So, what are you all planning certification-wise this year?
I'm doing a little detour from the Cisco realm and hope to achieve JCNIA, JNCIS-SEC and CCSA this year. In the unlikely event that I still have time left I might retake the CCNA Security exam as well :)
CCNA, R&S.
I keep switching between CCNP and CCNA SP, but I think for now I'll stick with CCNP.
Ditto with Simon. JNCIA --> JNCIS-ENT by February (already read and labbed it all over Xmas, not hard for experienced guys, just learning syntax basically). I managed to pass the test exam on juniper learning portal after skimming the free PDFs once so after a fortnight of heavy labbing + re-reading the PDFs I am not really concerned (spun up a 6x vSRX environment with every bell and whistle I can be bothered with including stuff in the SEC track - zone policies, multi-area OSPF including summarisation, import/export policies, BGP including local preference and community tagging, GRE, VRRP, etc.) its only really switching I'm slightly concerned with due to lack of lab time (don't have a real JunOS device to lab with). But from reading the JNCIS-ENT switching PDF its pretty much the same crap as CCNP switching, just different syntax. STP is STP lol
Then finally take the big one seriously (CCIE). Have another colleague in same boat, were going to tackle the IE as a team. I have INE lab tokens, workbooks and IOUs up my wazoo so there's really no excuses, heck I have most of the reading list in dead tree format.
If the company gets another vmware exemption for VCP (take exam without needing to sit the 5k course prerequisites) I'm all over that as well, been labbing that heavily.
I need to look at renewing my CCNP by July 2016, so I'm looking at doing a CCNP Security exam sometime this year. I'll have to see the books as they come out and let my employer know which course I want to take. I don't have to do it entirely on my own dime this time around, so I'd like to use the resources available. :D
that will be brutal. The new CCNP-S syllabus looks completely different (in a good way) than the old. But you have all that nice ISE XP under your belt :)
Also, I only need one test to re-cert. :D
I am shooting for the CCDP and the JNCIS-ENT
I would really like to start down the Datacenter track, but I think I've talked myself into doubling back and knocking out the CCNA Security, CCDA, and potentially the CCDP first. Of course, this all hinges on my completion of CCNP (almost there). Could be ambitious, but I've set these goals pretty soft since life is anything but consistent at this point.
Edit: Outside of the IT world, getting my Riggers ticket and Private Pilot are on the list too.
CCIE written since I need to re-cert my NP in a year anyway. Back to the grindstone... :matrix:
Gonna start with CCNP Security and hopefully be well on my way finishing it before 2016.
CCNA-voice then CCNP R&S
Got my CCDA scheduled for Cisco Live at the end of the month. Then hopefully CCNP, possibly a Juniper qualification, and hopefully CCNA:DC as we look to be going cisco in our new design.
I need to get my CCNP. I procrastinated too long on v1. Time to step it up for CCNP V2. Has anyone seen the new TSHOOT book? It is about twice the size as the V1 TSHOOT.
I am working on CCNA - R&S and my LPIC-1/Linux+ cert. Hopefully early spring, next year, CCNP-R&S with either a VMware or Citrix entry level
Mainly CCDP
Nice to haves:
JNCIS-SEC and CCSA/CCSE - However, we'll be ditching these firewalls in the coming year, so I'm not sure if the educational ROI is there for me
F5-CA and F5-CTS - It's low hanging fruit for me now
CCNA DC - Finish the second test
CCIE Written...
... but expire?
CCIE RSv5.
Just finished up some storage certs recently. Next Cert = VCP and then moving onto CCNA DC (should be fast and renew my ccna r+s) then start my CCNP R+S and long term goal do my CCNP Datacenter afterwards then decide if I'll start on my CCIE at that point.
Been doing mostly storage side items the past 2 years which has taken its toll on my networking studying. The nice thing is I have a solid grasp on Fibre channel and FCOE now which I had no clue about previously.
I'm planning on completing my CCNP R&S this year. I've done SWITCH, just need to do ROUTE and TSHOOT. I did SWITCH in June last year and took a little break then planned on going back to ROUTE half way through November last year however found out they changed the curriculum for the CCNP R&S. I figured there was no point in doing the old exams so I'm going to do the new ones when Amazon hurry up and get the new set of Cisco Press to me.
As for anything else, not sure, depends where my job takes me I guess. I've only recently started a new role (see my sig) and am proud to say this is my first role in a professional networking environment!
CCIE hopefully in Q1. Nothing else unless I try my hand at something during CLUS this year.
I think it's JNCIA for me, even though I don't use JUNOS
Quote from: ristau5741 on January 07, 2015, 11:14:42 AM
I think it's JNCIA for me, even though I don't use JUNOS
Definitely seems like lots of jobs out there for Juniper - at least in my area.
DFW needs security people. Just sayin'. If you want to get that security cert and head to North Texas, now is a great time to do it.
I see network engineer positions all over the place in DFW. I got a number of connections there too.
I hate the humidity of Dallas though...
What's dfw
Quote from: wintermute000 on January 08, 2015, 02:24:01 PM
What's dfw
Not from Texas, but believe it to be Dallas - Fort Worth (https://www.google.com/maps/place/Fort+Worth,+TX/@32.800813,-97.2893189,10z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x864e6e122dc807ad:0xa4af8bf8dd69acbd)
That is correct, sir.
Jncia down. Switching to jncis-sp. Reading the enterprise switching stuff makes me want to gouge my eyes out, carrier Ethernet and mpls and isis wins every time
A pile of stupid ones like the A+ for my degree
/wrists
Quote from: wintermute000 on January 08, 2015, 03:10:47 PM
Jncia down.
Exam review? I passed the pre-assessment last week so think of booking the actual exam in a week or 2/3...
Quote from: dlots on January 08, 2015, 03:13:55 PM
A pile of stupid ones like the A+ for my degree
/wrists
Not worth the money, hope you're not paying yourself!
