Confused About Cisco Equipment Kits

jlacroix

Hello everyone. I'm just starting out in my CCNA studies. I've been browsing through the forums for a bit, trying to find answers, but I still find myself confused about a few things.

First, I found this certification kit online and it seems to be a decent deal:
CertificationKits
But, I'm looking for the possibility of continuing to run my home network off of Cisco equipment even after I pass the CCNA. That router doesn't appear to be Gigabit. My home network is currently all Gigabit. (Literally every computer, switch, router I currently own). I'd rather not downgrade. Then again, money is a HUGE factor. My goal is to learn on Cisco equipment, but also replace my D-Link router with a decent Cisco one.

I researched the Cisco 2501 that is offered in that link, and it appears to be over 10 years old, which makes me wonder how relevant it would be today.

My certification goal is to get CCNA and then at least CCNP. Any help is appreciated. I'm hoping to achieve my CCNA by the end of the year if I can pull it off.

veritas_libertas

I would use eBay and buy them piece by piece. Kits are usually over priced, and often older. Take a look at Odom's recommendations and make sure you get the routers and switches with newest IOS you can find:

CCNA Build Lists

I would recommend skipping over the 2501s and just getting a 2600 series router or newer. I personally enjoyed the 2501s because I learned the difference between the commands needed on the 2651 I have and the 2501. Kind of cool, but none the less I would still skip them.

Last thing, unless you would like your electric bill to spike I wouldn't keep the Cisco gear on all the time.

tr1x

I built the large lab in the link that veritas_libertas posted. I think you'll need at least that much equipment for CCNP. Also, I wouldn't use that equipment for your home. That cost me like $400 for all the stuff (switches, routers, wics, cables, shipping) and doesn't fit your Gigabit requirement. If cost is a huge factor, I wouldn't use the Cisco stuff for your home because you'll be forking out a lot more for Gigabit (which is unnecessary for just a lab). It also uses a lot more electricity like veritas_libertas mentioned.

Oh also, don't buy kits. Use ebay, craigslist, etc.

keenon

for a ccna to ccie level fastethernet is fine. gigabit isn't needed. i usually have spare gear on the market if your interested.

jsb515

cablesandkits.com has nice prices on routers and switches, i've bought from them they ship fast. I didn't buy a kit either just picking up what I can from my employer and buying what I can for what i need.

JeanM

You don't need gigabit for the lab, 10/100 is just fine and you can just have the lab/router connect to your existing home router if you like. It won't downgrade anything as you won't be routing your home traffic through the lab ....

jlacroix

Thanks guys, I'll forget about gigabit and setting up stuff for home.

I took a look at the build lists that were posted but it appears to be a few years old. I might buy some gear this weekend. Would it be cheaper if I just buy what's needed for CCNA now and buy the remaining pieces for the CCNP later? I would like to buy everything I need in one swoop. If my budget is $200 for equipment this round, how far would that get me?

Also, I have a question in regards to what computers to test the stuff with. All my computers run Linux, will that make it hard for me to log in with the console? I really don't like Windows but I'll install it if I have to. Also, I don't think I have much in the way of serial ports on my laptops, so not sure if that is a detractor.

Edit:
The build lists linked above, although it may not have been updated in a while, mentions two 2950's and two 1721's. It also lists the cables needed. If I bought all that, would I be in good shape for now until I start CCNP? I'd rather not start over with CCNP, but build on what I buy now.

Carl_S_901

I've been doing some research on this lately and just wanted to point out that if you go the 2600 series path then you want 26xxXM (XM) routers and not the non-XM versions.

tr1x

jlacroix wrote: »

The build lists linked above, although it may not have been updated in a while, mentions two 2950's and two 1721's. It also lists the cables needed. If I bought all that, would I be in good shape for now until I start CCNP? I'd rather not start over with CCNP, but build on what I buy now.

Yep. If you have no serial connections (or only one, like me) you'll probably want to get serial to usb cables. Those require a driver... and you know what that's like trying to get one for Linux. They may or may not have one.. so if you can dual boot Windows and use putty that would work.. otherwise just gotta find a driver for Linux (may or may not be a huge pain in the butt).

veritas_libertas

REMOVED UNNECESSARY PRECEDING QUOTE

If you have a desktop just by the PCI slot. I've found that USB is touch and go. When you are first learning it makes it a real pain.

jlacroix

REMOVED UNNECESSARY PRECEDING QUOTE
Thanks guys for all the replies. I agree that USB to serial adapters are a pain. I used them for non-Cisco related reasons earlier in my career, and it was always a #%$& to get them to work.

Should I buy anything in addition, or only the 1721's and 2950's as well as the cables?

