Cisco Meraki Firmware FAQ

How does the upgrade process work?

Cisco Meraki devices have two memory partitions that store the old and new firmware in parallel. While the new firmware is downloading, the device continues normal operation on the old firmware. Once the new firmware has been successfully downloaded, the device will reboot and the new firmware will be loaded. If the new firmware fails to load, the device simply reverts to the old firmware. For more information, refer to our Best Practices for Meraki Firmware article.

How long does a firmware upgrade take?

The upgrade process generally takes under 11 minutes on wired devices with a fast Internet connection. Approximately 10 minutes or less for the firmware to be downloaded, and about 1 minute for the device to reboot and assume normal functionality. It may take a few minutes longer for various elements of dashboard to update and begin displaying live data. 

Are my devices up to date?

The easiest way to see if a device is up to date is by looking at the device details page in Dashboard. Under the Status section, refer to the line for Configured firmware. This should read "Up to date".

The location of the status Status section in Dashboard will depend on the specific device:

MX Series Security Appliances

1. Navigate to Security & SD-WAN > Monitor > Appliance status.

Z1 Teleworker Gateways

1. Navigate to Teleworker gateway > Monitor > Appliance status.

MS Series Switches

1. Navigate to Switching > Monitor > Switches.
2. Click on the name of the desired switch.
   Note: Unless manually configured otherwise as part of a case with Cisco Meraki Support, all switches in a network will be running the same firmware version.

MR Series Access Points

1. Navigate to Wireless > Monitor > Access points. 
2. Click on the name of the desired access point (AP).
   Note: Unless manually configured otherwise as part of a case with Cisco Meraki Support, all APs in a network will be running the same firmware version.

If a newer firmware version is available, the Configured firmware field will indicate that an update is available and provide a link to where it can be scheduled:

How often are upgrades done?

Firmware upgrades are released periodically and deployed in stages across customer networks. This phased approach helps deliver new features and fixes while minimizing disruption and maintaining stability at scale.

Administrators are notified at least one week in advance by email, and upgrade details are also shown in Dashboard before the upgrade occurs.

When will my devices be upgraded?

Periodic upgrades will be scheduled to occur beginning at the Upgrade window time specified in Network-wide > Configure > General > Firmware upgrades.

If an upgrade has been scheduled, any applicable network administrators will receive a notification one week prior to the scheduled upgrade. It can also be found under the Firmware upgrades section listed above.

How do I get the latest firmware earlier?

Navigate to Organization > Monitor > Firmware upgrades in Dashboard.

From this page you can browse all available firmware versions and changelogs. From this page, if you select the All networks tab, you can select the intended network/device type and can select Schedule upgrades to move to the latest beta release.

Where can I see what version I have and a list of features/changes?

You can view the firmware version for the network by navigating to Organization > Monitor > Firmware Upgrades in Dashboard, and selecting the Schedule upgrades tab. The Current firmware version column will show the firmware version that each network in your organization is configured for.

You can navigate to the Overview tab, Latest firmware versions to view the release notes for that firmware version. For more information about available features please consult our documentation, contact your Cisco Meraki sales representative, or Cisco Meraki support.

If I schedule an upgrade on my template network, when do the child networks upgrade?

When scheduling an upgrade on a template network, all child networks will upgrade at that time within their respective timezones. For example, if a template network is scheduled for an upgrade at 7PM, all child networks will upgrade at 7PM in their configured timezones.

What versions of firmware are available? 

Firmware versions are grouped into three release stages in the Firmware upgrades tool:

• Beta – Early access to new features and fixes for testing and validation.
• Generally Available (GA) – Production-ready firmware that is fully supported.
• Recommended Release – The most widely adopted and proven GA version, and the default choice for most networks.

In addition to the latest releases, earlier GA firmware versions (such as maintenance or hot-fix builds) may also be available. These remain fully supported but may not include the newest features. For more details on firmware versioning and naming, refer to the Meraki Firmware Conventions documentation.

Will administrators be able to upgrade to any firmware version? 

No, administrators are only able to upgrade between recommended release, generally available, and beta firmware versions.

What do the firmware changelog notes include?

The firmware changelog notes include information about feature additions and capabilities, as well as information about bug fixes. Issues under investigation by Meraki Engineering will not show up in the firmware changelog notes until they have been verified by Meraki as a bug.

How long after an upgrade can firmware be rolled back?

Firmware rollbacks can be performed up to 14 days after an upgrade has completed.

Can administrators roll back just one site?

Yes, administrators have the ability to roll back a single network, as well as the entire batch of upgraded networks.

Can administrators roll back to any version that there device may have been running?

No, the rollback tool will only allow administrators to roll back to the previous firmware version.

How does one upgrade a combined network?

The firmware upgrade tool allows administrators to schedule firmware upgrades on a device-type basis. As such, combined networks will be represented in the firmware upgrade manager as separate items (For example, by Wireless, Security, Switching, etc.)  Removing specific device types from a combined network does not prevent the firmware upgrade manager from representing combined networks as separate items.

How does one upgrade a template?

Firmware for templates is managed on a per-template, per-product basis. Scheduling a firmware upgrade on a template will ensure that all networks bound to the template upgrade to the selected firmware version.

Can firmware upgrades be rescheduled or canceled?

Yes, on the Overview tab under Scheduled changes, you can select the name of the network and then click either Reschedule or Cancel. Canceling a firmware upgrade will set the network to ignore firmware upgrades until the upgrade is scheduled again, or a mandatory upgrade is released. For more information, refer to this article.

Why are there multiple firmware versions to upgrade to?

You may notice that there are numerous firmware versions to chose from when trying to upgrade a device, this is due to there being different versions of firmware available as discussed earlier. By default, when trying to upgrade a device, the firmware pre-selected will always be the recommended release, despite the fact that you may be on higher version or patch version as seen below:

How do I know which firmware version to upgrade to?

Can firmware upgrade scheduling be completely disabled?

No, firmware upgrade scheduling cannot be disabled. However, firmware upgrades can always be canceled, and organization admins are, by default, notified via 'Scheduled maintenance' emails when firmware upgrades are scheduled.