How I Passed CCNA in 30 Days - Packet tracer lab In 30 Days.pdf · I highly recommend the use of...
Transcript of How I Passed CCNA in 30 Days - Packet tracer lab In 30 Days.pdf · I highly recommend the use of...
How I Passed CCNA in 30 Days
Disclaimer
No section of this eBook may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any
means – electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any
information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the
author.
The information provided within this eBook is for general informational purposes
only. While we try to keep the information up-to-date and correct, there are no
representations or warranties, expressed or implied about the completeness,
accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the information,
products, services, or related graphics contained in this eBook for any purpose.
Any use of this information is at your own risk. It is my CCNA journey that covers
tools and material that I used to efficiently pass my exam.
The methods describe within this eBook are the author’s personal thoughts. They
are not intended to be a definitive set of instructions. You may discover there are
other methods and materials to accomplish the same end result.
Table of Contents
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 4
Resources I used to clear my CCNA exam ................................................................................................ 6
CBT nuggets ......................................................................................................................................... 6
Packet Tracer ....................................................................................................................................... 7
Lab Guide ............................................................................................................................................ 8
Exams Dumps ...................................................................................................................................... 8
Subnetting ......................................................................................................................................... 10
Resources I used to clear my CCNA exam .............................................................................................. 12
Should we use the Exam Dumps? Is it ethical? ....................................................................................... 14
What to Expect after CCNA certification ................................................................................................ 19
How to proceed with other Cisco certifications...................................................................................... 21
CCNA salary expectation ........................................................................................................................ 23
Fast track you IT career post CCNA ........................................................................................................ 24
Introduction
CCNA is the most sought after certification in the IT industry because of the deep
insights it covers of the technical networking concepts and skills, which are in
great demand in the job market. As a general rule of thumb, if anyone wants to
get a job in the networking industry or in IT sector in particular then CCNA is the
certification that will assist you in securing your first IT job to a big extent.
For those who are new to the Information Technology field have to know that
there are generally two ways to proceed in the IT industry: a) One is towards the
programming side b) and the other is with networking. Those who choose
programming will first have to get a professional degree and have to invest years
into learning and grasping the technologies involved, along with the different
coding concepts. Software programmers have to familiarizing themselves with a
whole range of programming languages and scripts, which is some serious work.
Its downside is that the programming languages and technology gets obsolete
faster than any other profession, so you have to keep learning and updating
yourself with the arrival of new languages and its coding conventions. On the
contrary, people who don’t have a professional IT qualification or are not good in
programming or it does not interest them whatsoever, they can choose a slightly
easier alternative in IT networking as their professional career.
So in this book, we will be discussing how to go about with the CCNA certification
including some other major IT certifications in demand that will make your CV
stand out among the others and considerably increasing your job prospects.
IT industry is the most expanding and ever evolving sector in the job market,
which means that the technologies in use today may get outdated in the next 2 or
3 years. And because of this rapid change, it is very important for the
professionals working in this area to adapt to change and keep themselves up-to-
date all the time. So working within short time frames is always going to be
important. We will discuss about this topic in the later part of this book.
But due to this constantly changing state of the IT technology sector, your main
objective as a networking professional should be to complete your certification
within a short period of time to maximize your chances of safeguarding your
existing job or to switch to a better position in the same or a different IT
company.
Resources I used to clear my CCNA exam
CBT nuggets – offering the CCNA video tutorials. If you haven't heard about CBT
nuggets, it is an online resource of IT tutorials that provide video training for
various vendor certifications. Although you can find many different video tutorials
of Cisco certifications online but I found CBT nuggets to be the best CCNA video
training source because it was right on point, and with clear explanation of
various concepts it is easy to understand even for the beginners who are just
starting out.
Not just for CCNA, Cbtnuggets is ranked among the top websites that offer video
courses for other Cisco certifications as well because their teachers and trainers
hold latest certifications themselves so they know their stuff inside out. And trust
me! You will not find any tutors equivalent to their level of expertise in any
coaching center anywhere. Moreover, you can watch the video tutorials
repeatedly until you get the clear understanding of different concepts. So there is
no need to waste your money on expensive tutorial classes.
