I’ve just had a look at the free Cisco CCNA Lab Guide from Neil Anderson at the Flackbox blog. The eBook contains complete configuration lab exercises and solutions that help prepare you for and pass the Cisco CCNA Routing and Switching exam (200-125). It’s also useful as a configuration reference for Cisco routers and switches even if you’re not interested in taking the exam.

The eBook contains 350 pages with 25 complete lab exercises along with solutions which cover everything on the latest 200-125 CCNA and 100-105 and 200-105 ICND exams. The lab exercises can be run completely for free on your laptop – no additional equipment is necessary.

The guide contains full instructions on how to install the software and also download links for the lab start-up files, so you can immediately get into the hands on practice that will help you learn the material and pass the exam.

Below is the list of the 25 lab exercises included in the eBook:

• The IOS Operating System
• The Life of a Packet
• The Cisco Troubleshooting Methodology
• Cisco Router and Switch Basics
• Cisco Device Management
• Routing Fundamentals
• Dynamic Routing Protocols
• Connectivity Troubleshooting
• RIP Routing Information Protocol
• EIGRP Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol
• OSPF Open Shortest Path First
• VLANs and Inter-VLAN Routing
• DHCP Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol
• HSRP Hot Standby Router Protocol
• STP Spanning Tree Protocol
• EtherChannel
• Port Security
• ACL Access Control Lists
• NAT Network Address Translation
• IPv6 Addressing
• IPv6 Routing
• WAN Wide Area Networks
• BGP Border Gateway Protocol
• Cisco Device Security
• Network Device Management

The different lab exercises help you explore Cisco IOS operating system Command Line Interface (CLI) navigation. Each has a guided walkthrough of the IOS command line interface and exercises that will familiarise you with Cisco IOS configuration. The labs are presented in two parts – first the lab exercise and then the detailed answer key.

Neil wanted the guide to be completely free and as simple to use as possible so it uses the free software GNS3 and Packet tracer for all the exercises. GNS3 is the best software for routing labs while Packet Tracer is the best for switching labs.

The downloadable start-up files load in either GNS3 or Packet Tracer so you can get up and running with the labs immediately. But if you have your own physical lab, you can refer to the topology diagrams and use them as instructions on cabling it up.

The guide also contains troubleshooting tips that will further expand your networking knowledge. These are explained in a logical manner to give you a systematic way of troubleshooting issues as they arise.

You can download the guide for free at https://www.flackbox.com/cisco-ccna-lab-guide to take your networking skills up a notch and further your career.