I originally built my lab with several 25xx units, and a 4500 as a central
switch. I started out with them stacked on a cheap shelving unit, and
when I found a small rack for free, moved them into it. You can do a lot
of playing with three or four 25xx routers and a few cables. Add the 4000
with some serial interfaces, and you can pretty much play with all the
LAN/WAN configs you'll need to see, except ATM and ISDN. Note that memory
limitations will keep you from running IOS versions that provide
IPX/AT/DEC interfaces. You can add 16mb DRAM fairly cheaply, and by
compressing the IOS, you can get an enterprise or desktop image to boot
from a small flash.
The 2509/2511 is pretty handy, if not crucial to getting quick at
configuring multiple routers. I'd suggest getting several 2513/2514
routers, as that allows you to play with both TR and ethernet. I don't
know that having TR or Eth on the 4000 is necessary, but if it happens to
come in the 4000, so be it. The 2501/2502 boxes only give you one LAN
interface, so they aren't as useful as the 2513/2514, so unless it's a
great deal, buy the boxes with the most interfaces. :)
Add some TR MAUs (IBM 8228s are pretty cheap) and cables, some cheap eth
hubs or crossover cables & transceivers, and you've got LAN segments. Add
some cheap TR & eth NICs to a cheap Linux or windoze box, and you can use
freeware sniffers to actually see the packets on the LAN. Get more
DCE/DTE wan crossover cables than you have routers, so you can play with
load balancing, and more complex networks. There's lots of TR gear
getting ripped out of businesses right now, and most of it ends up in the
dumpster. Make friends with a local networking company, you might get all
the NICs, MAUs, and cables that you can haul away.
I would choose not to buy ISDN hardware, simply because the ISDN simulator
eats half your budget -- you can rent the rack time you need to cover ISDN
(and ATM), as needed. With rolled console cables connected to AUX ports,
you can practice DDR and backup interfaces, but you'll need to actually
configure ISDN a few times, and debug it, to see the gory details of ISDN.
For the price of the ISDN switch, you could get another three 25xx
routers, which allows you to run more complex scenarios. Just my opinion,
of course.
Likewise, the Catalyst 2901/5000 can be a bit pricey, for the limited
things you'll be able to do with it. If you wanted to do VLAN/ISL/dot1q
configs, you'll need a fast ethernet interface on a router, which the 25xx
boxes don't do. The 2924xl switch is nice to play with, but it won't give
you anything specific to configure, without more expensive hardware to
connect it to (4500 or 26xx with FastEth). You can rent access to a
Catalyst equipped rack, or get access to one of Neil's Kitty labs, or just
buy the Cisco Mentor for Lan Switching which contains a switch lab
simulator, as well as tutorials for learning switching (I think it's still
the old CLSC course materials).
If you're thinking about VoIP, that's another chunk of change to part
with. Again, you can rent rack time or use the CIM VoIP to get the skills
and practice. I bought an 827-4v to use as my DSL modem, and it came with
four FXS/FXO ports to play with. Without a PBX in your lab, that's about
all you'd be able to configure, anyway, even if you had a bigger VoIP
router to play with.
Take all this with the requisite NaCl grain -- everyone's lab is
different. Mine's mutated several times, as I found good deals on gear,
got interested in playing with specific things, and got bored with some of
the gear. When I took a job with a company with a huge (=fubar) network,
less stuff became critical to have in the lab. When you spend the day
troubleshooting SNA/SRB, ATM, and Token Ring, you don't really need it at
home. :P
-jon-
--- EA Louie wrote:
> I'm getting ready (or in Texas, I'd be "a-fixin to git ready") to build
> a CCIE
> lab prep setup, both for personal use and for the use of my local
> studygroup.
> Here's what I've identified - if I'm missing anything, please let me
> know.
>
> Here's the strategy I'm going to take for the equipment:
>
> 1-2511 --- console server (w/ octal cable)
> 1-2503 --- ISDN
> 1-2504 --- ISDN
> 1-2514 - dual eth
> 1-2515 - dual t/r
> 1-4000 w/NP-4T and NP-1E or NP-2E, and a BRI interface or two if they
> exist
> (F/R switch)
> 1-2924-XL
> teltone isdn simulator
> 3 token ring MAUs
> 3 token ring media filters
> 4 AUI-10BT transceivers
> 4 Ethernet hubs
> 6 60-pin DTE-DCE cables
> a bunch of Cat5 cables
> rack
> rackmount kits (or shelves)
> and a partridge in a pear tree ;-)
>
> I'm budgeting about $4000 and if an additional 2501 falls into my
> possession by accident, so be it ;-)
>
> That should provide most of what's needed and enough of the interface
> types required to
> practice configurations (especially desktop protocols and iBGP/eBGP).
> I'd love a Cat5k too, but I can't do it on this budget.
>
> What do you think about this parts list? Pretty good for a start?
> Think it's achievable with $4000?
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Auctions - buy the things you want at great prices
http://auctions.yahoo.com/
Message Posted at:
http://www.groupstudy.com/form/read.php?f=7&i=3909&t=3908
--------------------------------------------------
FAQ, list archives, and subscription info: http://www.groupstudy.com/list/cisco.html
Report misconduct and Nondisclosure violations to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