From my POV questions were harder than the CCNA except the pass mark is 65%. But not neccessarily 'better'. I'll elaborate
Less basic networking (subnetting, binary, basic ethernet theory etc.) but a LOT of JunOS/platform specifics (syntax, platform behaviour, etc. - see above) and a few of the usual BS ones like in model XYZ what is the name of the internal bridge to component XYZ, is it GigabitConnect1, InternalConnectA etc.
Done and dusted in 20 minutes and I would expect any CCNP to do the same as long as they get some quality time on the CLI and read the fast track guides more than once / do the practice questions on JunOS genius (the smartphone app).
Labbing actual networking stuff is not as important ROFL - I got plenty of hands on time in my virtual lab but 90% of it was 'wasted' lol e.g. knowing how to setup OSPF multi-area and read the database is less valuable than knowing what directory a dump file goes in if you issue XYZ command. Though doing the labbing naturally reinforced the familiarity with the CLI and config. Importantly you have to be comfortable in reading the XML-ish config which after a lifetime of IOS is not necessarily intuitive at first, esp as you are often asked the appropriate 'set' commands to match the XML format existing config, and the questions are designed to see if you know what level of the hierarchy you're at, etc.
My recommendation: go heavy on platform behaviour and syntax, memorise the exact syntax and implications of policy syntax. The one question I had zero clue on was in reference to the implicit platform behaviour if the syntax follows XYZ format.
I'd almost go so far to say that it would be a decent exam to gauge if a Cisco guy can do his stuff on the JunOS platform, but as a CCNA equivalent, hah, there's nowhere enough 'real' networking in there.
JNCIS-SP like... soon n stuff
Working on CCIE R&S. Hope to make an attempt around October or so. I'll also need to re-up my written, I passed the v4 written over 18 months ago.
Last year I renewed my CCNP, got my CEH, finished my degree, and took the SANS SEC502 course (didn't do the cert). This year I am looking at CCNA:S, something from Juniper, Bluecoat class, but probably not certifying, and maybe VCP if the local community college actually offers official classes that work for my schedule. Also will start studying for the CCIE, but I don't plan on an attempt till 2016.
-Otanx
I just renewed my CCNP R&S back in August and do not plan to work on any other certifications. Time to relax and not worry about studying for something until 2017!
Quote from: sgtcasey on January 14, 2015, 06:29:38 PM
I just renewed my CCNP R&S back in August and do not plan to work on any other certifications. Time to relax and not worry about studying for something until 2017!
I know what you mean, after working through CCNA, CCNP, CCIP, and half the CCNP Security track over the past 7 years, I find myself under motivated to do any study. though I have been trying to pass a test per year....
Renewed my CCNP/CCDP in October. No real goals at this point. I'm in "raising my kids" mode. With a 1-year-old and a 5-year-old, most of my evenings are booked.
Currently evaluating my career goals. I feel like the CCIE is not out of reach for me in the next 5 years, but I don't know if that's the route I want to take. Two roads diverged in a yellow wood...
Wed I am going for the VCIX-NV. I plan on defending the VCDX-NV some time this year. Other than that maybe finish up my vcap? Im not sure this will be a more of learning how to automate all the things for work type of year. Who knows.
CCNA, CCNA /S, MCSA Server 2012 are on my radar. I'm at the "beginning" of my networking career, I feel these certs will keep me marketable for most jobs. Two of them are required for my degree plan as well.
CCNP R&S.
I've been super motivated and knocked out the ROUTE two weeks ago.. and SWITCH I passed today. I'm aiming to take TSHOOT next Wednesday before the January 29 deadline for the 642 series.
After this I'm going to get the CompTIA CASP. Not for any professional development reason, but because of 8570 IAT requirements set forth by the DoD. It's easier than CISSP and it meets the same standard :banana:
For me it comes down to making myself more attractive for my next career move. I've been doing Tier I/II network support for around 5 years now.. it's time to move it on up. Once I get what I need I will interview for a WAN Engineer position in my company again.. show them that I had the drive to get certified and get smarter even after being turned down a few months ago.
You've gotta want it!
5 years? Yeah, it's time for you to make your move.
A lot of that experience was when I was working as a service desk/network tech and doing things like ADUC and infrastructure work like pulling cable and installing network drops. I kinda did everything.. analog telephony, CCTV, desktop support.. etc
The last couple years have been the time I made the jump to a purely network role. I still feel like I'm pretty new to the game so I'm not putting too much pressure on myself. The job I have now is a little bit of heaven.. I'm neck deep in switching and get to play with 3700, 4500, and 6500 series switches. The last six months alone I've learned A LOT. I legitimately get excited when we have maintenance windows or unscheduled outages because I get to troubleshoot.
I think I'm hooked.. I can't wait to get a routing/firewall job.
Quote from: jofas88 on January 20, 2015, 07:42:37 AM
CCNA, CCNA /S, MCSA Server 2012 are on my radar. I'm at the "beginning" of my networking career, I feel these certs will keep me marketable for most jobs. Two of them are required for my degree plan as well.
CCNA is an awesome cert to get you in the door. It's all-around well respected from what I've seen so far.
JNCIS-SP down. Very easy relative to JNCIA, at least in my eyes.
It really helped that I know all the BGP/OSPF/MPLS theory already from CCIE reading. As usual labbing like crazy helps a lot.
Also the JunOS Genius app is great - at least 100+ sample questions - really helped me ID my weak points
Can't but help feel that Juniper are short changing the value of their certifications by making it too easy i.e. 1 exam, even with 70 questions, is not enough to properly cover the breath of the topic, maybe not CCNP-V crazy 5 exams but at least 2 - e.g. IGP/HA/bridging as exam 1, MPLS/BGP as exam 2.
I've heard the JNCIP-SP is pretty challenging but then again the guy wasn't studying for his CCIE.
