1st CCIE lab attempt blog and help for candidates.

UnixGeek

Wow, that's some serious dedication Turgon. Glad to see that your preps are progressing.

Turgon

UnixGeek wrote: »

Wow, that's some serious dedication Turgon. Glad to see that your preps are progressing.

Thanks man, yep it's coming along nicely. No rack practice tonight as I have a bad cold. The boy is sick too

bertieb

Turgon wrote:

No rack practice tonight as I have a bad cold.

Swine flu shouldn't interfere with a superheros work. Get back to it Turgon

Turgon

bertieb wrote: »

Swine flu shouldn't interfere with a superheros work. Get back to it Turgon

heheheh I took your impudent advice young man!

IPExpert WB v 9.0 lab no 9 ACLs and IP Filters - DONE

Another overview session configuring this out on the homerack. Question 10 is OTT but serves to illustrate that if the ACL requirements get really heavy Im going to encounter some serious problems unless I really sharpen up on these topics.

I just hit 700 hours configuring vendor lab scenarios and examples from cisco press books. It's taken a long time to get to this point. But it means I have now finally given myself a decent chance of being ready to sit the exam in 12 weeks time. There is a lot of work ahead, but without those 700 hours I just don't think I would be able to cover things properly in the time I have remaining. Our son was born a few months after I started all this and it would be good to do the lab before he turns two years of age. Family duties and fulltime work have made an expedition of the preparations and they can't continue indefinitely. It's now or never.

The priority now is to pass the written with all possible speed and grab a lab slot for the end of August. June it's battering away at the construction of all major topics and mock exams. July it's filtering, verification and mock exams. August sit lab exam. There will be no more lost weekends between now and lab day and I expect the next twelve weeks to be very hard indeed on the family. My wife and son are visiting family sometime in July for a few weeks so that will open up extra time for me in the evenings and weekends but it's going to be essential that I get as much done as I can before they depart so Im not left in a hole in July with simply too much that still requires work.

More written prep throughout the rest of May. It's been going well but I need to get off practice tests and spend much more time reading Odom's book. Questions on things like the specifics of WCCP and eigrp queries will kill me on that test if I don't get that book down because that book is full of things like that. I have covered 7 chapters thus far.

But, all the effort and the patience has paid off. By reaching this point I have now covered enough to give myself a shot at being ready over the course of the next twelve weeks.

June will need to be evil.

Turgon

Made notes on multicast across IWEB Vol II labs 7 -12, also consolidated my scribbles for IPexpert labs concerning IPv6 last year. Updated my master spreadsheet which is coming along with useful config details. Score better on the netmaster today. Tonight will tramp through the old bosons again. Most likely will set about IPexpert BGP lab on the rack tomorrow evening. We have a long weekend coming up so may schedule a mock exam.

Turgon

IPExpert V 9.0 Lab no 7 - BGP

I last tackled this lab on 20th August 2007 so it will be interesting to see how I fare this time. Now clearing down the home rack configs. I expect to be working this one for a few nights.

Turgon

I can recommend lab no 7 in IPexpert V 9.0. Did the first three questions then called it a night, it's a fine lab that shouldn't be rushed. The first few questions throw confederations, route reflectors, update source and ebgp-multihop your way so there's plenty of good stuff there straight of the bat. Expect to get this done across the weekend.

Today went over RIP and EIGRP sections in Odom. The reading seems much easier now and I picked up a lot of useful things there. I also had a go at a Netmaster test and the marks continue to incrementally improve. We have a holiday on Monday and with the elephant in the room (the written), I have decided it is best to get some serious reading done over the long weekend. That should take me a long way towards getting that essential written pass. This bumps my mock exam back to the following weekend but that's just the way it is. I need to finish Odom. You can score high marks on the boson test provided in the book and on netmaster tests and still tank the actual written exam. It's all in that book. Better finish it.

