Cisco Certification: Taking Your First Certificati

Cisco Certification: Taking Your First Certification Exam

by: Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

You’ve studied hard; you’ve practiced your configurations; you’ve used your flash cards over and over again; and finally, the big day is here. Your first certification exam!

For many Cisco certification candidates, their first exam is the CCNA Composite exam or one of the two exams that make up the CCNA, the Introduction To Networking exam or the ICND (Interconnecting Cisco Networking Devices) exam.

Walking into a testing center for the first time can be a nervewracking experience. You’ve got enough on your mind just keeping all that new information straight without worrying about what the testing experience will be like.

You’re not there to take the exam. You’re there to pass the exam. With this aggressive attitude in mind, let’s take a look at what you should expect (and not expect) when taking your first Cisco certification exam.

Be Early and Bring Your ID.

If the testing center is not in a part of town that you drive to in the morning, and you’ve got a 9 AM exam, you may find the traffic is much heavier that time of morning than you expected. Driving up to the testing center 10 minutes late is not a good way to get started. If you’ve never been to the center before, check their website for directions, or call them for directions. If at all possible, drive to the center the night before your exam.

Make sure to bring your wallet or purse. You cannot take the exam without proper identification. You’ll probably be asked for two forms of ID, one of which must be a picture ID.

Paper or Dry Erase Board: It’s Your Choice.

Most testing centers hand you a dry erase board and a marker. Make sure that the marker has a fine point; when you’re answering subnetting questions or performing a hexadecimaltobinary conversion, that will come in handy.

If you’re more comfortable with paper and pencil, ask for it. The testing center employee will be glad to give you some. They will mark the paper before giving it to you; don’t take it personally. That’s just to make sure you give them the same paper they give you.

The Testing Room

Despite the best efforts of VUE and Prometric, some testing center rooms are afterthoughts. I strongly advise that if you’re taking your exam at a technical school, ask to see the testing room BEFORE you sign up for the exam. If it looks like a converted broom closet, it probably is. Those rooms also tend to be right next to classrooms, which can result in distracting noise during your exam.

If your testing center specializes in giving computerbased exams rather than classes, you’re probably in good shape. Again, feel free to drop by the testing center before your exam to take a peek at the testing room. Most testing rooms have a window that employees use to keep an eye on testers, and you should be able to take a peek through the window.

When you go in, you’ll be asked to enter your social security number as your testing ID. Once you do that, the exam engine starts running. However, this doesn’t mean the test starts.

The Survey

When you take a Cisco exam, you’ll first be presented with a survey. The survey consists of 10 – 20 questions asking about your background, preparation methods, and comfort level with different technologies. This is a good time to catch your breath before starting the exam. The survey will only take about five minutes, and this time does not count against your exam time.

Pay Attention To The Exam Tutorials

You’ll then be presented with an exam tutorial, showing you how to answer the different types of questions Cisco may ask. While most of these questions types are common sense (multiple choice, single answer, fillintheblank), I strongly urge you to pay special attention to the router simulator question tutorial.

The simulator questions carry more weight than the other questions; indeed, it’s almost impossible to pass the CCNA exams if you totally miss the simulator questions. While the interface for these exams is intuitive, sometimes students who fail their exam complain that they were not given enough information to answer the question. The real problem is that they didn’t look in the right place for that information. It’s not hidden, but spend a few minutes with the tutorial and do not go forward until you’re comfortable with the simulator interface.

The Exam Itself

Finally, the exam starts! Remember, you’re not being asked anything you don’t know. If you have prepared correctly with the right tools, you’ll have a passing grade on your screen before you know it.

Speaking of that grade, you’ll be presented with it about five seconds after you answer the final question. Cisco exams no longer allow CCNA and CCNP candidates to go back once a question is answered, so be prepared for that.

Knowing what to expect when you go into the testing room for the first time will magnify your chances of success. Work hard (and smart!) while studying, achieve a combination of theoretical knowledge and handson work with real Cisco routers, and you are on your way to exam success!

Chris Bryant

CCIE #12933

About The Author

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage. The Bryant Advantageกs website offers FREE ebooks and tutorials for the CCNA and CCNP exams, FREE subscriptions to กCisco Certification Centralก, and sells the best CCNA and CCNP prep courses and books on the market today. Visit his site at www.thebryantadvantage.com today!

[email protected]

This article was posted on January 04

by Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

Cisco CCNA Certification: Don’t Overreact To Exam

Cisco CCNA Certification: Don’t Overreact To Exam Version Changes

by: Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

CCNA Certification: Don’t Overreact To Exam Version Changes

Whenever a Cisco exam version changes, thereกs always a lot of chatter about it on the web. The CCNA exams are no exception.

One comment I see often goes like this: ก I hear Cisco is going to change Intro / ICND / CCNA exam versions soon, so Iกm not going to start studying yet. Iกll wait until the new exam comes out.ก Do not let this happen to you. While some large publishers would have you think these exams change tremendously from one version to another (กupdated for the latest exams!ก), the simple fact is that the Intro, ICND, and CCNA Composite exams simply don’t change much from version to version.Sure, the questions change.

The only people who should be nervous about that are those who are trying to braindump their way to a technical certification.The topics covered on the CCNA exams don’t change much at all.

You know you’re going to have to demonstrate knowledge of LAN switching, ISDN, Frame Relay, routing protocol behavior, RIP, IGRP, EIGRP, and OSPF. Perhaps some of the more advanced topics will change, but these will be minor changes at best. Cisco announces these changes on their website well in advance (and youกll read about them here, too), so you won’t be left with no time to study.

