CCNA R&S 200-120 Lab Suggestions

Many people ask us what would make a good CCNA R&S 200-120 lab? Well, that can be a tricky question based upon your budget and future Cisco aspirations. So let's start off with a basic concept I hope we can all agree on. Real Routers & Switches are required for your CCNA Routing & Switching Lab!

You need a physical router as the simulators just don't have the ability to give you the hands on you need to see what happens when you disconnect a cable, put a cable in the wrong location or just plain configure the interface incorrectly. Dependant on what you do by mistake, you may see either the interface or protocol go down and based upon that it should give you a clue of where to start troubleshooting(hint, what layer is the interface at and what layer is the protocol at?). Anyway, you will come to find quite quickly that mistakes you make on Router 1 are affecting Router 4 all because you did not screw in a cable properly. No simulator can simulate that, so real routers and switches are invaluable.

I also get occasionally asked if someone can use their D-Link router or such in their lab? That class of home router generally does not support protocols such as OSPF, EIGRP, etc. nor do they support the Cisco IOS which is a majority of the CCNA Routing and Switching 200-120 exam. So the answer is they are not really applicable to building your Cisco CCNA Routing & Switching 200-120 lab.

How Many Cisco Routers Do I Need?

Two routers really are required to see if anything works. If you have a very limited budget, you can receive value from only purchasing a single router over working with a simulator. However, you will not be able to see the main thing we are trying to accomplish. The propagation of route tables and the routing of data! The only way you can see if your configurations work, is to have at least two routers. That said, if you can afford a kit with more than two routers, it will enable you to exercise more complex scenarios. Therefore, I strongly recommend that you purchase a dual router kit or better that comes with all the accessories you need. Otherwise you can spend days or weeks trying to find all the little extra pieces you need to get your lab up and running. I mention this as some other resellers are selling their kits with 2500 routers and they are not including transceivers. Well how will you use the Ethernet AUI ports without them? So this is basically how I view it. One router will give you the ability to run the commands on it and will allow you to memorize the correct syntax and context in which to run the commands. Two routers will allow you to be able to see route table information propagate, data propagation and path election. In addition, you will see basic device elections. With three or more routers you will get all of the above, more complex topologies and full device elections. Hopefully these tips will help you pick the right CCNA lab kit for you budget.

Can We Build A Lab That Will Cover Every Single CCNA Routing & Switching 200-120 Exam Concept?

We get this question quite often. Yes we can, but it is not realistic for most customers who are self studying as this will cost well in excess of $3,000. If you have that sort of budget available, we suggest you pick one of the CCNP kits as they will generally get you through your CCNA Routing and Switching 200-120 and CCNA Security 640-554 exam on your way to your CCNP certification. In reality, prices have come down so drastically on the routers and switches you can get a top of the line CCNA Routing & Switching 200-120, CCNA Security 640-554 and Premium CCNP kit in one for about $3,000.

How Many Cisco Routers & Cisco Switches Do I Need To Complete Your CCNA R&S 200-120 Lab Workbook?

Our CCNA R&S 200-120 Lab Workbook has been recently updated for the new exam and was designed with the knowledge that most of our customers can't afford a large lab. We wrote our CCNA R&S 200-120 Lab Workbook to the specification of three routers and three switches. In a perfect world you will have three 1841 routers, three WIC-2T modules, a 3560, 3550 and 2960 plus the associated cables. Does not mean you can't complete the labs if you only have two routers or two switches in your lab? No, it just means for the most part those labs will not be as complex as they could be and you won't see any many routes propagate. But you still should fully understand the concept which is being presented.

Now you can review the above link for our CCNA R&S 200-120 Lab Workbook to see all the topics covered. A physical copy of the Lab Workbook is included with our dual router or better kits. Note in the topology diagram below how complex we make our labs. These are not straight forward two link setups. We include redundancy, multiple subnets and explain it all in great detail. There is no other CCNA R&S book out there anything close to what we have created! This is why we are the premier CCNA R&S 200-120 lab supplier with support second to none! Click on the topology picture to see a PDF of the sample lab.