I would like to pass the CCNP R&S (already ordered the books) and MCSA but I am afraid that it will not help me improve my skills by a lot due to not having any "real world" experience with Cisco environment :( (God bless GNS3 and CPT..)
:(
Quote from: wintermute000 on January 28, 2015, 05:54:32 PM
JNCIS-SP down. Very easy relative to JNCIA, at least in my eyes.
Congrats! :professorcat:
Quote from: Network2501 on January 29, 2015, 01:01:54 AM
I've heard the JNCIP-SP is pretty challenging but then again the guy wasn't studying for his CCIE.
Thanks, but TBH any CCIP/CCNP-SP would say the same thing, its more that I'd already covered MPLS material as part of CCIE prep/general interest.
In fact JNCIS-SP goes far more into MPLS and MPLS-VPN technologies than CCIE does, though there are no labs lol
One thing to note is that the JNCIS-SP material for MPLS is
the same as the JNCIP material - they don't give you any guidance as to where the cutoff is, so I basically over-prepared on MPLS (judging from the exam questions anyway!). If you google it, the suggested training for the MPLS topic is the same course (JMV) rofl
https://learningportal.juniper.net/juniper/user_activity_info.aspx?id=3799 (https://learningportal.juniper.net/juniper/user_activity_info.aspx?id=3799)
I am itching to crack on to the JNCIP immediately but I have resolved to take the CCIE seriously (finally) so the only thing I am allowing myself to do is DCUFI, purely because I've actively requested it for training from my company, so if I do the training then obviously do the exam.
Quote from: wintermute000 on January 29, 2015, 05:26:07 PM
I am itching to crack on to the JNCIP immediately but I have resolved to take the CCIE seriously (finally) so the only thing I am allowing myself to do is DCUFI, purely because I've actively requested it for training from my company, so if I do the training then obviously do the exam.
It's only January 30th and you are already snappin' necks and cashin' checks!
Quote from: config t on January 29, 2015, 06:28:19 PM
Quote from: wintermute000 on January 29, 2015, 05:26:07 PM
I am itching to crack on to the JNCIP immediately but I have resolved to take the CCIE seriously (finally) so the only thing I am allowing myself to do is DCUFI, purely because I've actively requested it for training from my company, so if I do the training then obviously do the exam.
It's only January 30th and you are already snappin' necks and cashin' checks!
and here I've done absolutely nothing to achieve my 2015 certification goals :-[
I looked at a firewall today.
Quote from: deanwebb on January 30, 2015, 12:10:15 PM
I looked at a firewall today.
in Soviet Russia, firewall looks at YOUU!
protip: when someone is going hard @ certs, it means they are bored out of their minds @ work :-\
Quote from: wintermute000 on January 30, 2015, 10:09:12 PM
protip: when someone is going hard @ certs, it means they are bored out of their minds @ work :-\
True dat. I'm up to my asbestos in projects with really cool stuff. I'll get a basic ForeScout cert after I finish the vendor course. I'd like to go for their top-level cert one day, after I've done more work with the product... and if I still like it. But for now, I am looking at basic certs from vendors and keeping my CCNP active - after taking the Cisco course for the test I'm going to take.
After I finish a Brocade course this week I need to schedule my second attempt at TSHOOT. I failed that sucker by 10 points. It figures, because I flew through the test in 20 minutes. I was over-confident. But I know what I did wrong, so I will lick my wounds and take my time on the next attempt. From what I hear the 300 series TSHOOT is almost exactly the same as the 642 series, with the exception of a couple more IPv6 tickets thrown in the mix.
Passed the JNCIA this morning with 81%. Had been labbing all weekend on my SRX's so I was pretty confident about all the topics covered in the Self Study guide.
Those PDF's didn't cover the Networking Fundamentals though, so I lost some points on questions about different standards and their technical specifications. Also a couple of gotchas related to firewall filters and routing policies.
:zomgwtfbbq:
Anyway, a pass is a pass and I learned some neat routing-instance stuff over the last weeks. Replaced my Cisco 1841 ZBFW with an SRX and must say I'm very impressed with JunOS so far. Now I'll need a week to catch up on paperwork and then I'll start hitting the JNCIS-SEC study guides.
congratulations!
Hmm.. speaking of certification goals for 2015..
<------------- POW! CCNP
Quote from: SimonV on February 16, 2015, 12:43:18 PM
Passed the JNCIA this morning with 81%.
Congrats Simon!!
I see what you did there. Well done, both on getting the cert and on lining up the text with the cert line.
Quote from: config t on February 17, 2015, 05:44:34 AM
Hmm.. speaking of certification goals for 2015..
<------------- POW! CCNP
Quote from: SimonV on February 16, 2015, 12:43:18 PM
Passed the JNCIA this morning with 81%.
Congrats Simon!!
Thanks, same to you! :)
I just finished one of my final courses for my BS. I've got two left. Going to take some time off so I can focus on house projects and re-up my CCNA. After that possibly start working towards the CCNP. I wanted to pursue the CCIE but I just don't have the time right now to keep a consistent schedule. CCNA will likely be in the next month just to give me the breathing room.
Quote from: routerdork on February 25, 2015, 11:51:12 AM
I just finished one of my final courses for my BS. I've got two left. Going to take some time off so I can focus on house projects and re-up my CCNA. After that possibly start working towards the CCNP. I wanted to pursue the CCIE but I just don't have the time right now to keep a consistent schedule. CCNA will likely be in the next month just to give me the breathing room.
Congrats on the Degree! It feels great once your done.
I have learned CCIE studies are a lot like having kids. You want kids but there is really never a good to have them. You just gotta jump in and figure it out on the way!
Quote from: that1guy15 on February 26, 2015, 09:34:37 AM
I have learned CCIE studies are a lot like having kids. You want kids but there is really never a good to have them.
best time to have kids at at age 47. Kids turn 18 when you turn 65, ya kick them out of the house and retire.