Whatever you do, don’t fall into the กversion changeก. Don’t spend $100 $150 to hurry up and take an exam before you’re ready because of an upcoming version change.When you’re ready, you’re ready. Time spent learning is never wasted. Get started NOW.

About The Author

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage. The Bryant Advantageกs website offers FREE ebooks and tutorials for the CCNA and CCNP exams, FREE subscriptions to กCisco Certification Centralก, and sells the best CCNA and CCNP prep courses and books on the market today. Visit his site at www.thebryantadvantage.com today!

[email protected]

This article was posted on January 04

by Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

Cisco CCNA Certification: Should You Take The One

Cisco CCNA Certification: Should You Take The OneExam or TwoExam Approach?

by: Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

One question I’m often asked by CCNA candidates is whether to take the ขone big examข, or take the two separate exams required by Cisco to achieve the Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) exam.

The question comes up because there are now two separate paths to the CCNA certification. Candidates may take a single exam, 640811, or two exams, 640821 and 640811.

What’s the difference? The twoexam approach involves exams with different topics and therefore different preparation techniques. 640821 is the Introduction To Cisco Networking Technologies exam. This course does introduce the candidate to Frame Relay, PPP, and other WAN technologies, but goes into little detail. Emphasis in the Intro course is placed on knowing how Ethernet behaves, how different types of cable are used for different purposes, and knowing what cable to use in a certain situation. The candidate should expect some questions involving binary math as well, but they will involve fairly simple conversions.

The 640811 exam, Interconnecting Cisco Networking Devices, goes into much more detail on WAN technologies. Routing and switching behavior are covered, and the candidate is expected to answer difficult questions involving binary math and subnetting as well. The candidate may also have to demonstrate ability to configure a router or switch via a simulator. Since the ICND exam goes into more detail, it’s generally considered the more difficult exam.

The approach I recommend to a CCNA candidate depends on their background. If the candidate is a relative newcomer to networking, or hasn’t taken a certification exam before, I recommend they take the twoexam approach. This allows the candidate to focus only on the Intro topics, and gives them a strong sense of confidence after passing the Intro exam. That confidence flows over into the ICND exam.

For those who have networking experience, and are very familiar with Ethernet behavior and cable types, I recommend the oneexam approach. This allows the candidate to focus on the more advanced topics they’ll be seeing in the single exam, while spending just a little time reviewing their Introlevel knowledge.

Regardless of the approach you choose, the path to true CCNA success remains the same. Get some real handson experience, either by renting rack time online or by putting together your own home lab. Understand what’s going on ขbeneath the commandข; don’t use router commands when you don’t understand what they’re doing. Add to that a true mastery on binary math, and you’re on your way to having the magic letters ขCCNAข behind your name!

Chris Bryant

CCIE #12933

www.thebryantadvantage.com

About The Author

Chris Bryant, CCIE (TM) #12933, has been active in the Cisco certification community for years. He worked his way up from the CCNA to the CCIE, and knows what CCNA and CCNP candidates need to know to be effective on the job and in the exam room.

He is the owner of http://www.thebryantadvantage.com, where he sells his popular CCNA and CCNP study aids, including his unique Flash Card Books. He also teaches CCNA and CCNP courses to small groups of exam candidates, ensuring they each receive the individual attention they deserve. Classes are offered over the Internet and in person in select cities. Chris has customwritten the Study Guide and Lab Workbook used in each course no thirdparty training materials or simulators are used. You’re invited to visit our site and check out our CCNA and CCNP Courses, Flash Card Books, and to sign up for our weekly newsletter written personally by Chris. Chris is always glad to hear from Cisco certification candidates at [email protected].

This article was posted on November 16, 2004

by Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

CCNA Cisco Certification Test Taking Tips

CCNA Cisco Certification Test Taking Tips

by: www.SemSim.com

Here are some tips to follow for the CCNA test:
Relax before exam: In order to avoid last minute stress, make sure that you arrive 10 to 15 minutes early and relax before exam.
Familiarize yourself with exam: Before taking the CCNA exam, you are given an option of to familiarize yourself with the way the exam is carried out (the exam interface). You must make sure to take advantage of this.
Time Management Tips:
Manage Time Spent On Each Question: The duration for the exam is 90 minutes. You must determine how much time you will spend on each question. While determining this take into consideration that simulations take more time to answer. Also keep in mind that some other questions are weighed more heavily and may take more time to answer (e.g. difficult subnetting problems).
Be Sure Of Exam Interface: Clear your doubts, in case if you have any, regarding the rules for the CCNA exam or using the testing computer/software with the supervisor after he sets up your machine and before you start the exam. Remember that the exam is timed and you may loose your valuable test time for such questions, which you could have asked earlier.
Jot Down Important Points Before Exam: Before you start the exam, ask for scratch paper and jot down points that you may require to recall when taking your exam. This is always allowed and proves to be very helpful while taking the exam. These may include:

OSI Model layers
Access lists
Important tables such as powers of 2 (2^1 = 2; 2^2 = 4…2^8 = 256)
Class A,B,C address range and properties e.g.
Class A: Denoted by network.host.host.host; first octet is between 1 to 126;
Important formulae such as 2^x2 gives the number of hosts per subnet where x is the number of กoffก bits in the subnet mask
Binary to decimal conversion table & tips

All Answers Are Final: Remember that you cannot return to a question once you have answered it. So, be very careful while answering to the questions and don’t rush as it might cost you valuable marks.
Don’t Panic. There Is No Negative Marking: Although the exam software does not allow you to review questions you’ve answered, there is no negative marks for a wrong answer. The CCNA exam does not penalize you for wrong answer, so never leave any question unanswered. If you are not able to find out the correct answers to some questions, eliminate the possible answers that cannot be correct and narrow down your guess.

