CCNA CAN I DO IT??

rana_choudhuri

can anyone help me regarding ccna? i am interested to do this certification. is it hard? what are the papers? pls help me

Ghent

CCNA is one of the supposedly harder exams. Simply because they test actual skills as opposed to how well you take a test. The actual exam is 640-801 I believe. This will probably explain it a little better then I can.

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/learning/

rana_choudhuri

thank you Ghent.
how can i give this test? where to register ? what is a CCNA's prospect?
i am doing my final year engineering in Electronics and Communication Engineering. will it help me ?

rana_choudhuri

which books can i consult for CCNA?

ajs1976

Books:

www.ciscopress.com has a book by Wendell Odom

www.sybex.com has a book by Todd Lammle

These two books usually get the highest ratings.

rana_choudhuri

thanks AGS1976 :P
can anyone tell me what is the minimum passmark for CCNA??
what is the total mark??

techman-aka-Format

the passing mark for the old exam (640-607) is 849. I'm not sure what the passing mark is for the new exam, but I think it's around the same.

rana_choudhuri

thanks techman22
what is the best way to start preparation for CCNA? which paper to start first?
how much time required for CCNA preparation?

techman-aka-Format

Hey rana, it took me about a year to study for the CCNA. I went through the cisco academy, and then I studied about three more months before I took the exam the first time. are you in the cisco academy? I think classes are a great way to learn. especially if you have alot of labs. I had a good teacher who made us do a lot of hands on labs. We had a whole lab setup, with 2500 and 2600's. plus some 1900 switches too. what's cool about the networking program at my school is there's two seperate racks. One rack for CCNA, and one rack for CCNP. and we always have plenty of lab time. but if you're not in school, maybe( if you have the money) you can setup a small lab at home. get a lab manual and practice. The best books are wendal odoms, cisco press book, or todd lammle's book by sybex. from what everyone has said those are the top two CCNA books. I used todd lammle's book. also when you're studying, get some practice questions too. this site has some you can use. so like I said it took me about a year to learn all of the information you need to learn. but some people are different. some people need less time, or more time. It depends on the individual. The CCNA is a hard exam. but if you study hard and practice you will pass. I hope this helps. If you need to ask anymore questions feel free to ask me anytime! techman

rana_choudhuri

thanks onceagain techman22 :P
no, i am not in a cisco academy. But i am interested to set up a lab in my home. how much will it cost?
do you think i should enroll myself in cisco academy?
How to start preparing for CCNA? i.e which topic i should begin with?
can you pls suggest me.

techman-aka-Format

Hey rana, some people go through the cisco academy and others learn on there own. It really depends. I would definitlly recommend the cisco acadmey. but If that's not the route you want go and you want to do it on you're own, that's o.k. too. It depends on what you're networking knowledge is coming in. If you're new to the networking field, and don't have alot of hands on experience, then the cisco academy would probably be a good choice. I didn't have alot of hands on exoerience, when I first started so I took a few basic networking classes first, and then I went through the cisco academy. The stuff you should start learning first is probably the OSI model, and the TCP/IP model, subnetting, and the basics. although you probably already know all that stuff. netwokring equipment is expensive. I believe it was pandimus who setup a home lab for like 500$ or somewhere in that price range. I remember reading his post. that's why it's better to go the school route because then you can get to use the labs for free! But it depends on the person. what is you're knowledge level right now? If you know the basics then you're ahead of the game, and you can start practicing with the labs. I hope this helped. techman

rana_choudhuri

thanks.
i have some fundamental knowledge regarding different layers, e.g physical layer,datalink layer, medium access layer,network layer, transport layer, application layer, network security and i do know a bit about TCP/IP. but i rarely have any practical experience.
pls suggest.

techman-aka-Format

O.k. that's kinda how I was. then I would suggest the cisco academy route. the first semester is all conceptual stuff. OSI, TCP/IP etc. etc. then the second semester you start playing around in the routers and switches. It's alot of fun. I liked the cisco courses. and if you know security then that's a plus! maybe you could specialize in security after you're done with you're CCNA. if you wanted to go the security route. cisco has security certs out now. the labs in class will help you get some of that hands on experience you need. hopefully you'll get a good teacher too. alot of the semster one labs are real easy, and there fun too. stuff like making cables, and installing NICs. basic subnetting etc. etc. I hope this helps! techman

rana_choudhuri

thanks techman22 a lot
will you mind if i ask for help later here? i need your help.
thanks once again. :P

techman-aka-Format

No problem rana! ask me anytime. you can also message me too if you like. I'm always happy to help!