Click here for sample CCNA 200-120 EIGRP Lab

What Are Some Things I Need To Consider For My CCNA Routing & Switching 200-120 Lab?

First is Cisco made the CCNA R&S 200-120 exam quite a bit harder than the CCNA 640-802 exam. Cisco wants to make sure you really know your stuff on this exam. Basically they moved about 80% of the old CCNA 640-802 exam topics into the new ICND1 100-101 exam. Then dropped a few concepts such as wireless and voice as they now have the CCNA Wireless and CCNA Voice specific exams and added a lot more troubleshooting to the CCNA Routing & Switching 200-120 exam. So what does that mean to you? The days of having a high level understanding of what is happening and passing the exam are gone. You need to practice on more complex setups and really understand what is happening. That is why when we revised our CCNA R&S 200-120 lab workbook we made it much more complex and explained the concepts in detail as you do each lab. This is why we really suggest three of the 1841 routers in your CCNA R&S 200-120 lab as we use every single interface and hit heavy on advanced OSPF, advanced EIGRP, EtherChannels, Load Balancing, etc.

Another common question is can the Cisco 2500 & Cisco 2600 series routers support IPv6? Yes, they can. The 2500 series can if they are maxed out with 16MB of DRAM and 16MB of Flash. The basic 2600 series(do not confuse this with the 2600XM series) needs 64MB of DRAM and 16MB of flash. If you do not have these routers maxed out with memory you will not be able to run IPv6. Also you really need all of your routers to be maxed out to see IPv6 run properly. It is not like some other features in which you can run it simply on one router. Here are some more specs on Cisco routers and required DRAM and Flash to support IPv6 assuming you have the correct IOS. To make your life a little easier, I have included a handy chart illustrating the minimum DRAM and Flash required to support IPv6 per model platform below.

DRAM/Flash Memory Required for Feature Support

If you took a good look at the chart, you will also notice I mentioned the requirements for CCP too. As mentioned before, CCP is Cisco's Cisco Configuration Professional and is the GUI option to configure your routers. It is not supported on some of the older models. But the good news from a lab perspective is that you do not need it on every router to get a good grasp on how CCP works. The Cisco 1841 Series is the cheapest way to get a router that supports CCP and covers concepts on the Cisco CCNA Security 640-554 exam. Now that said, as mentioned previously, Cisco does not yet have CCP on the CCNA R&S 200-120 blueprint. But it is on the CCNA Security 640-554 blueprint so you are going to probably need it sooner or later.

Finally, I also have an IOS version column. As you can see above, the Cisco 2500 and 2600 non-XM models only support 12.3 whereas the Cisco 1721 and 2600XM units support 12.4 while the 1841 and 2800 series routers supports 15.x. So if you want to have exposure the latest IOS that is running on routers in the real world, right now that is 15.x and the Cisco 1841 and 2801 routers are the most economical choice. But if your budget does not allow for it, you will still find value in the routers that are running the older 12.3 IOS and 12.4 IOS as 90% of the commands and functionality are there.

Why Do You Sell Routers With Memory That Can't Run IPv6?

Not everyone has the budget to support every feature. So you will see that we still offer Cisco 2500 router kits with 8MB of DRAM and 8MB of Flash as being able to practice on routers that support 85% of the CCNA R&S 200-120 concepts which is better than nothing at all if you budget is tight.

Why Are Your Kits More Than Some Other Kits?

There are a few reasons our kits may be a little more than some other kits you might find on the Internet. First is we include more items such as four Ethernet crossover cables in many of our kits. NO other kits need that, so why many? Well because we wrote the most complex CCNA v2 200-120 lab workbook out there so you will understand complex scenarios. By completely understanding our advanced setups which requires more cables and modules, you are sure to pass your CCNA v2 exam. In addition, we include all of our study materials such as the aforementioned lab workbook, our subnet workbook, CRAM sheet, TCP/IP poster, test engine, instructional videos and so much more! Why don't the other kits require all of our extra cables and modules? The dirtly little secret is they don't provide you any labs except very basic ones from pirated CCNA study guides.

