Decent router for CCNP study

Dr_Atomic

I don't have a lot of money, and I was wanting opinions on what a good router is for completing the CCNP? I see some cheap ones on ebay, but I don't want to get something that won't/can't do the work an NP required.

Thanks.

DevilWAH

3640

I have 2 and there great seen them for $30-40 and cheaper and they do all a CCNP lab needs.

Get one with the highest IOS you can manage, or if your lucky and you know a nice CISCO rep or your company has a support contract you might be able to upgrade the IOS. So try to get one with 32mb flash and 128mb ram.

For a start out router they are great, if you grow beyond them and add better routers to your lab, they will still be great to add more bulk to your setups.

kidfry

Dr_Atomic wrote: »

I don't have a lot of money, and I was wanting opinions on what a good router is for completing the CCNP? I see some cheap ones on ebay, but I don't want to get something that won't/can't do the work an NP required.

Thanks.

I'm doing the NP Route at the moment as well - My rack includes the following hardware...!

- (1) 2621XM
- (4) 2620XM
- (2) 2811 ISRs'
- (1) 2511 AS
- (3) 2950's Catalysts'
- (1) ASA 5505

Truthfully, I power on my rack every once in a great while; maybe like once a month or so - I use dynamips 95% of the time however... I'm in the process of saving up for a couple L3 switches but don't plan on purchasing them until I've completed and certified under the ROUTE exam.

While I'm not discounting the value of 'real' hardware, I would suggest looking into something maybe along the lines of the 2600 series and/or 3600 series line. From a router perspective, you should be able to get something going for pretty damn cheap. It's the L3 switches (e.g. 3550's/3560's) that will likely put a sizable dent in your pocket!

Good Luck with everything... Keep us apprised of whatever it is that you end up fetching from the bay!

Slowhand

As DevilWAH mentioned, the 3640's are great. I can also recommend 1721 routers, (maxed out to 128MB memory and 32MB flash, of course,) as starter-routers, (they're not rack-mountable though.) The 2600XM series is currently the most versatile, as they can be used for CCNA, CCNP, and all the way up to CCIE due to the fact that they support more memory. The downside, though, is that the 2600XM routers are a bit more expensive than the 3640's and the 1721's. Search eBay for all three models, and you'll see what we mean.

One thing to be aware of: most of these routers won't come with the WAN Interface Card (WIC) modules you need. Make sure you research how much the routers and the modular interface cards are going to cost you, or you might end up with a stack of routers with only one ethernet connection on each. Most sellers on eBay will list what model routers their WICs are compatible with.

tiersten

Slowhand wrote: »

One thing to be aware of: most of these routers won't come with the WAN Interface Card (WIC) modules you need. Make sure you research how much the routers and the modular interface cards are going to cost you, or you might end up with a stack of routers with only one ethernet connection on each. Most sellers on eBay will list what model routers their WICs are compatible with.

Don't forget that the 3600s don't even come with WIC slots

DevilWAH

tiersten wrote: »

Don't forget that the 3600s don't even come with WIC slots

True but you can pick up one of these, for next to nothing.

CISCO NM-4T NM4T 4 Port Serial Interface CCNA CCNP on eBay (end time 19-Sep-10 19:07:59 BST)


TO be honest I would say you are looking at £100 to £150, (or same in $)

to get hold of two basic routers with what you need for the CCNP.

jovan88

Go for the 2600XM with flash/ram maxed out if you can afford it, the 3640s are too chunky for my liking

honestly if I could turn back time I'd put the money towards upgrading my computer so I can run GNS3 decently

DevilWAH

jovan88 wrote: »

honestly if I could turn back time I'd put the money towards upgrading my computer so I can run GNS3 decently

I have run GNS3 find on an old PC running Ubuntu. Only has 512 ram and a 1.7ghz CPU. But can run 2 or 3 3600's with no problem?

And yes I would agree, if you are on a tight budget learn to use GNS3, I still like the stability of real hardware. But GNS3 allows you to do achive every thing of real hardware at a fraction of the cost. (just need to get hod of the IOS's)

tiersten

DevilWAH wrote: »

And yes I would agree, if you are on a tight budget learn to use GNS3, I still like the stability of real hardware. But GNS3 allows you to do achive every thing of real hardware at a fraction of the cost. (just need to get hod of the IOS's)

+ hardware switches since Dynamips doesn't do switches apart from that NM-16ESW.

Has anybody actually conclusively tested to see if Dynamips emulates the hardware well enough to handle all the various QoS options? I remember somebody mentioning that it doesn't or didn't.

Slowhand

tiersten wrote: »

Don't forget that the 3600s don't even come with WIC slots

Heh, true enough. I've been working with the 1721's for so long that I totally forgot that the larger slots on the 3640's and 2600XM's aren't WICs.

Netwurk

For me, GNS3 is cool for experiments but I wouldn't trade in my lab for anything.

I like the 3640's because of the expandibility. I have two as well as some other models.

I think for CCNA, you can get by with GNS3 alone (although some real switches would help).

But for the CCNP, you can't beat a real lab.

chrisone

what everyone else said as far as rack equipment.

Sorry to be a party pooper but this thread has been done for the new ccnp track more than once. Try searching the topic your bound to get many lab setups for different career paths. GL!

Netwurk

Slowhand wrote: »

Heh, true enough. I've been working with the 1721's for so long that I totally forgot that the larger slots on the 3640's and 2600XM's aren't WICs.

True enough, but cards that support WICs go for under $10

As an example:

Cisco NM-1E1R2W (1-Ethernet/1-Token Ring/2-Wic) Network Module

mathelize

I prefer 3640 and 3660 to 2600XMs. They boot faster and respond to commands faster than 2600XM, though they don't come with any network interfaces. You can use them up to the CCIE level. They support more commands than 2600XMs with the right IOS. They also support VOIP as do the 2600XMs. The only downsides are they are bulky, but to me, I'm ok with them.
You might also be luck to get your hands on 3725 and 3745. Just scan ebay day in day out. You'll get good deals with time.

Sorry, 3660 do come with 1 or 2 Fast Ethernet.

Bert McGert

GNS3 with a single 3640 image was all I ever used.

There are tons of sites and forums with info on how to set it up for whichever platform you're running. It works and is a beautiful, beautiful thing.

DevilWAH

I wrote this up a while ago for ww.expertsexchange.com , it might help you decide.

Tips on setting up your lab

Dr_Atomic

DevilWAH wrote: »

I wrote this up a while ago for ww.expertsexchange.com , it might help you decide.

Tips on setting up your lab

Very nice! Thanks. I'll take a good look at it when I get home.

Dr_Atomic

Bert McGert wrote: »

GNS3 with a single 3640 image was all I ever used.

There are tons of sites and forums with info on how to set it up for whichever platform you're running. It works and is a beautiful, beautiful thing.

It's encouraging for me to know that someone was able to attain an NP with just something like GNS3 and without having to drop cash for a physical lab. Thanks.

Bert McGert

Dr_Atomic wrote: »

It's encouraging for me to know that someone was able to attain an NP with just something like GNS3 and without having to drop cash for a physical lab. Thanks.

You'll probably wanna get your hands on some actual switches (given the limitations in GNS3), but even then you could probably make do. I never spent a dime on a piece of equipment.

DevilWAH

I often find that I sue my physical lab to do run of the mill stuff. (the core EIGRP, OSPF and such), but I often call on GNS3 for the more in-depth features.

The Ideal situation is to have a few layer 3 switches and a couple of entry level routers on your physical lab, and link in Your GNS3 setup to extend to.

This way you get the best of both worlds.