Home lab advice

Discussion in 'Routing & Switching' started by crazy horse, Aug 29, 2009.

  1. crazy horse

    crazy horse Byte Poster

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    Hi Everyone,

    I'm looking at self studying for ICND1 & 2 and want to purchase my own home lab, probably kit from ebay. I have seen a few posts before and have hopefully chosen enough kit for the CCNA and maybe able to expand on it for the CCNP eventually.

    Routers
    Cisco 3640
    Cisco 3640
    Cisco 2610xm

    Switches
    Cisco 2950
    Cisco 2950

    Frame Relay
    Cisco 2522

    Also
    2x Cisco NM-2E2W
    Cables etc

    Have I missed anything? Do you think this will be enough to perform the basics for the CCNA?

    Thanks in advance for your advice, my head has been spinning over all the different types of equipment you can get!
     
  2. UKDarkstar
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    UKDarkstar Terabyte Poster

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    Try these - the mid priced ones should be fine
     
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  3. crazy horse

    crazy horse Byte Poster

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    Thanks UKDarkstar, they look good. I had been looking at some of these kits by IRP70, they seem to have sold quite a few of them.

    Good luck with your CCNA exam in September!
     
  4. JK2447
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    JK2447 Petabyte Poster Administrator Premium Member

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    That one for £175 looks like all you'd need mate
     
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  5. Bonneville

    Bonneville Bit Poster

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    Probably the best piece of equipment I bought was a 2509 Access Server (2511s were far too expensive at the time). They're not cheap but I think worth it especially when you add more routers/switches and can't be bothered swapping console cables all the time.
     
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    WIP: CCNA Security, CCNP
  6. r.h.lee

    r.h.lee Gigabyte Poster

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    crazy horse,

    Treat yourself like a business and justify to yourself what pieces of equipment you "need." However, you won't be able to justify it until you learn the material. The one thing that I see missing from your list is your study materials for the Cisco 640-822 ICND1 certification exam. By the end of your studies, you should be able to answer the question "Do you think this will be enough to perform the basics for the CCNA?" You're putting the cart before the horse my friend. The reason why your "...head has been spinning over all the different types of equipment you can get..." is because you haven't learned the material first.

    Question, what makes you think that you need any of the above listed equipment?
     
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  7. crazy horse

    crazy horse Byte Poster

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    Hi r.h.lee,

    Thanks for your advice.

    Your correct with your assumption I haven't been able to learn the material yet. I'm new to the self study route. My plan was to do some research on home labs then set one up and work through the reading material as well as working on the labs at the same time.

    In answer to your question, I have tried to make a decision on equipment from what I have read on these forums, the cisco CCNA syllabes, the cisco features site, and reading articles on CCNA home labs.

    I guess I just jumped the gun a bit, I will read the material first so I can get a better understanding of the equipment.
     
  8. UKDarkstar
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    UKDarkstar Terabyte Poster

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  9. crazy horse

    crazy horse Byte Poster

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    Thanks UKDarkstar, I have just ordered it. Would you recommend the one CCNA exam or going down the two exam route?
     
  10. UKDarkstar
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    UKDarkstar Terabyte Poster

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    You'll find mixed opionions on here on that :biggrin

    For me, I've selected the one exam (when I can force myself to knuckle down and do the darn thing !)
     
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  11. soundian

    soundian Gigabyte Poster

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    Since you're new to self-study and not well acquainted with the material you should maybe think about splitting them up. If there's not a huge amount of overlap between the exams then I would definitely advise starting out your studies this way, you can always change tack later if you feel confident you only need to do one exam.
     
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  12. BosonMichael
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    BosonMichael Yottabyte Poster

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    Although there used to be valid reasons for taking the one-exam option with the previous version of the CCNA, there are no longer any logical reasons to do so. I would recommend the two-exam option for several reasons:

    1) There is no financial benefit to taking the one-exam option. I dunno how much it is in the UK, but in the States, the ICND1 and ICND2 exams are $125 each, and the CCNA is $250. Why risk double the money on a much harder exam?
    2) There is no benefit to studying for the content of both exams at once. The CCNA questions consist of questions found on the ICND1 and ICND2 exams. Why would you want to tackle both at once, particularly if you haven't taken a Cisco exam before?
    3) Taking the two-exam option gets you two certifications: the CCENT and the CCNA. Taking the one-exam option gets you only the CCNA.
     
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  13. Bonneville

    Bonneville Bit Poster

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    Both the ICND 1 and ICND 2 are £62 each and the CCNA is £123. There is probably VAT to add as well.
     
    Certifications: MCSE, CCNA
    WIP: CCNA Security, CCNP
  14. UKDarkstar
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    UKDarkstar Terabyte Poster

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    My 802 booking was £144
     
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    WIP: CMALT (about to submit), DTLLS (on hold until 2012)
  15. crazy horse

    crazy horse Byte Poster

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    Ok, I think I will go down the 2 exam route as it will allow me more time to learn the material and hopefully a stronger understanding in the long run. The price for the exam doesn't seem too bad either, I just booked my 70-271 for £88!

    Thanks everyone for your help, this forum is really helping me get a plan of action together for my career.:biggrin
     
  16. UKDarkstar
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    UKDarkstar Terabyte Poster

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    Good luck ! :biggrin
     
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    WIP: CMALT (about to submit), DTLLS (on hold until 2012)
  17. cisco lab rat

    cisco lab rat Megabyte Poster

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    You'll need serial interfaces for the 3640, NM 4AS will fit click here for details from cisco You have imo just the right number of routers and switches to get cracking, the Todd Lammle book is the one to go for. Easy to read, lots of examples to follow.

    Regarding the exam question, horses for courses. only you can tell at the end of the day which one you think will be right for you

    Good luck bashing the tin. It's great fun
     
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