About The Author

SemSim.com provides training resources for Cisco certification exams: CCIE, CCNP, CCNA, CCDP, CCDA. It offers FREE learning resources to students such as study guides and router simulation labs at itกs online learning center located at: http://www.semsim.com/ccna/learn.html

http://www.SemSim.com : Making Cisco cetification easy!

[email protected]

This article was posted on July 02, 2004

by www.SemSim.com

Cisco Certification: Becoming A Truly Valuable CCN

Cisco Certification: Becoming A Truly Valuable CCNA

by: Chris Bryant

Iกve been active in the Cisco Certification track for four years, working my way from the CCNA to the coveted Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert title, and during that time Iกve conducted job interviews and casual conversations with hundreds of CCNAs and CCNA candidates.

The CCNA is an exciting beginning to your Cisco career, but just having the certification simply isn’t enough. A recruiter or interviewer isn’t going to be impressed just with the cert; youกve got to have some realworld knowledge to back it up.

Iกve been down that road myself, and sat on both sides of the CCNA job interview table. With that in mind, Iกd like to offer to you some tips on becoming a truly valuable and employable CCNA.

Get some handson experience. I know the trap well; you can’t get experience until you get a CCNA, and you can’t get a CCNA without real experience. Well, actually, you can, but do you want to?

Working on simulators is fine to a certain extent, but don’t make the classic mistake of depending on them. Iกve seen plenty of CCNAs who were put in front of a set of routers and really didn’t know what to do or how to put together a simple configuration, and had NO idea how to begin troubleshooting. Simulators fail to help you develop the analytical and logical skills that you must have to be an effective troubleshooter.

There are CCNA classes that offer you the chance to work with industry experts on real Cisco equipment. Beyond that, you can put together your own CCNA rack for less than $500 by buying used routers. Some people think thatกs a lot of money, but this is the foundation of your career. Treat it that way. The work you do now is the most important work youกll ever do. Do it on real Cisco equipment. The skills I learned as a CCNA helped me all the way up to the CCIE.

Besides, after you get your CCNA (and after that, hopefully youกll choose to pursue the CCNP), you can always get some of your money back by selling the equipment. The handson experience you gain this way is invaluable.

(I’ll also soon be offering remote equipment access for CCNAs and CCNPs. Watch for it!)

Know binary math. Do NOT go the easy route of memorizing a subnet mask chart for the CCNA exam. I know some people brag about being able to pass the CCNA exam without really understanding binary math. Iกve seen those people on the other side of the interview table, and they’re not laughing when I ask them to do a subnetting question. They’re not laughing when they can’t explain or create a VLSM scheme. That chart does nothing to help you understand whatกs going on.

If you can add and know the difference between a one and a zero, you can do binary math. Don’t let the name intimidate you. Become a REAL CCNA learn binary math !

Run กshowก and กdebugก commands. No commands help you truly understand how things work in a Cisco network than show and debug commands. As you progress through the Cisco certification ranks, youกll be glad you started using these at the CCNA level.

Do you need to know these commands for the exam? Probably not. Do you need them to be successul in the real world? Absolutely.

The Cisco certification track has been great to me, and it can boost your career as well, whether you stop at the CCNA, CCNP, or go all the way to the CCIE. Itกs the skills you develop today that will truly make you a networking engineer. Don’t take shortcuts or get the attitude of กjust passing the examก.

Itกs what you achieve after the exam that counts, and itกs the work you put in before passing the exam that makes those achievements possible.

Good luck !

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

About The Author

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage. The Bryant Advantageกs website offers FREE ebooks and tutorials for the CCNA and CCNP exams, FREE subscriptions to กCisco Certification Centralก, and sells the best CCNA and CCNP prep courses and books on the market today. Visit his site at www.thebryantadvantage.com today!

[email protected]