Okay, so my CCNP R&S&Tshoot books just arrived, but I have a few questions before I start studying. (not sure if this is the rightful topic for this)
1. Should I use GNS3 or CPT for building the labs?
2. Should I first go through the Switch -> Route -> Troubleshoot book or ?
3. How are the exams being taken ? 1 exam per book or 3in1 ?I am totally confused - also what is their price ? What is the ETA for a person with a full job time to 'learn' everything that he needs for the exams ?
That's that for now :) I hope someone will be kind enough to answer :)
1. GNS3 or real hardware
2. Depends on your personal preference. I took ROUTE first because I was least familiar with routing.
3. 1 exam independently. Price is somewhere around 250€, probably the same in $. Depends on your own pace but it took me two years.
Quote from: SimonV on February 26, 2015, 02:51:37 PM
1. GNS3 or real hardware
2. Depends on your personal preference. I took ROUTE first because I was least familiar with routing.
3. 1 exam independently. Price is somewhere around 250€, probably the same in $. Depends on your own pace but it took me two years.
Thank you for your kind answer :)
I was thinking of 1-2 years + as well because I work 10+ hours per day most of the time.
The thing is that this is a huge investment for me (books + exams) and I want to get prepared as much as I can.
I am curious to know whether the topics/materials from the books cover everything about the Network Professional certificate ? Would be great if someone can answer on that.
I agree with SimonV. I took the old track before TS and each test took me about 6+ months but yeah it really depends on what your skillset is starting off and what your study schedule and learning sty is..
Start with the test you feel most comfortable with. Save TSHOOT for last.
My suggestion on topics is to get the Officale exam topic breakdown from the Cisco Learning network and compare that to your study material. Any thing on the topic breakdown is fair game for the test.
here is ROUTEs: https://learningnetwork.cisco.com/docs/DOC-24495
I went about it the same way Simon did.. I did route first because that was my weakest area. I felt it was the hardest of the three, but that could be because it was mostly new to me.
I'm not ashamed to say I failed both ROUTE and TSHOOT once each :wall: don't get discouraged if it happens to you. keep at it and don't walk into the TSHOOT exam thinking you are a rockstar and blow through it in 20 minutes like I did.
For the record, I got a perfect score on the new 300 series TSHOOT :partay:
While studying for route I used GNS3 exclusively, and while studying for switch I used CPT and real hardware we had around the shop.
Quote from: burnyd on January 19, 2015, 04:47:40 PM
Wed I am going for the VCIX-NV. I plan on defending the VCDX-NV some time this year. Other than that maybe finish up my vcap? Im not sure this will be a more of learning how to automate all the things for work type of year. Who knows.
Ran into some issues that Wed I finally had it rescheduled for yesterday. I received the email that I had passed this morning. Now on to the vcdx!
:notbad:
Awesome news, burnyd!
Woot congrats dude! What other social mediums did I not congrats you on?
thats insane burnyd. You're now second on my list of 'guys with the most impressive certs' I know (no. 1 is a 5x CCIE. I'm not joking. But I suppose you get mega extra points for going cross discipline!!!)
My CCNA ended up expiring :-\ kinda pissed me off that I never went any further after spending so much time learning so last week I re-took it :joy: and now I'm on to the rest of my goals list.
I took the last 6 months off from everything and it really refreshed me, I'm on a 3 year plan now and feeling good about knocking things out.
2015:CCNA R&S, CCNA Wireless, CCDA, CCNP
Tentative for 2016: Last two classes for BS, CCDP, F5-CA, hopefully begin CCIE R&S
Tentative for 2017: CCIE R&S
ROUTE down two to go!
Quote from: SofaKing on May 10, 2015, 10:26:46 AM
ROUTE down two to go!
Awesome! I have to say, I never lose my enthusiasm for when someone passes a test. Never.
Quote from: SofaKing on May 10, 2015, 10:26:46 AM
ROUTE down two to go!
Congrats!!!!
You're making me want to start my studies again..
Quote from: SofaKing on May 10, 2015, 10:26:46 AM
ROUTE down two to go!
Congrats! ROUTE is on my radar. SWITCH is already passed for me.
Thanks everyone!! I took it a few months ago just before the old exam expired and failed. I did not lab enough the first time. This time I went heavy on the labbing and it paid off. SWITCH is next. Good luck to everyone else!!
400-101 passed today, maybe doing the lab sometime this fall.
Quote from: srg on May 11, 2015, 01:12:02 PM
400-101 passed today, maybe doing the lab sometime this fall.
:awesome:
How did it compare to the CCIE-Data Center test you took?
Quote from: deanwebb on May 11, 2015, 03:12:04 PM
Quote from: srg on May 11, 2015, 01:12:02 PM
400-101 passed today, maybe doing the lab sometime this fall.
:awesome:
How did it compare to the CCIE-Data Center test you took?
Never tried CCIE DC :)
Then it must have been that other guy...
Quote from: srg on May 11, 2015, 01:12:02 PM
400-101 passed today, maybe doing the lab sometime this fall.
Awesome - Congrats!!! :banana:
Quote from: srg on May 11, 2015, 01:12:02 PM
400-101 passed today, maybe doing the lab sometime this fall.
WOOT congrats!! Now the real work. Best of luck and feel free to hit me up if you have any prep/study questions.
I have been on a break for 3 weeks since my last attempt. Should be jumping back in next week or so.
that1guy, did you ever take the Cisco360 config labs? I'm running through them now and wondering how they line up to the real thing.
Its a productive way of procrastinating 400-101.
I know INE's foundation / full scale / TS labs are pretty close - whats your opinion?
Nah the first 20 360 labs are still the old v4 layout. They are great labs but not very helpful for final prep. I have only looks at the 5 new labs and they seem like they are on par with INE.
INE labs are great and really push you but they do not line up with the real lab as much as their v4 material did. Up to my first attempt I focused on INE and 360 labs. After that fail I built out my own labs as close to the test as I could remember and used that for speed drills and the config section. After my second attempt I did the same for the TS lab and will focus on that for number 3.