Cbtnuggets videos are comparatively cheaper than other sources, though if you
can't pay or don't want to pay for some reason, you can arrange it by some other
means you know of, like asking a friend, or request it from someone who has
access to the videos. Nevertheless, if you want to get some other certification
videos as well then you can gain access to the entire cbtnuggets IT videos for a
monthly subscription of just $99, and make the most of it by downloading other
videos that you are interested in i.e. those that you could use to gain more
certifications in near future.
Packet Tracer – Packet Tracer is networking simulation software that is best in
the market to practice CCNA and some basic CCNP labs.
I highly recommend the use of Packet Tracer software for exercising practical labs
as it is more than sufficient to train for the CCNA. But it is not too effective for the
other advanced Cisco certifications like CCNP because it does not execute all the
higher level commands required for the CCNP training and certification.
Therefore, if you are looking forward to prepare for CCNP certification in a
foreseeable future then there is another tool known as GNS3. GNS3 is a giant that
emulates the real Cisco iso and is equipped to run all the commands that are
possible on real routers, so it is like as if you are working with the real routers,
which in turn gives you the feel of real world Cisco devices.
You can use GNS3 to practice CCNA labs too but it is kind-of a little too complex to
set it up. It requires a lot more time, and some practical knowhow to set up GNS3,
as a result you will end up spending a lot more time just in the process, which
could be somewhat discouraging at first. Therefore, in order to keep it simple and
quick, it's best to work with Packet Tracer for practicing basic CCNA labs. Packet
Tracer is very easy to operate and a great practice tool, which is just what you
need to prepare for basic certification like CCNA, though if you are willing to try
your hands on GNS3 and have all the required tools, you can still check it out and
get the real feel of how the Cisco devices work.
Eventually, once you are well versed with the ways to configure routers and
switches on the Packet Tracer software, and have gone though sufficient
scenarios and different troubleshooting problems. It means you are ready to
embark on the simulation questions that you would be facing in your CCNA
exams, and are almost there!
Lab Guide – It could be easily downloaded or bought online at a nominal price.
Lab Guide includes all the CCNA commands that you would be using and more.
This guide is of great assistance as it would allow you to specifically go through a
full list of Cisco commands in one place, both saving your time as well as giving
you a complete overview of the lab environment.
Exams Dumps – Have you heard of Cisco exam dumps? If you haven't then you
must familiarize yourself with this important “key” word as it forms the most
important ingredient of all the learning resources that you'd be using to
successfully clear your CCNA examination. That said, Exam Dumps should be at
the core of your preparation for the exam because 99% of the questions in your
CCNA examination comes from latest dumps except for a few new questions here
and there. So technically saying, you can pass your exam simply by studying the
dumps itself, it's that easy! But then of course there is no use of attaining that
sort of certification or clearing the exam when you do not have the knowledge to
do any sort of practical work. That's why, I would suggest you to first study, clear
your concepts, and get enough knowhow of the practical networking just so that
you have idea about the technology and equipments that you'd be required to
work within your job.
I don't vouch for them, but I personally studied the dumps from
www.examcollection.com. When I prepared for my certification, the Exam
Collection used to offer free dumps but now they charge about $79.99 per month
to download premium VCE files, which according to them are valid for the current
session. In case you want to try them, just don't worry about the other files that
are available on their website for free, those are worthless! But whatever online
source you try, just do some homework to ascertain the legitimacy of the exam
dumps first, discuss in relevant forums, talk to trusted people, and then if you are
certain of their validity then you can download those dumps. Additionally, if you
try any monthly based service, don't forget to download as much related files of
other relevant exams as you can in that duration so that you can use them in near
future, or help someone out with some of that material. It's a great way to make
the most out of your spending as well. Be generous, help others, and always
remember - knowledge increases as we share it. There are some other famous
websites that offers latest dumps, like Testking and Pass4sure, which according to
some people have a few success stories.
In conclusion, irrespective of the website source, simply find and practice with the
latest and legit dumps to prepare for your exam.
Also, you have to buy software to use the VCE files. It costs around $16 to use it
for a month.