How Do I Know What Interfaces & Options Are Available On A Router?

In an effort to avoid any confusion and give you one place to look to compare models and interfaces/options, I will briefly describe the pros and cons of many routers below. I also made this handy little chart to give you an idea of what to expect on each router.

Now choices, choices, choices. Which router do I pick? Well, we have many choices which I will list below with some pros and cons to each. I will also include a table at the end of this document to visually aid you in seeing the features of each router. I suggest no matter which router you get, you max out the DRAM and Flash so you can run the most full featured IOS available for that model. The 2500s max out at 16 MB DRAM and 16MB Flash, most of the 2600s max out at 64 MB DRAM and 16 MB Flash, the 2600XMs max out at 256MD DRAM and 48MB Flash(these can be run at 128/32 unless you are going to want to run CME for CCNA Voice and then you should max them out), the 1841 routers, although not maxed out are more than sufficient at 256MB DRAM and 64MB Flash as are the 2800 series routers.

Cisco 1721 and 1751 Router This is the only router in the 1700 series we feel has any value. Basically because they are cheap and they can run 12.4 IOS and support Inter-VLan routing. The biggest drawbacks against them is the memory is expensive if it is not already maxed out and it is not rack mountable unless you put it on a shelf in your rack. So if you are not racking your lab and you are tight on money, this actually delivers a pretty good bang for the buck.

Cisco 1841 Router This is the cheapest and best choice for an 15.x IOS ISR router for your CCNA Routing & Switching, CCNP & CCIE exams that supports MPLS(multi-protocol label switching). This is the router that best compliments our CCNA Routing & Switching lab workbook and covers the exam topics for the CCNA. Since the prices have come down on these tremendously, these are a great choice for CCNA labs and will serve you well all the way up to your CCIE certication.

Cisco 2501 Router The cheapest introduction router which can support a vast majority of the commands that you will need to learn for your CCNA test. You will need to add a transceiver to this unit to convert the Ethernet AUI port to an RJ-45 style Ethernet port.

Cisco 2502 Router This is a Token Ring router and at this point is no longer useful in a CCNA lab.

Cisco 2503 Router This is the same as a Cisco 2501 except it adds an ISDN BRI port(which can just be ignored). You will need to add a transceiver to convert the Ethernet AUI port to an RJ-45 style Ethernet port.

Cisco 2507 Router The same as a Cisco 2501 except it has a built-in 16 port hub so you do not have to purchase a transceiver.

Cisco 2509 Router This is your 8 port terminal server/access server. You can remote access 8 devices from this unit. You will need one octal cable.

Cisco 2511 Router This is your 16 port terminal server/access server. You can remote access 16 devices from this unit. You will need two octal cables.

Cisco 2514 Router This router is the same as a Cisco 2501 except instead of one Ethernet port you have two. You may ask, what is the big deal? Well, you can use this as your Cable Modem/DSL Modem router. Now you can test your ability to setup a firewall and router in a live environment on the Internet. Lots of fun! You will need to add two transceivers to convert the Ethernet AUI ports to an RJ-45 style Ethernet ports.

Cisco 2520 or 2521 Router This is a good 4 port serial router that generally will act as a small frame relay switch in your lab. The 2520 is an Ethernet version and the 2521 is a Token Ring version.

Cisco 2610 Router This unit comes with a built-in Ethernet port and is a modular router unlike any of the 2500 series routers. So the big benefit of this is you can buy extra modules to add functionality such as more serial ports, Ethernet ports, WICs and such. However, due to the flexibility you will pay a bit more. One day it is a frame relay switch, the next it is your edge router. In the long run it will be cheaper than purchasing a bunch of dedicated routers for each discipline you want to learn. Most people start off adding a serial module such as a WIC-1T which gives you a serial port and then they eventually add another Ethernet port.

