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For a few days now I have been running a lightbox pop-up for those who have just visited my site.  The popup asks you to sign up for my eNewsletter.  I never really explained it, so here it is:

1. The Campaign will only run until may 15th.
2. After May 15th the eNewsletter popup will no longer appear.
3. Those that sign up for the eNewsletter will be enrolled in a drawing for a free signed copy of my Cisco Press book, CCNA Wireless Official Exam Certification Guide. (Drawing on June 1st)
4. You will receive a monthly newsletter filled with tips and tricks to help in your certification program.
5. You will get a special, “sneak peek,” of an upcoming publication soon to be released.

The Newsletter will cover tips for CCNA to CCIE level topics and will be sent once a month.  The content in the newsletter will not be the same content you find here on the blog.

Well thats about it.  If you missed the popup and wish to subscribe you can use the form on this page.

I have begun to compile my library for CCIE Voice. I am beginning with the list below, which is the recommended reading list from the Cisco web site. If you have others please tell us about them!

Cisco CallManager Fundamentals, Second Edition  (Alexander, Pearce, Smith, Whetten, ISBN# 1587051923)

Cisco Catalyst QoS: Quality of Service in Campus Networks (Flannagan, Froom, Turek, ISBN# 1587051206)

Cisco Frame Relay Solutions Guide (Chin, ISBN# 1587051168)

Cisco IP Telephony (Lovell, ISBN# 1587050501)

Cisco IP Telephony: Planning, Design, Implementation, Operation, and Optimization(Asadullah, Kaza, ISBN# 1587051575)

Cisco Voice Gateways and Gatekeepers (Donohue, Mallory, Salhoff, ISBN#

158705258X)

Cisco Voice over Frame Relay, ATM, and IP (McQuerry, Foy, McGrew, ISBN#

1578702275)

Configuring CallManager and Unity: A Step-by-Step Guide (Bateman, ISBN# 1587051966)

Deploying Cisco Voice over IP Solutions (Davidson, ISBN# 1587050307)

Integrating Voice and Data Networks (Keagy, ISBN# 1578701961)

Troubleshooting Cisco IP Telephony (Giralt, Hallmark, Smith, ISBN# 1587050757)

Voice Over IP Fundamentals (Davidson, Peters, Gracely, ISBN# 1578701686)

Voice-Enabling the Data Network: H.323, MGCP, SIP, QoS, SLAs, and Security (Durkin, ISBN# 1587050145)

Should you have a Study Partner for the CCIE?  It’s an interesting question when you consider it.  I mean, really, the CCIE is mostly a personal pursuit and people progress at different paces.  Still I’ve seen that question pop up from time to time.  I don’t think I ever had a personal, individual study partner, but I think I look at it from a slightly different angle.  I consider the lists and the blogs to be my study partner.

Twitter as a Study Partner

All things considered twitter could be considered a study partner.  You follow people with similar interests and they follow you.  You have a study related question and you post it.  I cant tell you how many times this has helped me through an issue I was having.

If you are working on CCIE Voice or CCIE Security you can follow me on twitter and I’ll follow you back.  If you haven’t gotten into twitter yet here is a word of advice:  Use a desktop client like tweetdeck or Nambu.  They make it easy to group people.

Facebook as a Study Partner

Some may also consider Facebook as a study partner.  There are a number of CCIE related groups as well as individuals that are studying for or have the CCIE digits already.  Facebook makes it easy to add people to a list.  In my facebook account I have a list for Networking that I add people to that specifically post about Cisco and CCIE related topics.  Then I can filter out the personal stuff, the work stuff and get right down to the nitty-gritty.  I’m not sure if I personally like the way the new Public Profiles are done, but still its another source of good information.

Online Study Lists and Forums as a Study Partner

Many find a great deal of use in the OSL managed my IPexpert.  There is also the IEOC and Groupstudy.  I use the OSL mostly.  I was active on IEOC for a while but couldnt figure out how to get it to just email me for everything.  All I got working was email notificatioins for replies so I would miss the initial question.  It didn’t help me much but I know it has helped others.  As far as groupstudy goes, I found it to be less of a study partner and more of a list designed for CCIE study filled with mostly off-topic posts.  So many that I unsubscribed.  One last forum that deserves mention is the CLN.  I follow the CCIE Security and CCNA Wireless forums there.  I simply subscribed to the forums RSS feed.  This way I can see when people ask questions and then go help out, or I can post a question and see when people reply without access the actual site. 

A Single Person as a Study Partner

When it comes to having a single person as a study partner I think you may be limiting yourself a bit.  With the online tools that are available today I think you could safely say that you already have a study partner, in fact, you have many study partners.  If you have a friend that is in the same place with their study as you and you are able to bounce questions off them it can’t hurt, but dont discount the abundance of online tools. 

RSS feeds and Blogs as a Study Partner

There are a number of blogs that can prove to be excellent study partners.  Its here that I have found write ups on technologies that I was having trouble understanding.  If you haven’t discovered the list on netvibes yet you have to check it out.  Its probably the most complete listing I’ve seen based on CCIE track.  You can also check out the directory at CCIEBlog.com.  If you dont have a blog of your own yet why not sign up for one of their free ones?

Of course I couldn’t possibly cover all of the tools that you might consider a "Study Partner."  Did I miss your favorite one?  Why not tell us about it so we can join in the fun?

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Over the Past Year I have tried to provide relevant information about the CCIE training that is out there as well as some of the updates to the CCIE Program itself. I have blogged about IPexpert as weIl as Internetwork Expert, and I’ve even talked about the new 360 Program.

Well, today I got an email, but I was unable to post about it earlier due to some family business I had to tend to. Here is what I was told:

Cisco today announced a major revision to its CCIE Routing & Switching (R&S) certification and the corresponding 360 Learning Program for R&S.

