Intro Articles

1). Cisco CCNA / CCNP Home Lab Tutorial: A Guide To Cable Types By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
When you're putting your CCNA and/or CCNP home lab together, you're not just buying routers and switches you're creating a blueprint for success. There is no better way to learn about how real Cisco routers and switches work than to work with the real thing! Of course, it's not enough to just get the routers and switches you've got to have the right cables and other devices to allow them to communicate.
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2). Cisco CCNA / CCNP Tutorial: Home Lab Assembly Case Study By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
Part of your CCNA / CCNP education is deciding what network topology to use when you're putting together your home lab. Some of you are starting with one or two routers or switches, while others are starting with more. A customer recently sent me a list of his Cisco routers and switches that he has available for a home lab and asked for my help in coming up with the best way to use them.
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3). Passing Your CCNA and CCNP: Configuring And Troubleshooting Router-On-A-Stick By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
For CCNA and CCNP candidates, it's hard not to laugh the first time you hear the phrase "router on a stick". Let's face it, that's a pretty silly term. But as those who have passed the CCNA and CCNP exams know, this is a vital exam topic that you must know how to configure and troubleshoot. Basic Cisco theory states that for hosts in different VLANs to communicate, a Layer 3 device must be involved to handle the routing between the VLANs.
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4). Passing Cisco's CCNA And CCNP Exams: Ping And Extended Ping By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
Passing Cisco's CCNA And CCNP Exams: Ping And Extended Ping
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5). Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification: OSPF E2 vs. E1 Routes By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
OSPF is a major topic on both the CCNA and CCNP exams, and it's also the topic that requires the most attention to detail. Where dynamic routing protocols such as RIP and IGRP have only one router type, a look at a Cisco routing table shows several different OSPF route types. R1#show ip route Codes: C - connected, S - static, I - IGRP, R - RIP, M -.
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6). Cisco CCNA / CCNP Home Labs: Developing Troubleshooting Skills By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
CCNA / CCNP candidates are going to be drilled by Cisco when it comes to troubleshooting questions. You're going to have to be able to analyze configurations to see what the problem is (and if there is a problem in the first place), determine the meaning of different debug outputs, and show the ability not just to configure a router or switch, but troubleshoot one.
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7). Cisco CCNA Certification Exam Tutorial: The OSI Model�s Physical Layer By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
To pass your CCNA exam and earn this coveted certification, you've got to master the seven layers of the OSI model and what each layer does. For those of you taking the two-exam path, you can expect quite a few OSI model questions on the Intro exam. In this seven-part series, we'll spend some time taking a look at each of the OSI model layers, starting with the Physical layer.
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8). Passing Cisco's CCNA and CCNP Exams: The VLAN.DAT File By : Chris Bryant
CCNA and CCNP candidates are often confused about why VLANs and VTP information is still present on a switch after the configuration is erased. Learn why this happens and how to really delete VLAN information in this free tutorial from Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933.
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9). Tips On Buying A Cisco CCNA / CCNP Home Lab Kit By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
Buying a CCNA / CCNP home lab is the best way to be totally prepared for your Cisco exams. Most home labs are put together one router or switch at a time, but many CCNA / CCNP candidates prefer to buy kits where you get multiple routers and switches, along with all the cables and other connection devices you'll need. While this is a good idea, keep a few things in mind when purchasing Cisco home lab kits.
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10). Passing Cisco's CCNA and CCNP Exams: Five Tips For Exam Day Success By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
As you get ready to pass the CCNA or CCNP exams, you can feel quite a bit of stress as you enter your last week of study. Let's take a look at a few ways to reduce that stress. 1. Do not stay up late cramming. The CCNA and CCNP are not exams you're going to pass by cramming. "Cramming" is a study technique best left behind in junior high school. The CCNA can't be passed by memorization - you've got to know how Cisco technologies work.
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11). Cisco CCNA Certification Exam Tutorial: OSPF Hub-And-Spoke By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
CCNA certification demands that you master the basics of OSPF, and for many studying for the CCNA exam, their first exposure to OSPF is a hub-and-spoke configuration. That's a tough way to get started, because a hub-and-spoke configuration built over an NBMA technology such as Frame Relay requires quite a bit of attention to detail. Let's take a quick look at several common OSPF configuration errors and how to avoid them on your CCNA test.
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12). Cisco CCNA / CCNP Home Lab: Why You Need An ISDN Simulator By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
ISDN is a vital topic for today's CCNA and CCNP candidates, especially for the ICND and Intro exams - you've got to know ISDN inside and out to pass those exams. Naturally you want to include it in your home lab. What many candidates don't realize is that you can't connect two Cisco routers directly via their Basic Rate Interface (BRI) interfaces you've got to have another device between them called an ISDN simulator.
