5 Basic Cisco Switch Commands You Need to Know

Have you recently tried configuring a Cisco switch, only to realize you've forgotten the commands? You're not alone; we all need a refresher once in a while -- so, here's your refresher course.

Whether you are brand new to Cisco networking or a veteran with decades of experience, it's usually smart to memorize these fundamental Cisco switch commands. For this discussion, we'll be using PuTTY!

Download the guide and refer back to it at any time!

If you're needing to extend the life of your Cisco 3850s while waiting for your Catalyst 9200, 9300, 9400, or 9500 Series switches to arrive, PivIT supports these switches on our OneCall third-party maintenance offering.

Watch the video below for more details: 

As you know, the switch is the heart of your network. It links all other equipment and gathers important information about your network traffic.

Whether installing a brand new switch or simply reorganizing your network, the first step is connecting your device to the switch's console port.

Then, we'll move to the configuration of the switch. The initial configuration allows the switch to recognize the new devices that are attached.

Not the configuration guide you're looking for? View some of our others:

• Configuration Guide: Routing Between VLANs
• A Quick Guide to EIGRP Configuration with Stub Routing
• Configuration Guide: STP Extension in Cisco NX-OS

Basic Cisco Switch Commands in Five Tasks

All you need to know to learn or refresh your knowledge of the basic commands for Cisco switches can be broken down into these five tasks:

• Task 1: How To Access a Switch
• Task 2: How To Set Up a Switch To Enable Passwords
• Task 3: How To Set Up a Cisco Switch Host Name
• Task 4: How To Configure the MOTD Banner in Your Switch
• Task 5: How To Configure Telnet on Your Cisco Switch

Task 1: How To Access a Switch

We can access the switch using different software. Most PuTTY and secure CRTs are used to access the switch through a console cable. This physical connection is shown below.

Let's configure the switch:

1. Download PuTTY. 
2. Connect the console cable to your Cisco router or switch.  
3. Run the downloaded putty.exe file.
4. Using the PuTTY navigation, expand "Connection" then select "Serial."
5. Enter the port number inside the "Serial line to connect to" text box. The port number is COM4 in the sample below, but the port number may be different for your connection. Correctly identifying the port is crucial for proper configuration.
6. Next, we'll configure the serial line. For this example, we've used the values below: 
   • Bits per sec: 9600
   • Data bits: 8
   • Stop bits: 1
   • Parity: None
   • Flow control: XON/XOFF
     
7. Press "Open," and the command line will appear where you can configure your switch.

Task 2: How To Set Up a Switch To Enable Passwords

You'll want to set up a switch password for added security. Be sure to know the Cisco basic configurations before moving towards advanced configurations. You can configure a secure password, as shown in the image below.  

Task 3: How To Set Up a Cisco Switch Host Name

You can easily configure your Cisco switch's hostname to identify the switch location. The picture below shows how one can configure each switch's hostname.

You'll need this option if your network has multiple switches installed and it is difficult to remember all of the switches. You can configure a hostname to remember its location. Configuration is given below: 

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As part of PivIT's EXTEND, we offer a secure, isolated, and remote environment to pre-configure your network, compute, and storage hardware before deployment to your locations worldwide using our out-of-band (OOB) management platform. Find out more about how our Remote Staging Environment works.

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Task 4: How To Configure the MOTD Banner in Your Switch

Users will be presented with a MOTD (Message of the Day) banner every time they attempt a connection via the console port, auxiliary port, SSH, or a telnet session to the Cisco switch. Use the commands below to configure your MOTD message.

Notice the # character is before and after the message. We mostly used this banner for security purposes so that if anyone mistakenly accesses this switch, we can convey a legal message to them.  

Task 5: How To Configure Telnet on Your Cisco Switch

In this task, we configure telnet services on a switch to access it from anywhere remotely. This configuration is similar to how you would configure telnet on routers. Telnet allows you to configure, monitor, and manage your switch from remote locations. 

To use this feature, you have to configure and enable passwords for telnet configurations. Below are the configurations. 

Additional Resources To Keep Your Network Running

Need to implement these Cisco switch commands on an actual unit? Explore your switch options here at PivIT. Click below to learn more about the switch solutions we can bring to your network, whether it be the hardware itself, maintenance, or the field services you need to get online.

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