1st week of CCIE study

Just starting my 1st week of lab prep. I don't plan on rushing through this. My 1st few months will only be 8 hours a week, and slowly picking up on the months after. The lab may very well change, but no big deal for me. I still have lots of projects going on and a family to spend time with. I will slowly start updating the blog as time goes on.

Week one.

Coming up with a overall study plan, and Identifying trouble areas.

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Comments

down77

The first step (and hardest) is always putting together a game plan, and then sticking with it. I think you are on the right track by starting the way you are. I fully know the importance of having a family/study/work life balance while going for the CCIE!

shodown

Schedule is done. Mark snow posted a excel spreadsheet almost a few years ago. I will be pretty much following the 18th month plan on it. The biggest difference is that I'm at CCIE prep. The other differences is that some of the CCNP V material is better than the deep dives so I will be using that and just doing the deep dive lab portions and watching the solutions.

http://blog.ine.com/2013/01/16/18-month-plan-released-for-ccna-to-ccie/

rchase

Yeah i bought the DD's but found that ATC was really all i needed to bridge the "theory" gap between CCNP V and CCIE V. I watched all 56hrs of ATC, and im working thru IPX workbooks while reading, studying configs, and mainly labbing all of it seems to be the best method of learning. Lab now, understand later!

sieff

rchase wrote: »

im working thru IPX workbooks while reading, studying configs, and mainly labbing all of it seems to be the best method of learning. Lab now, understand later!

@shodown ... I was going to start a thread, but I've filled this forum up with plenty of dud threads already. I joined another forum that occasionally has a poster that breaks NDA and a gave an "example" lab scenario that made my head spin. I'd need like 12 hours just to finish the one configuration requirement that the guy mentioned.

I just started back with my CCIEV studies and I realized I'm way behind on reading... Any pointers for finishing the recommended Reading List. I start strong, but mid-way through some books I totally give up. Some of it may be because I work on Cisco UC day-to-day, but there was also some hidden gems in the SRND, etc...

Do you just drive through boring material?
Do you take notes when you study (handwritten or on your PC)?
How much reading is considered enough? I've even started reading RFC's....

Thanks in advance !!!!

rchase

@sieff and @shodown

IMO most UC literature out right now is poorly written, lacking substance, outdated, or all three. Once you have learned the fundamentals in depth (CVOICE, CIPT1, CIPT2, CAPPS ref, TSHOOT ref), you just need to read enough to understand the purpose of each technology, how it interacts with the other technologies and why.

Beyond that, and what really actually matters, is can you configure it to meet a given requirement and can you debug it if it isnt working. (Lab/workbook time)

When I can't lab tho, (I travel alot for work) I've found an excellent alternative: I printed out IPX Vol 1 Detailed Solution Guide (conventionally this would be used as the "answers" to compare your finished labs to, but instead, I read it like a book) It's the best reading because it gives a requirement then shows you how to meet the requirement with configs, and screenshot walk-thrus. Every UC book should be like this. Less "theory" more configs.

I read it cover to cover and plan to reread the entire thing several more times until I have memorized it such that, when I read each requirement, I can write out the entire configuration from memory onto paper.

However, I still do alot of reading, in addition to having watched ATC, which helped me understand each technology and its capabilities better, but IPX Vol1 DSG is still the best "book" I've read. Here's a list of books that I have read or am reading:

CVOICE (Sybex)
CVOICE (Cisco)
CIPT1
CIPT2
CAPPS ref
TSHOOT ref
Voice Gateways and GKs
Troubleshooting CIPT
CUC
CUP Fundamentals
End-to-End QoS Network Design
Chapter 34 of the 3750 switch config guide (QoS configuration)

sieff

IPExport offers three CCIE-V workbooks. the price for digital copy is around $300-400, more for printed copies. i've heard good things about their workbooks. are you using these? i'm trying to figure out roughly how much it'll cost me to prepare. i know i'll have to drop $3-5K for a bootcamp when just before my lab exam.