do i need to buy a home lab?

recently at work i have started working with routers and switched. im still in the learning process but its very cool. i get to work with cisco wap 1242 and some routers and switches like 3875. i dont remeber the other model.
so im still learning but i know that i hook alot of switches with cascade cables to make them act as one. i also get to play with hooking up fiber optics and lastly i get to play with ios but im not sure how deep the training of the IOS will go.
so with these switches and routers in mind, do i need to buy a homelab? or i can use packettracer for the rest of the training to obtain ccna?

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Comments

wbosher

Short answer, no, but highly recommended. Packet Tracer will be enough to get you through CCNA, but it can deliver some unsual results that you wouldn't get on real gear.

If money's a problem (when isn't it?), then try gns3 for the routing labs, and packet tracer for the switching labs.

Good luck.

saied45

i always thought that a home lab was just so you could get fimilair with routers/ switches and ect. what exactly do you guys use your home labs for?

Jollycork

saied45 wrote: »

i always thought that a home lab was just so you could get fimilair with routers/ switches and ect. what exactly do you guys use your home labs for?

It's fun...and for testing "what ifs"....

Chipsch

Home labs are nice to have if you can afford it and have the room for it. GNS3 is great, the only pitfall is that it does not support switches. This has been worked around though. Believe some people that are regulars here actually tie a switch into their desktop NIC and GNS3 will interface with it that way. Not 100% on the details or implementation though.

PacketTracer is also a pretty good topic but as stated can have some undesired results. There is also rackrentals if you wanted to go that way. Jeremy I believe it is over at PacketLife.net has a lab set up that people can use remotely.

The bottom line is that you do have some options. Personally I got rid of all of my lab equipment because of space (wife didn't like seeing it either but she managed to deal with it).

networker050184

From the vagueness in your knowledge I'd suggest you get a lab if you plan on getting certified.

j-man

Jollycork wrote: »

It's fun...and for testing "what ifs"....

Exactly. You really can't unplug one of your serial connections in a simulator (or production environments ) and see what happens.

Also, with a simulator, you won't spend 15 minutes trying to figure out why your router doesn't respond via it's console connection after a nm8-a/s was installed only to discover you've plugged your console cable into it's ethernet port

( yeah, yeah, it was done in low light after a couple of drinks)

mikej412

Find out if there is a lab at work and see if you can get access to it -- or find out if there spare equipment that can be used to setup a lab.

Home labs are GREAT -- but a school or work lab can work almost as well if you have the time at school or work to use it. Plus a school or work lab is CHEAPER for you.

Even with access to a great lab at work or school, you may decide that a home lab is what you want once you've gained more experience (and realize that you do have the Networking Gene or a Networking Addiction).

saied45

what is the average price for a good homelab?
i heard mid 1000$?

lwwarner

j-man wrote: »

Also, with a simulator, you won't spend 15 minutes trying to figure out why your router doesn't respond via it's console connection after a nm8-a/s was installed only to discover you've plugged your console cable into it's ethernet port ( yeah, yeah, it was done in low light after a couple of drinks)

Amen. Simulators can be a big help, but they just don't capture the Hardware layer...

ehnde

GNS3/Packet Tracer would get you through all of the routing and switching labs up to CCNA, as previously said.

I have a hybrid GNS3 and hardware lab, which as it turns out is more complicated than just running the hardware. Unless you have alot of time to fool around with GNS3 and creating virtual interfaces to bridge simulated hardware to real hardware you probably want to stay away from the hybrid approach

Running just pure simulated equipment will get you to passing the CCNA exam faster, but running real hardware will give you valuable experience that may not be on the exam....but likely useful in your job.

tl;dr: If you're cheap or just broke, use packet tracer and GNS3. If you have the money and don't mind setting up your equipment (and doing the APPROPRIATE RESEARCH *before* you buy), build a lab.

mattau

ive used gns3 abit. its good but like you say you need to just about do a full course on it to fully utilize its potential and at the end of the day I wanted to spend all my time on just studying cisco so i just went out and purchased a lab

I love watching vids on you tube though with people on linux using dynagen. it is awesome ! i would love to learn it one day

j-man

lwwarner wrote: »

Amen. Simulators can be a big help, but they just don't capture the Hardware layer...

There is nothing like getting the components, putting them together and being able to ping them.

I seem to learn so much more by having the physical devices. For instance, nowhere in my experiences with I]insert lab simulator here[/I did I ever stumble upon SLARP. In my physical lab I was immediately able to ping my connected router and when I did a show ip int brief SLARP showed up. It confused the hell out of me until I did some research. Long story short, I never would have investigated SLARP had it not been for my home lab.

You owe it to yourself to get at least 2 routers and 2 switches.

saied45

so how much would a whole entery lab cost?

steve13ad

I'm still surprised that Cisco hasn't developed some sort of Virtualization for their equipment, at least for training.