Tips – Read the following tips before buying any of the services:
Note – Use Ctrl + Click to open the following links
http://lessons-learned-from-life.blogspot.in/2014/07/examcollection-premium-
service-scam.html
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/2278737
Some websites buy fresh dumps from legit sources and put them on their
websites. It allows them to cater to the needs of interested people where they
can download and use them free of cost. One such website is the
www.examcollection.com. You can check the free dumps from Examcollection by
downloading the VCE file, which is available for its registered users. Once you
register, just login to the website. And then you can easily download any of the
vce files you require for the CCNA or any different set of exams. But more
importantly, make sure you check the comments section below before
downloading any of the material to ascertain if those exam dumps are still valid or
not. And don't forget to check the date of those comments as well so that you
don't end up using the older or invalidated dumps.
Subnetting – Even though subnetting is only a part of the CCNA curriculum but I
am mentioning it separately because it is an extremely important part of your
preparation. You don't have to be afraid though but it takes some time and
practice to understand this concept entirely. To your advantage, Cbt nuggets
provide a very streamlined and clear explanation about subnetting. But at the
end, it is you who has to ensure that you have understood this crucial concept
well. And even more important is how proficient you become in calculating the
subnets on your fingertips, otherwise it is going to consume lot of your time in the
exam. Since calculating the subnets with pen and paper especially in the
examination is going to eat up a lot of your time. In a CCNA exam, time is
something you cannot afford to waste because every second is valuable to
complete the entire questionnaire. Moreover, you will feel the pressure if you do
not have adequate time left to complete you exam, leaving you with a bitter
experience. That's because the CCNA exam amounts for a fair share of questions
related to subnetting, so if you cannot calculate quick enough then you will suffer.
Ironically, even the exam dumps cannot help you with that in your examination.
So make sure that you are proficient enough to calculate the subnets in your
mind. No doubt you will get questions from the dumps but their numerical values
would be different so train yourself well and be able to quickly calculate the
subnets to be able to choose a correct answer without wasting any time.
Resources I used to clear my CCNA exam
When I practiced for my CCNA paper, I took a break for one whole month so I had
to quit my job to be able to prepare nicely. To be honest, I wasn't much happy
with my existing job at that time, so I had a perfect excuse and an opportunity to
follow a new career path. During the preparation period, I sidelined myself from
every distraction, be it my friends, or my girlfriend, and all forms of socializing, so
I literally had zero activity. It sounds hard but when I look back now, I understand
the importance of focusing on your target and its reward. And it was only for a
month, as one of my British friend used to say, put blinkers on your eyes, mate!
Though we all have different circumstances, and our priorities differ from each
other. Hence, if you are not expected to complete your preparation in a single
month then please don't push yourself too much, take another month or
something but make sure you don't prolong it over 2 months. Try to finish your
preparation ASAP, because otherwise it will work counter to what you are trying
to do or achieve. So my advice to you would be to finish it within a dedicated time
period without investing too much of extra time, effort, or energy in months of
training and resources.
1. I booked the exam date exactly about one month from the day I started
preparation. This is important because it will gives you exact time-frame to
study. It also avoids you to get lazy when you have an exam date finalized.
2. I completed watching the CCNA video training in just one week. And in the
second week, I started practicing Labs on the Packet Tracer software with
the knowledge I gained from the CBTnuggets videos. Upping the ante, I
quickly went through the videos once again, alongside practicing the Labs.
The second time around, I understood the videos even better. During the
same week, I also went though the Command Guide to get the overview of
the commands, particularly pertaining to the CCNA curriculum.
3. In the third week, I specifically concentrated on the subnetting –
understanding and practicing really hard to improve my calculative skills
that I mastered by exercising a lot of questions related to subnetting
4. During the fourth and final week, I stressed on dumps, going through all the
questions from the CCNA exam dumps. I revised the dump questionnaire
many times and tested myself with them the equal number of times, until I
was confident that I have memorized the exam dumps satisfactorily
Should we use the Exam Dumps? Is it ethical?
