Estimate how many labs you've created for the CCNP!

stlsmoore

I just happened to look at my folder where I keep all of my GNS3 labs for my BSCI exam, and I noticed that I'm nearing about 100 labs that I've created so far and believe I'll be at about 150 labs once I finish the lab portfolio. How many labs did you guys create on average before you completed your CCNP or created so far during your CCNP Progress?

Ryan82

I would venture to say about the same on BSCI exam alone. In addition to the Lab portfolio, I am labbing up quite a few of the scenarios in the self study guide, Routing TCP/IP Vol. 1, and all relevent (and some not relevent) scenarios in Narbik's Soup to Nuts. This may be overkill, but I am looking at this as a stepping stone towards CCIE so I don't feel that it is time wasted. Not to mention, I really want to pass the BSCI exam on the first try

Daniel333

Hard to say, I used the same lab many times. From my notes, it looks like I average 3 labs a day for about 3ish months. So, low 100's for my most recent attempt. I had put in about 50 hours early 2009 also. So I would say I did about 150 labs and failed.. bad.

billscott92787

I probably did about one hundred possibly for the BSCI. I did the lab portfolio as well as created some of my own scenarios and used some of the scenarios from the Train Signal videos. I failed my first attempt. Only by 7 points though. Passed 2nd try three weeks later. When is your first BSCI attempt? I wish you the best of luck, the exam definitely is a beast!

burbankmarc

Wow, you guys are crazier than I am. I did probably about 30-50 for the BSCI. So far I've done about...5 for the BCMSN (struggling with motivation).

networker050184

One million muhahaha!

DevilWAH

One...

ok may be a few more, but my lab has always been one ongoing LAB/work test bed.

I have never followed any lab books or anything. Just down load the Cisco PDF chapter on configuing a tec. And run through setting it up to fit with my network as it is. I dont like doing clean/clear labs out of a text book. In the real world its not often that you get the chance to do it "by the book". You often have to "bend the rule" to get every thing working togather, and I find that working out how to make it fit gives you a deeper understanding of the subjects.

I would say so far if i am honest I have done about 1, what you would call "lab" per chapter of the book. I also often base my "labs" on issues I am having at work, so they often get a second run through while implementing them in to a live network (Nothing will help you learn better, than knowing you going to be introducing the technology you are testing in to a live network the next day!!!)

I also like migrating from one tec to the next on my test bed, with out resetting, after all its not often in the Realworld you get a chance to wipe a network and start from scratch, its an evolving project. And again working on your test bed like its a live network teaches you to really think about and understand what you are doing, and how it all fits togather.

I don't want to end up with knowing this bit, and this bit , and this bit, and this bit. of networking. For me networking is one large topic with all the bits interconnected and a continuation of each other. So thats how I aproach the hands on learning as well, one core system that I bolt new bits on to as I discover them.

stlsmoore

It's cool to see just how everyone else creates labs and studies for the test. A lot of my labs come from taking examples out of the Self-Study guide book and figuring out what configurations they implemented to get the example to work since the book provides very vague config info usually besides the end of chapter lab. I'm finishing up the extra appendixes not included in the book and I've found a cool site with a bunch of lab challenges that's been helping out A LOT. I'm honestly not even sure when I plan on taking the test yet though, I'm just going at my own pace. I'm going to try and sit it at least once before the cut off date though.