On that note I will try out some old boson BGP questions tonight to keep working the theory, and on Friday night move from theory to some more hands on BGP practice on the homerack as I continue with lab no.7. I find that a night of theory on a topic followed by a night 'on rack' on the same topic works quite well.

irom77

Turgon wrote: »

Hi,

My previous thread entitled 1st CCIE lab attempt starting April 2007 was temporarily offline so this is a new thread covering my efforts.

I'm working evenings and weekends to prepare for my belated first CCIE lab attempt in Spring 2009 (bumped from July 2008 due to work/family commitments). This thread will be a record of my progress. I hope you will all drop by with encouragement. I will certainly gladly offer advice to anyone else working towards the lab. I also work fulltime.

I have been working in the biz for 10 years and have finally gotten around to finishing my lab prep this year after a few years concentrating on my work in the field. So Im returning to the CCIE now and pulling on my previous years of experience with cisco, cisco studies and professional networking.

I will post up my findings on the latest lab I have just completed at home shortly.

Meanwhile, drop by and say hi

I've started to preapre for written CCIE, and thinking about lab in parallel. Can someone tell me if it's enough to go through IE Dynamips Workbook II 20 labs or it's far to low ..? I have already CCNP and many years of expereince (but not in every field covered by CCIE)

apd123

If you look at turgons signature has has about 1000 hours of time studying with 12 weeks to go. I believe this could be lowered if you were to dedicate time to only studying otherwise I think this is a fairly normal time frame. I would say depending on how you study that as long as you spent a lot of time understanding the fundamentals of the technologies that you may not even need to do all 20 but just repeat a few and read through the others. Reading through labs and researching the questions that came up in my head was 1/2-2/3 if my time spent studying between my failing and passing attempt. I spent some time doing labs right before my passing date but this was more about speed and verification then learning. A major mistake I see is getting so much material that you feel a need to blitz through it. I know I continue to make this mistake even though I am aware it is an issue.

Turgon

It's an interesting question. From what I have seen, some candidates spend a little less time than this to get through. For many it's about the same and for a good number of people it's actually much more. One first time passer was preparing 12 15 hours a day (he didn't work for 6 months) and amassed over 2500 hours before clearing first time after about 8 months straight. If you are figuring out and configuring cisco configurations on a daily basis for several hours a day at work I think you might need a little less practice time working examples from books, CCO and vendor labs.

I can relate to your final preparations because that's where I am at now. Im going over technology labs again to reinforce the command lines that are still woolly and making notes as I go. Once the technology labs are done I will be grabbing 6 labs from IWEB and simply going through all the questions on a given topic i.e security across all 6 labs. If stuck, check the solution and make notes. Then you end up with a consolidated list of things for a topic that for one reason or another you either can't remember when you need it or perhaps still don't understand properly. From there I can do a couple of sessions at home working that list, battering the commands in until I get some recall and researching any aspect of the command that isn't clear in my books. I have to say though that less research is required now. Once I see a solution to a question it's pretty apparent to me now what it is doing and how it works. So there's definately some memory work going on now so that becomes less of a problem, because Im often at least close to understanding what *might* be required when a task comes my way, it's just recalling the details of the command line construct I need that is irksome at times now. The secret (if there is one) is not to do too much memorisation early in your studies because until you have really put the hours in configuring things in lots of different ways, there's a possibility you may rely on rote learning rather than trying to really understand how things actually work. This is why I haven't rush through labs. Each lab offers a good learning opportunity in itself and anything that foxed you should be thought over quiet a bit so you better understand how that configuration met requirements.

Mock exams will provide a good test for me every other weekend going forwards. In between it's really getting a stronger arsenal of configurations together for each topic and better verification and process.

I have to drop the car off this morning for service. Then its back to the BGP lab on the homerack followed by more test questions and reading for the written.

Turgon

hehehe..well the bill to get everything fixed for MOT on the car including stuff that just needs replacing but doesn't affect MOT but needs doing anyway (tyres, break discs, yada yada) comes to over 1000 dollars. Gotta love cars. Still that keeps the car in good order for another year.

Going over the Boson solutions I struggled on for IGP topics now before firing the rack up again.

Turgon

The rack session has been put back a few days while I concentrate on theory. More old boson questions to do today. Im also going to be going over chapters in Odom's book.