This article was posted on January 04

by Chris Bryant

CCNA 640801 Preparation & Exam Review

CCNA 640801 Preparation & Exam Review

by: www.SemSim.com

The CCNA certification equips you with networking skills to design, plan, install, configure and operate small to medium size computer networks. CCNA certified professionals can install, configure, and operate LAN, WAN, and dial access services for small networks (100 nodes or fewer), including but not limited to use of these protocols: IP, IGRP, Serial, Frame Relay, IP RIP, VLANs, RIP, Ethernet, Access Lists.
The CCNA certification has grown significantly in popularity over the last few years. It is a worthwhile addition to the resume of any networking professional.
CCNA Exam Tracks
There are two tracks that can be followed in achieving the CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate) certification.
Track 1: Single Exam Path
Passing the 640801 CCNA exam.
Track 2: Dual Exam Path
Passing the 640821 INTRO exam and 640811 ICND exam.
Topics On The Test
List of recommended topics is given below. Please note that related topics not listed below may also be asked on the exam.
Planning & Designing
Design a simple LAN using Cisco Technology
Design an IP addressing scheme to meet design requirements
Select an appropriate routing protocol based on user requirements
Design a simple internetwork using Cisco technology
Develop an access list to meet user specifications
Choose WAN services to meet customer requirements
Implementation & Operation
Configure routing protocols given user requirements
Configure IP addresses, subnet masks, and gateway addresses on routers and hosts
Configure a router for additional administrative functionality
Configure a switch with VLANS and interswitch communication
Implement a LAN
Customize a switch configuration to meet specified network requirements
Manage system image and device configuration files
Perform an initial configuration on a router
Perform an initial configuration on a switch
Implement access lists
Implement simple WAN protocols
Troubleshooting
Utilize the OSI model as a guide for systematic network troubleshooting
Perform LAN and VLAN troubleshooting
Troubleshoot routing protocols
Troubleshoot IP addressing and host configuration
Troubleshoot a device as part of a working network
Troubleshoot an access list
Perform simple WAN troubleshooting
Technology
Describe network communications using layered models
Describe the Spanning Tree process
Compare and contrast key characteristics of LAN environments
Evaluate the characteristics of routing protocols
Evaluate TCP/IP communication process and its associated protocols
Describe the components of network devices
Evaluate rules for packet control
Evaluate key characteristics of WANs
Review Of CCNA 640801 Exam Specifics
Pre Requisites: The CCNA exam has no pre requisites.
Time Allotted: 90 minutes
Total marks: The exam is marked from 300 to 1000. Minimum marks is 300.
Passing Grade: Cisco revises the ccna passing score periodically. Last known pass mark is 849/1000.
Score Report: Delivered immediate on test completion.
Certification validation period: 3 years
Number of Questions: Not fixed. In general the questions range from 55 to 65 in number.
Exam Pattern: The pattern may vary from exam to exam, depending on how many questions are there to be answered. The question types found on the CCNA exam are:
Multiple Choice with Single answer: Student is required to select a single answer from a range of options (generally 45) by clicking on a radio button.
Multiple Choice with Multiple answer: Student is required to select a range of options. The number of options to select is specified. The selection is made by clicking on a checkbox. A ขvข appears against selected checkboxes.
Drag And Drop: These questions are graphical in nature. Student is required to drag options to different drop areas.
Fill in the Blank: Student is required to type in the missing text to complete the sentence.
Router Simulation: Router simulation questions test knowledge of Cisco IOS in simulated environment. All of Cisco IOS commands are not supported by the simulator, however the task can be performed with the available commands in the simulator. Do note that the exam engine may be slow when switching between the simulatorbased questions and the standard multiplechoice questions.

About The Author

SemSim.com provides training resources for Cisco certification exams: CCIE, CCNP, CCNA, CCDP, CCDA. It offers FREE learning resources to students such as study guides and router simulation labs. For more information visit: http://www.SemSim.com : Making Cisco cetification easy!

[email protected]

This article was posted on June 18, 2004

by www.SemSim.com

Cisco Certification: Selecting Cisco Products

Cisco Certification: Selecting Cisco Products

by: www.SemSim.com

You must understand the business requirements of the network before buying a product. Based on the requirements, you can select the appropriate Cisco products.
Today, WAN technologies most often take advantage of highspeed connections, such as T1 and E1. Additional WAN technologies exist, including Frame Relay, ISDN, and dialup asynchronous connections. ISDN or dialup is used if infrequent connection is made. If a connection is used for more than two to four hours, you should use a Frame Relay or a leased line.Based on the different services available through the service provider, you can select Cisco products that can fulfill your office requirements.
Selecting Hubs
Cisco has various hub products. You can select hubs according to the type of connection required. Higherend hubs offer network management port and console connections, middleend hubs offer both 10 Mbps and 100 Mbps autosensing connections, and the lowerend hubs offer only 10 Mbps connections. Examples of fast hub series of Cisco are Cisco Fh100, Cisco Fh200, Cisco Fh300, and Cisco Fh400. Examples of micro hub series are Cisco MH1500 and Cisco MH1528.
Selecting Routers
Routers are the most popular Cisco products. To select a router, you must first know the port density and the interface speed required based on the LAN or WAN technologies used. In addition, you must identify the capacity and performance requirements of your business. The cost of the router varies according to the features you select.
Selecting Switches
A switch can be used instead of a hub in newer networks. Most switches are configured to limit collision domains, which often provides a limited security feature because users will not be able to sniff traffic as easily as in a standard hubbased network. This feature can cause confusion when using a network sniffer to analyze traffic. It is possible, however, to analyze packets on a switched network by enabling mirroring on the switch, or by using a dedicated port that allows authorized users to view all network traffic. It is important to consider whether you need 10, 100, or 1000 Mbps for each desktop or to connect between switches. To select a switch, you must consider various issues, such as business requirements, requirements for interswitch links and trunking, port density, and type of user interface.
Product Selection Criteria
When selecting the right products for any network environment, keep the following considerations in mind:
Will the device be used as a core device, distribution device, or access device?
Does the device provide the functions that your business requires?
Does the device have adequate number of ports and the right mix of interfaces as required by your business?
Do you have to pay a lot for installing the device or can it be easily installed?
Can the device be centrally managed from an SNMP Management station or do you have to physically access the device to manage it?
Is the migration path easy?
How well does the device handle redundancy requirements?
Do you have to change your existing infrastructure, such as cabling or existing devices, to install the new device?
You may use the Cisco website http://www.cisco.com to gather more information to select products based on your requirements.

About The Author

SemSim.com provides training resources for Cisco certification exams: CCIE, CCNP, CCNA, CCDP, CCDA. It offers FREE learning resources to students such as study guides and router simulation labs. For more information visit: http://www.SemSim.com : Making Cisco cetification easy!

