Computer Engineering

CCNP / BSCI Exam Tutorial:  Route Summarization And The OSPF Null Interface CCNP exam success, particularly on the BSCI exam, demands you understand the details of route summarization.  This skill not only requires that you have a comfort level with binary conversions, but you have to know how and where to apply route summarization with each individual protocol. You also have to know the "side effects" of route summarization.  With OSPF, there will actually be an extra interface created at the point of summarization, and this catches a lot of CCNP candidates by surprise.  Let's take a look at the null0 interface and how it relates to OSPF summarization. On R1, the following networks are redistributed into OSPF, and then summarized. interface Loopback16  ip address 16.16.16.16 255.0.0.0 interface Loopback17  ip address 17.17.17.17 255.0.0.0 interface Loopback18  ip address 18.18.18.18 255.0.0.0 in...

CCNP / BCMSN Exam Tutorial: VLAN Trunking Protocol (VTP)   Passing the BCMSN exam and getting one step closer to the CCNP certification means learning and noticing details that you were not presented within your CCNA studies. ( Yes, I know – you had more than enough details then, right?)   One protocol you’ve got to learn more details about is VTP, which seemed simple enough in your CCNA studies!  Part of learning the details is mastering the fundamentals, so in this tutorial, we’ll review the basics of VTP. In show vtp status readouts, the "VTP Operating Mode" is set to "Server" by default.  The more familiar term for VTP Operating Mode is simply VTP Mode, and the Server is the default.  It's through the usage of VTP modes that we can place limits on which switches can delete and create VLANs. In Server mode, a VTP switch can be used to create, modify, and delete VLANs.  This means that a VTP deployment has to have at least one swit...

CCNA Certification Exam Tutorial:  Cisco Switching Modes    To pass the CCNA exam and earn this important certification, you’ve got to know to switch inside and out.  While you’re learning all the basic switching theory, make sure to spend some time with one of three switching modes Cisco routers can use. Store-and-Forward is exactly what it sounds like.  The entire frame will be stored before it is forwarded.  This mode allows for the greatest amount of error checking since a CRC (Cyclical Redundancy Check) is run against the frame before it is forwarded.  If the frame contains an error, it is discarded.  If there’s no problem with the frame, the frame is then forwarded to its proper destination. While store-and-forward does perform error checking, the delay in processing the frame while this error check is run results in higher latency than the other modes you’re about to read about.  The latency time can also vary since n...

CCNA / MCSE / CCNP Certification:  Making Failure Work For You   Whether you're on the road to the CCNA, CCNP, MCSE, or you're on any other computer certification track, the odds are that sooner or later, you're going to fail an exam.  It's happened to almost all of us, yours truly included.   What you have to keep in mind in these times is that success is not a straight line.  You've probably seen charts showing the growth of an industry or a business -- you know, the ones that go from left to right, and look kind of jagged.  The line goes up for a while, then down a bit, then up some more, then down a little.   The key?  While every business has its setbacks, the net result is that the line goes up and progress is made.  That's how you want your certification pursuit and your career to go as well - upward! I'm not asking you to be happy about failing an exam.  You're allowed to get mad for a few minutes, vow t...

CCNA / CCNP Home Lab Tutorial:  The VLAN.DAT File  CCNA and CCNP candidates who have their own Cisco home labs often email me about an odd situation that occurs when they erase a switch's configuration.  Their startup configuration is gone, as they expect, but the VLAN and VTP information is still there! Sounds strange, doesn't it?   Let's look at an example.  On SW1, we run show vlan brief and see in this abbreviated output that there are three additional vlans in use: SW1#show vlan br 10   VLAN0010                         active 20   VLAN0020                         active 30   VLAN0030                         active We want to totally erase the router's startup configuration, so we use the write e...

Sharpening Your Skills Through Online Computer Training Information Technology (IT) professionals require training to stay proficient in their occupational field.  More often than not, not only training is required, but constant refreshing with up-to-date materials is essential.  With the ever-expanding world of computers, this can not be over-stated or over-emphasized.  Just as other professionals in other fields run into a dilemma with time constraints, so do IT, professionals.   More and more they IT pro's look online for their computer training ; whether it be for an upgraded skill or a new one.  The manner of obtaining this new or upgraded skill online is a relatively simple process.  A Google search for online computer training in the desired field will return numerous results.  Computer training institutions have long recognized the need for online training.  At first, online computer training was a niche market fi...

Online Computer Training  You've decided that it's time to join the 21st century, or perhaps you're simply looking to brush up on your skills.  Either way, it is time to get some computer training, and you are looking at all of your options.  One of the most popular options available today for getting training of any kind ( computer training included) is the Internet. Online computer training is one of the easiest and most convenient methods of training available, provided you have a good Internet connection.  In fact, it is probably a good idea to have a high-speed Internet connection such as DSL or cable service in order to get the most out of this method of training.  While a few training sites will work with the standard dial-up service speed, most will not.  Add that to the fact that many people who are on dial-up do not achieve the maximum FCC allowed speed of 56 kbps, but average something much slower.  That being said, if you've go...