Managed Switch advice

liamcrane

liamcrane

liamcrane

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Hi guys,

Im looking at taking up a networking cert and i would really like to have a play around with a managed switch and learn things like setting up vlans etc. I think
ideally a cisco switch would be best but i guess there are other alternatives out there. Just looking for some advice really on what switch i should go for.

Appreciate you help

cheers
 
What budget do you have and how much RAM does your PC have? You have 2 options

1 - Buy a physical switch. This will be pricey depending on what features and scalability
2 - Look in to Cisco VIRL. It has some feature limitations but everything else aside this is an excellent option and will work out cheaper in the long run, plus a trove of other advantages

- GP
 
GhostlyPea said:
What budget do you have and how much RAM does your PC have? You have 2 options

1 - Buy a physical switch. This will be pricey depending on what features and scalability
2 - Look in to Cisco VIRL. It has some feature limitations but everything else aside this is an excellent option and will work out cheaper in the long run, plus a trove of other advantages

- GP
Click to expand...

Hi mate, i havent really thought about as budget to be honest i just wanted to see what kind of switch would be good to go for. I dont mind paying out but dont want anything to expensive i guess. I was going to look on the bay and see what they had to offer. will have a look at cisco VIRL you mention above for sure.

APM said:
Cisco are having a sale on their educational materials starting next Monday and Pearson are having an up to 55% discount on their stuff at the moment too.

http://www.pearsonitcertification.c...e&WT.mc_id=2015_11_22_PITC_BlackFriday_launch

https://learningnetworkstore.cisco....rPUfGjI4ETctrI+SLDwEYGJlv6SgFT7bBMbdozLgOWRI=
Click to expand...

Many thanks for the links mate, will check them out this evening
 
Considering how cheaply you can pick up an old Cisco 2950/3550 switch off ebay I would go with that. 3550-EMI will even do dynamic routing. Then you can sell them off for practically zero loss. Sometimes there is no substitute for the real thing, especially if you are new to networking.
 
Might be worth checking out 'Packet Tracer' its software that's pretty much a virtual switch environment. A lot of online Cisco cert courses use it.
I have it, but have been slack of late, so haven't actually got that far with my cisco course.
 
Use gns3 over packet tracer if you can., get the IOS images

Much more real world and you can do some cool stuff. Gns3 is an emulator rather than a simulator which is what packet tracer is


Iv passed Cisco ICND1 and 2 (CCNA) by doing the labs in GNS3 and CCNP route exam also. I do have some physical kit but not powered up. Want to build a lackrack at some point but its in a cupboard as I'm on cisco devices daily anyway from the office.
 
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Thanks for that mate, never really used cisco equipment before. Have a fairly good understanding of networking, i was considering starting right from the bottom certification wise with say the network + and then building up from there using the labs you mention
 
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