Cisco licensing: part numbers, MSP and annual subscriptions

The Cisco portfolio we supply

Cisco sells its security, networking and assurance software as subscriptions, each with its own ordering guide and its own part numbers (Cisco calls them PIDs, product IDs). The table lists every Cisco family we quote on this site, what it covers, what one licence counts and where to find its part numbers. Each family page lists the current orderable codes with an Add button, the units and terms Cisco publishes, and the old codes they replace.

Cisco Meraki licences have their own home on Cloud Networking UK, our Cisco Meraki store, so the Meraki row links there rather than repeating every Meraki SKU here.

How Cisco licensing works

Most Cisco software is ordered in two layers. A top-line subscription code, such as DUO-SUB, SECURE-ACCESS-SUB or FTDV-SEC-SUB, sets the start date, term and billing for one customer. Under it sit the codes for what you actually use: an edition or tier, the quantity of users, endpoints or instances, any add-ons and a support level. A quote for one product therefore lists several part numbers, and the quantity sits on the edition line rather than the top line.

• Terms: subscriptions usually run from 12 to 60 months; Cisco's Duo ordering guide, for example, lists standard terms of 12 to 60 months. Renewal options are confirmed at quote.
• Adding licences: Cisco's ordering guide for providers says quantities added through a change-subscription order co-terminate with the existing subscription, so additions share one renewal date.
• Where licences live: many Cisco licences are registered to your organisation's Smart Account. ISE requires one, and Secure Client licences used with Threat Defense firewalls are shared to it. See Cisco Smart Licensing (opens in a new tab) for how Smart Accounts and virtual accounts work.
• Ordering: Cisco partners raise quotes and orders in Cisco Commerce (CCW), Cisco's ordering tool, using the same part numbers you see on these pages.
• Units differ by product: Duo, Umbrella, Secure Access and Secure Client count users; Secure Endpoint counts endpoints; ISE counts active endpoints; firewalls are licensed per appliance or virtual instance; ThousandEyes uses its own Units.

The comparison below puts the main codes side by side for the Cisco families that Cisco publishes under more than one buying route. Each family page has the full list, add-ons and support included.

Cisco licensing and buying at a glance

Source: Cisco Security Ordering Guide for Providers (opens in a new tab), checked 8 November 2026.

Cisco monthly MSP, annual and MSLA codes compared

The top-line and main edition codes for the Cisco families that Cisco publishes under more than one buying route, side by side. Umbrella codes can be ordered until 31 January 2027 under Cisco's notice EOL15975, and Secure Access replaces them for new buyers. Each family page has the full list, with add-ons and support.

Part numbers from Cisco Secure-Access-Sub Ordering Guide (opens in a new tab); Cisco Security Ordering Guide for Providers (opens in a new tab); Cisco EOL15975, Umbrella SIG and DNS (opens in a new tab); Cisco EOL15688, legacy Umbrella offers (opens in a new tab); Cisco Network Security Ordering Guide (opens in a new tab); Cisco MSLA Product Terms, Threat Defense Virtual (opens in a new tab), checked 2026-11-08. Add the licences you need to your basket and request a quote: we confirm the right part numbers, quantities and terms when we quote.

Three ways to buy Cisco: annual, MSP programme and MSLA

Cisco sells the same products through different buying routes, and the route changes the part numbers, the billing and how quantities are counted:

• Annual (price list): the standard route. You choose a term, typically 12 to 60 months, billed annually or prepaid, with the details confirmed at quote.
• Cisco's MSP programme: Cisco's programmes for managed service providers. Secure MSP Center offers monthly packages for Duo, Secure Endpoint and Umbrella; Provider Pricing publishes PRP- codes for Secure Access, XDR and the security suites. Forever Systems supplies Duo, Umbrella and Secure Endpoint through Secure MSP Center, per user or endpoint, billed monthly, with terms confirmed at quote.
• MSLA: Cisco's Managed Services License Agreement, a monthly, usage-based route, with published codes for products such as Umbrella DNS Security Advantage and Threat Defense Virtual.

Forever Systems buys Cisco security mainly through Cisco's MSP programme (Secure MSP Center) and also through the MSLA, so most Cisco security can be billed monthly on the users or endpoints you protect. Annual subscriptions sit alongside them where a fixed term suits your budget better.

Route by product

"Codes listed" means the part numbers are on the product page. "Confirmed at quote" means Cisco offers the route and we confirm the code in your quote. Talos retainers, Security Cloud Control, Multicloud Defense and WAN licences are listed on annual codes; ask us about other routes for them.

Licences tied to an appliance

Some Cisco licences are bought for one piece of hardware, and their part numbers name the appliance model they belong to:

• Firewall feature licences: the Threat, Malware Defense and URL Filtering subscriptions for physical Secure Firewall appliances
• Per-device firewall management: Security Cloud Control Firewall Management licences for each managed appliance
• Cyber Vision sensor licences: the intrusion detection licence for each network sensor
• Older Cisco DNA term licences for Catalyst switches, quoted per switch

For these, tell us the hardware you have, or its serial numbers, and we confirm the matching part number for each appliance when we quote. Virtual firewalls, cloud services and per-user or per-endpoint subscriptions are listed by part number on their product pages, ready to add to your basket.

Old Cisco product names and their current names

Cisco has renamed several products, and old names often survive on renewal notices and older quotes. If yours shows one of these, this is where the current part numbers are:

The Umbrella, Secure Endpoint and Secure Email pages also list the specific end-of-sale codes and the codes that replace them.

Buying Cisco through Forever Systems

Forever Systems, a Cisco Partner, quotes Cisco on annual subscriptions from Cisco's price list, through Cisco's MSP programme and under the MSLA, so we can compare the route that suits your budget and how often your numbers change.

1. Tell us what you have: users, endpoints, firewalls and sites, plus any Cisco renewal notices or old part numbers.
2. Build a basket: add the part numbers you are interested in from any Cisco page; the basket goes with your enquiry.
3. Quote: we confirm the codes, quantities, term and billing, monthly or annual, and can show routes side by side.
4. Set up and change: we can set up the licences in your Cisco accounts and help with additions, edition changes and renewals.

For Meraki, see the Cisco Networking Subscription (opens in a new tab) and Meraki licence pages on Cloud Networking UK. Compare Cisco with other vendors on our vendors A to Z, or browse firewalls and network security and SASE, ZTNA and business VPN. Contact us for a quote or a second opinion on a Cisco renewal.