Check out my blog posts for more detail on what worked and didnt.
http://blog.movingonesandzeros.net/2015/04/the-ccie-journey-continues-strike-two.html
http://blog.movingonesandzeros.net/2015/02/ccie-r-lab-attempt-1.html
Finally knocked over 400-101. Going for the lab now. Aiming to do 2 config or TS labs a week, giving myself 3 months, then either book it or hold.
thinking of adding 'ccie written but expire' on my sig :dance:
Congratulations mate! :pub:
Quote from: wintermute000 on June 10, 2015, 06:36:19 AM
thinking of adding 'ccie written but expire' on my sig :dance:
DOO EET NAO! GOGOGOGOGOGOGOGOGOGO
CISSP and ITILv3 Foundation are next up for me.. I'm 150 pages into the Shon Harris (RIP) All in One. :wall:
After this maybe a Blue Coat proxy admin cert.. I'm bucking for a position in WAN Sec. That's all I can handle for the rest of 2015. Next year.. hopefully CCNP Sec.
congrats dude!
Im about to schedule my third attempt for late July early August.
Have fun with the labbing, this is where the real learning happens!!
Good luck mate! I'm a little off track, still 3 months away, been distracted by first the written (ugh), then vmware (interest) and palo alto (work related) stuff.
VCP-NV done today, booked in VCP5-DCV for 3 weeks (I've been itching to have a crack @ this for ages now, and I've stood up my home lab both in meatspace and nested at least 5 times now counting the NSX lab/vcenter!).
Will attempt to keep CCIE labbing in the meantime but its hard not to get sidetracked with all the other technologies to keep up. I need to also lab up some Palo Altos for work since I'm supposed to be running up a live implementation in a month so I'd better look like I sort of know what I'm doing!!!
Congrats on the VCP-NV. Been doing some reading for that, and need to start labbing. Got side tracked doing automated installations of my nested lab. I have a PXE server with fully automatic installs of ESXi 6, and Windows 2008 R2 (for running vCenter). Now I just have to automate the vCenter install, and embed it into the 2008 install. Then whenever the eval expires I can just delete the old VMs, and spin up new ones in 10 minutes.
-Otanx
I just use the appliance rofl but I might lab the Windows install just because.
Also look into vmug evaluation licensing ( aka vmware TechNet) it's a steal
OK finally finished my CCIE procrastination I mean VCP-DCV. Two fingers up to their mandatory training requirement
Now to re-motivate myself to get back on the horse and crank out those CCIE labs. Been a month since my last proper lab...
My NAC project feels like all lab, all the time... I'm loving my 802.1X book so far, though.
I'm upgrading a bunch of 3750s and a 6500VSS on the weekend for a client that runs wired 802.1x. If any of that sh-t breaks lord help me lol (shouldn't be, staying on same release train... fingers crossed)
Quote from: wintermute000 on July 16, 2015, 05:21:51 AM
I'm upgrading a bunch of 3750s and a 6500VSS on the weekend for a client that runs wired 802.1x. If any of that sh-t breaks lord help me lol (shouldn't be, staying on same release train... fingers crossed)
If the client is expecting to rely on a behavior that is deprecated or, worse, repaired, you may be involved in cleaning up the fan blades where the sewage has landed.
Quote from: wintermute000 on July 16, 2015, 05:21:51 AM
I'm upgrading a bunch of 3750s and a 6500VSS on the weekend for a client that runs wired 802.1x. If any of that sh-t breaks lord help me lol (shouldn't be, staying on same release train... fingers crossed)
In my experience, every upgrade so far on Cisco gear made 802.1x more stable. It's the Radius Server and client computer upgrades that were troublesome.
I passed the CCDP while at Cisco Live and I have several certs I want to get, but my biggest issue at the moment with having a diverse vendor cert collection is keeping track of them and renewing them. I got a few CompTIAs (low hanging fruit) and the JNCIA exactly three years ago in the same month and they're all expiring soon. Do I really want to spend time relearning/recerting them when I could be spending that time getting other more valuable cert? If I get a Check Point, Palo Alto, VMware, F5, and CWNA cert like I want, I'll have a laundry list of certs to renew in a few years (not to mention the Cisco ones). For now, I have to pick and choose wisely or they'll bite me in the butt later.
I'd love to hear what others think of this, because at the same time I think I'm overthinking/overplanning, lol
Yep, same feelings here. I was going to go after CCSA when I ever finish the JNCIS-SEC but then that would be another vendor to maintain and renew. For now, I'll just stick with Juniper and Cisco and just "learn" the other stuff. Palo Alto cert would be cool, but there's no way I can lab it.
Exactly why I'm continuing Cisco here.
I would consider others that are worthwhile. VMware or F5 for example. But getting a second vendor's Routing & Switching seems a lot of work for little gain.
sorry, disagree. Maybe if you're in house for an all cisco shop. But is that what you're going to be doing for the rest of your life?
You don't know whats out there until you run into it, and then its too late to start studying from scratch.
Also Cisco skills are a dime a dozen. Its actually a big advantage for many jobs to be certed up on other (still relatively common) vendors.
Esp with SDN/SDWAN, there is a heck of a lot of disruption coming down the road. Heck I'd argue that having a Cisco R&S background counts for practically nothing when it comes to ACI/APIC for example, and that's from the same bloody vendor. FFS now even Docker has a built in overlay. Yes, application container level overlay networks :partay:
Maybe I'm biased due to my current role, and I have been roles before that were 95% Cisco (if not more lol), but I'd rather have those arrows in my quiver than be caught with my pants down if/when my situation changes - how about missing out on an awesome opportunity or promotion because the other candidate had XP and cert in XYZ but you didn't?
Finally, all these other vendors are EASY PEASEY compared to good old CCNP Voice (5 exams, need a new mortagage to lab properly - ESXis, routers, voice cards, phones, POE switches), CCNP Security, etc. Most are one exam one cert. BAM!