[email protected]

This article was posted on June 18, 2004

by www.SemSim.com

Introduction To ISDN, Part II

Introduction To ISDN, Part II

by: Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

In the previous ISDN article, we looked at how and why one router dials another using ISDN. Just as important is knowing what keeps the link up once it is dialed.

Why? Because ISDN acts as a phone call between two routers, and it’s billed that way to your client. The two routers that are connected by this phone call may be located in different area codes, so now we’re talking about a long distance phone call.

If your ISDN link does not have a reason to disconnect, the connection could theoretically last for days or weeks before someone realizes what’s going on. This is particularly true when the ISDN link is used as a backup for another connection type, as is commonly the case with Frame Relay. When the Frame Relay goes down, the backup ISDN link comes up when the Frame Relay link comes back not billed for all that time.

To understand why an ISDN link stays up when it’s not needed, we have to understand why it stays up period. Cisco’s ISDN interfaces use the idletimeout to determine when an ISDN link should be torn down. By default, this value is two minutes, and it also uses the concept of interesting traffic.

Once interesting traffic brings the link up, by default all traffic can cross the link. However, only interesting traffic resets the idletimeout. If no interesting traffic crosses the link for two minutes, the idletimer hits zero and the link comes down.

If the protocol running over the ISDN link is RIP version 2 or EIGRP, the most efficient way to prevent the routing updates from keeping the line up is expressly prohibiting their multicast routing update address in the accesslist that is defining interesting traffic. Do not prevent them from crossing the link entirely, or the protocol obviously won’t work correctly.

With OSPF, Cisco offers the ip ospf demandcircuit interfacelevel command. The OSPF adjacency will form over the ISDN link, but once formed, the Hello packets will be suppressed. However, the adjacency will not be lost. A check of the adjacency table with show ip ospf adjacency will show the adjacency remains at Full, even though Hellos are no longer being sent across the link. The ISDN link can drop without the adjacency being lost. When the link is needed, the adjacency is still in place and data can be sent without waiting for OSPF to go through the usual steps of forming an adjacency.

This OSPF command is vital for Cisco certification candidates at every level, but is particularly important for CCNA candidates. Learn this command now, get used to the fact that the adjacency stays up even though Hellos are suppressed, and add this valuable command to your Cisco toolkit.

One myth about ISDN is that Cisco Discovery Packets keep an ISDN link up. CDP is a Ciscoproprietary protocol that runs between directly connected Cisco devices. There is a school of thought that CDP packets have to be disabled on a BRI interface in order to prevent the link from staying up or dialing when itกs not really needed. Iกve worked with ISDN for years in the field and in the lab, and Iกve never seen CDP bring up an ISDN link. Try it yourself the next time you’re working on a practice rack!

Keep studying!

Chris Bryant

Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert #12933

About The Author

Chris Bryant, CCIE (TM) #12933, has been active in the Cisco certification community for years. He worked his way up from the CCNA to the CCIE, and knows what CCNA and CCNP candidates need to know to be effective on the job and in the exam room.

He is the owner of http://www.thebryantadvantage.com, where he teaches CCNA and CCNP courses to small groups of exam candidates, ensuring they each receive the individual attention they deserve. Classes are offered over the Internet and in person in select cities. Chris has customwritten the Study Guide and Lab Workbook used in each course no thirdparty training materials or simulators are used. You’re invited to visit our site and check out our CCNA and CCNP courses and study aids, and to sign up for our weekly newsletter written personally by Chris. Chris is always glad to hear from Cisco certification candidates at [email protected]

This article was posted on August 09, 2004

by Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

Cisco Certification: How To Build Your Own Home La

Cisco Certification: How To Build Your Own Home Lab

by: Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

CCNA and CCNP candidates hear it all the time: ขGet some handson experienceข. From my personal experience climbing the Cisco certification ladder, I can tell you firsthand that there is no learning like handson learning. No simulator in the world is going to give you the experience you will get cabling and configuring your own routers.

Whenever I mention this to one of my students, they always say it costs too much. The truth is, it is cheaper now to build your own CCNA and CCNP lab than it has ever been. The secret? Used routers.

The word ขusedข turns off a lot of people not many of us buy used computers or used servers. Cisco routers, though, are robust. I personally own a Cisco 4000 router that I use as a Frame Relay switch in my lab that I’ve had for about four years, and I’ve never had a problem with it.

The good news for current CCNA and CCNP candidates interested in building their own labs is that used Cisco equipment has never been more plentiful or cheaper. eBay is a good way to get an idea of what’s out there and what the prices are, but you don’t have to assemble your lab one piece at a time. Many eBay vendors who sell used Cisco equipment sell readymade CCNA and CCNP labs for one price, including cables.

I asked one major vendor of CCNA and CCNP labs, www.ciscokits.com, what the most common questions are regarding building your own home lab. Here’s what they had to say:

Why do I need real routers instead of a simulator?

You need a physical router,as the simulators just don’t have the ability to give you the ขhands onข you need to see what happens when you disconnect a cable or put a cable in the wrong location. You will come to find quickly that mistakes you make on Router 1 are affecting Router 5 all because you did not screw in a cable properly. No simulator can simulate that.

How many routers do I need?

Two routers really are required to see if anything works. If you have a very limited budget, you can receive value from only purchasing a single router over working with a simulator. However, you will not be able to see the main thing we are trying to accomplish. The propagation of route tables!