The reality is that 95% of the students who pass the CCNA exam take assistance
from the dumps. And to be very honest with you, it is way too difficult to clear the
examination as such i.e. without going through the dumps, no matter how much
hard work you put into your preparation. Since it was my first time attempting the
exam, I was a bit nervous having heard many rumors that a very few people are
able to pass it the first time, so I put so much hard work into my practice and
literally left no stone unturned to be able to successfully clear my CCNA in the
first attempt only, and with so much at stake because I was technically jobless at
that time. But after I was done with my exam, I told myself that one thing for sure
that I would have failed the exam, have I not had solved the questions from the
dumps. I clearly remember that when I started attempting the questions from the
dumps, in spite of how strong I thought my preparation was, I wasn't able to solve
even 20 percent of the questions from dumps correctly. They were so tricky. But
after about a week's practice I got better and better at solving them. What I am
trying to say is that the style of the questions in your CCNA exams is going to be
the exact replica of those from the dumps. Hence, you have to be proficient
enough to understand the structure of the questions from dumps to succeed.
Another thing to remember is that you have to get all your CCNA concepts clear
before you take on the dumps. Passing the exam and having the efficiency to
perform practically are two entirely separate things. If you only crack the exam
with the help of dumps, you will not be able to succeed in your job interview. And
eventually, your certification will be of no use without the networking knowledge.
So clear your concepts first, get a fair amount of knowledge, and then attain your
certification with the help of exam dumps.
A little advantage from the dumps should not affect your learning in any way.
Your main aim is to land a job, and you can't keep your job if you compromise on
the knowledge. Certificates and degrees can surely get your foot in the door, but
your skills and dedication towards your work are going to take you where others
fail to reach. That said, you should definitely get the help from exam dumps
because these certification exams are designed in such a way that if you don't
study smart, you wouldn't get through the line. Without dumps, it is highly likely
that you would fail your exam, no matter with how much dedication you put into
your preparation or how strong your hold of the technical concepts is.
When you sit in your test, you will see the similarity that the exam questionnaire
will have with the dumps. Just like I felt, you might realize too that how would you
have performed if the exam dumps weren’t available to you. Sometimes I feel
sorry for the people who put on so much hard work into their studies, but end up
failing the exam because they didn't had the right information at a right time. It is
as if, some kind of a scam that these certification organizations and the dump
providers hatch up collectively. But it is what it is, and that's how corporate world
works unfortunately.
Another small bit you need to be careful about is the similarity between the
different choices of answers. Never get confused when choosing an answer from
a list of options. In fact don't look at the answers, if possible, until you calculate
your own because it will be a common sight to have two almost similar answers
for a single problem. They are there to confuse and trick you to select either one
of them. And the more you get puzzled the more time you are going to take to
answer it. And as I discussed earlier, time utilization is also an important factor in
your exam which affects your scoring big time.
The importance of exam dumps is for the sole purpose of cracking the CCNA
exam. When you work as a networking professional in any company, you will
hardly use even 30 to 40 percent of the skills that you've gained from your
professional certification. Moreover, some networking jobs are such that you will
not get to use almost any of the skills that you've learned from your CCNA
curriculum. Majority of the times, organizations prepare over the top job
descriptions, and post insane qualification prerequisites for most roles,
particularly for the entry level jobs. And it is true that organizations mostly don't
want the same skills that you acquire after putting so much of the hard work. And
as a result, you will have to go though their own job training and learn about your
roles and responsibilities afresh anyway. That's when you feel like you are holding
a certification just for the sake of certification. Hence, there is no need for you to
go too far in your learning and wasting your time and energy just for the time
being. Because if you will be working in this sort of job i.e. that does not require
your advanced certification skills, then after some time you will start to forget
everything you've learned due to lack of its implementation. And if or when the
situation calls for it, you will be required to go through the those technical
concepts all over again, i.e. in case those skills are required in your job in future,
so no need to go berserk over learning too much either. And besides, someone
rightly said, “education just for the sake of education is worthless.”
Let me go through an example from my own job experience. When I applied for
the job of an Analyst, I was expecting to be interviewed regarding lots of technical
stuff, since the job description asked for the skills required in the server
monitoring, basic networking skills, Linux, and a lot more. So I prepared for it
accordingly. And as expected in the job interview, the interviewers asked all sorts
of networking questions, some of which were from CCNA and some weren't.
