This article describes how to download and install Cisco SDM on a Windows-based PC. It contains information about router’s memory requirements, PC requirements, router’s configuration for SDM support, and a step-by-step process to download and install SDM in a Windows-based PC. This article is designed for CCNA students, network engineers, and anyone looking to install Cisco SDM (Cisco SDM is part of the CCNA syllabus).
If you’re willing to install Cisco SDM in a Cisco router, then make sure the router has 6MB of free memory. You need 2 MB of router’s free memory whenever Cisco SDM is installed on a PC.
You can install and use SDM a PC having the following configuration:
Note: Windows 2000 Advanced Server is not supported. If you’re using non-english of Microsoft Windows (Japanese, Simplified Chinese, French, German, Spanish, and Italian language), then make sure to install on these Microsoft Windows versions: Microsoft Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 2 or later, Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional with Service Pack 4 or later.
Installing Cisco SDM on Cisco router is beyond the scope of this post, and it will be covered in the upcoming tutorials. Now, let’s see how to configure the router for SDM support:
Step 1: Connect to the router via the Console port or through a VTY connection.
Step 2: Enter the privileged EXEC mode
R1> enable
Step 3: Enter the global configuration mode
R1# configure terminal
Step 4: Enable the router’s HTTP server
R1 (config)# ip http server
Step 5: Set the HTTP server’s authentication mode to local.
R1 (config)# ip http authentication local
Step 6: Create a user account and set its privilege level to 15.
R1(config)# username admin privilege 15 password cisco
This is the minimal configuration you must have on your router to support SDM.
Downloading Cisco SDM is an easy task, just follow these instructions:
Step 1: Open this link http://www.cisco.com/pcgi-bin/tablebuild.pl/sdm.
Step 2: Click on the SDM version you want to download (for example SDM-V25.zip).
Step 3: Click next.
Step 4: Click accept.
Step 5: Enter you CCO credentials, and then click OK in order to start downloading Cisco SDM.
The following video will show you how to configure the Cisco router to support SDM, and the step by step process to install and access SDM on a windows-based PC. This video is based on the following network diagram.

This video is based on the Cisco 3725 router with Cisco IOS software 12.4, and Cisco SDM version 2.5. Additionally, a management workstation is connected to the router’s F0/0 interface.
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