The only way you can see if your configurations work, is to have at least two routers. Therefore, I strongly recommend that you purchase a dual router kit that comes with all the accessories you need. Otherwise you can spend days trying to find all the little extra pieces you need to get your lab up and running.

Do I need a switch?

Well, it is nice to have. However, with only about 2 questions on the test dedicated to ขhands onข switch knowledge, if you have to skimp on something, skimp on the switch.

What routers and switches should I buy?

Choices, choices, choices! Which 2500/2600 router do I pick? I will list some pros and cons of each router below, along with current prices (note that prices are generally lower if you buy a dual router kit instead of a single router). Please note that prices are approximations.

1) Cisco 2501 Router with 16 MB Flash/16MB DRAM $94.99. The cheapest introduction router, and it can support a vast majority of the commands that you will need to learn for your CCNA test. All 2500 routers that we will discuss come with a minimum of two serial ports and an Ethernet port.

You will need to add a transceiver to this unit to convert the Ethernet AUI port to an RJ45 style Ethernet port.

2) Cisco 2503 Router with 16 MB Flash/16MB DRAM $119.99. This is the same as a Cisco 2501, except it adds an ISDN port so you can complete all your ISDN commands for the CCNA test. You will need to add a transceiver to convert the Ethernet AUI port to an RJ45 style Ethernet port.

3) Cisco 2505/2507 with 16 MB Flash/16MB DRAM $109.99. The same as a Cisco 2501 except it has a builtin 8 or 16 port hub so you do not have to purchase a transceiver.

4) Cisco 2514 Router with 16 MB Flash/16MB DRAM $149.99. This router is the same as a Cisco 2501 except instead of one Ethernet port you have two. You may ask, what is the big deal? Well, you can use this as your Cable Modem/DSL Modem router. Now you can test your ability to setup a firewall and router in a live environment on the Internet. Lots of fun! You will need to add two transceivers to convert the Ethernet AUI ports to an RJ45 style Ethernet ports.

5) Cisco 2520 Router with 16 MB Flash/16MB DRAM $119.99. This is the same as a 2503 but it also adds two more serial ports so you can use this as a frame relay switch later in your CCNA studies. It costs the same as a 2503, so this is a great money saving tip.

6) Cisco 2612 Router with 32 DRAM and 8 MB Flash $199.99. This is a modular router unlike any of the 2500 series routers. So the big benefit of this is you can buy extra modules to add functionality such as more serial ports, ISDN ports, Ethernet ports, WICs and such. However, due to the flexibility you will pay a bit more. One day it is a frame relay switch, the next it is your ISDN router. In the long run it will be cheaper than purchasing a bunch of dedicated routers for each

discipline you want to learn.

7) Cisco 1912 or 1924 Switch with Enterprise Software $109.99. This is a good low cost switch. The only drawback is it is a 10 MB switch except for the two 100 MB uplink ports. Not a big deal since you have 10 MB routers.

8) Cisco 2912 or 2924 Switch with Enterprise Software $249.99. This switch will run all the current commands needed for the test and is a full 100 MB switch.

And should you desire to sell your lab after you complete your certification, you can either negotiate a price with the vendor who sold it to you, or you can sell it yourself on ebay. It’s my experience that 95% of candidates who earn their CCNA go on to pursue their CCNP within one year, though, so don’t sell it too quickly.

In the end, you spend only a few hundred dollars, and you gain invaluable experience and knowledge that will help you both in your certification quest and your job performance. Having worked my way from the CCNA to the CCIE, I can tell you that you will learn much more from actually configuring and cabling your own equipment than you ever will from any simulation of the real thing.

To your success,

Chris Bryant

CCIE #12933

About The Author

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage. The Bryant Advantageกs website offers FREE ebooks and tutorials for the CCNA and CCNP exams, FREE subscriptions to กCisco Certification Centralก, and sells the best CCNA and CCNP prep courses and books on the market today. Visit his site at www.thebryantadvantage.com today!

[email protected]

This article was posted on January 04

by Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

Cisco CCNA Certification: The Joy Of Hex

Cisco CCNA Certification: The Joy Of Hex

by: Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

Cisco certification candidates, particularly CCNA candidates, must master binary math. This includes basic conversions, such as binarytodecimal and decimaltobinary, as well as more advanced scenarios involving subnetting and VLSM.

There’s another conversion that might rear its ugly head on your Cisco exam, though, and that involves hexadecimal numbering.

Newcomers to hexadecimal numbering are often confused as to how a letter of the alphabet can possibly represent a number. Worse, they may be intimidated – after all, there must be some incredibly complicated formula involved with representing the decimal 11 with the letter ขbข, right?

Wrong.

The numbering system we use every day, decimal, concerns itself with units of ten. Although we rarely stop to think of it this way, if you read a decimal number from right to left, the number indicates how many units of one, ten, and one hundred we have. That is, the number ข15ข is five units of one and one unit of ten. The number ข289ข is nine units of one, eight units of ten, and two units of one hundred. Simple enough!

Hex numbers are read much the same way, except the units here are units of 16. The number ข15ข in hex is read as having five units of one and one unit of sixteen. The number ข289ข in hex is nine units of one, eight units of sixteen, and two units of 256 (16 x 16).

Since hex uses units of sixteen, how can we possibly represent a value of 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, or 15? We do so with letters. The decimal ข10ข is represented in hex with the letter ขaข; the decimal 11 with ขbข; the decimal ข12ข with ขcข, ข13ข with ขdข, ข14ข with ขeข, and finally, ข15ข with ขfข. (CCNA candidates will remember that a MAC address of ขffff.ffff.ffffข is a Layer 2 broadcast.)

