Catalyst in the Meraki dashboard: cloud monitoring and cloud management

What happened to Cloud Monitoring for Catalyst?

Cloud Monitoring for Catalyst let you see Catalyst switches in the Meraki dashboard while configuring them as before. It relied on a local onboarding application and a tunnel to the Meraki cloud. Meraki's documentation sets out how it was retired:

Switches that were not moved over now show as disconnected in the dashboard. Meraki states that this has no impact on device operations: the switches keep forwarding traffic, you simply lose the dashboard view. The replacement is Cloud Management with IOS XE in device configuration mode, which Meraki describes as "a significant evolution of Cloud Monitoring for Catalyst" and which onboards switches without the old local application. Cloud Monitoring for Catalyst wireless has likewise moved to cloud-native IOS XE for wireless controllers.

Cloud configuration vs device configuration

Cloud Management with IOS XE gives each Catalyst switch one of two configuration sources:

Both modes give you the dashboard's views of switch health, ports, clients and events, and a Cloud CLI terminal for troubleshooting commands. Cloud configuration also brings newer IOS XE features into the dashboard as each release adds them, including BGP, VRF, VRRP, in-service software upgrades and EVPN fabric. Meraki publishes release highlights and a list of features not yet supported in cloud configuration, and we can check that list against your design.

Which Catalyst switches can join the Meraki dashboard?

There are three routes into the dashboard, described by family rather than model:

• Cloud-born Catalyst switches: Catalyst switches ordered for Meraki management, which Cisco lists alongside the MS family on its Meraki switches page
• Existing CLI or Catalyst Center managed Catalyst switches: eligible switches can be brought under cloud management, across access, distribution and core, and industrial Ethernet families, on supported IOS XE releases (some families support only one configuration mode so far)
• Cisco Smart Switches: Cisco's newest switch families, onboarded with their own guide and licensed through Cisco Networking Subscription (unified licences, or term licences in a co-term organisation)

Eligibility depends on the model and software release. Meraki publishes the eligible families and the minimum IOS XE release for each mode, and warns that migrating an unsupported model may leave the switch unusable and void its warranty, so we check your switches against that list before any work starts.

How to add Catalyst switches to the Meraki dashboard

The outline below follows Meraki's onboarding and migration guides. Details vary by switch family and starting point.

1. Check eligibility. Confirm each switch family, its current software and licence status against Meraki's supported list, and decide between cloud and device configuration.
2. Back up. Save the running configuration of every switch before you start.
3. Prepare the network. Create or choose a dashboard network set to Cloud Management with IOS XE firmware. Meraki advises against adding converted switches to a network running Meraki's older switch firmware.
4. Onboard from the dashboard. New Catalyst switches go directly into device configuration from the dashboard; the old local onboarding application is no longer needed. For cloud configuration, follow Meraki's conversion guide for your family.
5. Migrate templates and settings. Switch templates can be migrated directly or rebuilt; they can be upgraded but not downgraded.
6. Run the pre-upgrade checks. Clear switch alerts, bad IP assignments, VLAN mismatches and stacking issues, and review unsupported features. The dashboard shows pre-check banners before an upgrade.
7. Verify and document. Confirm uplinks, routing, stacks and clients, then record which mode each switch runs in.

If you have older switches that were on Cloud Monitoring, there is one more job. After 31 March 2026, removing a switch from a dashboard network no longer clears the Cloud Monitoring settings automatically. Meraki provides cleanup scripts that need full administrative access on the switch, and recommends a configuration backup first. We can do this as part of a migration.

What changes day to day

Moving Catalyst switches into the dashboard changes a few operational habits:

• Management path: a dedicated management interface is no longer required; management runs over any Layer 3 interface, and Uplink Auto Configuration selects and maintains the uplink to the dashboard
• Console and SSH: in cloud configuration you lose remote console and SSH access and use the dashboard and Cloud CLI instead
• Firmware: upgrades are scheduled and monitored from the dashboard; downgrading back to Meraki's older switch firmware is restricted and can need a factory reset and Meraki support
• Changing mode: moving a switch from cloud configuration to device configuration goes through Meraki Support, needs a DNA licence (Meraki describes a licence return and credit route) and resets the switch to factory defaults
• Regional clouds: Meraki offers regional cloud support (India, China and Canada) for data residency requirements, with some differences for monitor-only deployments

None of this is unusual for cloud-managed networking, but it is worth agreeing with your team before the first switch moves. Our Meraki setup guide covers the wider deployment steps.

Licensing for Catalyst in the Meraki dashboard

How a Catalyst switch is licensed in the dashboard depends on how it was bought:

• Cloud-born Catalyst switches need Meraki licences. Meraki allows a 30-day grace period for onboarding.
• Existing Catalyst switches with DNA licences can use the Cisco Cloud Entitlement for DNA offer: eligible switches migrate to cloud management on their existing DNA licence, with no licence migration or transfer needed until 1 February 2029.
• Cisco Smart Switches use Cisco Networking Subscription unified licences, which allow cloud, mixed or on-premises management. Smart Switch term licences bought under co-termination are cloud-only.

Meraki licensing has three models (co-termination, per-device and subscription) that cannot be mixed in one organisation, so it pays to plan this before onboarding. See our guides to the Meraki licensing models and Meraki MS licensing. Pricing depends on families, terms and model: ask us for a quote.

How Forever Systems helps

Forever Systems is a Cisco Partner. We can audit your Catalyst switches for eligibility, recommend cloud or device configuration for each site, plan licensing, migrate switches and templates, and clean up switches left behind by Cloud Monitoring.

If you are still choosing between platforms, our Cisco Meraki vs Catalyst guide compares them, and our cloud managed switches guide covers the wider options. For supply and installation of Meraki switches, see Forever Group. Contact us to plan your move.