Cisco 2610XM & 2620XM Router This is a great choice for many reasons. First it supports 12.4(only the XM series of the 2600 routers support 12.4. The normal 2600 series does not). Third, it is a 100mb router so it can also do Inter-VLan routing! One thing to note, in the normal 2600 series, the 2610 router is a 10mb router. In the XM series the 2610XM is a 100mb router. This sometimes confuses students.

Cisco 2611 Router This is a modular router that is dual 10mb Ethernet so you can use it as your cable/dsl router too. So the big benefit of this is you can buy extra modules to add functionality such as more serial ports, Ethernet ports, WICs and such. However, due to the flexibility you will pay a bit more. One day it is a frame relay switch, the next it is your edge router. In the long run it will be cheaper than purchasing a bunch of dedicated routers for each discipline you want to learn. Most people start off adding a serial module such as a WIC-1T which gives you a serial port.

Cisco 2611XM & 2621XM Router This is a great choice for many reasons. First it supports 12.4(only the XM series of the 2600 routers support 12.4. The normal 2600 series does not). Second it also supports SDM and if you are tight on money is a poor man's CCP. Third, it is a 100mb router and it has two of them at that! So you can also use it as a cable/DSL router too! One of the most flexible, best bang for the buck routers for your training.

Cisco 2620 Router This is also a modular router better than the 2610 as it is a 100mb router. In addition, the other big benefit of this is you can buy extra modules to add functionality such as more serial ports, Ethernet ports, WICs and such. However, due to the flexibility you will pay a bit more. One day it is a frame relay switch, the next it is your edge router. In the long run it will be cheaper than purchasing a bunch of dedicated routers for each discipline you want to learn. Most people start off adding a serial module such as a WIC-1T which gives you a serial port and then they eventually add another Ethernet port.

Cisco 2621 Router This is a modular router that is better than the 2620 as it is a dual 100mb Ethernet router so you can use it as your cable/DSL router too. So the big benefit of this is you can buy extra modules to add functionality such as more serial ports, Ethernet ports, WICs and such. However, due to the flexibility you will pay a bit more. One day it is a frame relay switch, the next it is your edge router. In the long run it will be cheaper than purchasing a bunch of dedicated routers for each discipline you want to learn. Most people start off adding a serial module such as a WIC-1T which gives you a serial port .

Cisco 2801 Router This is a step up from the 1841 and is another great low cost 15.x router that supports the CCNA R&S exam topics. It is a bit more expandable than the 1841 and thus offers a little more flexibility in your CCNA R&S lab.

Cisco 3620 Router This is now basically a throw away router.

Summary of Router Interfaces

Anything Else You Can Suggest?

Well, a few things. The Cisco 2500s are serviceable routers(keep in mind I said serviceable and not the best routers) for your CCNA R&S 200-120 studies still as long as you have the proper IOS and maxed out memory with all the accessories you need. You might say, but they are only 10mb routers. True, but they still work. The major drawback besides the aforementioned lack of CCP and 15.x support is that with 10mb routers you can't do your inter-vlan routing labs with them(which is true of any of the 10mb routers). So just make sure you have at least one 100mb router in your lab so you can do inter-vlan routing and that takes care of that issue and helps to keep the cost of your lab down for those with a tight budget!

You want to make sure your router can support IPv6 as doing those labs will really help the IPv6 concepts sink in. Finally, CCP is now on the CCNA Security 640-554 exam so it does not hurt to have a router or two that will support it!

What Is the CertificaitonKits Trade-Up Program?

In a nutshell something no other vendor is willing to offer to you! For any routers or switches you purchase from us, we will allow you to trade it in for a higher priced router or switch in the future as your Cisco certification lab grows for 100% of our retail value of the unit! This way you do not lose money upgrading your equipment. We are here to see you all the way up to CCIE as your Cisco certification partner! Please see the Trade-Up Program link on the left for full program details.

Do I Need A Switch?

