Pass Your CISCO CCNA or CCNP Exam With the Help of a Home Lab Kit
There are some concepts that are just too difficult to learn by reading and studying alone. When you are trying to pass your CCNA or CCNP exam, you can learn more by setting up an inexpensive CCNP lab kit right at home. Depending on which exam you are studying for and whether you want to branch out into other certifications, there are various lab kits available on eBay.
How many computers are needed for a CCNP home lab?In theory, you should only need one computer to set up a CCNP home lab, especially if you are mainly interested in studying for your exam. Two computers are ideal, and it doesn't matter if they are PCs or laptops. If you can't afford two computers, it is fine to set up a home lab with one.
What are the benefits of a physical router for studying?A simulator can never quite give you the full experience of practicing on a physical router. The concepts you are studying will stick with you better when you can actually see what happens when you pull a cable out. You can use what you have learned to decide if you have simply put the cable in the wrong spot or completely configured the interface wrong. It's much easier to see the different layers on a physical router, so you can correctly troubleshoot and determine which layer is the protocol and which layer is the interface. When you make a mistake on router one, it can affect the other routers. A simulator can't give you the same hands-on experience that seeing all of this together in real time can. If you're serious about your CCNA or CCNP, a CCNP lab kit is a worthy investment in your future.
What is included in a CCNP lab kit?There are several options available on eBay when you are looking at purchasing a CCNP lab kit. Remember that having more than you need is not a problem, but it can be a problem to not have all the elements you need. If you are specializing in a certain area, you may need to purchase additional equipment for that. Your basic CCNP lab kit generally includes the following items:
- Minimum of three routers
- Minimum of three switches
- Connection cables
- Ethernet cables, including at least two crossover Ethernet cables
- Power cables