Interview was a success. And when the job started, I was hoping to use my CCNA
skills being a certified professional, but after spending a few weeks in the job I
realized that I was in fact NOT using any of the networking skills barring a ping
command that could be taught to anybody within a minute. Isn't that funny? So
do you think it is worth studying that hard or preparing for the exam over a period
of several months so as to master the technicalities when in reality you aren't
sure whether you'll put any of that to use. That's the irony; there is no use of the
CCNA skills in the real world for any beginner's role. As with me, I found it
extremely difficult to keep up with the same skill level that I had when I just did
my CCNA. Do you think it was worth it for me? Absolutely not! It would have been
better for me to learn the technical stuff as per my job requirement because
things change pretty quickly in the IT industry, and we have to keep ourselves
updated all the time. So do yourself a favor, don't go too deep and finish your
exam within a month's preparation.
As soon as you receive your certification, it will increase your chances of getting
into the networking sector, which in turn will also increase your salary scale.
In conclusion, you can't manage to fail the exam after having invested both your
time and money into it. Months of preparation and expensive training does not
guarantee success either. And unable to crack the exam wouldn't do you any
good. You will only waste your time as well as resources even after the putting so
much hard work into the exam. So simply have a quick overview, clear the
important concepts, and last but not the least, make sure that you go through the
dumps to be able to pass the CCNA exam in the first go.
What to Expect after CCNA certification
CCNA entails rich networking concepts that helps you to configure and
troubleshoot basic to moderate networks, including TCP/IP, OSI models, WAN, IP
addressing, VLANs, access list, etc. so you will definitely have more confidence in
attending your job interviews, knowing those basics.
Having a CCNA certification will definitely improve your chances of getting your
first IT job or to switch your career to Cisco based networking, as it dominates
over 90% of the total networking infrastructure around the world.
And as a job seeker, it will help your resume to stand out among your peers, but
don't forget that qualification is not an alternative to experience because one still
has to learn the real-time skills while at work, along with the troubleshooting
tricks that big networking engineers possess. That said, while you make your way
up, you learn from one another and get better with your experience.
Another thing, start from the scratch. First job is always going to be challenging
because with no experience under your belt you would have to be really lucky to
land an ideal first job. So don't be too picky when you get a random opportunity,
just don't look at the technicalities and think that it won't be of much use to you.
Whatever the job description is, it should be an IT job and somewhat related to
networking because once you will have some experience then your certification
will have more recognition. You can always switch from one job to another that
better suits your skills after a while. This is just how it works in reality, most
organizations don't bother about your skills or the knowledge you possess. For
the more relevant jobs, the HR personnel will always ask for some kind of an
experience – voluntary or otherwise. If this happens to you, don't be discouraged,
never think that your certification is worthless, or it is not helping. Its real
strength will be exploited at a later time, but for the time being use it to
strengthen your resume as it will give you an advantage over other candidates for
you can bring new dynamics to your skills and have success at the job interviews
i.e. you can make a great first impression.
And once you get your hands onto the job that truly implements your CCNA skills
that will be the time when you will show your real capability and correspondingly
see a rapid growth in your career particularly built on Cisco networking
infrastructure.
How to proceed with other Cisco certifications
After completing the CCNA, you unlock many different paths to move forward
with, namely Routing and Switching, Security, Voice, Data Center, etc. So you will
have to decide which direction you want to go based on your experience, interest,
job market research, availability, opportunities, growth, and so on.
Some people likes doing the certifications one after the other, but some like it
doing slowly giving enough time to see how or where their careers headed. In my
opinion, the best method is to complete the CCNA first and then once you have a
relevant job, start studying towards the CCNP but not by taking one exam after
another. It's because of the following reasons:
1. A Cisco certification is valid for 3 years. After 3 years period, the
certification expire so all your previous exams become invalid in an instant.
That's until you clear the same or a next level exam. Now, imagine if you
will complete all your CCNP exams within a year (especially without having
the real need for it) then 3 years later your entire certification will be
expired. So you will be left with no other option but to take the last exam
again or advance onto the next level exam, which will cause you to prepare
all over again anyway, using the fresh modules and resources. Hence, I'd
suggest you to wait until the last few months of your exam's expiration
date and then take another exam within that time. In this way, you will stay
updated with the latest certifications for longer and utilize the complete 3
years of the same.
