Hello from Oklahoma

StormStrikesStormStrikes Member Posts: 31 ■■□□□□□□□□
Hello all. I signed up because I am starting down the path of getting my CCNA. I worked for a large phone company until this past August. So I figured I would use the down time to upgrade my skills.

I have been looking for some hardware to set up a lab. Ive read through the FAQ's and decided the following set up may be what I need.

2ea Cisco 2514 Routers
2ea Cisco Catalyst WS-C3548 XL Switches

Probably down the road, based on what I am reading here, will invest in a 2611 and a 2522 router, but my focus now is getting the CCNA and having everything needed to do the lab work.

Will there be any 'accessories' I will need such as cabling or other types of miscellaneous hardware?

I have a copy of CCNA Study Guide by Todd Lammle, I also have a couple of training DVD's for ICND 1 & 2. I read on here somewhere that Wendell Odom's Cisco Press CCNA Certification Library was a good book to have so I will look for a copy of that as well.

Anyway, any input on my planned hardware purchases would be greatly appreciated. I want to be at least very well set up for the CCNA and if financially doable, set up to go beyond that.

Thanks in Advance.

Comments

  • alan2308alan2308 Member Posts: 1,854 ■■■■■■■■□□
    The 3500XL switches are functionally the same as the 2900XL switches, which are fine as a 3rd or 4th switch, but they're pretty old and missing a lot of features that you'll want to work with while studying for the CCNA. Most here would suggest going with at least a pair of 2950's and also considering a 3550. But if you're on a budget, I'd pick 2900's over 3500's. They're limited, but better than nothing.

    2900XL/3500XL < 2950SI < 2950EI < 3550

    The 2500 series routers are a bit old as well, but they'll do the majority of what you need for the CCNA and they're real cheap. They wont be of much use beyond the CCNA, so you may want to think twice about a router that will have such a short life span in your lab. The 2600 series routers don't do anything that the 2500's do and require WIC modules, so unless you find one dirt cheap that's loaded with useful modules, I wouldn't look at those. The 2600XM routers cost more and also require WIC modules, but they're way more useful now and beyond. But again, if you're on a budget, the 2500's are adequate for now.

    2500/2600 < 2600XM

    Cabling is going to depend on which routers and modules you end up choosing, so I'll wait on that.

    And most importantly, welcome aboard!
  • StormStrikesStormStrikes Member Posts: 31 ■■□□□□□□□□
    Well as much as I would like to be future proof as I possibly can, I would like to keep the cash outlay to a minimum until Im working again, so to that end I would probably stick with the 2514 routers. The next question there is do I need just two of them or should I get more than that?

    With regards to the switches, I will get a pair of 2950XL's. Since my wife is still working, when she gets her bonus I'll pick up a 3550XL. Should the switches have any specific number of ports on them?

    One last thing that I just thought of. None of the laptops that I own have serial ports on them so are there any suggestions on how I will connect to the console ports? I know I can get a USB to serial adapter, but wasnt sure if there was some other way to make the connection.
  • mikej412mikej412 Member Posts: 10,086 ■■■■■■■■■■
    A 1721 router with Max Memory and the Power Brick (it's a desk mount router) costs around $50 and will let you practice the SDM exam tasks and also supports Router On A Stick with it's built in Fast Ethernet port. Make sure it comes with at least 12.4 Advanced Enterprise IOS (good for CCNA and CCNP) or a 12.4(11)T (or greater) Advanced IP Services IOS (good for CCNA:Security, CCNA, & CCNP). You can add WICs for WAN connections.

    You can get 2950s for under $50 if you shop and are patient. I like a 2924XL-EN as a 3rd switch, but they're not really worth more than $10-15 since the prices on 2950s have dropped -- so go with a 3rd 2950 if you can't find a cheap 2924XL-EN.

    The old 2501s are $10 routers.... maybe $15 if they come with the Transceiver. The 2514s may be worth a bit more because of the dual AUI Ethernet -- but then you need 2 transceivers.

    You can shop for the cheapest frame relay solution. The 2522 was popular with the CCIE crowd because of the 10 ports -- but the cost of the NM-4A/S and NM-8A/S has dropped so you might be able to build a cheaper frame relay solution with one of those NMs and a 2600 or 3600 series router.