This can be debated a few different ways. First some people will say that 80% of the test is based on routing. To which I will agree. But with only a small margin of error between passing and failing, not fully understanding switching concepts such as VLANs, STP, and root elections could be the one question that stands between you passing and failing your exam. There will be some switch questions which are memorization based such as "What is a Layer 2 protocol used to maintain a loop-free network"? Thank goodness we memorized STP. That said, it would be nice for us to be able to actually see the switching concepts work.

So this is basically how I view it. One switch will give you the ability to run the commands on the switch and allow you to memorize the correct syntax and context in which to run the commands. It will also allow you to do some of the VLAN labs. Two switches will allow you to see VTP Domain & VLAN information propagate. In addition, you will see basic device elections. With three or more switches you will get all of the above and full device elections. That brings us to the 3550 Series switches(note, this does not cover 3512, 3524, 3548, only 3550). Do you need a 3550 and why would you? Well, a 3550 is a Layer 3 switch. Basically it allows you to do routing within a switch. It is a pretty cool concept and it touched on the CCNA Routing & Switching 200-120 exam. Given the cost of it and it is only one concept on the exam, you may want to forgo this switch if your budget is tight. But since the price of this switch has come down significantly as of late, it is now really affordable to add to your CCNA R&S lab. Finally you may ask why do some of my dual router kits not have switches in them. Well because you can quite simply go to the section on our site labeled Switches and add the switch you would like to be a part of your kit. The switches don't need extra transceivers, ports and such so I don't really have to kit them up with the routers. We do have some of the larger kits that have both routers and switches in them too.

What Switch Should I Get?

This is one that there is so much debate on these days. I will give you my thoughts on it and there are a hundred different ways you can build a lab. I will give you the information and let you decide how you want to build your lab.

The Cisco 2950 switch is the switch that is covered on the test and has the exact IOS command set that you will see on the lab. So if you can afford one, it is great to get. But sometimes when customers only have a $200 budget, I can't suggest for them to get a switch and forego the routers. After all, the test is 80% routing! Back to the Cisco 2950, this is the best switch for the test if you can afford it.

Now I want to spend a little bit of time and explain some differences between some of the 2950 switch models and what it means to you and your CCNA studies. There is the standard 2950 which is going to cover 95% of the commands you can see on the exam. But some students are aware that there are a couple of commands such as Enhanced QoS, 802.1s MISTP(Multiple Instance Spanning Tree Protocol) and 802.1w RSTP(Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol) that are only support on the Enhanced Image version of the 2950. So if you want to run those few commands, you will need to upgrade your 2950 to a 2950C(which is available as an inexpensive upgrade on our kits), 2950G or a 2950T unit. Just ask us about it and we can get you setup with them.

As I did with the routers above, I have also included a brief description of each of the common switches and created a feature chart below to help you make your Cisco switch selection.

Cisco 1912 or 1924 Switch with Enterprise Software These switches are no longer relevant to the exam.

Cisco 2912, 2916 or 2924 Switch with Enterprise Software This switch will run 75% of the current commands needed for the exam and is not really a good choice given that 2950 switches are only about $10 more.  Spend the extra $10 on the switch as it is worth it for your $250 exam.

Cisco 2950 Switch This the switch that most people target to run all the CCNA exam commands. The normal 2950 runs Standard Image and the 2905C, 2950T and 2950G units run the Enhanced Image. This gives you access to a couple more commands so you have access to all the switch commands on the exam and is available as an inexpensive upgrade on most of our kits.

Cisco 2960 Switch This the switch that Cisco states covers the exam topics for the CCNA. Why? Well it was the current switch when the latest exam came out. They are not going to tell you to buy a switch that they are no longer selling right? Given the price decrease as of late on this model, it is a switch that can be considered an upgrade to play with some of the extra features it has that are not specifically targeted on the CCNA exam but are covered on the CCNP SWITCH exam.

Cisco 3550 Switch This switch is really cool and is used to a large degree in CCNP labs. It is a switch that does Layer 3 routing built into it. It may not make sense right now that a switch does routing, but it will before you know it! It is a bit more expensive than a 2950, but you will need it come CCNP time and it well worth it if you can get it in your CCNA lab.