Turgon

Another early start going over theory. Mostly switching today.

Turgon

77% on the netmaster today which was pleasing. Also the OSPF section in Odom read so much better after obliterating old Bosons for the CCIE written and BSCSN tests over the weekend. The elephant is still in the room but starting to trumpet a bit now. More reading required then a test next week I reckon. June will be a difficult month on mock exams, July better, August best.

Turgon

81% on the netmaster today. The small details are starting to stick and Im brushing up well on protocol mechanics. Also went through the Odom chapter on route summarisation. Overall going quite well. I will need a good weekend with the book to really get through the remaining chapters. At this rate I may take a morning off at the end of next week and have a punt at the written exam, at the latest the following week. It will be good to pass this, chalk it off the list and get back on with dedicated lab prep. No doubt the slots have gone worldwide before October now but there's always the chance of a drop out I suppose. All my studytime has been expended of late on theory and I haven't hit the racks since the 19th May. To keep my hand in I will finish IPexpert lab no 7 on the homerack this weekend. Written prep will run into June so I'm a little behind but I will still use June to encounter full mock exams for the first time in my preparations. I expect the mock experience to be rather difficult at first but I hope to come into July doing better on them. June will be a tough month and the configuration hours will certainly ramp up on the home rack and on the remote rack sessions. I will be pouring over my notes as well.

It's all good.

liquid6

still very inspiring Turgon...I was struggling for some motivation to study tonight but reading through some of your posts has reinvigorated me!!

Thanks again for sharing your journey with us and keep at it!!

Turgon

liquid6 wrote: »

still very inspiring Turgon...I was struggling for some motivation to study tonight but reading through some of your posts has reinvigorated me!!

Thanks again for sharing your journey with us and keep at it!!

No problem

Turgon

Just got through chapter 19 MPLS in Odom's book. Hard reading if only because I think it tries to cover too much. It seems quiet well written with it's examples but I think there's several days of material right there to work through properly. With time marching on that will have to constitute the bulk of my prep on that particular subject and with some more work on practice tests I should be able be wing it. Now it's time to move onto completely different topics in this book as there are still many chapters to read. This morning was taken up with housework. MPLS was covered this afternoon and I will carry on reading through the evening. On Sunday we will probably have a family day out as this weather is simply too good to miss. What with chores, reading and a trip out there will be no time for rack work this weekend. You can't have it all. Probably shoot for a couple of evenings after work next week to polish off lab no. 7 now. Most keen to finish the written preparations now as I have definite plans for lab practice which are somewhat on hold at present while I finish off all the theoretical stuff.

Which chapters shall I do next? QoS? Multicast? IPv6? BGP? Choices

Turgon

Just finished getting my brains smashed today by completing Chapter 20 IPv6. Again the chapter covers a lot of stuff in detail. That's enough reading for one day, at times it's been like watching paint dry. But no pain, no gain.

Turgon

Work done and the little one tucked up for the night. A short session on the homerack now to pick up on where I left off with the IPexpert BGP lab no 7. Read the Odom chapter on security today.

Turgon

Back on the rack now to finish lab no 7. A good lab on BGP this one. Today tramped through a netmaster test hitting 85%. Nothing to get too excited about as I have been over the test several times yet. No time to tackle the Multicast chapter today at work. Will try again tomorrow.

Turgon

IPexpert WB Version 9.0 Lab no 7 BGP - DONE

A great little lab this which I can highly recommend full of things that make you think from the word go. All the mechanisms seem to flow more easily these days which is good. I have a much better instinct for BGP. Fooled around to try and get the advertise-map working to no avail. Better luck next time on that one. I shall not do this BGP lab again but it was worthwhile to repeat it after almost two years! Lab 18 next up tomorrow evening covering tunnelling followed by lab 8 redistribution. That will bring closure to the Ipexpert V 9.0 technology lab revisit. I have 4 x IPexpert multiprotocol labs in reserve, these could be done on the home rack without switching, compromised labs using my 4000 series as a bridge. Alternatively I may set about doing bits of IWEB Vol II labs 7,8,9,10,11 and 12 on remote racks concentrating on a particular subject across labs for a couple of days at a time. At least that's what I have in mind inbetween mock exams at the weekends. Some serious note taking followed by stints practicing commands is due as well. But I have to get the written out of the way first. Having cleared the air at work for some time off to take the test Im looking at taking a punt at the test a week on Friday. If I can have another big weekend on Odom's book I should have completed reading it, leaving a few days to polish up on my notes and have a dig at the test. The written test is a bastard by the way in case you didn't know

