Based On all the reading

thelostone

Based on everything i have read and now i am really confused. What is the easiest lab to setup at home for the CCNA exam? What is the cheapest equipment that i can buy via ebay or somewhere else. Please let me know as i am now lost. :

mattrgee

For switches you need a minimum of a 2950, I used 3 2950's which allowed spanning tree protocol to be fully tested, among other exam objectives.

For routers, I used 3 1721's with a couple fo serial modules to allow WAN links to be simulated. The 1721's are pretty basic routers and can be picked up off ebay pretty cheap.

nel

The FAQ: http://techexams.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=7268 has everything you need to know.

Dont worry if it doesnt sink in at first. learn the concepts properly. It may take a few reads but it will all stick eventually. If it doesnt try reading/learning from different sources!

michaelkahl

I have a lab setup with 2x 1751's 1x2924 and 1x 1900. Since I'm studying for the 640-801 test I'm not sure how this will work for the current exam. I think the above posters were correct in suggesting 2x 2950 switches and 2x 1700 routers.
I highly suggest using packet tracer as well. While you don't want to use exclusive sim software, it can be handy to simulate larger labs or with equipment you don't have.
For example, my 1751's have 2x serial WIC's installed in them so I can play with load balancing. If your budget doesn't allow you to configure your routers with multiple serial interfaces then this will be a good way to simulate it.
Also there will be a handful of labs that will require 3 routers / switches or more, this is where packet tracer comes in handy. With 2 routers and 2 switches you get experience with physically handling, connecting and consoling in to your equipment.

I used ciscokits.com last year, because prices weren't far from ebay at that time and I got a free lab manual & cd with cisco documentation . Check prices at ciscokits.com, cablesandkits.com and ebay.
I hope that was clear enuogh.