Cisco CCNA Certification Exam Tutorial: ISDN Details You Must Know by Chris Bryant
CCNA exam success depends partially on knowing the details of ISDN, and there are plenty of them! To help you review for your CCNA exam, here are a few ISDN details that you must know on exam day. (They help in the real world, too – and there are still plenty of ISDN networks out there! ... Load threshold to place another call Success on the CCNA exam depends on knowing the details. ... (Even IOS Help isn’t totally clear on this.) R2(config)#int bri0 R2(config-if)#dialer-group 1 R2(config-if)#dialer idle-timeout ?

Cisco CCNP / BCMSN Exam Tutorial: The Four (Or Five) STP Port States by Chris Bryant
As a CCNP candidate and a CCNA, you may be tempted to skip or just browse the many details of Spanning Tree Protocol. After all, you learned all of that in your CCNA studies, right? That's right, but it never hurts to review STP for a switching exam! ... SW1#show spanning-tree interface fast 0/11 Vlan Role Sts Cost Prio.Nbr Type ---------------- ---- --- --------- -------- ---------- VLAN0001 Desg FWD 19 128.11 P2p To see these states in action, shut a port down in your CCNA / CCNP home lab and continually run the show spanning interface command.

Passing The CCNA and CCNP Exams: Setup Mode by Chris Bryant
CCNA and CCNP candidates need to know all about Setup Mode, why a router goes into that mode, and as you'll see, how to get out of that mode. Practicing Setup Mode at work is a good way to get fired, though, so you need to practice this on your CCNA / CCNP home lab or rack rental. ... Setup Mode is not a mode that CCNA and CCNP candidates get a great deal of practice with, but you will be tested on your knowledge about it both in the exam room and on the job. ... This password, after entered, becomes encrypted in the configuration.

Cisco CCNP Certification / BSCI Exam Tutorial: Route Summarization Basics by Chris Bryant
As you earn your CCNA and CCNP certification, you're going to have to get comfortable with manually summarizing routes. This isn't just another reason to learn binary math (although it's a good one!), but summarizing routes is a true real-world skill that can help your network operate more... To prepare for success on your CCNA and CCNP exam, you've got to know how to summarize routes as well as the specific commands for doing so with OSPF, EIGRP, RIP, and IGRP - but knowing why to summarize routes is just as important as knowing how!

Cisco Certification: The OSI Model Isn't Just For Exams Anymore! by Chris Bryant
There's nothing I enjoy more than teaching Cisco technologies, especially CCNA candidates. Whether it's in-person or online, everyone's excited to be there. There's a sense of anticipation in the air, and everyone is ready to work hard, get their hands on the racks of Cisco routers and switches... That's why I tell CCNA and CCNP candidates that they've got to get all the hands-on practice they can; while I understand the importance of theory, the only way to develop troubleshooting ability is to work on the real deal.

Cisco CCNA Certification: Why You NEED Hands-On Practice! by Chris Bryant
CCNA and CCNP candidates hear it all the time: “you have to get some hands-on experience to pass the exams”. Candidates tend to think that’s just so they can solve the simulator problems, but that’s only the more obvious reason. First, I want to make it clear that I’m not bashing learning from... You must have the attitude that you are already a CCNA or CCNP, and you’re just there to make it official. ... By working with the real equipment, you develop the real skills and real confidence you need to pass the CCNA and CCNP exams.

Cisco Certification: Suggested Toplogies For Your Home CCNA / CCNP Lab by Chris Bryant
When you make the decision to put your own home lab together for your CCNA and CCNP studies (a very wise decision, if I may say so!), the hardest part is figuring out how to spend your budget. Do you spend it all on the routers and go with a cheaper 1900 switch, knowing that the 640-801 (CCNA),... That switch has an IOS as opposed to the menu-driven 1900 switches, so the practice will come in handy on exam day. ... The second switch gives you the opportunity to practice influencing root bridge elections and configuring VTP an ISDN simulator will give you priceless practice with ISDN in...

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Home Lab Tutorial: Planning Ahead For IE Study by Chris Bryant
Candidates preparing to pass the CCNP exams are putting together Cisco home labs like never before. With CCNA and CCNP home lab equipment more affordable than ever, candidates have realized the importance of working on real Cisco routers and switches on the way to earning their certifications. ... There are plenty of 2500 and 2600 routers out there that you can buy to prepare fully for your CCNA and CCNP exams that may not have the capability needed for IE preparation. ... (For instance, while 2500 routers are fantastic for CCNA and NP study, they shouldn't be used for IE study.) The issue...

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Exam Tutorial: Five Debugs You Must Know by Chris Bryant
To pass the BSCI exam and move one step closer to CCNP certification success, you've got to know how and when to use debug commands to troubleshoot and verify network operations. While you should never practice debug commands on a production network, it's important to get some hands-on... If frame relay mappings are not forming according to your configuration, run "debug frame lmi". ... This debug will allow you to quickly diagnose and correct any LMI mismatches. ... Instead of staring at the configuration for 10 minutes, run "debug ppp negotiation" and send a ping over the link.

CCNA Cisco Certification Training Case Study: How Multiple Passwords Affect Router Access by Chris Bryant
Your CCNA certification exam efforts must include practicing with different password types and knowing how to configure them on a Cisco router - but for CCNA exam success and to thrive in real-world networks, you also have to know how to examine a Cisco router configuration and determine the... Knowing how to read a Cisco router configuration is a valuable skill for both the CCNA certification exam and working with production networks. ... There's a single line near the top of a Cisco router configuration that tells you why..