Turgon

Got about halfway through the multicast routing chapter today before calling a halt as more than enough had been covered for one day. PIM-DM and SM join/prune, graft, assert etc etc. A good reading session really working through the mechanisms. It's a lot of stuff to work through properly.

Sometime tonight now prestaging the home rack for IPExpert V9.0 lab 18 GRE and Routing Protocols.

Turgon

Yesterday evening I was off the rack while I finished the Odom chapter on multicast routing. I set about it during the day. A tough read. Tonight Im having off to recharge the batteries. A big weekend ahead. I expect to finish lab 18 at home but mostly I will be working through all the remaining chapters in the Odom book, interspersed with some quizzes from the new Boson. Next week I will go over the topics that gave me grief when I took the written test in February. I should also run one last time through the Odom book quickly focusing on the details I highlighted across all topics. Then it's a punt at the test on Friday morning. Time to get back on rack practice really so lets hope I knock this test out. I expect to do better now I have put some serious reading time away brushing up on many writtenesque things that faded away. More reading time would be better still but given my lab plans I really need to make the most of what time I have left this weekend and see if I can squeak by next Friday.

Turgon

Spent yesterday getting to grips with the latest Boson so no time for rack practice. The test has been updated and looks much better with plenty of scenario based questions. Will carry on with that today supplemented with some more reading.

Turgon

Ok. A break now from the test engine. The conclusion I draw from the results is to bump the written test back another week. It's clear I need more time to straighten out the detailed mechanics of protocol behavior in my head across the topics. I have spent a lot of time this weekend working through the questions. Im going to take a break now and spend sometime with the family because the preocupation with exam prep both written and lab is starting to wear thin on the homefront. In terms of juggling work, family and CCIE things have gone well. My work hasn't suffered and I have spent more time with with my family than many CCIE candidates over the course of the studies. But the longer course brings it's own problems. On the study front it can be difficult to keep your knowledge organic without regular lengthy sessions reading and practicing. Learning is piecemeal and too much time elapses between topics. I find this leads to frustration and also invasion of your private time in a different way because all the stuff you still want to do has to wait and it plays on your mind a bit. This can make it hard to be there mentally when you should be doing things with the family and this is something which is really a toll on your loved ones. On the lifestyle front the study program takes too long and it begins to feel like someone else is shadowing you all the time i.e the lab and your desire to complete it and the body of work required to do that manifests itself as this extra person that is always hanging around like an unwelcome guest in your home. It can feel at times like you will never be able to ask to unwelcome guest to leave your house. This is particularly hard for partners, wives, children. The process becomes something they are forced to endure without feeling any of the sense of accomplishment the CCIE candidate feels as mastery of topics improves. What do they get out of the work? The answer is nothing. Not a thing.

Explanations of all the benefits to come fall on deaf ears at this stage because there are powerful arguments to counter them. One being I make a good living without the CCIE. I remain in well paid gainful employment so I don't have to pass this thing and put us all through this arduous journey. The second being family is more important than a CCIE achieved by either living in a box to clear it inside a year, or alternatively bleeding the whole process across two years in bits and pieces in an attempt to provide a semblance of a normal environment at home. You spend more time with the family with this approach but with the process dragging it gets very old for everyone. There seems no end to it and everyone gets frustrated with it. More time off work would have helped but there were always bills that had to be paid. More opportunity to study during the best hours of the day at work would have helped but nobody pays my rates to have me embark on self study during the day. 8:30 pm study starts after a long day with an early start ahead and weekend cramming gets old for everyone and it's difficult, perhaps impossible to amass the study frontprint you need quickly with that sort of timetable at your disposal. It's going to take ages to put enough work down and it has.