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13). CCNA / MCSE / CCNP Certification: Making Failure Work For You By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
Whether you're on the road to the CCNA, CCNP, MCSE, or you're on any other computer certification track, the odds are that sooner or later, you're going to fail an exam. It's happened to almost all of us, yours truly included. What you have to keep in mind in these times is that success is not a straight line. You've probably seen charts showing the growth of an industry or a business -- you know, the ones that go from left to right, and look kind of jagged.
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14). Cisco CCNA Certification: Five Key Combinations You Should Know By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
When you start studying for your CCNA and CCNP exams, many books will present you with a huge list of keystroke shortcuts for use on Cisco routers. While the 640-801, 811, and 821 exams may ask you about one or two of these, you really have to get hands-on experience with these commands to master them. Even better, there are some key combinations that Cisco routers mention, but then don't tell you what they are! Let's take a look at a few of the more helpful key combinations, and conclude with the "secret" way to stop a ping or traceroute.
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15). Cisco CCNA Certification: Cisco Switching Modes Tutorial By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
To pass the CCNA exam and earn that coveted certification, you've got to know Cisco switches inside and out. Among the many important details you've got to know are the three methods that Cisco switches use to forward frames, and the differences between the three. The first switching method is Store-and-Forward. The name is the recipe, because that's just what the switch does - it stores the entire frame before beginning to forward it.
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16). Cisco CCNA Exam Tutorial: How To Spend Your Study Time By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
To pass the CCNA exam, you've got to create a study plan. Part of that plan is scheduling your study time, and making that study time count. You�ve scheduled your exam you�ve created a document to track your study time you�ve planned exactly when you�re going to study. Now the plan must be carried out, without exception. What exceptions do I mean? Cell phones.
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17). Cisco CCNA / CCNP: How And Why To Build An Etherchannel By : Chris Bryant
Etherchannels are in use all over the world, as well as on your CCNA and CCNP exams. Learn how to build and support an EC in this tutorial from Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933.
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18). Cisco CCNA Certification: Error Detection vs. Error Recovery By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
Passing the CCNA, Intro, and ICND exam is all about knowing and noticing the details. (Which makes perfect sense, since becoming a master networking administrator or engineer is also about noticing the details!) One such detail knows the difference between error detection and error recovery. While the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, they are not the same thing.
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19). CCNA / Network+ Certification Exam Tutorial: Collision Domains And Switches By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
In the previous Network+ exam tutorial, we talked about how collisions occur when data sent by two hosts on a shared Ethernet segment transmit data at the exact same time. Collisions result in the colliding data being unusable, which means the hosts must retransmit the data - and all this extra activity slows the network down! Carrier Sense Multiple.
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20). Passing The CCNA and CCNP Exams: Setup Mode By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
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. In this article, we'll take a look at a Cisco 2500 router going into setup mode and a few tips that will help you pass the exams and excel at your job.
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21). Cisco CCNA Certification: Becoming A Truly Valuable CCNA By : Chris Bryant
Learn how to add value to your CCNA and accelerate your IT career in this article from Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933.
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22). Cisco CCNP Exam Tutorial: Defining Collision Domains By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
CCNA exam success depends on mastering the fundamentals, and two important fundamentals are knowing exactly what the terms "collision domain" and "broadcast domain" mean. In this free Cisco tutorial, we'll take a look at the term "collision domain" and how a collision domain is defined. A collision domain is an area in which a collision can occur. Fair enough, but what "collision" are we talking about here? We're talking about collisions that occur on CSMA/CD segments, or Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection.
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23). Cisco Certification: The "Secret" Key To Getting Your CCNA And CCNP By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
Whether you're working on your CCNA or CCNP, Cisco certification exams are the most demanding computer certification exams in the IT field. Cisco exams are not a test of memorization, they're a test of your analytical skills. You'll need to look at configurations and console output and analyze them to identify problems and answer detailed questions.
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24). Passing The CCNA and CCNP Exams: Cisco Home Lab FAQ By : Chris Bryant
CCNA and CCNP candidates have lots of questions about putting a Cisco home lab together. Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, has helped hundreds of such candidates assemble their labs, and answers the five most-often asked questions in this exclusive FAQ.
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25). Passing Cisco�s CCNA and CCNP Exams: Traceroute By : Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933
In preparation for your CCNA and CCNP exam success, you've got to learn to troubleshoot Cisco routers. And while ping is a great basic IP connectivity tool, it doesn't give you all the information you need to diagnose network connectivity issues. Let's say you have six routers between CityA and CityB. You send a ping from A to B, and get this return: R1#ping 172.
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