Practice Your Conversions For Exam Success

Now that you know where the letters fall into place in the hexadecimal numbering world, you’ll have little trouble converting hex to decimal and decimal to hex – if you practice.

How would you convert the decimal 27 to hex? You can see that there is one unit of 16 in this decimal; that leaves 11 units of one. This is represented in hex with ข1bข – one unit of sixteen, 11 units of one.

Converting the decimal 322 to hex is no problem. There is one unit of 256; that leaves 66. There are four units of 16 in 66; that leaves 2, or two units of one. The hex equivalent of the decimal 322 is the hex figure 142 – one unit of 256, four units of 32, and 2 units of 2.

Hextodecimal conversions are even simpler. Given the hex number 144, what is the decimal equivalent? We have one unit of 256, four units of 16, and four units of 4. This gives us the decimal figure 324.

What about the hex figure c2? We now know that the letter ขcข represents the decimal number ข12ข. This means we have 12 units of 16, and two units of 2. This gives us the decimal figure 194.

Tips For Exam Day

Practice your binary and hexadecimal conversions over and over again before you take your CCNA exams. Binary math questions come in many different forms; make sure you have practiced all of them before exam day. The number one reason CCNA candidates fail their exam is that they’re not prepared for the different types of binary math questions they’re going to be asked, and that they aren’t ready for hexadecimal questions at all.

You don’t have time to learn how to do in on exam day. You’ve got to be ready before you go into the exam room, and the only way to be ready is a lot of practice.

Finally, make sure you read the question carefully. You’ve got hex, decimal, and binary numbers to concern yourself with on your CCNA exams. Make sure you give Cisco the answer in the format they’re looking for.

About The Author

Chris Bryant, CCIE (TM) #12933, has been active in the Cisco certification community for years. He has written several books that have helped CCNA candidates around the world achieve the coveted CCNA certification, including several concentrating on binary math conversions and subnetting questions that the average CCNA candidate will need to answer on their CCNA exams.

He is the owner of The Bryant Advantage (http://www.thebryantadvantage.com) where he teaches affordable worldclass CCNA courses via the Internet. He’s proud to have helped CCNA candidates around the world achieve their career goals. Mr. Bryant’s books and courses are sold on his site, on eBay, and on several other major Cisco certification sites.

[email protected]

This article was posted on November 26, 2004

by Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

CCNA Cisco Certification Testing Center Tips

CCNA Cisco Certification Testing Center Tips

by: www.SemSim.com

Candidates can register for the CCNA exam (640801 exam or 640821 INTRO or 640811 ICND ) at Pearson VUE or Prometric testing centers.
In order to do their best, candidates should know what to expect at the testing center for the Cisco CCNA certification exam. Since testing center guidelines may vary from one center to another, we recommend that the candidates call the local testing center to check about the guidelines. Here are some points providing information on what you can expect at the exam center:
Recertification: If you have taken a Cisco CCNA certification exam before, find out your Cisco ID and specify it before you start with your registration. This will ensure that you get proper credit for the exam and will help avoid any duplicate records.
Reach before time: We strongly suggest reaching the test center before time. Failure to do so may result in cancellation of the appointment.
Sign the logbook: You may be asked to signin the logbook upon arrival as well as upon departure. Do check on this.
You must carry your identification: You will be required to show a valid identification (ID), perhaps including a recent, recognizable photograph. If the supervisor questions your ID, you may be required to show another ID. You should check the testing center guidelines on identification and take all supplemental identification documents with you.
Generally Accepted Identification:
Passport
Photobearing driverกs license with signature
National/Military identification card
The following MAY not be accepted as valid ID:
Credit Cards (Please check with test center)
Private identification cards
Any expired ID
Read the testing center regulation form carefully: You will be provided with a Testing Center Regulation form by the supervisor. Read the regulations carefully and comply with them during the test.
Sign the confidentiality statement: The supervisor is responsible for asking you to sign the confidentially statement at the test center indicating that you will not reveal exam questions to other students after the test.
Supervisor sets up your test computer: The supervisor will ensure that the Cisco certification test displays on screen before handing over the machine to you.
Ask for sheets for scratch work: Scratch papers will be provided to you at the testing center. These are sometimes only available on request. Ask for some blank scratch sheets to do calculations and rough work. Jot down important points and tables (such as powers of 2, binary representation tables etc) before exam starts. This can be a big time saver. Do not take the scratch paper out of the testing room on completion of exam.
Items not allowed in the testing room: The candidate is not allowed to bring in the testing room personal items such as:
Books, revision sheets or notes: The exam is closed book
Cellular phones & alarms
Food or drinks may not be allowed
Calculators
Your session may be audio and video taped: Do not attempt to talk or communicate in any form to anybody in the testing room. Your session may be taped and can lead to immediate disqualification .
On exam completion: You will be explained by the supervisor what to do when you complete the exam. If not, or if you are unclear about what you should do, ask it yourself before beginning the exam.
Do not take with you the the testing material from the testing room: Return all of your testing materials, including the scrap paper, on the completion of your exam to the supervisor.
Certified copy of the exam result: Your supervisor will give you a certified copy of the exam report on completion of the test. This will list your score indicating strengths and weaknesses in the various test areas. Ask the supervisor for the certified copy, if you do not get it.