So yeah in this life you're looking at at least one exam every 6-9 months lol - but that's really no more onerous than 2-3 hours study a week (if that???) - the CCIE / Vmware Advanced level certs are the only ones that require any 'real' dedication. And expired certs DO carry weight, esp. if you can explain how you didn't touch that technology for a few years - employers will understand that and still credit you for your self motivation / know that if you have to work on that vendor, you'll be able to hit the ground running.
Thanks for sharing!
I had a feeling I wasn't thinking broadly enough.
I plan to keep up my CCNP-Security, but my management is encouraging me to get vendor-less certificates, such as CISSP and GIAC certs. Looking at security jobs at a senior engineer/architect level, those are the kinds of certs most mentioned, after Cisco. VARs and vendors would look for other vendor current certs more than regular companies, particularly in the security field. I could go after a ForeScout CounterACT cert, but that wouldn't mean much at my job. CISSP, though, and It'll be all "Watch out, we got a badass here," as the picture below demonstrates.
:badass:
Quote from: deanwebb on July 17, 2015, 11:00:45 AM
I plan to keep up my CCNP-Security, but my management is encouraging me to get vendor-less certificates, such as CISSP and GIAC certs. Looking at security jobs at a senior engineer/architect level, those are the kinds of certs most mentioned, after Cisco. VARs and vendors would look for other vendor current certs more than regular companies, particularly in the security field. I could go after a ForeScout CounterACT cert, but that wouldn't mean much at my job. CISSP, though, and It'll be all "Watch out, we got a badass here," as the picture below demonstrates.
:badass:
How is the CISSP to obtain? When I was getting out of the Navy in 2007 my Chief was telling me that a new directive had come out requiring each command to send someone in the IT community to a CISSP class. He tried to use it as a bargaining chip to get me to stay in but I of course wasn't having that. At that time I had very little knowledge of the security side and didn't care.
There's a BIG TEST, "a mile wide and an inch deep". Lots of general knowledge-type questions. Passing the test and having validation of 5 years' security experience gets you the CISSP, which you can maintain with continuing education credits, which include going to RSA, taking GIAC classes, basically giving money to the security training industry... Passing the test without 5 years' security experience means an associate kind of status.
I'm heading towards it because of my company, but also because I can clean the floor with trivia tests.
Interesting. I wonder how he was going to make up my 5 years experience when I had only been in the Navy for 4.
In my free time I'm still pursuing Cisco but at work I'm looking into HP. Corporate wants us to maintain two vendors and so we are being force fed HP as an alternative for sites.
Quote from: wintermute000 on July 17, 2015, 05:36:53 AM(counter-argumentation)
Good arguments. You're right on most I'd admit. As for CCNA/NP/IE not covering ACI with the same vendor" true, and I'm aware of that, but that one is no reason to go for another vendor here. Cisco should offer certs for this. Does Cisco offer decent certs for this yet?
Quote from: Reggle on July 17, 2015, 02:04:12 PM
Quote from: wintermute000 on July 17, 2015, 05:36:53 AM(counter-argumentation)
Good arguments. You're right on most I'd admit. As for CCNA/NP/IE not covering ACI with the same vendor" true, and I'm aware of that, but that one is no reason to go for another vendor here. Cisco should offer certs for this. Does Cisco offer decent certs for this yet?
CCNA/CCNP Cloud. No CCIE advertised - yet.
Quote from: Reggle on July 17, 2015, 02:04:12 PM
Quote from: wintermute000 on July 17, 2015, 05:36:53 AM(counter-argumentation)
Good arguments. You're right on most I'd admit. As for CCNA/NP/IE not covering ACI with the same vendor" true, and I'm aware of that, but that one is no reason to go for another vendor here. Cisco should offer certs for this. Does Cisco offer decent certs for this yet?
I'd imagine it wouldn't be wise to invest in developing a certification track if they're not sure which direction they are going.
So we had FabricPath, ACI, and now VTS: http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/cloud-systems-management/virtual-topology-system/index.html (http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/cloud-systems-management/virtual-topology-system/index.html)
I know I'm going to hurt people's feelings when I say this, and I know it sounds completely bias, but I don't see ACI getting widespread adoption. I certainly wouldn't focus efforts on it. I could easily be wrong though - time will tell.
You might be right, it just reeks of Ivan Pep's complex core (loser) vs complex edge (winner) argument doesn't it.
VTS looks much more scalable and easy to implement than ACI.
I've had chats with two teams implementing ACI and AFAIK they're just replicating a subnet/VLAN/default GW topology within ACI policies, which begs the question of why reinvent the wheel....
I've also since learnt that our second go-to vendor for DC switching is Arista (i.e. if they don't want Nexus we then sell Arista) so there you go, a win for your mob :)
Quote from: wintermute000 on July 24, 2015, 08:28:09 PM
You might be right, it just reeks of Ivan Pep's complex core (loser) vs complex edge (winner) argument doesn't it.
VTS looks much more scalable and easy to implement than ACI.
I've had chats with two teams implementing ACI and AFAIK they're just replicating a subnet/VLAN/default GW topology within ACI policies, which begs the question of why reinvent the wheel....
I've also since learnt that our second go-to vendor for DC switching is Arista (i.e. if they don't want Nexus we then sell Arista) so there you go, a win for your mob :)
Exactly. A few groups I've overheard talking about implementing it didn't quite understand how it solved any of their problems. The easiest thing you can do as a smart consumer when told anything by a vendor is, "Ok - prove it." Have them show you how "simple" it supposedly is and how well it works. If they need to bring four engineers and spend two weeks setting it up... may not be as simple as claimed.
I am going to attempt CCNA by the end of 2015.
Did ARCH to get my CCDP today :beer:
Quote from: srg on August 11, 2015, 09:28:05 AM
Did ARCH to get my CCDP today :beer:
WOOT! Congrats dude. That was one of the funnest test to study for.
