VM lab advice/suggestions

Hello. Last week I bought a Poweredge 2950iii and installed ESXi 5.5. So far I have installed the following VM's...Server 2012R2, Server 2008R2, Kali Linux, Fedora Server 64-bit, Centos 6.4, and currently setting up a Win 7 box on it. I have a 1TB HD and 32GB RAM. This is for testing and learning only. Anything else I should add?

My background:
B.S.-Information Technology (2010)
A.A.S.-Computer Forensics & Security (2009)
A+ (2010)
Network+ (2010)

-Worked as a helped in a local school district IT department for 2 years while in school. Mainly imaging PCs and laptops
-4 years as a Systems Admin at a 90 user manufacturing facility. Mix of Linux and Windows servers. There were 2 of us and we handled everything. I handled AD user accounts and file and share permissions. I also administered our Linux firewall (IPCop)
-1 year as a Systems Security Engineer (scanning servers for vulnerabilities and remediating these vulns

I also had previous law enforcement experience and did armed security for 10 years securing both buildings/businesses and people

Recently started studying for Security+ and hope to take it in the next 2 months and hope to complete the CISSP by the end of this year. Does my work qualify me for the CISSP or will I need to go the associate route?

Thanks in advance.

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Comments

Deathmage

personally, if you can afford it do this and it will help you out way more. Add the following if you can afford it.

1) get another host
2) get a Cisco SG300 10 or 20 port switch
3) get a Cisco SG300 10 port for just iSCSI/vMoton
4) get a small NAS with at-least a 4 bay NAS with iSCSI support

Setup a N+1 VMware cluster and dive deeper into VMware. Get your VCP and get a Server Administration job, but at the same time lab away a network in your cluster. Make a few windows servers; make a few DC's, a file server, a TS farm, print server, and get used to the servers, make a Windows 7 box and use it connect to a TS farm.

At the same time get used to networking, enough to know how to do it, basic vlans, etherchannels, trunks, jumbo-frame/SP/E-port/N-ports.

Get a handle on that and you will be good to go in the real world....

maintaining a home-lab does wonders in an interview, I've gone on 5 in 3 weeks and I ended up staying were I am for a nice pay raise, but I'm always looking....

nascar_paul

dhay13 wrote: »

Last week I bought a Poweredge 2950iii and installed ESXi 5.5

I was thinking of doing the same thing, and I had a couple of questions for you. What kind of rack did you install this in? What's the power consumption like? Is it loud? I've been wanting to get a couple, but I've been worried about the noise and bother.

dhay13

Thanks Death for the advice. I just got this server last week so I'm in the beginning stages. I'm trying to stay focused more towards the security side of things as far as my career path. I have taken courses based off CCDA and CCDN but have not taken the certs and am very rusty in that area. i do also have a precision T7500 with a single dual core xeon but only 4GB RAM. i am hoping to upgrade the RAM soon. i have virtualbox set up on it with several VMs and had planned to network them all together but with only 4GB i'm limited on that machine.

nascar...(BTW-i'm a huge nascar nut)...anyway, as i said, i just got this server last week but it is very loud. i did not install it in a rack. i initially had it setting beside me on my workbench/desktop but it was too loud so i moved it out of my home office into another room sitting on an old dresser. i can't speak as to the power consumption yet but my research seems to indicate roughly a $20/month increase in the current bill with minimal workload. I only have mine turned on during the day when i am using it

EDIT: just to add, I also have Secret clearance if that makes any difference

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