B-20
Catalyst 2950 Desktop Switch Software Configuration Guide
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Appendix B Working with the IOS File System , Configura tion Files, an d Software Ima g es
Working with Software Images

Deleting a Stored Configuration File

To delete a saved configuration fr om Flash mem ory, use the delete flash:filename privileged EX EC
comm and. Dep ending on the settin g of the file prompt global c onfigura tion c om mand , you mig ht b e
prompted for c onfirmation be fore yo u d elete a file. By de fault, the swi tch promp ts for c onfirmatio n on
destructi ve fi le operations. For more information about the f ile pr ompt command , refer to the Cisco IOS
Comman d Re ference for R elease 12. 1.
Caution You canno t restor e a file after it has been de leted.

Working with So ftware Image s

This se cti on desc ribe s how to arc hive (download an d u ploa d) sof tware ima ge files, whi ch con tai n t he
system software , IOS code, and the web ma nagement HTML files.
You download a switch image file from a TFTP, FTP, or RCP server to upgrade the switch software. You
can replace the current image with the new one or keep the current image in Flash memory after a
download.
You upl oad a switch i mage file to a TFTP, FTP, or RCP ser ver for backup pu rposes. You can use this
upload ed image for fu ture downloads to the sam e switch or anot her of the sam e type.
The prot ocol you use depends on whic h type of ser ver you are using . The FTP an d RCP trans port
mecha nis ms provi de fast e r pe rfo rm an ce a nd m ore r e lia ble del ivery of da ta than T F TP. These
improvements are possible b ecause FTP a nd RCP ar e built on a nd use the Tran smission Co ntrol
Protoco l/Int erne t Pro toc ol ( TCP/I P) sta ck, w hich is co nnect ion -or iente d.
This section includes this information:
•Imag e Locat ion on the Switch, page B-2 0
•tar Fil e Form at of Imag es on a Server or Cisc o.co m, page B -21
•Copying Image Files By Using TFTP, page B-22
•Copying Image Files By Using FTP, page B-25
•Copying Image Files By Using RCP, page B-29
Note For a list of software im ages and the supported upgrade paths, r efer to the release notes that shipped wi th
your switch.

Image Location on the Switch

The IOS im ag e i s st or ed as a .bin file in a director y that shows the version nu mber. The same
subdirectory contains the HTML files needed for web management. The image is stored on the system
board Flash me mory (fla sh:).
You ca n use the show ver sion privileged EXEC command to see the software version that is currently
running on yo ur sw it ch. I n the displ ay, chec k the line tha t b egins w ith System image file is... . It
shows the directory name in Flash memory where the image is stored.
You ca n also use th e dir filesystem: privileged EXEC command to see the dire ctory na mes of othe r
software imag es yo u m ight have stored i n Fl ash mem ory.