CCNP SWITCH - Lab Hardware Requirements?

Hi, all. I'm sure this topic is a common one, but after doing some research I'm still a bit fuzzy on how to best approach purchasing and cabling a lab to help in my studies for CCNP SWITCH.

I passed ROUTE with the help of GNS3 labs. Obviously, that's not a viable option anymore, so it's time to put together some physical equipment. There seem to be several ways of going about it, but I don't know what would be ideal for me.

Basically I'm looking for the most reasonably-priced/easiest solution to start with, with the ability to build it out further should that be helpful. At present, I have a Windows 10 PC with a standard integrated NIC. I'm kicking around putting together sort of a "stand alone" system complete with physical routers to avoid any messing around with my PC and dealing with OS/driver challenges, etc. Is that a good idea? Or is it easier to interface the physical switches with routers in GNS3? I really don't know.

Basically, a comprehensive shopping-list complete with some guidance on how to set it all up would be awesome. That's not too much to ask, is it?

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koz24

Okay, what I did was I bought 4 3560e switches for about $110 each. This is all you need for SWITCH and CCIE labs. I then bought a bunch of USB Nics and a USB Hub as per the guide on GNS3Vault.Connect real switches to GNS3 using a Cheap USB NICs - GNS3vault For labs with both routers and switches, I connect my physical switches to my virtual routers.

I don't think purchasing physical routers is a good idea since it is not scalable. Are you stopping at CCNP or going for CCIE sometime in the future? You're not going to buy 20 physical routers for CCIE labs are you? I think the method above is the most cheapest and scalable. Shop around and you can have everything you need for about $450-$500.

Here are the USB Nics, 4 bucks per. http://www.dxsoul.com/product/usb-10-100-rj45-ethernet-network-adapter-dongle-901002797#.VpvixyorKUk

Get a couple of these. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012T144CC?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00. You can go with other vendors but I got these since they match my Macs.

3560e. http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0007VOF0S/ref=dp_olp_used?ie=UTF8&condition=used I bought from GenuineHardware. The 1 year warranty is nice.

nrky

Rule of thumb for labbing on a budget: Don't buy what you can emulate/virtualize in less time than it takes you to earn the money to buy the equipment.

Buy only what you can't virtualize: If it takes you 2 hours to learn how to virtualize 4* 3725 routers in GNS3, but 27 hours of paid work to be able to buy the same equipment (plus racks, rack ears, cables, etc.), go with the quicker option. Wiping and re-wiring virtual routers is always easier, anyway, and it's far easier to expand upon.

Buy only what you can't virtualize: GNS3 now allows you to integrate IOU as a switch, meaning that you no longer need to actually buy switches to get lab practice.

People will tell you that "It's good to get hands-on experience with real equipment", but if your goal is only to pass the exam, you don't need to, unless you have money to burn on it as a hobby.

koz24

You still need real physical switches for SWITCH and CCIE. L2 IOU switches have their limitations and can't do a number of things the labs require. What they're good for is CCNA or if you just need to throw in a basic switch in your topology but that's about it.

Danielh22185

Agreed. Real equipment is the best solution if money is no object but lets face it, it is for most of us. I agree with the point to emulate all that you can before you make any purchases. Switch also is not as intensive as far as need for labbing as Route is so you can squeak by. I myself mostly use IOU in GNS3 now, however, yes it does have limitations. This is where it wouldn't hurt to have some real equipment to back up what you cannot do via IOU or cheaper equipment. Also VIRL is an option as well but I believe also shares some of the same limitations explained.

IE is a whole different animal so if you are just planning on getting by with minimal equipment to lab on I don't think there is a need in the present to build a highly salable lab. My personal situation being I don't know when I fully plan to chase down IE (sometime over the next 4 years) however my objective in the now is NP so I planned for that as I didn't plan on making a large investment in equipment.

koz24

Ok so VIRL has the same exact problems as L2 IOU. It can't do L3 Portchannels, Private LANs, SPAN/RSPAN, and a few others I'm sure I'm forgetting. If it could do all of these it would make sense to just pay the $200/year for VIRL and skip physical gear altogether. Maybe in the future they will support everything and it will be great, but for now a physical/virtual hybrid is the best way to go.

Danielh22185

koz24 wrote: »

Ok so VIRL has the same exact problems as L2 IOU. It can't do L3 Portchannels, Private LANs, SPAN/RSPAN, and a few others I'm sure I'm forgetting. If it could do all of these it would make sense to just pay the $200/year for VIRL and skip physical gear altogether. Maybe in the future they will support everything and it will be great, but for now a physical/virtual hybrid is the best way to go.

Right, VIRL uses the same concept of a Linux OS running IOS overlay, so it has ASIC level emulation issues and the other items as explained above. So you could potentially get GNS3 / IOU free if you look in the right places. Either way $200 for a year VIRL licence isn't a bad investment either as it would be all that you need to lab on for switch studies. I don't think you could find everything you need physically for just $200. However VIRL is a beast and requires a lot of hardware resources. Either way the need for physical equipment for studies for NA / NP is diminishing quickly. I'm just hanging on my to equipment as it isn't worth much and might have some later future uses for IE just as basic L2 switching uses.

kohr-ah

I would virtualize the routers via GNS3 - Hook it to your physical nic via a cloud switch. Then hook your nic to one of 2 physical network switches if you are trying to save money.

I'd consider finding a series of 3560 series switches that have a 32Mb flash which can support version 15. 2 is enough to get you by.

zx128k

Best physical setup for the CCNP switch lab book, 2 x 3560 with 32 MB flash and 128MB RAM and IOS 15+. 2 x 2960 running IOS 15+. My physical lab is 2 x 3560 with IOS 15, one 3560 PoE with IOS 12 and one 2950 IOS 12. Something like the 3750 I guess if you want stackwise. The 2950 is from my CCNA days and sucks a hell of a lot. The latest IOU layer 2 image can cover most of the topics (nov 2015 disable ip cef and ip igmp snooping as they cause most of the problems). Supports most but not all of the features.

agaver

Hi there,

I checked the link on Amazon and the Cisco Catalyst 3560-24TS EMI - switch - 24 ports ( WS-C3560-24TS-E )
only supports IOS 12.2.55-SE10 and cannot be upgrade to IOS 15.

Is IOS 12.2.55-SE10 enough to pass the CCNP v2.0?
Do I require to invest on some switch capable of running 15.0(1) SE?

I would really appreciate your answers - thank you very much!
Cisco Catalyst 3560-24TS EMI - switch - 24 ports ( WS-C3560-24TS-E )Cisco Catalyst 3560-24TS EMI - switch - 24 ports ( WS-C3560-24TS-E )Cisco Catalyst 3560-24TS EMI - switch - 24 ports ( WS-C3560-24TS-E )Cisco Catalyst 3560-24TS EMI - switch - 24 ports ( WS-C3560-24TS-E )

clarson

version 15 of the ios works on the WS-C3560-24TS-E switch.

Cisco says it isn't supported (like your going to get a support contract). But, if you install it, it will work