About The Author

SemSim.com provides training resources for Cisco certification exams: CCIE, CCNP, CCNA, CCDP, CCDA. It offers FREE learning resources to students such as study guides and router simulation labs at itกs online learning center located at: http://www.semsim.com/ccna/learn.html

http://www.SemSim.com : Making Cisco cetification easy!

[email protected]

This article was posted on July 02, 2004

by www.SemSim.com

Cisco Certification: The Cisco ThreeLayered Hiera

Cisco Certification: The Cisco ThreeLayered Hierarchical Model

by: www.SemSim.com

Cisco has defined a hierarchical model known as the hierarchical internetworking model. This model simplifies the task of building a reliable, scalable, and less expensive hierarchical internetwork because rather than focusing on packet construction, it focuses on the three functional areas, or layers, of your network:
Core layer: This layer is considered the backbone of the network and includes the highend switches and highspeed cables such as fiber cables. This layer of the network does not route traffic at the LAN. In addition, no packet manipulation is done by devices in this layer. Rather, this layer is concerned with speed and ensures reliable delivery of packets.
Distribution layer: This layer includes LANbased routers and layer 3 switches. This layer ensures that packets are properly routed between subnets and VLANs in your enterprise. This layer is also called the Workgroup layer.
Access layer: This layer includes hubs and switches. This layer is also called the desktop layer because it focuses on connecting client nodes, such as workstations to the network. This layer ensures that packets are delivered to end user computers.
Figure INT.2.1 displays the three layers of the Cisco hierarchical model.
When you implement these layers, each layer might comprise more than two devices or a single device might function across multiple layers.The benefits of the Cisco hierarchical model include:
High Performance: You can design high performance networks, where only certain layers are susceptible to congestion.
Efficient management & troubleshooting: Allows you to efficiently organize network management and isolate causes of network trouble.
Policy creation: You can easily create policies and specify filters and rules.
Scalability: You can grow the network easily by dividing your network into functional areas.
Behavior prediction: When planning or managing a network, the model allows you determine what will happen to the network when new stresses are placed on it.
Core Layer
The core layer is responsible for fast and reliable transportation of data across a network. The core layer is often known as the backbone or foundation network because all other layers rely upon it. Its purpose is to reduce the latency time in the delivery of packets. The factors to be considered while designing devices to be used in the core layer are:
High data transfer rate: Speed is important at the core layer. One way that core networks enable high data transfer rates is through load sharing, where traffic can travel through multiple network connections.
Low latency period: The core layer typically uses highspeed low latency circuits which only forward packets and do not enforcing policy.
High reliability: Multiple data paths ensure high network fault tolerance; if one path experiences a problem, then the device can quickly discover a new route.
At the core layer, efficiency is the key term. Fewer and faster systems create a more efficient backbone. There are various equipments available for the core layer. Examples of core layer Cisco equipment include:
Cisco switches such as 7000, 7200, 7500, and 12000 (for WAN use)
Catalyst switches such as 6000, 5000, and 4000 (for LAN use)
T1 and E1 lines, Frame relay connections, ATM networks, Switched Multimegabit Data Service (SMDS)
Distribution Layer
The distribution layer is responsible for routing. It also provides policybased network connectivity, including:
Packet filtering (firewalling): Processes packets and regulates the transmission of packets based on its source and destination information to create network borders.
QoS: The router or layer 3 switches can read packets and prioritize delivery, based on policies you set.
Access Layer Aggregation Point: The layer serves the aggregation point for the desktop layer switches.
Control Broadcast and Multicast: The layer serves as the boundary for broadcast and multicast domains.
Application Gateways: The layer allows you to create protocol gateways to and from different network architectures.
The distribution layer also performs queuing and provides packet manipulation of the network traffic.
It is at this layer where you begin to exert control over network transmissions, including what comes in and what goes out of the network. You will also limit and create broadcast domains, create virtual LANs, if necessary, and conduct various management tasks, including obtaining route summaries. In a route summary, you consolidate traffic from many subnets into a core network connection. In Cisco routers, the command to obtain a routing summary is:
show ip route summary
You can practice viewing routing information using a free CCNA exam router simulator available from SemSim.com. You can also determine how routers update each otherกs routing tables by choosing specific routing protocols.
Examples of Ciscospecific distribution layer equipment include 2600,4000, 4500 series routers
Access Layer
The access layer contains devices that allow workgroups and users to use the services provided by the distribution and core layers. In the access layer, you have the ability to expand or contract collision domains using a repeater, hub, or standard switch. In regards to the access layer, a switch is not a highpowered device, such as those found at the core layer.
Rather, a switch is an advanced version of a hub.
A collision domain describes a portion of an Ethernet network at layer 1 of the OSI model where any communication sent by a node can be sensed by any other node on the network. This is different from a broadcast domain which describes any part of a network at layer 2 or 3 of the OSI model where a node can broadcast to any node on the network.
At the access layer, you can:
Enable MAC address filtering: It is possible to program a switch to allow only certain systems to access the connected LANs.
Create separate collision domains: A switch can create separate collision domains for each connected node to improve performance.
Share bandwidth: You can allow the same network connection to handle all data.
Handle switch bandwidth: You can move data from one network to another to perform load balancing

About The Author

SemSim.com provides training resources for Cisco certification exams: CCIE, CCNP, CCNA, CCDP, CCDA. It offers FREE learning resources to students such as study guides and router simulation labs. For more information visit: http://www.SemSim.com : Making Cisco cetification easy!

[email protected]

This article was posted on June 18, 2004

by www.SemSim.com