Jr. Network Administrator

Hello, I managed to land a job as a jr network admin, but i don't have a lot of technical knowledge of networking I begin on the 29th and i would like to kind of prepare myself. I was thinking of getting my network+ to help prepare. If you could give me some advice if it would be helpful or give some good sources to look at.

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Deathmage

Barzan wrote: »

Hello, I managed to land a job as a jr network admin, but i don't have a lot of technical knowledge of networking I begin on the 29th and i would like to kind of prepare myself. I was thinking of getting my network+ to help prepare. If you could give me some advice if it would be helpful or give some good sources to look at.

Network + or CCENT Exam Cram books off Amazon, if you feel ambitious get the CCNA book too.

bpenn

They most likely hired you knowing you didnt have this knowledge already. I would dive straight into the CCNA at this point. Also, I am sure there will be some senior people you are working with who can help you get up to speed. Take advantage of this and make sure you take notes if you have a hard time retaining information.

Just be yourself, be motivated, and show them you can learn quickly and adapt to any situation. Good luck

koz24

How did you get this job? Do they know that you know practically nothing?

koz24

Also I would read and lab like a maniac. Seriously do like 14 hours a day of Odom ICND1 and 2. Get a lab workbook like 101 labs for CCNA and try to digest as much as possible. Good luck man

Hondabuff

Start with Network+, CCNA will be over your head for someone starting out.

Barzan

Thanks everyone I think I'm gonna get the CCNA study guide and get at it.

koz24

If you go for CCNA I think it would be a mistake learning from the exam crams and the like. You need a heavy dose of the fundamentals and that's what Odom provides.

chrisone

My advice, start with CCNA. Do not waste time with network+.

First 3 months of your job, take notes Notes NOTES! That notebook and pen better be seen by your side every where you are with your networking coworkers. It shows you respect and are eager to learn from your more advanced networking peers.

Start showing some research initiative. While you are "shadowing" your peers, listen and hear what troubles them and what goals the team has and write down these terms and technologies. Then start researching these terms and technologies they are focused on. Read and come to a basic understanding of what you researched, then forward the team a link from your research. It will show you are engaged/alert/awake and willing. They will respect that you are trying and working towards advancing. Also do not argue any criticism responses towards your email. It is just flak or them just giving you a hard time because you are new. With time they will come to respect that you are an engaged individual who does his research.

Lastly, start a switching layer 2 lab goal.

First 3-6 months of your employment, start planning and work on a switching lab and buy some switches. I would start with switching since its a little easier to work with. Build a visio diagram and let it be known you are working on a switching lab at home. You can research how to do this with google (sorry i am lazy right now to get you these myself.) But hey what a great start to this whole "researching" practice

After 6 months start a routing lab. Again, work on a diagram on your layer 3 routing topology and practice this at home.

The lab stuff just shows your willingness to advance your career. sorry this is bland and not properly written or structured. I have a lot of work today and just wanted to get this out quickly.

Good luck!Edit: Oh yeah and by 6 months, you better have that CCNA Books read and completed. After 6 months no excuses man.

http://www.amazon.com/Routing-Switching-200-120-Official-Library/dp/1587143879/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1455212761&sr=8-1&keywords=ccna+routing+and+switching

Barzan

what if i try to get ccent in 2 weeks or would that be too much?

koz24

It is too much, but you might as well try.

Fulcrum45

Network Junior Admin spot? Good job. I'm looking for something like that currently as I need the experience and want to get away from the Help Desk. I agree with most of the above posts. Network+ is great for starting out but it is pretty fundamental and may not help you in your day to day work. CCNA will be over your head at this point with no network knowledge to speak of. ICND1 (CCENT) I think is a happy medium since you will go over many of the funadmentals AND learn the lay of the land in the Cisco world also.

Barzan

thanks for the help everyone. could you also give me a way to get some hands on knowledge. preferably cheap.

NetworkNewb

Packet Tracer, its free.

ThePawofRizzo

Unlike others on here I would recommend Network+ first. In my experience the CCENT and CCNA material is a bit more advanced, even though CCENT does go over some similar material to Net+. (Personally I find the Cisco Press manuals are so dry to read, and would much rather read most any other cert guide.) And once you have Net+ you have to do CEs anyway, so later certs would cover that.

With some focus on the studies you could earn Net+ in a couple weeks. And I'm talking about several hours a day reading, quizzing, etc.

CCNA is certainly a goal, but to me it sounds more like you need the fundamentals, and Net+ was built for that.

Oh, and if you don't know how to punchdown a patch panel, crimp an Ethernet cable, etc. I'd try to get some inexpensive tools and expose yourself to it. There are lots of videos out there to show you. A network admin should have this very basic skill, something I've known far too many desktop techs and server admins lacking who should also know it. Understanding how it goes together can help you do that basic physical troubleshooting on a bad jack or patch job. Granted, I'd focus on a cert at the moment.

techfiend

Are you for sure going to be working on cisco gear? Network administrator could really be mostly systems with next to no networking. If you are, I'd suggest reading Lammle's ICND1 half first, it's a quick read and more of an overview with many labs. Then move on to the Odom book, it's a long read, comes across as a manual but it gives you more information that you need to know. If the Lammle is too much, step back to Network+ studying but I'd save the money instead of testing it.

Studying and working is where you're going to learn, not taking the test. You have the job now and the cert isn't going to mean anything before you start or three months in, or is it? Either way I'd stay away from cramming and try to relate what you learn on the job to your studies. It's much easier to cert test something you do every day.