Cisco 3560 Switch This is a new one on the block that adds a few more features that the 3550 does not support. This is a staple of the better CCNA R&S, CCNP and CCIE exams.

Summary of Switch Features

What about Cisco Academy Compatible CCNA R&S Kits?

Great question! Be careful as there are some resellers out there that just don't know what is required for the Cisco Academy topology. They may say it is three routers and two switches but they are incorrect. It is three 1841(dual FE, ISR) routers and three 2960 switches plus all the modules and such. Some vendors try to say a regular 2610 that does not have enough memory to run IPv6 will do just fine. Well, as long as you understand it will cover only about 75% of the concepts you are ok. So what is REALLY needed and why?

You don't really need 1841 routers until Cisco makes CCP a part of the exam, but given current prices they are starting to make their way into our kits. Why does Cisco list them? Well they are 15.x ISR routers and they were the current router Cisco was selling at the time of release of the curriculum. Think about it, they are not going to tell you to purchase a router that is no longer in production. So is there a cheaper router that will fit the bill? Yes! The 2600XM series. By combining some 2610XM/2020XM(single FE routers) with a 2611XM/2621XM(dual FE routers), we can create the three router scenario they suggest. Now some people jump out and say "Hey, the 2610 and 2611 routers are 10mb, not 100mb." That is correct, but these are XM series routers which are all 100mb. So the XM on the end of the router model is very, very important.

So what about the 2960 switches? Well as mentioned above, they were the current switch Cisco was selling when the course came out so they were the suggested switch. But in reality you will be just fine with the 2950 switches for CCNA. But as you move up to CCNP, you will want the 2960 switches.

So by making these two small substitutions, you will save about 50% off the price of a kit with 1841 and 2960 units. So do we have these kits available? Sure do. Right here... CCNA & CCNA Security 640-554 Cisco Academy Topology Kit and as an added bonus, the topology is the same for the CCNA Security exam. So you basically get two kits in one!

But what if I don't have that amount of money and I need to compromise for something in my budget? Easy, just review our many other CCNA kits and keep in mind all the tips and suggestions we provided you in this article to help you pick the best kit for your budget. You can browse them here... CCNA Certification Kits If you are still unsure of what to choose, just ask us by using our contact us link here Contact Us

Now all that said, don't worry about making sure your kit is absolutely compatible with the Cisco Academy topology. Why? Well first of all, you only need that setup if you are going to get their four different CCNA lab workbooks to follow. You can do that, but they run about $150 total just for the CCNA lab workbooks. That is a bit pricey for most people. Also to be technically correct and have the full Cisco Academy topology you need two Cisco/Linksys 300N routers too. So then that adds some more expense to the kit. By the time you are done with books and the wireless routers you can be close to $1500. We think the many other kits with our lab workbook will get the job done very nicely as illustrated by our many CCNA certified customers!

Finally, we highly suggest you checkout our CCNA R&S Study Center section of our website. Here you will find access to over 350 CCNA, CCNA Security and CCNA Voice articles explaining the most difficult concepts to master. That is not it, you will also have access to over 100 CCNA R&S, CCNA Security and CCNA Voice labs that are ok, but not up to the standards of our lab workbooks. Why are they only ok? They do not include the detailed commentary and troubleshooting notes that you will find in our labs in our workbook. Our newly revised lab workbook is 400 pages and took about 1,000 hours to create so it is very in depth. But there is more in this section too! You also get access to over 60 videos and tons of games to make your CCNA R&S studies fun such as exam questions, flash cards, CCNA Hangman, Jeopardy, Million Dollar Question and much more!

Also please take advantage of our Test Question of the Day service. Have a ICND1 100-101, ICND2 200-101, CCNA R&S, CCNA Voice or CCNA Security exam question sent to your inbox daily with detailed explanations on why each answer is right or wrong.

How to build your Cisco CCNP or Cisco CCIE Lab

Feel free to review our Cisco CCNP and Cisco CCIE Certification lab suggestion articles below: