certification-cisco

Promptly you’ve got your CCNA, you’re ready to move on to the next unalterable, the Past master certifications. Fit years, Cisco had one-liner Professional certification, the Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) certification. One more time time, Cisco has expanded this point of certifications to group the Cisco Certified Security Able (CCSP) and Cisco Certified Turn Competent (CCVP).

With security and make known being the two most rapidly expanding areas of today’s networks, some unheard of CCNAs over successful after the CCSP or CCVP without essential adding the CCNP to their resume.

While it’s temping to hurry up and gross a Cisco custodianship or voice certification, the best fixation you can do in support of your networking occupation is achieve your CCNP certification head, then come to a decision on the CCVP or CCSP.

Why? Because the CCNA is fair-minded the gen of a entirely portly iceberg when it comes to routing and switching. It’s a identical substantial conclusion, and the CCNA is in point of fact the basis of your networking bolt, but you lack to combine on to that parallel of concordat routing and switching before inspirational on to more specialized areas.

Two examples are OSPF and BGP. You learn with respect to the theory of OSPF and some primary and intermediate configurations of that formalities in your CCNA studies, but the learning you into of OSPF in your CCNP studies is invaluable. As for BGP, there is no BGP in the CCNA curriculum, but it is a grievous impression to make some BGP instruction in today’s networks. It’s also well-proportioned instead of your career.

I know it is a gargantuan temptation to slip after the insurance and utter certifications while not paying concentration to the CCNP. Do yourself a prodigious favor and reckon the tremendous amount of routing and switching intelligence needed pro the CCNP to your knowledgebase, and you can then manoeuvre on to the CCSP or CCVP. Coextensive with more intelligent, you’ll be bettor predisposed to climb the biggest certification mountain around – the CCIE!

If you’re reviewing for CCNA Exams, you should be aware of things that might mess up your concentration. Normally, you wouldn’t notice these things disrupting you, as they are common on your everyday life. But for you who’s about to take a major test, you’ll need to take all the focus you can get. Disturbance is the last things you’ll ever want for yourself. Here are the things you should take control while you are studying:

Taking gimmicks and engaging to fun activities. Oh yes, “you’re grounded!” In logical sense, you should be always studying if you really want to pass. Nope, I’m not being to hyperbole. Studying each day, keeps failure away. There’s no such thing as “overdose” in studying. As long as you take short brakes in recharging your brain cells, you’ll be fine. There’s no shortcut in increasing your chances in passing the CCNA exams. Interpolating from these facts, you need all the time you can get to study, even if it means “spoiling your life” in the meantime. Reserve all the fun after the CCNA Examination. Look forward on them as reward for your hard work and sacrifices. Better yet treat them as celebration perks because for sure 99.9999% you will pass. Boost your drive to achieve the CCNA Certification by keeping these happy thoughts in mind.

Being Blue. It’s okay to wear blue “_”. I mean, you should avoid feeling depressed. Emotions clutter mind. Those spaces in your brain shouldn’t be filled with distracting things. Instead, it should be loaded with lessons and data you need for the exams. So, try to avoid thinking about sadness and problems, especially heartaches.

Being self-doubted. You definitely won’t pass, if you’ve already raised the white flag. Don’t submit yourself to failure as for sure you’ll fall into it. Feeling anxious is fine. It makes you aware what you should do. However, too much of it leads to vulnerability. Believe you can do it. If you’re studying well for the CCNA Exams, the there’s nothing to worry about. Avoid this by taking tryout exams. Once you’ve passed through 10 out of 10 consecutive practice tests, you’ll feel more secured.

Talk to your family and friends regarding your preparations for the CCNA Exams. Make them aware of your need for concentration. They’ll help you obtain a good atmosphere for your review. Take control of distractions and you’ll have a well prepared “self” for passing the CCNA Exams.

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 level of network security that is already present.? After all, most routers you work with already have passwords set, and it’s up to you to determine if those passwords are getting the job done.

Let’s start with a telnet password.? Telnet passwords are configured on the VTY lines, and no telnet access is enabled on a Cisco router by default.? If you saw the following configuration, what would it mean?

line vty 0 4

?privilege level 15

?password baseball

?login

That small Cisco router configuration means three things – first, Telnet access is enabled.? Second, the password is baseball.? Third, the “privilege level 15″ command means that any user who attempts to Telnet to the router and knows the password will automatically be placed into privileged exec mode.? (If that command were not present, the user would be placed into user exec and then prompted for the enable password before being allowed into privileged exec.)

You may not want to give that level of access to all incoming Telnet connections.? If you walked into a client’s router room and saw this configuration on a router, what would it mean to you?

username halas password 0 bears

username ewbank password 0 jets

username ed privilege 15 password 0 mcdaniel

line vty 0 4

?? login local

This configuration means three things as well.? Each user attempting to telnet in will be prompted for both a username and password.? Each individual user must enter the password that’s been assigned to them.? For example, the user “halas”would have to enter the password “bears” to successfully Telnet into this router.? The command “login local” under the VTY lines means that this local database of usernames and passwords will be used for authentication.?

Again, by default, users who are Telnetting in will be placed into user exec mode by default.? Only users with “privilege 15″ in the middle of their username / password definition will be placed into privileged exec immediately upon login.

Notice that zero in each of the username / password statements?? I didn’t enter that when I configured these statements.? This number indicates the level of encryption the password is currently under; a zero is the lowest level of encryption, indicating that the passwords aren’t encrypted at all.?? There’s a single line near the top of a Cisco router configuration that tells you why.. which of these three is it?

service timestamps debug uptime

service timestamps log uptime

no service password-encryption

Simple enough!? The password encryption service is off by default.??? To turn it on. just run the command service password-encryption.? Let’s do so here and then take a look at the configuration.

R1(config)#service password-encryption

username halas password 7 1415170A1E17

username ewbank password 7 070524585D

username ed privilege 15 password 7 082C4F4A08170C121E

Now that’s what I call encryption!?? Note that the zero has changed to a “7″ – that’s the highest level of encryption on a Cisco router, and as you can see, it’s very effective.

Knowing how to read a Cisco router configuration is a valuable skill for both the CCNA certification exam and working with production networks.? Keep practicing, keep studying, and you’ll have the coveted letters “CCNA” behind your name soon!

Now more than ever, the key to CCNA success is experience?the kind of experience that one can get only from Cisco Learning Partners, schools within the Cisco Networking Academy Program, and the official publisher for Cisco Systems, Cisco Press.

Cisco Press meets the demand for new self-study exam preparation materials with a comprehensive variety of CCNA products. New features of the updated Cisco Press products include revisions to established best-selling products with new sections that assist novice networkers in understanding concepts, lab scenarios for mastering CCNA concepts on actual hardware or simulators, and the ability to prepare for the CCNA Exam through multiple formats.

“Cisco Press CCNA products have always focused on teaching networking concepts, not on test-taking shortcuts” says John Kane, Cisco Press editor-in-chief. “With the announcement of the #640-607 exam, Cisco Press presents a comprehensive variety of learning products to the self-study market that have been planned and developed over the past year. From the official Coursebooks to flash card test engines
that can even be used on handhelds, Cisco Press’s goal is to meet any networker’s unique learning needs and study practices.”

As Cisco Systems continues to test candidates for their comprehension of networking technology, Cisco Press continues to provide the resources and the self-study tools to master the technology. Cisco Press has developed the following four brand-new products for the #640-607 exam.

CCNA Practical Studies [1-58720-046-5 This practical lab book features scenarios and exercises that networkers can practice on lab equipment, networking simulators, or remote-access labs. This title allows users to put the concepts they have learned into practice.

Cisco CCNA Exam #640-607 Certification Guide [1-58720-055-4 The third edition of this best-selling CCNA study guide helps networkers get into exam mode for the new #640-607 exam. Recently updated with user enhancements, this edition features new learning elements, such as extra credit sections and a new chapter of hands-on lab scenarios. The book includes a CD-ROM with #640-607 question banks.

Cisco CCNA Flash Card Practice Kit [1-57870-111-2 This electronic and print product enables networkers to practice and prepare with a comprehensive late-stage study tool. A fully portable training option, this kit contains more than 350 flash cards—in print, PC, and handheld formats—as well as more than 550 practice exam questions and 54 CCNA reference sheets for review of complex study material.

CCNA #640-607 Preparation Library [1-58705-093-5 This bundle forms a value-priced library for CCNA preparation, combining the comprehensive reference Internetworking Technologies Handbook, the CCNA Coursebook Interconnecting Cisco Network Devices, and the new edition of the CCNA Exam Certification Guide.

Cisco Press continues to offer Interconnecting Cisco Network Devices [1-57870-111-2 The official Coursebook from Cisco Systems is an essential starting point for all CCNA-level networkers beginning their paths to CCNA certification. This product has not been updated, as it covers all the same objectives.

Cisco CCNA candidates need to be aware that the current CCNA, Intro, and ICND exams are being retired as of November 6, 2007.

This is actually great news for future CCNAs, since there is more than enough time to study for the 640-801 version of the CCNA exam, even if you haven’t started studying yet!

The current version of the exam, 640-801, is challenging enough as it is – but the new version of the exam, 640-802, is going to be even more challenging! Among the new topics covered on the 640-802 exam are Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol (RSTP), IP Version 6 (IPv6), router security, switch security, VPNs, and wireless routing.

Why is Cisco making these changes? Cisco no longer wants the CCNA to be seen as an “entry level” certification, and I personally think that’s a welcome change. I’ve been writing CCNA ebooks and teaching in-person and internet-based CCNA courses for years, and I’ve always refused to refer to the CCNA as “entry level”. Cisco’s new entry-level certification is the CCENT, Cisco Certified Entry Level Technician, and we’ll talk about that certification in a future article.

For now, it’s important to realize that you have plenty of time to prepare for the current 640-801 exam. By doing so, you’ll earn one of the most valuable certifications avaiable today. Cisco does a tremendous job in protecting the value of its certifications, and any time spend on earning the CCNA is time well-spent.

The CCNA 640-802 exam will be available on August 1, but again, the current 640-802 exam will be available through November 5. If you want to get CCNA certified, now is definitely the time to get the job done – so get started, book your exam date today, and get CCNA certified!

The following is a very good article I have read over at Buzzle.com. It talks about the various opportunities that a professional will acquire after passing the Cisco CCNA exam and obtaining this entry level certification.

Software industries are desperately in need of information technology professionals certified in the aspect of networking. You are almost guaranteed a job provided you possess an excellent working knowledge of protocols such as IP, IGRP, Serial, Frame Relay, IP RIP, and VLAN’s as well as installing, configuring, operating, maintaining, and trouble shooting LAN, WAN and other networks. One way to be sure you have such proper networking experience and knowledge is through obtaining your Cisco Certified Network Associate certification.

This CCNA certification is an entry level certification for all certified IT professionals who specialize in computer networking. This certification is just the first step towards even higher levels of training, such as Cisco Certified Network Professional or Cisco Certified Internet work Expert certification.

A CCNA certification is often the best option for field technicians, IT helps desk engineers, and other professionals of information technology based on overseeing the computer networking process. It is considered to be the basic qualification for installing, operating, configuring and troubleshooting a mid-sized switched and routed network. A professional with CCNA training is trusted to work with a networking environment which would include a group of switched networks. They can manage a host of computer routed networks connected through switches with the greatest of ease.

There is an ever increasing demand for networking specialists as businesses reliance on computers grow and with that the value of a CCNA certification is also finding itself to be a hot commodity among the information technology industry’s job market. It is a benchmark for discovering who are the best and the most efficient technicians are who aren’t in network management. Think of it as a way to filter out the cream of the crop from the rest.

The certification examination is structured around a set of questions with drag and drop options, multiple choice single answers, multiple choice multiple answers, simulations and fill in the blank type of questions. While at first glance, that may sound to be quite easy, to be truly successful and pass this test professional training is required. The examination is built so that your technical and special knowledge of computer networking environments and solutions are pushed to the limits. Basically, not everyone can pass this test.

In today’s ultra-competitive job market, you need every advantage you can to market yourself. You need something to make yourself more attractive to a business compared to another IT professional. A CCNA certification, accepted and recognized all over the world, is the perfect tool to do just that. The CCNA examination is used as a tool for sorting out the best networking professionals who would be responsible for the management and maintenance of the networking environments.

I’ve seen many people failed on their CCNA exam while CCNA is the most basic exam of the Cisco certification series.

This is because most of the exam candidates didn’t prepare enough for the exam, got nervous at the exam and failed due to minor mistakes.

I have my own successful way to prepare for the exam, I’ve collected many things to help me pass the CCNA exam.

You may or may not agree to me, yet I got a pretty good score at the exam, only got 1 false answer.

I don’t mean to show off or anything, but my point is anyone can get this score if you prepare properly, so here is my 8 things to help me passCCNA exam:

It is natural to get as many resource about the exam, but too many information can seriously damage your brain. The key is to get the right resource to learn from and focus on them before you decide they’re not enough and search for more.

1. BOOKS

I like the work of Todd Lammle, he explains the materials in CCNA exam with easy ways to understand.
Although books are good but the problem with books is that you can get tired reading them all day long, so I figure I need some other resources.

2. VIDEO TUTORIALS

I highly recommend video tutorials from CBT Nuggets, especially the author Jeremy Ciaora, great video series.
The video is quite expensive US$ 399.00 for the CCNA Certification Package, but I’m telling you its worth the money.
In the video you can watch configuration of true Cisco devices along with the explanation, which Jeremy Ciaora did a great job in explaining the topics.
Video tutorials are great but sometimes they don’t cover everything about the exam – due to the limited time I suppose, that’s why you also need the books to complement each other.