Every CCIE candidate and his or her family experiences this to differing degrees and it is to be expected. But we are nearly done now! I will be taking time off work at the end of July to finish my preparations fulltime. That's really going to help us out. Add to which my family will be away visiting relatives for a few weeks so I expect a quiet environment at home with no responsibilities on the work and family fronts will really make a very big difference.

Now for some quality time with my family away from Cisco books and practice questions for a change.

Turgon

Odom Chapter 14 Shaping and Policing covered. More Boson tonight!

Turgon

Back on with the new Boson tonight in an attempt to get through the remaining questions in it. Certainly stretching my protocol knowledge and there are a lot of mechanisms I need to know a little better. Some new things cropped up too. Obviously one or two viewers will be interested but I can confirm these are not the actual test questions. It is a challenging test overall though with only a few Mickey Mouse questions. Lots of diagrams and config to look at. I got 84% on the Netmaster today. I seem to be getting the same questions wrong there. I will look over the solutions tomorrow and then Im done with that test. It's been useful for what it is. Reading the chapter on Shaping and Policing was helpful. My QoS had gone off the boil so that should help some. But with the Cisco style of exams and the way the books are written there is a tendency to fall into rote learning. Will I know enough to negotiate the QoS questions on exam day? Well it was my best mark last time out and with some more review I should sharper up on what I forgot. Could I stand up in front of a classroom and wax lyrical about all the color policing and token bucket variants with any in depth conviction? You must be joking. I would need several weeks at it to get into that. The same could be said for any of the topics really. A note to myself to configure the QoS and Multicast examples in the Odom book when I get a chance. As for practice tests, well the new Boson seems a challenge, the test engine is Odom is ok, the netmaster as well. I did pick up a CCIE study guide from a vendor the last time I passed and having had a go at the end of chapter questions in it was surprised to find about 12 questions in the real exam come up word for word. The Vendor's name remains anonymous for two reasons. I mentioned this once before on a thread and it got deleted and secondly I don't see why I should direct anyone there. The exam has changed since then anyway.

Right back to it. There are five chapters left in Odom to clear by Sunday night, QoS, Multicast, BGP and Frame Relay. I guess I saved the easy stuff until last!

I found this old story on a CCIE passer from a few years back who made it over a couple of years. Found it interesting and can certainly relate.

http://articles.techrepublic.com.com/5100-10878_11-1053791.html

Turgon

More reading of Odom planned today. QoS again.

Turgon

No time for serious reading today at work but I was able to scoot through a Netmaster practice test getting 89%. Also looked over the questions I got wrong. At home I have finally got through all 300 questions on the new Boson I picked up on Friday. Exhausting getting through so many new questions on that thing but worth it. I came out with 57% which considering the breadth and overall difficulty of the questions Im quiet pleased with for a first pass. It does however confirm what I suspected. I still have quiet a bit of work to do to be really ready for this test so I was right to bump it back to next Friday. I basically need to sort out some of the finer points of protocol mechanics and parameters in my head to do better on some of these questions, and I think with another week at it I will do so. The solutions certainly clear up things that are not quite right or jumbled up a bit in the brainbox. We should get done with reading Odom's book by the end of the weekend. I will have another go at reading it Wednesday during lunchtime.

The CCIE at work is recertifying tomorrow and is confident. He's convinced he will pass. I imagine he should do. Having recertified several times in the past he seems pretty easy going about it all and doesn't expect any nasty surprises other than a few questions here and there which as far as I can make out he expects to be able to mostly work out or best guess. About 10 weeks ago we discussed that we both had to do it and I think he has done a reasonable amount of reading sprinkled over that period. For my part seven of those 10 weeks have been solely lab prep and I have been cramming the written for last three weeks which has been somewhat overloading. It will be interesting to see how everything pans out. I think my advice on caution has encouraged him to do a bit of reading the last week but he's fed up now and wants to get it done and out of the way. I can relate