The update reflects the role of the expert in evaluating network changes; the growing use of IPv6 multicast, Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) and virtual private networks (VPNs) in the enterprise and the updating of lab equipment. Advances in testing include assessment of hands-on troubleshooting skills and the addition of scenario-based questions in the written examination.

This is very exciting news. In fact, over the next few months I will be evaluating the Cisco 360 Program as well as some of the other Vendor Programs.

To stay current with my posts you can subscribe to my RSS Feed or you could subscribe by email, follow me on twitter, or even friend me on Facebook. Check out my subscribe page for details. Either way, I’ll keep you all posted on my opinions.

If you have any thoughts why not share them in the comments section?

I know some of you that read this blog are working towards the CCIE Voice, and so am I.  Recently I have joined the OSL that is maintained by IPexpert.  This list is specific to CCIE Voice preparation but there are also lists for Security, Routing & Switching, and even Wireless (but it needs a little more love).

Anyhow, on the voice list, Larry Hadrava- CCIE #12203, with IPexpert, has begun to compile a list of must have links for CCIE Voice candidates. The initial two are:
Bandwidth Calculations

and

SRND Documents

If you haven’t joined the list yet I urge you to do so. You can follow this link to sign up for the voice list.

CCIE Voice Online Study List.

If Voice isn’t your thing you can sign up for one of the other lists:

R & S

Security

Wireless

Service Provider

Thanks IPexpert, for giving the community such a valuable resource!

Channeling is not that hard to do, its just temperamental. Here are 5 tips to ensure that your EtherChannel configuration goes smoothly:

1. Make them look the same!!! I’m talking about the interfaces here. Check them next to each other. I’ve seen too many broken configurations where they just didn’t match up.
2. Set the same speed and duplex. Don’t let the IOS decide for you. Hard code it so you know it’s done.
3. All ports in an EtherChannel DO NOT have to be next to each other or even on the same module.
4. SPAN ports can’t be in an EtherChannel
5. Sometimes you need to shut down both sides and let them negotiate again.

I know there are other items that I could bring out on the list. These are just some of the ones I remember off hand. How do you make sure the EtherChannel works? Add a comment on this post to tell others about it.

Find more information on Cisco EtherChannel technologies on the Cisco Support Wiki.

You can also download the Kindle version of the Quick Reference sheet. If you do, make sure you get the kindle app for the iphone!

In the many years I have been teaching Cisco courses I have come across a number of thoughts on VLAN 1. Some say not to use it, some say use it for management only. Have you ever wondered what the deal with VLAN 1 is? Well here is the scoop according to the VLAN Security White Paper via Cisco.com.

• The Document recommends that you not use VLAN 1 for inband management traffic. Instead you should pick a different that you will dedicate to keeping management traffic separate from user data and protocol traffic.
• Prune VLAN 1 from all the trunks and from all the access ports that don’t require it (including not connected and shutdown ports).

As far as the special VLAN for management purposes the document recommends the following:

• Don’t configure the management VLAN on any trunk or access port that doesn’t require it (including not connected and shutdown ports).
• When feasible, prefer out-of-band management to inband management.

There is certainly more that is discussed in the document and I think its a pretty good read.  Have a look for yourself!

It’s a beautiful day in Glendale, Ca. I’m here at the Ascolta Office in the Wells Fargo building on Brand Avenue. I’m looking forward to kicking off this class in the next few minutes but I have to say, I had THE WORST Americano from Starbucks this morning. And trust me, I have had many Americanos and this was horrible. I mean, I live in Seattle, home of Starbucks. This one was Bad.
I think it was because the machine was totally automated. The Barista just held a cup under the machine and it spit out the shots. Usually they put the shot in the cup so they can measure it out then pour it into the cup. Or, maybe it was because she put the shots directly into the paper cup, then poured water in. I’m not sure. Oh well. Of course, now that I am down the street and in my 5th floor office and have students coming in there is no way I can take it back, and there was no way for me to taste it since the sheer heat of their coffee hen they serve it to you could kill all microscopic organisms known to man, including swine flu (probably). But what a way to start the day. Bad Coffee! Yuck!

Well, Time to kick off the class. Name Tents…Check, Student Kits…..Check, Coffee….DOH!

• CCIE Voice Written Prep-Part 1.
  (tags: CCIE-Voice)

As I begin the journey to CCIE Voice I have decided, as I did with CCIE Security, to use the CCBootcamp and Cisco Press Products. I purchased the CCBootcamp CCIE Voice Written Study Guide. The Study Guide was written by Avner Izhar and Brad Ellis, and Published by Network Learning, Inc. They are a Cisco Learning Partner. Being that I work for a Cisco Learning Partner, Ascolta, we actually dont cross paths to often. I know that my company has much respect for Network Learning and I do as well after using their products for CCIE Security preparation.

So far I am about 90 pages into the study guide.

Chapter 1 was about Network Infrastructure and was very basic in my opinion. Of course this topic doesn’t vary much between the different CCIE tracks.

Chapter 2 is about Quality of Service, which is a topic I have been teaching for some time now. So far it is good. There are some terms being used that I haven’t really heard too much, but thats not a big. deal.

I am looking forward to Chapter 3- General VOIP Theory.

Each chapter ends with a series of questions to test you skills. With the CCIE Security I found these questions to be invaluable so I am hoping they prove to be the same here. As I progress further into my CCIE Voice Studies I will keep posting about the products I use. I think if more people did that it would give potential candidates a better feel for what is out there perhaps assist in their decision. After all, the CCIE is quite a commitment, both financially as well as in regards to ones time.

I welcome any questions you may have. Also, if you find anything on this site useful please share it!