Congrats srg! :wub:
Quote from: that1guy15 on August 11, 2015, 09:54:51 AM
Quote from: srg on August 11, 2015, 09:28:05 AM
Did ARCH to get my CCDP today :beer:
WOOT! Congrats dude. That was one of the funnest test to study for.
Yeah it was fun, quite different way of thinking than the more techy certs.. although, today, it's quite outdated in the DC sections. I won't be surprised if it's updated soon.
Quote from: srg on August 11, 2015, 10:02:18 AM
Quote from: that1guy15 on August 11, 2015, 09:54:51 AM
Quote from: srg on August 11, 2015, 09:28:05 AM
Did ARCH to get my CCDP today :beer:
WOOT! Congrats dude. That was one of the funnest test to study for.
Yeah it was fun, quite different way of thinking than the more techy certs.. although, today, it's quite outdated in the DC sections. I won't be surprised if it's updated soon.
Yeah I think Cisco is in a lot of flux in that area, and outside of that I think the DC has evolved quite a bit in a very short time... lots of bleeding edge stuff I'd imagine is hard to cover in any manner that could be deemed "best practice". Congrats on the pass!
I've still done nothing to achieve my 2015 certification goals. Feel like I'm getting too old to retain such information for taking a test. on the flip side, I worked way too hard for years to get my CCNP to just let it expire.
Quote from: ristau5741 on August 12, 2015, 07:45:58 AM
I've still done nothing to achieve my 2015 certification goals. Feel like I'm getting too old to retain such information for taking a test. on the flip side, I worked way too hard for years to get my CCNP to just let it expire.
This is me as well.. I'm up for renewal in December... my original plan was to get the CCIE R&S, with the written just to recert.. but I'm really torn because a lot of it doesn't apply to what I do, but at the same time it doesn't hurt to go through the stuff anyway to brush up and hone things I do work with, and just for the deeper knowledge - but man that's a lot of work for a little gain. EDIT - Meanwhile I have to get stronger on other things that I do do for my job that has nothing to do with R&S.... it's frustrating to a person with ADD. ;P
Wanna hear something cool? A Korean SE at Arista just became a 7x CCIE ... lol. EDIT - At least I think it was 7x.... pretty sure.
Labbing away with as much motivation as I can muster after new job + baby. Its a grind for sure.
I've learnt to eliminate all the fun things in life (movies, video games, drinking, etc.) but my brain has instead decided to procrastinate productively by doing minor certs instead! Spent at least 2 months knocking out my VCPs etc. - building nested NSX environments can be pretty addictive in a way lol.
But lately been putting in at least 8-10hrs a week on labbing, wanting to ramp that up so I can have a crack early november.
Finished a full scale (30 router) Cisco360 config lab @ around 85% in 7 hours so getting very close on the config side. But I've barely done any TS labbing. That1guy is right - its not actually that 'hard' per se, its just a LOT of stuff you have to get right and fast, the first time, no mistakes. IIRC in that particular lab I had to build out: 2x EIGRP areas, 2x OSPF areas, 2x ISP areas wthin the OSPF areas - overlay with DMVPN, dual stack on one DMVPN, multicast on the other, tie all 4 areas together with a MPLS-VPN and appropriate redists. I only missed a handful of the tasks due to obscure 'i don't happen to remember this nerd knob' circumstances, the difficulty was digesting and executing the tasks with speed and accuracy (basically lost that hour due to retyping / approaching the tasks the 'wrong' way intially and having to do rework).
I'm also doing all these labs on one monitor with putty via the Cisco360 interface, notepad instead of notepad++ etc. i.e. brutalising myself just like the real thing, complete with laggy terminal sessions due to remote lab lol
Sounds like you are on track! Ramp up the labbing and grind it out.
Quote from: AspiringNetworker on August 12, 2015, 12:27:45 PM
Wanna hear something cool? A Korean SE at Arista just became a 7x CCIE ... lol. EDIT - At least I think it was 7x.... pretty sure.
And here I am struggling to finish CISSP and CCNP Sec before the end of the year.. I feel like a noob.
Quote from: config t on August 19, 2015, 03:38:58 AM
Quote from: AspiringNetworker on August 12, 2015, 12:27:45 PM
Wanna hear something cool? A Korean SE at Arista just became a 7x CCIE ... lol. EDIT - At least I think it was 7x.... pretty sure.
And here I am struggling to finish CISSP and CCNP Sec before the end of the year.. I feel like a noob.
Lol right? I feel like a jerk sitting here procrastinating just doing a single CCIE written to re-cert my NP... lol.
CCNA security just got an overhaul, and they ditched the CCP. One of the CCP sims killed me at the previous try, so considering another go at it on the CLI :matrix:
https://learningcontent.cisco.com/cln_storage/text/cln/marketing/ccna_security_delta.pdf
No more CCP?
:awesome:
Quote from: SimonV on September 10, 2015, 05:59:38 AM
CCNA security just got an overhaul, and they ditched the CCP. One of the CCP sims killed me at the previous try, so considering another go at it on the CLI :matrix:
https://learningcontent.cisco.com/cln_storage/text/cln/marketing/ccna_security_delta.pdf
One of my colleagues has failed CCNA Sec twice now because of that sim. Does anyone even use that software?
Quote from: config t on September 11, 2015, 02:09:42 AM
One of my colleagues has failed CCNA Sec twice now because of that sim. Does anyone even use that software?
No, only people that are studying for CCNA Security :) The previous iteration had something similar with SDM I believe, which was at least as crappy.
Quote from: SimonV on September 11, 2015, 02:11:40 AM
No, only people that are studying for CCNA Security :)
Lol
CLI for life.
