Cisco ISR4221/K9 Integrated Services Router (4000 Series ISR) Full Product Description

1. Short Overview

Naming & Variant Breakdown

• ISR4221/K9: Base AC-powered router with universal IOS XE image, embedded K9 hardware crypto, default 35 Mbps throughput
• ISR4221-SEC/K9: Pre-licensed Security bundle (Zone-Based Firewall, IOS IPS, full VPN suite)
• ISR4221-AX/K9: Advanced Services bundle supporting SRE virtualization, WAAS WAN optimization, application hosting
• ISR4221T-P/K9: PoE-enabled variant with inline power budget for IP phones via switch NIM modules
• ISR4221-DC/K9: 24–60V negative DC telecom power model for central office deployments
• -RF / -WS: Refurbished / Warranty Service SKU derivatives

Core Differentiators vs Legacy ISR 2901 (ISR G2)

1. Unified IOS XE single-image architecture (separate IOS image bundles on 2900 series)
2. Pay-as-you-grow throughput license: base 35 Mbps, upgradeable to 75 Mbps via performance license (fixed 75 Mbps max on 2901)
3. 1RU compact rack form factor vs 2U chassis for ISR 2901, lower power draw (~24W idle)
4. Native SD-WAN Viptela ready, zero-touch provisioning support (no native SD-WAN on ISR G2 without extra licenses)
5. Fixed 4GB ECC DRAM (expandable up to 8GB on 2901, factory 512MB default)
6. No PVDM DSP / UC voice support (ISR4221 does not support Unified Communications, unlike voice-capable 2900 series)
7. External AC power supply only (2901 internal PSU with RPS expansion option)
8. Single shared SFP fiber port + dual GE RJ45 onboard (2 GE RJ45 only on base 2901)

2. Hardware Interface & Physical Specifications

Modular Expansion Slots

1. 2 × NIM (Network Interface Module) universal rear slots
   Supports single-wide NIM modules for flexible WAN/access upgrades; no double-wide NIM-D support on ISR4221:

• Broadband: NIM-ADSL2+, NIM-VDSL2, NIM-G.SHDSL
• Serial/T1/E1: NIM-2T1, NIM-4E1, NIM-2B-S/T serial cards
• Wireless: NIM-4G-LTE global/NA/ST cellular backup WAN
• Switching: NIM-4GE EtherSwitch module for on-site LAN access
• Security: NIM encryption, intrusion detection auxiliary modules

1. 1 × ISC (Integrated Services Card) internal slot
   For lightweight SRE storage, SSD drives, or auxiliary application offloading (no large SM service modules supported)

Built-in Rear Physical Ports

1. 2 × 10/100/1000BASE-T Gigabit RJ45 (GE0/0, GE0/1) + 1 shared SFP mini-GBIC fiber slot
   SFP port shares hardware with GE0/0; activating fiber SFP disables the GE0/0 RJ45 port. All Gigabit ports support 802.1Q VLAN trunking, LACP link aggregation.
2. Primary RJ45 Serial Console (115200 baud, standard out-of-band CLI management)
3. Mini-USB Type-B secondary Console port (cable-free lightweight local management)
4. RJ45 AUX port for remote dial-in emergency access via analog modem
5. 2 × USB 2.0 Type-A ports: Offline config backup, logging storage, two-factor crypto authentication tokens
6. Removable 8GB CompactFlash storage slot (fixed, non-upgradeable max 8GB)
7. External DC power jack (12V input via external AC power brick; no internal hot-swappable PSU)
8. Chassis ground terminal + Kensington security lock slot for physical rack security

Memory & Performance Benchmarks

• Processor: Multi-core x86 architecture with dedicated embedded AES-256/3DES crypto hardware offload engine
• DRAM: Fixed 4GB ECC DDR3 (non-upgradeable, single soldered memory bank)
• Flash: Factory 8GB CompactFlash (max supported capacity, no dual CF redundancy)
• Aggregate multi-service throughput: Base 35 Mbps; upgradeable to 75 Mbps via permanent performance license
• Maximum concurrent IPsec/DMVPN tunnels: Up to 300 tunnels at full 75 Mbps throughput
• Supported IOS XE releases: IOS XE 16.x, 17.x universal consolidated images; feature access controlled via permanent chassis-bound licenses
• Voice capacity: No PVDM DSP slots; CME/SRST unified communications is not supported on ISR4221/K9

Physical & Power Parameters

• Rack form factor: 1RU standard 19-inch rack mount
• Dimensions (H × W × D): 43.7 × 322.6 × 254 mm (1.72 × 12.7 × 10 inches)
• Weight (empty chassis, no modules): 3.22 kg (7.1 lbs)
• Power supply: External autoranging AC brick (100–240V 50/60Hz input, 90W max output)
• Typical power consumption: 24W idle, max 60W with full NIM module load
• PoE support: Only available on-T-Pvariant, up to 120W PoE budget via EtherSwitch NIM cards
• Operating environment
  • Operating temperature: 0°C to +40°C at altitude below 1800m; derated above 1800m
  • Relative humidity: 5%–85% non-condensing
• MTBF: 593,270 hours under standard operating conditions

