Cisco CCNA study lab

[Tokinsome]

Please help i have been trying to setup a lab for studying for my CCNA exam. I work with all makes and models of cisco.
Anything needed is probaly on the shelf. Could some one please help. Nobody at my company has bothered trying 4 the exam so iam the 1st and completely lost. My qurey is which model routers do i need for a lab and how to connect them together. I have simulator on my laptop but feel ready to try it for real

Thanks Tokinsome

 

[ccmuser]

1700 or 2500 will be fine.. go as cheap as you can on ebay for the ccna....
you can even grap a 2600 on ebay for under a few hundered...

Where are you located?
I know of some places in New York city area to rent rack space ...

 

[geirendre]

You realy don't need alot for a CCNA-lab.
A lab with 3 routers and 2 switches is enough to
test different routing protocols and STP and VLAN.
Keep it simple is my advice.
I'v just done my CCNA study, and I used 3 1601-routers
and one 1900-switch.... and this setup was enough for me.

 

[Tokinsome]

I know that keeping simple is the key but what i really need is a list of cables and router models if that makes any sense.
Like i said it aint gonna cost me its gonna cost me boss.
Thanks for the help so far.By the way I live in cirencester England

 

[geirendre]

Ok, lets say you go for a lineup like this:
1 1721 router
2 2501 routers
2 2950-12 Switches
2 DCE-DTE crossovercables

You also need IOS's loaded with features on the routers.
You'll be testing most of the available features during the course.

Get ISDN interfaces on two of the routers, for ISDN-DDR.
(and access to a ISDN-BRI line)

And you need some software on yor PC:
Hyperteminal or better: SecureCRT to program the routers and switch.
A TFTP server program, you can find it as freeware on the net...

And you need time and space.
Time to do the labs over and over again, and
Space to set up the lab where you can leave it and
come back later and continue.

Remember to tear down the setup between each lab, and rebuild from scratch.
Thats the best practice you can get.

This is MY recommendation, others might use different setups, but you will do well with this I'm sure.

Success does not lay in the equipment you get,
but in the time and effort you invest into the study.

Hope this helps

 

[Tokinsome]

Thanks geirendre
That is exactly what i,ve been looking 4
I use hyper term and 3cdaemon at work already so i know a little already like TFTP d/loads and uploads
Setting up ethernet ports and serial ports
Hostnames etc

Thanks Tokinsome
PS
Are there any over tips you give me

 

[Tokinsome]

I also have a isdn simulator

 

[geirendre]

You wrote:
PS
Are there any over tips you give me

Can you rephrase that please? don't understand... ;-)

If you meen other tips, here goes:
Know your binary math inside out, and how to convert binary to decimal and hex. Back and forth...
Also get well aquainted with subnetting, VLSM and CIDR.
These are fundmentals of the trade, and if you have a good
understanding of these objects before you start the course, you are well of.
A good site to start at is:

http://www.learntcpip.com/

 

[Tokinsome]

Hi again
Sorry for the spelling
but i'm in a rush as i gotta start the course in 4 weeks
You said to get some routers with isdn interfaces on them well i,ve just picked up 2 2501's but they don't have isdn interfaces on them
Am i being an idiot or am I missing something

Thanks again Tokinsome

 

[Jsteve]

2501 = 1 ethernet + 2 Serial
2502 = 1 token ring + 2 Serial
2503 = 1 ethernet + 2 Serial + 1 ISDN port

 

[chieftan999]

Cirencester England!!!!!

Swindon England here. Just down the road.

If you want a really cheap option that does not include purchasing the hardware then the Boson router simulator is well cool.

Just go to

http://www.boson.com

and have a look.