Quote from: SimonV on September 10, 2015, 05:59:38 AM
CCNA security just got an overhaul, and they ditched the CCP. One of the CCP sims killed me at the previous try, so considering another go at it on the CLI :matrix:
https://learningcontent.cisco.com/cln_storage/text/cln/marketing/ccna_security_delta.pdf
you totally bonked out on mentioning the new CCNA Cloud certification. ( 2 exams, yech!)
http://www.networkworld.com/article/2982439/cloud-computing/the-cisco-ccna-gets-cloudy.html
http://www.cisco.com/web/learning/certifications/associate/ccna_cloud/index.html
Lab booked mid november.... now to push through the final cram phase. Its a struggle, I must admit.
Quote from: wintermute000 on October 04, 2015, 08:52:40 PM
Lab booked mid november.... now to push through the final cram phase. Its a struggle, I must admit.
WOOT!! Go kill it dude!!
Sat and passed the JNCIS-SEC this afternoon, very fair exam with only one or two questions that were not in the free study guides. Hats off to Juniper for being so generous in their certification tracks, too bad my voucher expired and I had to pay full price :whistle: :mrgreen:
CCSA is off the list as I've grown a real dislike for Check Point. My CCNP is up for renewal next year so I'm heading back to R&s and will try to cram the JNCIS-ENT in while I still have the JunOS in my fingers :)
They really make it easy don't they, with free quality material, test app and easy to spin up no restrictions firefly vm.
I'm dealing with a lot of security atm and I wish I did tbe security not sp track, oh well
Yeah, you named pretty much all the things that helped for studying, I've been doing Genius tests for the last few weeks. Very satisfied with the vSRX as well, did most of my labs in virtual but some features only worked on the hardware boxes. Hope my SRX100s can do some of the switching features from the ENT track, the switches are a bit expensive for labbing
I wonder though if the syllabus will be refreshed soon. The new SRXs will be arriving quite soon (NDA otherwise I'd post up the presos/specs.... lets just say they claim to beat Cisco by several magnitudes of packets per $). And the NGFW stuff is constantly evolving, poor SRXs need a shot in the arm for sure.
Sweet, are these the ones you are referring to, SRX300 series?
http://www.chris-says.com/a-new-generation-of-security-tools-and-a-new-architecture/
Just found out about the free BCVRE cert, will spend a few days doing Vyatta :)
when I last messed around briefly with a vyatta (community edition - not sure how different the Brocade branded one is) it was VERY JUN-OS like so you should fly through that, pls review
getting an eye exam this week, hopefully to get a new pair of reading glasses, I need 'em. that's a start...
Mission accomplished. #51037 :)
Time to actually study/lab stuff I want to lab (with no guilt factor! Hey I might even watch some whaddaya call it, television? LOL).
Congratulations dude, glad to hear you nailed it!! :woohoo:
Quote from: wintermute000 on November 17, 2015, 03:21:34 AM
Mission accomplished. #51037 :)
Wow! Big Congratulations!!!!
Quote from: wintermute000 on November 17, 2015, 03:21:34 AM
Mission accomplished. #51037 :)
Time to actually study/lab stuff I want to lab (with no guilt factor! Hey I might even watch some whaddaya call it, television? LOL).
WOOT huge congrats dude!!
Quote from: wintermute000 on November 17, 2015, 03:21:34 AM
Mission accomplished. #51037 :)
Time to actually study/lab stuff I want to lab (with no guilt factor! Hey I might even watch some whaddaya call it, television? LOL).
:applause:
You could even look into messing with Arista stuff now. :D
Quote from: wintermute000 on November 17, 2015, 03:21:34 AM
Mission accomplished. #51037 :)
Time to actually study/lab stuff I want to lab (with no guilt factor! Hey I might even watch some whaddaya call it, television? LOL).
Congrats!! :)
Quote from: deanwebb on November 17, 2015, 08:31:02 AM
You could even look into messing with Arista stuff now. :D
Yes - this sounds like a fantastic idea. :awesome:
Congrats :awesome:
Congratulations.
-Otanx
Quote from: ristau5741 on November 09, 2015, 11:06:57 AM
getting an eye exam this week, hopefully to get a new pair of reading glasses, I need 'em. that's a start...
new reading specs are in now, tried reading last night, some Cisco ACI/SDN stuff, they work pretty well.
Quote from: wintermute000 on November 17, 2015, 03:21:34 AM
Mission accomplished. #51037 :)
Time to actually study/lab stuff I want to lab (with no guilt factor! Hey I might even watch some whaddaya call it, television? LOL).
Boom! Well done! First time yeah?
Yessir
For anyone interested in the BCVRE - Brocade changed their learning portal and you have to search for the BCVRE bundle to get all the WBT vids for free. Otherwise it's 100$ per video :whistle:
Want to finish this in the next two weeks 8)
Gonna get one cert goal for 2015 in under the wire: HP TippingPoint ASE. Take the test next week, after I finish the course. I'm the only guy in the class, so I better be ready for it. 8)
:challenge-accepted:
Had a few days off in the holiday so I tried booking BCVRE, this came up:
QuoteExam: 170-010, Dec 31 at 10:00 AM
This discount cannot be used with appointments scheduled after 31 Oct 2015.
The discount is expired and can no longer be used.
This discount cannot be used with appointments scheduled in Belgium.
Thanks Brocade, glad I haven't spent too much time on it :angry:
Not in Belgium on top of that. Geez, thanks.
That's the worst part. Maybe there's a new voucher, but it's worthless if the promo doesn't apply to Belgium... I sent them an e-mail, wonder what they'll say.
edit: NFV promotion has ended worldwide! :(
YESH
Just passed the TippingPoint ASE practical. I am now a TippingPoint ASE.
:matrix: :professorcat: :awesome:
Nice, congrats!!
Quote from: deanwebb on December 18, 2015, 01:33:30 PM
YESH
Just passed the TippingPoint ASE practical. I am now a TippingPoint ASE.
:matrix: :professorcat: :awesome:
Congratulations mate, just in time for this thread! :)