    You can build a 4 port compound frame relay switch with a couple of 2500 series routers -- so that could be your cheapest solution. You'd want 3 routers hooked up to your frame relay cloud so that you could have a hub router and two spokes.
    :mike: Cisco Certifications -- Collect the Entire Set!
  • StormStrikesStormStrikes Member Posts: 31 ■■□□□□□□□□
    WOW, how did I miss the 1721. I only messed with two series of routers when I was with the phone company, 2500 & 3600 series.

    Thanks for the help, guess I'll shop around and see what I can find the 1721. Do I need the T1 CSU/DSU WIC card in them? Obviously I dont have a T1 coming into my home but I wasnt sure if it were something I needed to be looking for or to purchase.

    Also, that brings me back to the console port and the fact none of my laptops have a serial port on them. Do I need to just get a USB to Serial adapter or is there some other way to do that?
  • mikej412mikej412 Member Posts: 10,086 ■■■■■■■■■■
    I started with 2500 series routers in my home lab so I stayed with the DB60 connectors. You can get the WIC-1T cards and use those with an NM-4A/S or a couple of 2501s (compound frame relay switch solution) for frame relay.

    The WIC-2T or WIC-2A/S have the smaller (and newer) Smart Serial Connectors. If you mix serial interfaces then you need to get the proper assortment of "back-to-back" cables -- DB60 to DB60 or Smart Serial to Smart Serial or DB60 to Smart Serial.

    If you get the WIC-T1 card(s) you'll need a back-to-back T1 cable (or you can make your own). You can do frame relay over the WIC-T1 cards, but tricking out a router (or routers) to get the 3 T1 interfaces in your frame cloud is usually more expensive then sticking with the DB60s or Smart Serial WICs/NMs.

    Check out the Cisco Partner Central Portable Product Sheets
    Portable Product Sheets - Partner Central
    There are PDFs for Router Memory, Router Performance, Switch Performance, Modules Cross Reference, etc. These are very useful when you're trying to build a cheap home lab.

    But for a look at the "Good Stuff" (or if you win the Lottery :D):

    Cisco Catalyst Switch Guide PDF
    http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/swit...cd805f0955.pdf

    Cisco Router Guide PDF
    http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/coll...cd8019dc1f.pdf
    :mike: Cisco Certifications -- Collect the Entire Set!
  • StormStrikesStormStrikes Member Posts: 31 ■■□□□□□□□□
    I just won a 1721 off Ebay for the grand price of $0.99 plus $15 in shipping w/T1 WIC Card and power supply. However, the seller said he does not know the password on it. So it will either be good experience for password recovery/reset or it will be a brick of a bad investment, but I figured it would be worth a shot.
  • StormStrikesStormStrikes Member Posts: 31 ■■□□□□□□□□
    I also picked up a few USB to Serial adapters and a few Console kits so hopefully Im set there as well.

    Ive also found a guy selling a few more 1721's with T1 WIC cards in them for about $60 each with free shipping. Waiting to hear back from him on the IOS that is installed. They seem to be going for about $40 plus shipping or around $50-60 with free shipping and then up from there.

    Ive also found a couple Cisco Catalyst WS-C2924-XL-EN switches for really cheap (a little under $25 with shipping) so if those are good then I will pick up a couple of those and start hunting for a 2950 Switch.
  • StormStrikesStormStrikes Member Posts: 31 ■■□□□□□□□□
    Okay, so here is what I have picked up so far:

    1ea Cisco 1721 Router, Unknown IOS @ $17.00
    2ea Cisco 1721 Routers, Cisco 12.4(12) IOS @ $56.00
    2ea Cisco Catalyst WS-C2924-XL-EN 24-Port Switches, @ $49.00
    1ea Cisco Catalyst WS-C2950 24-Port Switch, @ $65.00

    Throw in the console cables and USB to Serial adapters I bought and Im under $230.00.

    Do I need to go ahead and pick up a router for a frame relay set up or will I be okay with the three 1721's?
  • NetwurkNetwurk Member Posts: 1,155 ■■■■■□□□□□
    If you go with a 2500 router, a 2516 is a good start as you don't need a transceiver. The 15 extra ports are all repeaters (hub ports), but it has a lot of cool features like a button to turn xover on or off.

    Lots of good advice in this thread.

    Good luck with your lab.

    I was working in my laboratory late last night......

    :)
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