CCIE R&S Lab Equipment

Lessons Discussion
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This topic is to discuss the following lesson:

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Hi Rene

Thanks for the article, I’m using Real Hardware at home 6 x Routers 1841 + 4 x Routers 2811 + 5 x Switches 3750 + 1 x DigiPort Servers 32 ports + 2 x ASA 5550 for Security Labs

And I’m using as well Rack Rental from INEs

Sou

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Thank you Rene. The guidance you’re providing is very much appreciated!

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Hey,
Good post, thanks.
Rack rentals are the way forward for topologies where you need both routing and switching. For the routing only labs though (which is a lot of it), you can also use the csr 1000v in a virtual environment. Get a free copy of esxi and a cheap server with plenty of ram and you are set. It offers more flexibility than rack rentals, as you can just fire them up as and when you have a spare few minutes.

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Hi Nick,

You are welcome and thanks for the comment about the CSR 1000V, it’s a great option for sure. The XE and XR vmware images are also great for those who are studying the SP track.

Rene

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Hi Sou,

That is a great lab, I used something similar here last year…still using it for the tutorials or when I have to test something for a customer.

Rene

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Hi rene
thank you for all that information. I want to know if it is neccessary to participate in a bootcamp in the preparation phase of his ccie

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Bonjour Charly,

Good question. It takes easily 600 - 1000 hours of doing labs until you are ready so a 40 or 80 hour bootcamp doesn’t make much of a difference if you ask me. It can be useful at the end of your preparation because the instructor can help you get rid of some “knowledge gaps”. It probably won’t make the difference between passing or failing the lab :slight_smile:

If the company you work for wants to pay it for you then I would do it, it also allows you to study non-stop for 2 weeks. If you have to pay for it yourself then I probably wouldn’t do it.

Rene

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Thank Rene
where can I find the topologies used in ccie lab?

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Rene is correct. I also recommend rack rentals. It was my #1 method of study and worked very well. I did not waste time doing setup, and managed to go from never-touched-a-router to CCIE in 26 months.

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Hi Sou,

No problem, it might be useful for others.

Rene

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Hi Charly,

The (logical) topology used in the lab is not shared to the public by Cisco. It is similar in size as the INE topology that I added in this post.

Rene

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Hi Rene,
Thanks for the information.

Are Narbik Work Book and cisco press v5 books same?

Thank You.
Azam

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Hi Azam,

Nope these are not the same. The Cisco Press book is for the written exam, Narbik has workbooks for the lab.

Rene

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Very informative.Thanks Rene

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Hi Rene, I read your book on how to master routing ccnp even though i completed my ccnp; its an excellent work. Do you have a book on ccie r&s. I am planning on doing it, whats your recommendation on doing ccie r&s through ine/ipexpert video tutorials, books and rack rentals with out going to a live class room. I do not have any work experience on cisco, i am a windows administrator.
Bijo

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Hi Bijo,

I don’t have a book for CCIE R&S right now but I’m working on a CCIE R&S Written book. One way or another, CCIE is always 99% self-studying because there is a lot of material to cover. Bootcamps can be useful at the end of your preparation but it’s impossible to learn everything in a 5 or 10 day bootcamp. Personally I used the workbooks from INE.com, those are very good.

Rene

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Hi Rene, this post really helped on clearing doubts i had about rack rentals and real equipment. I will begin my CCIE journey in two months and i think i will choose rack rentals. Also your Cisco CCIE R&S Book Reading List was really useful to. Thanks man.

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Rene,

I’d like to see you publish a book containing your labs.

Thank you.

Bruce

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Hi Bruce,

Do you mean something like the labs on https://gns3vault.com or a CCIE lab book?

Rene