CloudGen Firewall Cold Spare Replacement

The Barracuda Networks Cold Spare Program provides a Cold Spare unit to the customer in case of failure (software or hardware). This unit is to be used for the rapid replacement of existing hardware. Customers buy a Cold Spare either because they want a faster response time, or because it is more cost-efficient than buying IR on several units. In general, the following subscriptions are available for the Barracuda CloudGen Firewall:

• No HW replacement subscription (IR/WE) – 1-year warranty from shipping date
• Instant Replacement (IR) – 24h replacement, best effort, express shipping (overnight), hardware refresh after 4 years of use
• Warranty Extension (WE) – Max. 5 years purchasable per SN#, next business day, best effort, standard shipping
• Cold Spare – 1-year warranty from shipping date (IR/WE not purchasable for Cold Spare part numbers)
• HA appliance without IR/WE – Requires individual subscriptions.

The purpose of a Cold Spare unit is to quickly replace an appliance. For this reason, a Cold Spare appliance can run with licenses of another serial number for 15 days (grace period). Approved Return Material Authorization (RMA) for Cold Spare is necessary only when customers have a valid warranty, Instant Replacement (IR), or a Warranty Extension (WE) because they will then get a replacement appliance free of charge.

The Cold Spare unit includes a Cold Spare license for firmware only. It prohibits production use for firewalling and any other functions. The appliance firmware can be upgraded to the version of the customer’s choice. If the production unit fails, the Cold Spare unit can be used to temporarily host the license and configuration file (“PAR file“, including the license) of the defective unit for a period of up to 15 days. When customers request the license swap, new keys are issued for the CloudGen Firewall. The Cold Spare inherits the subscription/license status of the defective product as soon as the swap is performed by Barracuda Networks.

CGF Cold Spare Replacement Process

1. Customer replaces the original appliance with the Cold Spare unit (using a USB setup with the PAR file of the original box, which also includes the licensing). For more information, see Backups and Recovery and How to Restore the Firewall Configuration when Replacing Hardware Firewall Models.

   Cold Spare runs 15 days in grace mode with licenses of the failed replaced unit.

2. Customer contacts Barracuda Networks Technical Support and informs them about the Cold Spare swap.
   • A ticket is created for the license swap.
3. It is clarified if the original (failed) box is under Warranty, IR, or WE:
   • If NO, the license swap ticket is just forwarded to Customer Services.
   • If YES, a support ticket is created for RMA after verification. The RMA (for a new Cold Spare) and License swap tickets are forwarded to Customer Services.

   Only Customer Services can perform the license swap to the Cold Spare SN#

   • RMA approval is necessary only for original box with Warranty, IR, or WE.
   • License swap needs to be done within 15 days.
   • The replaced unit will be terminated during the license swap.
   • After the license swap, the Cold Spare unit is converted to a regular box, and takes over all subscriptions from the replaced SN#.
   • The licenses are re-issued for the new SN#. The former Cold Spare should download the new licenses automatically.
4. In case of RMA, the customer returns the old unit. For shipping addresses, see Appliance Replacement, RMA, and Data Migration.