3. IOS XE Universal Feature Suite

Core Routing & Multi-WAN Connectivity

• Dual-stack IPv4 / IPv6 full routing suite: Static routes, RIP v1/v2, OSPF, EIGRP, BGP, IS-IS, PIM multicast, BFD fast failure detection
• WAN encapsulations: PPP, HDLC, Frame Relay, ATM, ISDN, PPPoE/PPPoA for DSL, DDR backup failover, MPLS L2/L3 VPN, GETVPN
• SD-WAN Viptela native support: Zero-touch provisioning, centralized policy orchestration, hybrid broadband/cellular/Multi-Link MPLS WAN
• NAT services: Static NAT, dynamic PAT, multi-address NAT pools, NAT64 IPv6-to-IPv4 translation
• Layer 2 features: IEEE 802.1Q VLAN trunking, LACP link aggregation, storm control, port security

Integrated Security Suite (Activated via SEC License)

1. Zone-Based Stateful Firewall (ZBFW): Deep application inspection for HTTP, HTTPS, SIP, FTP, DNS, and enterprise business protocols
2. IOS IPS inline intrusion prevention: Signature-based threat detection, automated packet drop/reset, threat logging
3. Hardware-accelerated VPN stack: AES-256/3DES IPsec site-to-site tunnels, DMVPN hub-spoke overlay, SSL VPN remote client access, GETVPN
4. AAA security framework: Local/RADIUS/TACACS+ authentication, authorization, accounting logging
5. Threat mitigation: Anti-DDoS policing, ACL filtering, control-plane protection, URL filtering, malware traffic inspection
6. FIPS 140-2 Level 2 compliant with optional physical security shield kit for government regulated deployments

QoS & WAN Optimization

• Base QoS: CBWFQ, weighted fair queuing, per-interface traffic shaping, priority queuing for voice/video
• Advanced QoS (Data license): LLQ low-latency queuing, DSCP marking/classification, NBAR2 next-generation application-aware traffic prioritization
• WAN optimization (AX license): WAAS bandwidth deduplication, compression, traffic shaping for long-distance branch links
• Link efficiency: LFI link fragmentation, cRTP VoIP header compression for low-speed DSL/ISDN backup lines

Management & Automation

• Triple out-of-band management: RJ45 Console, Mini-USB Console, AUX dial-in modem port
• Secure remote management: SSHv2, HTTPS, SNMP v1/v2c/v3, TR-069 zero-touch automated provisioning
• Graphical management: Cisco Configuration Professional (CCP), DNA Center SD-WAN orchestration, vManage Viptela controller
• File management: AutoInstall remote IOS/image deployment, CompactFlash dual boot redundancy, USB config backup/restore
• Monitoring: Persistent syslog logging, NTP time synchronization, real-time CPU/memory/throughput telemetry
• Cisco EnergyWise: Intelligent power control for attached IP phones, switches, and access points

4. Typical Deployment Scenarios

1. Small enterprise branch SD-WAN gateway: Dual NIM slots for VDSL2 primary broadband + 4G LTE cellular backup, dual onboard Gigabit ports for LAN segmentation, embedded DMVPN VPN connecting to corporate data center, zone firewall for branch LAN security, centralized DNA Center orchestration.
2. Retail store remote router: ADSL2+ NIM WAN, NIM-4GE switch module for in-store POS/PC/Wi-Fi access, SD-WAN zero-touch provisioning for multi-location retail chains, IPS threat protection for payment card compliance (PCI DSS).
3. Small agency remote office edge: Shared SFP fiber uplink for metro Ethernet WAN, 75 Mbps performance license upgrade for high-volume cloud/SaaS traffic, SSL VPN for remote employee access, WAAS optimization via ISC SSD module for bandwidth-limited lines.
4. Entry-level networking training lab router: Modular NIM expansion for DSL, T1/E1, and cellular WAN training, dual console ports for student simultaneous management, full IOS XE routing/security/SD-WAN feature set for enterprise curriculum labs.

5. Standard Package Contents of ISR4221/K9

Separately Sold Optional Accessories

• NIM modular WAN/switch/cellular interface cards (ADSL/VDSL/T1/E1/4G LTE/EtherSwitch)
• ISC internal SSD storage modules for WAAS / SRE virtualization
• DRAM memory upgrade kits (max 4GB fixed, limited upgrade options)
• CompactFlash high-capacity spare cards
• SFP fiber transceivers (GE-SX/LX/ZX for fiber uplinks)
• External PoE power injectors for non-PoE IP phones
• External redundant power supply (RPS) unit for mission-critical branches
• FIPS physical security shield kit for government compliance
• Performance upgrade license (35 Mbps → 75 Mbps permanent throughput boost)
• SEC security license bundle, AX advanced services license bundle

Software Licensing Information

1. SL-4200-DATA-K9 (Base Data License)
   Core routing, dual-stack IPv6, MPLS, NBAR2 QoS, SD-WAN base functionality, EnergyWise power management, basic NAT/VLAN features.
2. SL-4200-SEC-K9 (Security Add-on License)
   Zone-based firewall, IOS IPS, full AES-256 IPsec/DMVPN/SSL VPN suite, advanced threat mitigation, anti-DDoS policing, FIPS crypto support.
3. SL-4200-AX-K9 (Advanced Services License)
   WAAS WAN optimization, SRE virtualized application hosting, centralized DNA Center advanced orchestration, high-volume logging and traffic analytics.
   Embedded onboard K9 crypto hardware complies with US ITAR export regulations for global shipment. Unified Communications (CME/SRST) licenses and PVDM voice modules are unsupported on the ISR4221 platform.

Short Commercial Catalog Summary