After I get some more money I plan to buy Trainsignal and possibly other training videos. It sucks that money is an issue and I can't buy all this stuff at once. I'm really itching to get started.

veritas_libertas

REMOVED UNNECESSARY PRECEDING QUOTE

Videos are okay, but certainly not necessary. INE's CCNA videos are only $99 and really not that bad after having seen them. I was less impressed at first, but that is probably because I had Lammle's CCENT book nearly memorized, and was hoping to learn something more. It was free for April, and mine is still working. Worth checking out for sure.

tr1x

jlacroix wrote: »

Thanks guys for all the replies. I agree that USB to serial adapters are a pain. I used them for non-Cisco related reasons earlier in my career, and it was always a #%$& to get them to work.

Should I buy anything in addition, or only the 1721's and 2950's as well as the cables?

After I get some more money I plan to buy Trainsignal and possibly other training videos. It sucks that money is an issue and I can't buy all this stuff at once. I'm really itching to get started.

Funny, I never had much trouble with the cables. It took me a while to get them set up (had to install two different drivers, reboot, power cycle the equipment) but after that they seem to work fine now. Device Manager tells me what COM ports they've mapped to.

Other than that equipment all you need are the WIC cards (sometimes sold with the router, sometimes not).

JeanM

Linux should not pose any issues as long as you have a working term emulator software and serial connection (or usb to serial + nec. driver).

XM's are not necessary for CCNA, you can get by just fine with non XM or even 25xx stuff if you are on low budget.

Asif Dasl

tr1x wrote: »

Yep. If you have no serial connections (or only one, like me) you'll probably want to get serial to usb cables. Those require a driver... and you know what that's like trying to get one for Linux. They may or may not have one.. so if you can dual boot Windows and use putty that would work.. otherwise just gotta find a driver for Linux (may or may not be a huge pain in the butt).

I think this is the chipset that works with Linux best. There are tons of adapters on eBay that don't work with Linux but I'm almost certain this is the chipset I got that does..

Plugable USB to RS-232 DB9 Serial Adapter (Prolific PL2303HX Chipset) | Plugable

alxx

+1 don't buy a kit


Ftdichip based usb2serial cables work fine on Mac, windows and Linux. Drivers been in the kernel since 2.6.14


2600xm, 1721/1751/17060's, 3660, 3725,3745
you'll want at least one or two routers with two Ethernet especially for ccnp.

Work out which wics you want to go with


Make sure to get a copy of gns3 and get it working before buying hardware

jlacroix

Thanks guys, it looks like I have some shopping to do.

MAC_Addy

Shopping around is usually the best way to go. I was nearly fooled into purchasing a kit when I first got into Cisco. Nearly a big mistake. Just realize that your whole lab may not come together within a couple of weeks. It took me nearly 9 months to piece everything together for mine. And I'm still adding to it! There are loads of people on here that have a lot of knowledge on hardware/software for Cisco equipment, so if you have any questions there will always be someone to help

I've used GNS3, but I prefer real hardware, guess I'm a bit of a Cisco hardware junkie... I just love it! I usually keep my whole lab separate from my home network.

alxx

Make sure to do your research and just don't go for the cheapest.

Don't rush into buying and if you are going on to ccnp don't buy to much yet.
For ccnp, routers with two FE(fast ethernet) are needed.

Hardware is fun ,I do it for work but not cisco .
New job a few weeks back, working at layer 1 on hardware (optical)

alxx

If you want a cisco router for home use maybe a 877w(or newer) or 1801w or similar

Can get 877w's from around $50 to 100.
1801's have been going on ebay here, for $100 to 200.
Cisco 1800 Series Integrated Services Routers Fixed Configuration Models  [Cisco 1800 Series Integrated Services Routers] - Cisco Systems

Can pick up 1841's for around $180.
They are nice (2FE + 2 wic slots) and very quiet.

If you are single and live alone, no problems using a router for net access and home lab though it can get annoying (been there done that)

If you are married ,sharing or live in a share house etc- don't do it unless you want a divorce

jlacroix

Hi guys, I was Googling, and I found this:
Cisco 1721 Modular Access Router, CISCO1721

The price listed is cheaper than I've found on eBay, unless I'm looking for the wrong thing or missing something. I was thinking about buying three of these and two 2950's. Would that be a good choice?

DB Cooper

I was thinking about buying the kits. I'm glad I didn't, the process of researching what you need, and hunting them down on Ebay was fun. But it was a learning experience, it was my time building a network from scratch. We can never have too much experience.

spd3432

jlacroix wrote: »

Hi guys, I was Googling, and I found this:
Cisco 1721 Modular Access Router, CISCO1721

The price listed is cheaper than I've found on eBay, unless I'm looking for the wrong thing or missing something. I was thinking about buying three of these and two 2950's. Would that be a good choice?

I took a look at what's linked. I believe there are two major models of the 1721. One has 16mb flash and the other has 32mb flash. If you look to the left of the console port, if it doesn't say 32F, then its the 16mb version -- and it's the 16mb version shown on that web link. I've seen the 1721's as low as $20 on craigslist (32F). As for use, they have a functional IOS so I'll assume the majority of the commands you'll need for CCENT/CCNA will execute. I haven't researched that much into them, so don't know what WICs you'd need to get to do frame relay testing, but the majority of the 1721's I've seen have T1 DSU/CSU WICs.