Recommended switches and places to buy?

allanvmedia

I registered to take the 200-120 exam within 3 months and want to make a practice lab. Which budget switches should I buy and where's the best place to get them? Thanks for your help in advance!

theodoxa

Routers Wholesale has the best prices for 2950s outside of eBay that I've seen:

Cisco Catalyst 2950-12 Ethernet Switch - 12 x 10/100Base-TX LAN Cisco Catalyst 2950 12 Switch-12 10/100 Mbps ports [WS-C2950-12=] - $24.95 : RoutersWholesale.com, Your first choice for Cisco accessories

They used to have the 2950-24 for $5 more, but it seems to be gone.

Personally, for Layer 2 switches I like the 2960 (Cisco Catalyst 2960 Series 24PORT Enterprise Ethernet Switch WS C2960 24TT L V03 0882658044113 | eBay), but they are more expensive and not really necessary for CCNA. These are the current Cisco L2 Switch, though and Cisco is still releasing IOS updates for them. They are a definite plus if you go on to CCNP.

For Layer 3 switches, the 3550 is nice and has finally come down to a reasonable price. While not necessary for CCNA, it can pull double duty as both a router and a switch [if you install the EMI version of IOS - it's the one called "IP Services"]. No serial/T1 ports means no Frame Relay or Leased Lines, but it can do routing protocols such as EIGRP [and I presume OSPF and RIP, though I've never tried them on an L3 Switch].

eBay is usually the cheapest way to get equipment. You can score stuff even cheaper if you bid (I won 2 3550-48-SMI L3 Switches for $65 by bidding on auction after auction until I finally won one cheap), but it might take a while to finally win an auction [if you aren't willing to pay full price]. So, you might want to pay a little more and "Buy It Now".

paul78

Generally speaking, eBay is the most affordable place to buy certification gear. But if you are under time constraints, then look to your left on this site and you will see several TE sponsors that offer decent kits for Cisco exams. While I haven't yet purchased any of the kits, they seem like a great way to get started quickly if you are not sure what you need. Welcome to TE and good luck on your studies.