Packet Tracer Lab 7.4.3.2 Reflection

This lab is called routing table corruption. It was a lengthy lab, but it was not difficult to do because the directions were clear. The first thing I had to do in this lab was turn on all the interfaces on the routers starting with R1. Then I had to examine the routing table of R1. After that, I entered the routing protocol on each router using the commands: router rip, network 172.16.0.0, exit respectively. The next step was to configure the default route on a router and use the default-information originate command to propagate the default route to the other routers on the network. After that, I had to configure static routes on the ISP router for the 172.16.1.0, 172.16.2.0, 172.16.3.0 and 172.16.5.0. The final thing I had to do was cable the Fa0/0 interface on R4 to the Fa1/0 interface on R3. All in all, this lab was fairly simple and easy to complete. It taught me how to "corrupt" routes in networks.

Packet Tracer Lab 7.2.4.2 Reflection

This lab is about RIPv2. The main goal of the activity is to teach the user how to configure RIPv2 in the network. The first thing I had to do was examine the current operation of RIPv1 on each of the routers by using the show ip protocol and show ip route commands. Then I used router rip and then used version 2 to configure RIPv2 on each of the routers. Then to verify that it worked, I used debug ip rip. Since RIPv2 is a classless routing protocol, it cannot have summarized routes because it needs to also support VLSM. If the network administrator does not disable auto-summarization, the RIPv2 could make incorrect decisions. In order to avoid that, I had to disable auto-summary and to do that, I had to enter the router rip command and then the no auto-summary. After that, I had to verify everything was done correctly and I entered the show ip protocols and show ip route commands. The final step was to examine how RIPv2 works and for that, I had to enter the Simulation mode and capture packets.

Packet Tracer Lab 7.1.5.2 Reflection

This activity was centered around verifying the connectivity of the network. I didn't really have to do anything for this lab, but I felt it was important that I attempted to follow the directions so I could see exactly how a non-convergence command can be used in networking. The first thing I had to do in the lab was ping the FastEthernet ports of routers R1 and R3. After analyzing the results, I was instructed to ping other addresses on other routers from R1 and R3. After that, I had to enter the debug ip rip command in order to see how the RIP was working. Then, I entered Simulation Mode on Packet Tracer and used the ping 172.30.1.1 command from router 2 and clicked the Auto Capture/ Play button in order to see whether or not the ping worked. All in all, this lab wasn't made to present any sort of a challenge to the user, but to give the user a good sense of how these non-convergence commands work.

Packet Tracer Lab 7.1.2.3 Reflection

This lab was a refresher activity on what we learned in Chapter 5 about RIPv1 and its configuration. The lab opened with a pre-done topology which is the basic topology of the chapter. It consisted of three routers and four switches. The lab's instructions said to execute the basic configurations on each of the routers using the routing table that the instructions provide. The first thing I had to do for this lab was configure the RIP on R1using the instructions the lab gave me. At first, I messed up because I put the individual network addresses in, but after reading later I saw that the lab required me to enter the summarized network addresses. Then I repeated that process for the other two routers. I also had to set passive interfaces which were not connected to the routers. Overall, this lab was pretty simple and because the instructions told me how to do it, it was even easier.

Topology

Routing Table

Screenshots for Lab 2

Corrected Port Views*

- Remote view
- HQ View
- Branch View

Network Topology Explanation

The network topology is a basic topology with 3 routers, 4 switches and 12 host PCs. Each router is connected through a serial DCE connection which is configured with a clock rate 64000. Each router was named Branch, HQ and Remote, respectively. The Branch and Remote routers were each connected with two switches and each switch was connected to 3 host PCs. The topology had 4 subnets and the FastEthernet ports were configured with an IP address of 192.168.1.254, 192.168.2.254, 192.168.3.254, or 192.168.4.254,depending on the location of the port. The serial ports were configured with IP addresses ranging from 1.1.1.1 to 1.1.1.2 to 1.1.1.9 and finally, 1.1.1.10. The routers discovered other routes in the networks through RIP, which I configured and the results of which can be seen in the screenshots under the post "RIP Configured Routing Tables Screenshots". Each router had routes that were directly connected and found through RIP. The other blog post which features screenshots of the fully-functional topology and views of the ports of each router basically shows how many Serial and FastEthernet ports were included in the routers. Each router had 3 WIC-2T modules added to them and one WIC-Cover module. Then I added a NM-8AS module to the routers in order to give it more serial ports to facilitate the necessary Serial ports.

