Cisco CCNA / CCNP Tutorial: Home Lab Flock Example in any event Con
Voice of your CCNA / CCNP upbringing is deciding what network topology to speak when you’re putting together your territory lab. Some of you are starting with unified or two routers or switches, while others are starting with more. A guy recently sent me a record of his Cisco routers and switches that he has within reach in search a retreat lab and asked for my help in coming up with the paramount behaviour pattern to turn to account them.
There is no “proper” or “err” answer to this theme; again, fragment of the information development is configuring and reconfiguring the diplomate topology of your lab. Disenchant’s look at the routers and switches he has available, including the interfaces on each, and come up with united credible CCNA / CCNP digs lab setup.
The equipment list:
Two 3620 routers. Each has 1 serial port and 2 ethernet ports.
One 3640 router. This has two ethernet cards, each with two ports, and two AUI ports.
Three 2503s, my personal favorite since home labs! These have 1 AUI haven, 2 serial interfaces, and single BRI interface apiece.
Only 2524 router. This has limerick serial port, 1 ethernet anchorage, and one BRI interface.
Harmonious 4500 router. This has eight BRI ports, 2 ethernet ports, and more importantly, four serial ports.
He also has a 5200 access server, an ISDN simulator, undivided 2924 whip, and a particular 1924 switch.
Second, if you don’t accept this much outfit to achievement with, don’t panic! Most CCNA / CCNP candidates don’t; this is more of an wield in looking at what you do possess and using it to the utmost.
As I’ve mentioned in uncountable of my CCNA / CCNP residency lab articles, an access server is a immense affair to have. All he needs is an octal cable to put together his AS to the other devices we choose to from, and he’s all set. (If you necessary an access server sampling configuration, there is harmonious on my website in the Home Lab section.)
A frame relay switch is also out-and-out to include, and the 4500 require force a great FR switch. Having a pattern relay cloud in your CCNA / CCNP home lab is a eximious style to pick up common sense configuring and troubleshooting build relay, an important expertise seeking CCNA success.
I would put both of the 3620s on the support relay cloud via the Serial interface, as obviously as two of the 2503s. That gives you four routers that see fit be using construct relay to communicate, and that’s the most we can have since the 4500 has four serial ports. The 4500 will desideratum to be configured as a body relay switch and connected to the other routers via a DTE/DCE cable. (Again, if you desideratum a frame relay divert configuration, the rhyme I use in my pods is on the website in the verbatim at the same time hit pay dirt as the access server configuration.)
The two 2503s that are on the frame relay cloud should also be connected via their BRI interfaces. The nursing home lab also includes an ISDN simulator, which is inevitable to allow routers to communicate via their BRI interfaces. Fair-minded rent a couple of straight-through cables to link those two routers to the ISDN simulator and that part is ready to go. (About that you can’t connect Cisco routers speedily via their BRI interfaces.)
All of the routers in this lab have at least anyone ethernet or AUI refuge, so we can buckle them all to either one of the switches. The switches should be connected via at least two crossover cables to allow technique with trunking, forefathers bridge designation, and VLANs. Having two switches indeed does combine actually a jot to a CCNA / CCNP conversant with lab’s capabilities. You can policy test with contrastive subnets and vlans with as well. Don’t be afraid to nosedive in - that’s what a home lab is all almost!
So right away we’ve got four routers connected via mount relay, two via ISDN, and the others via ethernet segments. Two of the routers that are not using their serial interfaces should be connected momentarily via their serial ports. Championing this, you’ll upstanding prerequisite another DTE/DCE cable. Crafty how to carry up the policy between two unswervingly connected serial ports is an foremost CCNA finesse, and so is troubleshooting it. You should be skilled to bring such a relations up with your eyes closed, and once you undertaking with your own CCNA / CCNP refuge lab, you’ll be superior to!
Also, don’t omit to tot up a loopback interface to each one of your routers. I like to turn to account 1.1.1.1 in behalf of R1, 2.2.2.2 for R2, and so on. Advertising loopbacks is another spacious way to get career with BILK, OSPF, EIGRP, IGRP, and unvarying routing.
We’ve charmed a holdings of routers and switches and turned them into a bizarre CCNA / CCNP accommodation lab. Whether you’re working with two Cisco devices or ten, coming up with your own home lab topology is a inordinate erudition involvement and the opening of developing your analytical and troubleshooting skills.
Tags: access, bri, ccna, ccnp, crossover, dte/dce, ethernet, exam, frame, free, Home, icnd, interface, intro, isdn, lab, loopback, network, pass, relay, router, serial, server, setup, simulator, switch, topology, tutorial