. If you encounter access issues, work with your Cisco account team or authorized partner to complete activation and ensure accurate device mapping.

Step 4: Validate coverage on devices and in the portal. Confirm that the ASR 1000 devices are correctly listed under the SMARTnet Extended Service, and validate that the 8x5xNext Business Day hardware replacement option is active. Review any configuration notes or service advisories linked to the license to ensure you can leverage software updates and hardware support efficiently.

Step 5: Establish service governance and escalation procedures. Define internal ownership for service management, including points of contact, escalation paths, and SLAs. Align SMARTnet alerts and maintenance windows with your change management processes to minimize risk during software updates or hardware replacements. Consider pairing with a preventive maintenance schedule to maximize system availability.

Step 6: Educate your team on how to trigger support requests. Determine the preferred channels (portal, phone, or authorized partner), and train staff to provide precise problem statements, relevant logs, and environment details. Clear communication reduces MTTR and ensures technicians can resolve issues quickly when dispatched for on-site visits.

Step 7: Monitor performance and review periodically. Use Cisco-provided dashboards and reports to track uptime, MTTR, and device health. Scheduled reviews can help you adjust maintenance windows, anticipate replacement cycles, and identify opportunities for optimization across your ASR 1000 fleet.

By following these steps, your organization will maximize the value of SMARTnet Extended Service for ASR 1000, ensuring rapid response, reliable hardware remediation, and continuous access to Cisco’s technical expertise. The intent is to keep your routing fabric resilient, scalable, and compliant with your enterprise networking objectives.

Frequently asked questions

• Q: What is Cisco SMARTnet Extended Service for ASR 1000 Advanced Enterprise?

  A: SMARTnet Extended Service is Cisco’s premium service offering for enterprise networks, providing hardware replacement, software updates, and direct access to Cisco TAC. The Extended Service variant emphasizes on-site, hands-on hardware support and a higher level of proactive management, tailored for advanced enterprise deployments using ASR 1000 routers.

• Q: What does 8x5xNext Business Day mean?

  A: It means eight hours per day, five days a week coverage with next-business-day on-site hardware replacement. If a hardware fault is detected and requires replacement, Cisco commits to delivering replacement parts or devices on the next business day to minimize downtime.

• Q: Does SMARTnet Extended Service include software updates?

  A: Yes. The service includes access to Cisco software updates, advisories, and related technical resources, helping you keep your ASR 1000 platform current with security patches, performance enhancements, and interoperability improvements.

• Q: Can I use SMARTnet Extended Service to cover multiple ASR 1000 devices?

  A: Yes. The entitlement is typically scalable across multiple devices within your environment. You should map each ASR 1000 unit to the SMARTnet Extended Service in the Cisco service portal to ensure consistent coverage, support access, and coordinated replacements when needed.

• Q: How do I renew or upgrade my SMARTnet coverage?

  A: Renewal or upgrade is managed through your Cisco account team or authorized partner. It’s recommended to align renewal dates with your IT procurement cycles and to review device inventory, uptime requirements, and any changes in your network architecture to choose the appropriate service level for continued coverage.

• Q: What should I prepare before opening a case with TAC?

  A: Gather device serial numbers, model details (ASR 1000 variants), current firmware/software versions, existing support contract numbers, and a concise description of the issue along with recent changes to the network. Having this information ready speeds up the troubleshooting process and accelerates on-site resolution when needed.