2. If you are currently not working in an IT job then you should avoid any
advanced level certification other then the CCNA. Higher certifications
don't weigh in on your resume even if you have let's say, CCNP. It won't
assist you professionally if you don't have any work experience to go with
it. That's because for an advanced certification like CCNP, organizations will
see whether or not you are working in a relevant position. So when they
will notice that you are not working anywhere even with such a
certification, they will consider your CCNP to be of no use. On the contrary,
it will negatively affect your aspirations. Therefore, initially you should just
stick with CCNA and then get into a relevant IT position. And after you have
some experience to show on your resume, only then you should proceed
with other advanced certification exams – one at a time. This is the best
way to make the most out of your certifications.
The bottom-line is that Cisco certifications will benefit you the most when
you are working in a real Cisco environment i.e. when you are handling and
troubleshooting real Cisco routers and switches. In such a situation, you can
proceed with other advanced certifications as per your wish and pace. And
that's when your certifications will assist you in reality and help you to
thrive on a career based on Cisco networking at a greater speed.
CCNA salary expectation
Many people are made to believe that on completion of the CCNA they can
secure a job in a range of 50k but you've got to make your salary expectations
right. Though I don't deny the fact that some positions do offer this much, but
employees’ salary is never based on the certifications. There are many different
aspects taken into consideration on the basis of which salaries are decided. Don't
get demoralized, it is true that the CCNA networking professionals are highly paid
but in most cases, your real salary package would be based on a number of things,
such as your skills and experience, not on the certifications. Hence, it is entirely
out of the context to expect high salary just because you are a CCNA certified. As
a fresh employee, you will have to start on a basic salary package in the
beginning. And with time and experience, your certifications are going to help you
in a salary rise in the later part of your career.
As a rule of thumb, the salary package varies according to different jobs and with
the roles and responsibilities each position entails. So if your job requires basic IT
skills then you will get a comparatively less package compared to others
regardless of your personal expertise and certifications.
Meanwhile, if you are offered job that specifically requires you to work on high
end networking equipments, in other words a job that involves designing,
troubleshooting and operating the routers and switches in a network then you
can easily get package well above 50k. So remember, if you are a fresher then it is
best to start working in a basic level IT job that becomes available to you. After
that you can continue to explore for the other advanced level jobs that are more
relevant to your skills and expertise.
Fast track you IT career post CCNA
IT certifications are very helpful for those who are new to the booming IT industry
or are a fresh graduate because these vendor specific certifications particularly
teach you the hands-on IT and networking skills, which not only improves your
overall profile but also helps you to successfully clear the technical interviews.
The knowledge you have gained from these certifications helps you to create a big
positive impression on the interviewer’s mind, plus you will possess the strong
industrial IT skills that the fresh college pass-outs lack.
CCNA is definitely a hit but this does not make the other vendor certifications any
less important. As Cisco is world leader in the networking sector, similarly there
are other famous certifications that teach the skills required for succeeding in
other specialized jobs in the IT industry. Therefore, you can look forward to and
try your hands at other famous certifications such as A+, Network +, ITIL,
Microsoft certifications, etc. This will substantially add to your technical expertise
in more than one niche and improve the possibilities of you working in many
other specialized technical jobs. But before choosing the another certification to
do, assess the current job market and check what the employers are looking for,
particularly in sync with your existing profile. And then using a similar approach,
acquire that certification as soon as possible with the help of the exam dumps and
other relevant practice material as required. Up skilling will help you gain the
much needed competitive edge in the ever changing job market and keeps you
going smoothly.
Important: The best way to proceed with any certification is to pre-check what’s
hot in the IT market and what the companies are after on the job portals and
websites. Then prepare yourself accordingly.
Finally, pass your exam quickly. You can easily finish any certification in a month’s
time if you study smart, are serious and dedicated towards it. So fast-track your IT
career – learn the basics and then build over it. Complete a different set of IT
certifications steadily with time; alongside working in a relevant IT job and gaining
the much needed work experience. This will allow you to grow very fast in your IT
career. But you got to love whatever you are doing; otherwise you can’t drag
yourself for too long. So what are you waiting for? Set your goals, roll up your
sleeves and go hunting.