RIP Configured Routing Tables Screenshots

RIP Network Topology Screenshot

Packet Tracer Lab 4.7.1.3 Reflection

This experiment dealt with subnetting, documenting addressing schemes and verifying connectivity between all components of the network. This lab was as difficult as the culminating Packet Tracers in the previous chapter, however, this one took less work to complete so I decided to take a stab at it. The first thing the instructions said to do was insert 4 2621XM routers into the topology and then connect 4 switches to the routers. I first had to put the proper modules into the routers in order to meet the requirement of having 4 FastEthernet and 4 Serial ports. After that, I went into the CLI of the routers and configured the ports of each router. The activity was pretty lengthy, especially after I got to 20% complete. Afterwards, it became lengthy, however I still managed to complete it. All in all, the lab was fairly challenging, especially the subnetting part, but I feel I was able to do it after understanding the concepts and theories presented in the chapter.

Packet Tracer Lab 4.4.1.2 Reflection

In this Packet Tracer lab activity, the objective was to find a way to correct the routing loop that was existent in the network topology. The first thing the lab instructed me to do was view the configuration of routers BRANCH1 and BRANCH2 and then ping the PCs that are in the network. After seeing that the ping was not successful, I had to figure out what the deficiency was in the static routes configured in the routers that caused this routing loop. In order to fix this problem, I took the knowledge I had from the last few chapters about configuring routes and the commands needed in order to do this and I used that along with the IP information that was given in the table in the instructions and set up the proper static routes needed and then I tried the pings again and this time they were successful. This lab was a moderately challenging activity and it was good practice for using the ip route command and others needed for a task like this.

Packet Tracer Lab 3.6.1.3 Reflection

This lab was extremely difficult. First of all, since the previous three labs leading up to this one were so complicated, I knew this one would not be easier. Sadly, I was right. This lab was unnecessarily difficult because it had just the tasks but no steps as to how to complete the tasks. I knew I could not do this lab at all when I saw that the lab required us to create an addressing scheme and then finish the topology.

Packet Tracer Lab 3.5.4.2 Reflection

Honestly, this lab made me laugh when I saw it. This was because I had no idea on how I would do this lab, even though it was a bit simpler than the last one but all in all, the lab was extremely difficult. I wish Cisco had given us clear directions on how to do the first lab involving subnetting so that these labs could have been a little more approachable, however, this was not the case and I was completely clueless. However, I did look at the reflection portion of the lab and I was able to answer the question, I feel sufficiently, I said that upgrading to an IPv6 addressing scheme would have been much more efficient for the purposes of this lab.

Packet Tracer Lab 3.5.3.2 Reflection

This lab was a monster. When I opened the lab, I was already blown away at just the sheer size of the network. Now, if I had no idea as to how to even approach the previous lab, I knew just by looking at this lab that I was not going to be able to complete this lab either. However, I knew the idea behind this lab was similar to the last one so I suppose I somewhat knew what to do on paper, but I had no idea for this lab. I tried many things in the CLI, however, I just could not complete this lab, sadly.

Packet Tracer Lab 3.5.2.2 Reflection

To be honest, I had no idea as to how to even approach this lab. It was the most difficult lab I have ever seen in Packet Tracer. First of all, I had no idea to how I was supposed to subnet the LANs and on top of that, I had difficulty getting the ports of the routers and switches to connect to each other especially since the no shutdown refused to work. However, I felt I had an idea of how to subnet the branches from what we learned in CCNA1 but I just did not how to implement that knowledge in Packet Tracer. Sadly, I could not finish this lab, but I am proud to say that I at least made an attempt.

Packet Tracer Lab 3.4.4.2 Reflection

This was probably the easiest lab of all so far. However, although it was simple, I think it was one of the most critical labs in the chapter because it is important to be able to understand the IP routing table and that is the objective of the lab. Basically, all I had to do in this lab was access the ISP router's CLI and then view the ip routing table. The lab taught me to use specific commands to display specific information about the routes.

Packet Tracer Lab 3.2.5.2 Reflection

This lab was about convergence. The lab was extremely lengthy but maybe it was because the directions were very detailed. In this activity, the objective was to view how a converged network operates and how to add a LAN topology to a converged network. The first thing I had to do in this lab was add a switch and host to one of the routers and then I had to configure the connections to the specified ports. After configuring all that, I had to confirm that the network was converged and in order to do that, I checked the IP routing table of router 2 and the network was converged according to it. Finally, I had to turn debugging on in both routers and to do that, I entered the "debug ip rip" command in the CLI for the routers. All in all, it was a good lab and once I got through the difficult part of the lab which was configuring everything to be converged, the lab was easy.

