What is typically the first step before backing up configurations using TFTP?

Before backing up configurations using TFTP, verifying network connectivity is critical. This step ensures that the device you're backing up from can communicate with the TFTP server over the network. If there are issues with network connectivity, the backup process will fail, causing unnecessary troubleshooting later.

Network connectivity can be confirmed by pinging the TFTP server from the device. This ensures that the device can reach the TFTP server and that there are no routing or firewall issues obstructing the communication. Having a stable connection is foundational for data transfer protocols like TFTP, which rely on uninterrupted network paths to successfully send or receive files.

While ensuring the TFTP server is powered on is important, it is a secondary step because, without proper network connectivity, even a powered-on server cannot receive any backup data. Checking configuration integrity is useful after the backup to ensure data consistency but does not affect the initial backup process. Updating the router firmware is unrelated to the backup process itself and is typically concerned with device performance and security rather than the immediate task of backing up configurations.