How to Study for the R&S CCIE Lab

01 Apr 2011 - Lab-Rat

Once you’ve completed your CCIE lab foundation study for the CCIE lab, it’s time to pull the trigger and get good with the equipment. I worked with three vendors and a variety of training methods during my lab preparation- I’ll give you a little detail on each and then make a recommendation on how I would have done it if I had to start over again.

Bootcamps

I took several bootcamps- most at CC Bootcamp. They’re nice people, and they try hard. The problem for me, is that a bootcamp format doesn’t lend itself well to what I needed to prepare for the lab. Let me elaborate. A week isn’t a very long time to hit any particular target in any depth (heck, there’s one week BGP bootcamps). So what that means is you’re basically there for a brief review.

Fine, but invariably there’s one or more people in the bootcamp who shouldn’t be there. You know, the guy who can’t subnet- or how about the guy who is there because the training budget was going to run out so he just came. They’re woefully ill prepared, and the instructor ends up teaching to the lowest common denominator. For me, my time is better spent studying at home- and I could have spent that cash on buying or renting my own CCIE lab equipment to practice.

Pros:

• Dedicated time to work on the CCIE. If you work and have a family, time away can really give you a head start on your studies.
• Access to live expert to answer questions - Nothing like being able to ask a question on something that doesn’t work or lab up right. Just make sure the instructor’s a CCIE. Cisco allows certified instructors without CCIEs to teach- but I’ve always had the best classes with real CCIEs who know what you’re going through.
• Dedicated access to live racks.

Cons:

• Expensive.
• Differing levels of expertise and dedication amongst the students.
• Accelerated format - you may not have time to hit your trouble areas adequately.

Video on Demand

I bought the Cisco 360 Video on Demand Modules, I’ve also had experience with a couple of different vendors during my CCNP training. Overall they’re a pretty good resource- especially if you have to the option to practice the technology after the presentation (some come with labs and workbooks). Really this a hybrid solution, you get “just the facts” from a qualified instructor, and you can replay the presentation any time you like. I like these better than bootcamps.

Pros:

• On demand training- ready when you are.
• Expert instructors- due to the portable format, top level instructors can record their lectures.
• Less expensive that bootcamps- you may be able to purchase a package of lectures covering a variety of technology.

Cons:

• No live interaction with the instructor.
• May not come with live rack access.

Workbooks

I had the opportunity to use the Cisco 360 labs (currently there are 10 of them), the CC Bootcamp workbook, and INE’s workbooks. I recommend getting a couple of vendors workbooks, as multiple views of the technology make you a stronger network engineer. Each workbook had different areas of focus (and difficulty), and working through all of them helped me identify my weak areas and supplement my training.

Pros:

• On demand training- ready when you are.
• Expert instructors development
• Least expensive training option.

Cons:

• No live interaction with the instructor.
• May not come with live rack access.
• Typos - This drives me nuts. I know we’re all human, but these workbooks should be gone through with a fine tooth comb before release. The occasional misspelled word I can live with, but flipping the IP addresses or leaving out needed config is a real pain to troubleshoot. On the flipside- troubleshooting these problems makes you really understand the technology- heck it may even help with the troubleshooting portion of the lab…

Recommendations

So looking back, if I was starting my R&S CCIE lab study over again, here’s what I’d do:

Option 1, my budget is so tight it squeaks:

• Workbooks - of the ones I used my favorite would have to be INE.
• Rack Rental - Save a bit of money by buying a package of credits.

Option 2, I have a little more cash, but let’s not go crazy:

• Workbooks - of the ones I used my favorite would have to be INE.
• Video on Demand - Buy the modules you’re weakest on.
• Rack Rental - Save a bit of money by buying a package of credits.
• Mock labs - Consider an online mock labs from a vendor such as Graded Labs.

Option 3, Money is no object, let’s do this!:

• Workbooks - of the ones I used my favorite would have to be INE.
• Video on Demand - Buy the full suite.
• Buy your own R&S CCIE lab equipment off eBay.
• Bootcamps - Take the instructional and mock bootcamps, buy them in a package.

So there you go- how to study for R&S CCIE Lab in nutshell- or a rat hole. 🙂