ICND 2 - Re-tale tommorow

[morph]

So retaking part 2 tommorow - feeling less confidant than last time - really really feel that going down the fast track route with a training company is totally wthe wrong idea...(read my previous posts - i had to go on it) - u just cant take it all in i dont think in that short space of time....and i'm so sick of intensive cramming that if i worked in a post office i think i'd shoot everyone around me at the moment....

anyway - i i got given 2 2503 routers this evening for nowt, so now on the look out for a switch of some kind to make a little lab - anyone got any suggestions on a switch i could go for?

[BosonMichael]

Originally Posted by morph

u just cant take it all in i dont think in that short space of time....

You're right - it's not possible. That's why we give the advice we do.

[morph]

yeah yeah :P anyway i'm gonna get some kit togethor and do it properly anyway (which is what i planned to do anyway before the company stepped in!) - come on Mr boson - give us a suggestion on a switch

[sunn]

Switches for the CCNA certification?
2950's should work. You can probably go with 3550's and overkill would be 3750's.

Good luck on the exam.

[BosonMichael]

Originally Posted by morph

yeah yeah :P anyway i'm gonna get some kit togethor and do it properly anyway (which is what i planned to do anyway before the company stepped in!) - come on Mr boson - give us a suggestion on a switch

I recommend that you buy NetSim. Just kidding.

In all seriousness, I can't keep track of the switch models as new models are introduced and old ones are retired. Just when I think a 2950 is good enough (and it might very well be), I hear that nothing less than a 3560 will do.

[sunn]

From what I remember the 2950's will be sufficient for the CCNA. However, you'll need to step up the gear for the CCxP modules. If this is just a one-time thing and the objective (for the short-term) is the CCNA, I might suggest a Network Simulator to ease that budget and not worry about changing platforms.

If you are going further and can handle the costs, go with real equipment.

[morph]

well i had a little play on the boson sim - and suppose its pretty good - but then when i've just been trying to type in commands not relating to the lab in question it sometimes doesnt accept it - which got right on my tits - gonna see if i can stea....borrow a switch from work.

[BosonMichael]

Originally Posted by morph

well i had a little play on the boson sim - and suppose its pretty good - but then when i've just been trying to type in commands not relating to the lab in question it sometimes doesnt accept it - which got right on my tits - gonna see if i can stea....borrow a switch from work.

That's because commands that aren't relevant to the CCNA aren't coded. If you want CCNP-level commands, buy the more-expensive NetSim for CCNP. There's a demo for that, if you're interested.

If ALL of the commands were available in the NetSim for CCNA, fewer people would buy the NetSim for CCNP. Thus, we'd have to charge the same price for the NetSim for CCNA as we do for the NetSim for CCNP.

Remember, guys, it's a simulator, not an emulator (note: Cisco doesn't allow emulation of their router hardware). It's not feasible to include coding for EVERY command.

[GiddyG]

Originally Posted by morph

well i had a little play on the boson sim - and suppose its pretty good - but then when i've just been trying to type in commands not relating to the lab in question it sometimes doesnt accept it - which got right on my tits - gonna see if i can stea....borrow a switch from work.

Yes... but I have been waiting all day now... did you pass??

Interested of Bracebridge Heath

[morph]

unfortunately not - 706 - when i got in there i tried to brain dump my subnet table which gives me binary/hosts/subnet etc.. for quick referance - i've been doing it daily, comepletly forgot it - so it shaffted my exam up (well i did ) - was pretty pissed of yesterday as i almost just got up and walked out of the exam about 20 minutes in - anyway, gonna take more time before the retake

[GiddyG]

Originally Posted by morph

unfortunately not - 706 - when i got in there i tried to brain dump my subnet table which gives me binary/hosts/subnet etc.. for quick referance - i've been doing it daily, comepletly forgot it - so it shaffted my exam up (well i did ) - was pretty pissed of yesterday as i almost just got up and walked out of the exam about 20 minutes in - anyway, gonna take more time before the retake

Sorry to hear that mate... but I think you're making a wise move giving yourself more time. At least then you will better understand what you need to know.

[sunn]

Too bad on the bad news...
Best of luck on the studying and retake

[BosonMichael]

Originally Posted by morph

unfortunately not - 706 - when i got in there i tried to brain dump my subnet table which gives me binary/hosts/subnet etc.. for quick referance - i've been doing it daily, comepletly forgot it - so it shaffted my exam up (well i did ) - was pretty pissed of yesterday as i almost just got up and walked out of the exam about 20 minutes in - anyway, gonna take more time before the retake

Don't rely on a table as a crutch... be able to subnet quickly in your head. Use the table ONLY to check yourself. There's not enough time on the CCNA to subnet slowly... you need every minute you can get. Shave minutes off your subnetting, and you can use that time to answer everything else without being horribly rushed.

Best of luck on your next attempt!

[phatboy]

a 2950 switch will be pretty much sufficiant, only thing it doesnt do is RPVST (unless you get the far more expeosnvei EI version), but it supports normal STP and thats only 1 command different

Good luck for next time, I found using the official certification guide for ICND1, and knowing pretty much all of the book got me through. Complete the memory tables after each chapter, and again the day before the exam I'd suggest.

And dont panic when you see a question that looks daunting, think through it logically!