3. BLOGS/SITES

Browse the internetnet, find free exam questions that you can try answering, find out how everyone did the exam, how they succeed, how they failed, this can be a very valuable lessons for you.
Visit my blog often at http://networking-newbie.blogspot.com

4. CISCO SIMULATORS

You can get many free or paid Cisco Network Simulator from the internet, some are good, some have limited functions:

Dynamips – free router simulator using command line interface (no GUI)
GNS3 – GUI version of Dynamips
Boson NetSim – paid simulator complete with labs samples
Cisco Packet – free simulator from Cisco

It is very important to get your hands on one of these simulators, you need to get yourself a hands on experience configuring cisco devices.
If you have more budget, build your own Cisco home lab.

As one of the readers commented on this post (thank you Robert Williams from certguard.com), I realized that using braindump softwares are illegal, I decided to empty the following two points:

5. QUESTIONS BANK

6. EXAM SIMULATOR

7. TIME

I can’t stress you enough about this, time is very important, you have to invest your time seriously to take the exam. The CCNA exam is not the kind of exam where you can cram yourself to study in the weekend and hope to pass in the following Monday.

When I talk about time, it also means that you have to practice yourself in answering questions as quick as possible, remember you have a very limited time and you can’t go back to previous questions you’ve answered.
So you need to know your self capacity and try to do the exam in a limited time and remember you’d be in a pressure when dealing with the real exam.

8. D-DAY PREPARATIONS

The d-day has come, you’re nervous as hell, plus you can’t bring anything to the exam class except for pens or pencils.
You’d be given a scrap of paper to calculate subnets or something else.

This is a good news, you do allowed to take notes on the paper when taking the exam. Before you get even more nervous, you can write down the keypoints in calculating subnets, for example 8th bit = 128, 7th bit = 64, 5th bit = 32, and so on.
You’d be presented with the exam rules, etc before taking the exam, you have to know well the rules before and take this time to write down your notes.
But remember don’t write down any configuration commands because they might think you’re cheating.

This method of writing notes can help speed your time in calculating subnets.
Why only subnets? I have to remind you that CCNA exam will test you heavily on subnetting, and in my opinion it will be the topic that is taking most of your time in the exam.

That’s all I got to say right now I hope the above things can help you out. If you have any other suggestions, please kindly comment on this post at my blog.

It depends on how much you can invest on it – The money and your time.
To answer this question, we also need to know about your goal. You can continue with other Cisco certifications or maybe, you can change the line and mix it with something else.

Let’s have a look, which jobs openings are on the job boards to utilize a CCNA certificate.

OnTheCCRoad
I- You got only CCNA cert and you are in the way to be a network professional
This means that you are beginning your journey to become a network expert. You can work as junior admin in an environment where experienced network professionals work. You will do some daily task including monitoring, hardware installations (as the second guy), and routine things like configuration backup etc. In this position you cannot earn too much money, but it is a good investment for your bright future. If you spend one or two years while preparing for your CCNP, you will have the chance to choose the position, which you desire and also you will get a good income boost. CCNA exam is a mandatory and foundational step for CCNP.

JustCCNA
II- You got only CCNA cert and you don’t want to invest more on it
If you say “CCNA is enough for me and I don’t want to waste more of my time and money for certifications”, then you can find a job in a mid size company as system/network admin. You have to look after windows servers and maybe some other systems. You can make an acceptable amount of cash and work in an environment without too much hierarchy. If you are good in relationships and you are practical in mind this is exact job for you. CCNA certificate is sufficient for this position. It will be very helpful in your career.

MsCCNA
III- You have got CCNA + some Microsoft certifications (like MCSE) + experience
In this case, your dominant specs are system admin specs. You already proved yourself in this area and can work in a Multinational Enterprise branch as senior system admin. You can cover network admin tasks with your CCNA certificate or better, in very large structures, it will let you to lead a team both system and network admins included.

NetSecCCNA
IV- You have got CCNA + Security certification (CISA+GIAC) + 3-4 years experience
You can work as System Security Engineer in Enterprise environment or you can work in a consulting company as information security auditor. Your CCNA certificate will let you have more expertise on network related issues and support your success.

ArchCCNA
V-You have got CCNA + more than ten years experience on Windows & UNIX
If you have development skills, project management skills and you have spent considerable number of years in several areas of IT business, then CCNA is not a big component in your skill set, but at least it shows people that you are still in touch with practicalities of network operations and it can help you achieve Enterprise Architect position.

Illustration of CCNA Career Paths

As a step or as a component, CCNA is a valuable item in your personal inventory. It is worthy to get it and anybody can get the certificate, but you need other skills and experience to utilize it to the maximum extent. Initially you cannot expect high paying jobs ,but with some experience ,you can climb the ladder of success. For students, I strongly recommend participating to Cisco programs in colleges. This will help them to make an easy start for their careers.