Equipments Advice

sherifsherif

What do u think guys about the Cisco Catalyst 2948G for the CCNA CCNP labs? I'm thinking about investing in real gear hardware but I'm on a very tight budget, but in the same time I want to invest in hardwares that will help me in the CCNA and CCNP, any advice will be appreciated about the best hardwares and the cheapest. By the way, this Cisco Catalyst 2948G is offered to me for 40$!

miller811

sherifsherif wrote: »

What do u think guys about the Cisco Catalyst 2948G for the CCNA CCNP labs? I'm thinking about investing in real gear hardware but I'm on a very tight budget, but in the same time I want to invest in hardwares that will help me in the CCNA and CCNP, any advice will be appreciated about the best hardwares and the cheapest. By the way, this Cisco Catalyst 2948G is offered to me for 40$!

buy 2950 switches or better,

2010

sherifsherif wrote: »

What do u think guys about the Cisco Catalyst 2948G for the CCNA CCNP labs? I'm thinking about investing in real gear hardware but I'm on a very tight budget, but in the same time I want to invest in hardwares that will help me in the CCNA and CCNP, any advice will be appreciated about the best hardwares and the cheapest. By the way, this Cisco Catalyst 2948G is offered to me for 40$!

I agree with Miller811 - 2950 or later if possible.

sherifsherif

thnx guys, I'l try to get the 2960 if i found one at a reasonable price, but i wish that someone give me the reason why shouldn't use the 2948? Also, is it really true that it only support the Cat OS and no IOS? And what's the best and the minimum equipments I need to get to run STP, Frame Relay.......?

miller811

sherifsherif wrote: »

thnx guys, I'l try to get the 2960 if i found one at a reasonable price, but i wish that someone give me the reason why shouldn't use the 2948? Also, is it really true that it only support the Cat OS and no IOS? And what's the best and the minimum equipments I need to get to run STP, Frame Relay.......?

here is the main difference worth noting
to configure vlans on an old 2900 series switch, you must go through the VLAN database..... like so.....but notice what a newer switch (mine is 3550, informs you when you try to access it in the only way the 2900 will allow)

3550_24#vlan data
% Warning: It is recommended to configure VLAN from config mode,
as VLAN database mode is being deprecated. Please consult user
documentation for configuring VTP/VLAN in config mode.

this is important for learning and certification, the Cisco exam will test your knowledge on how to currently configure VLANs, not on how you used to configure VLANs. Which would you prefer to know how to do?

sherifsherif

Thanx this is short and clear, for sure i would go with the 2950, just loved the 2948 coz it's a very robust switch esp the L3 model of it. Anybody can tell me how many switches and routers do I really need to run STP, Frame Relay and those kind of stuffs and still help me for the CCNP without throwing any of them?

blackninja

sherifsherif wrote: »

Thanx this is short and clear, for sure i would go with the 2950, just loved the 2948 coz it's a very robust switch esp the L3 model of it. Anybody can tell me how many switches and routers do I really need to run STP, Frame Relay and those kind of stuffs and still help me for the CCNP without throwing any of them?

CCNA and to upgrade to CCNP
For STP you need at least two switches (2950/2960) with two trunks links to each other , you'll see one gets blocked because of STP. If you have the cash, 3 for good VTP/STP practice.

For frame relay you don't need any switches, as FR is a router thing You do need a Router to act as a Frame Switch, I used a 2521 (4 serials) but I don't think will do for CCNP.

For CCNA (then up to NP) I would recommend at least 3 X 2610XM ( 2610XM can support IOS 12.4 (1 with 2 serial ports and 2 with 1)), a router to act as a frame switch and 2 2950s.

sherifsherif

Thanks a lot blackninja, this is really a very useful information wich I appreciate alot.... This is really a nice display image..