Packet Tracer Lab 3.2.2.2 Reflection

This lab was probably one of the most difficult labs we have done so far. I feel this is mostly because the directions were vague and did not really specify what to do in order to configure the necessary routes on the routers. Also, a lot of the questions in the lab were based on what we saw in the ip routing table of the routers. The easiest part of the lab was configuring the routers with routers to each other. I thought I had a good idea of what to do for the lab but I was confused as to what to do after I got the results of the ping and ip routing tables and commands. Hopefully, the next lab will be easier.

Packet Tracer Lab 2.2.3.3 Reflection

This lab was another fairly simple lab to complete. All that was required to do in the lab was configure the PCs with the given IP addresses, gateway addresses and subnet masks and then verify connectivity between all components of the network. The first thing I did was configure the PCs and then I had to configure the routers. I had to access the CLI and then configure the routers with IP addresses for the FastEthernet0/0 port. After saving the configuration, I had to use the arp -a command and ping command in order to verify connectivity. This lab was interesting because it allowed me to see how routers work and how packets are forwarded in topologies.

Packet Tracer Lab 2.1.3.2 Reflection

This activity was fairly simple to complete. The instructions were clear and made it easy to follow them. The lab was also made easier by the fact that labels of where the devices go and IP addresses were given. The point of this lab was to teach us how to create a network topology and I feel it was good practice. The first thing I had to do was drag 3 1841 routers to their respective spots and then I had to configure it. I had to add modules to each of the routers and that helped in teaching me how important it is to make sure that every necessary component of the router is in place. Then I had to place 2640 switches in their respective slots and then connect them to the routers and then connect PCs to the switches. All in all, it was a nice startup lab for the chapter.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.6.1.3 Reflection

This activity is the culminating lab for Chapter 1 of CCNA 2. With that being known, I could tell that the lab was going to be extremely long and it was. Basically, I had to design and address a network with hubs, switches, routers and all that good stuff. The main things I was required to know for this lab were how to create an addressing scheme, select the proper cables and devices and configure everything in the network and finally, test the actual network using PINGs. I think the reflections from the other lab really helped me in remembering how to do this kind of stuff and the lab was difficult as it went because I wasn't sure what commands to use at times. However, I was able to go back to previous labs and configure the routers properly. As a final reflection for all the labs, I think the labs got progressively difficult but fun in a way as the unit went on.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.5.3.2 Reflection

This lab was just a continuation of the previous lab except it was just a little tougher, hence the name "Challenge Router Configuration". So, in this activity, I had to do the same thing I did before but this time I also had to subnet an address space according to guidelines and assign appropriate addresses to the interfaces. The lab did not provide any other instructions and so I had a very difficult time getting past the "challenge" part of it but I was able to use the skills I learned in the last lab. All in all, it was a very difficult lab.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.5.2.2 Reflection

This lab is a basic introduction to the skills we will need in the future Packet Tracer labs. The main focus of the activity is to show us the basics to configuring routers on networks. The first thing I had to do was establish connections between all the devices on the network and I also learned from a mistake I made in this lab. The thing I learned is that before establishing a connection, you should always make sure all the ports are turned on because it could result in you thinking that you made a grave mistake. The next thing I had to do was erase and reload the routers. The lab had a lot of steps to it and was very time consuming but to keep it short, I had to basically just configure all the routers according to the instructions.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.5.1.2 Reflection

This lab focuses on actually properly cabling a network and configuring routers on the network. I felt the activity was a review of the things we've learned in the curriculum so far. Along with reviewing the things learned in the unit, I also felt the lab was really helpful in learning the basic IOS CLI, router configuration and how to verify that every component of the network is working. The connections were all done for me already so I had to just follow the rest of the instructions. The lab was very long, but I think the directions were relatively simple and easy to follow and instead of taking you through step-by-step, I will sum it up. Basically, I just had to configure the routers in the network and then I had to configure the IP addressing on the PCs and finally use PING and Traceroute in order to confirm the network is working.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.4.3.2 Reflection

In 1.4.3, the curriculum talks about Equal Cost Load balancing. So, from that, we can assume that this lab will be about what it is and how it works. Equal cost load balancing is performed when a router has multiple paths to a network and the paths all have the same metric. In the activity, I got to see how equal cost load balancing actually works. The first thing I had to do was access the CLI of R1 and then see the ip route. After following the steps given, I viewed the equal cost load balancing in Simulation mode.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.4.2.2 Reflection

The name of this Packet Tracer Exploration is "Determine Best Path using Routing Tables". From this, we can infer that the lab is going to be about how routers determine the most efficient path using the information available in their routing tables. In this lab, the goal of the activity is to explain the purpose of the routing metrics in deciding which path is best. The activity was very simple and basically all we had to was answer a few questions regarding the use of routing metrics in determining the best path. The first thing I was told to do in the instructions was access the CLI on R2 and then see the routing table. Using the routing table, I was able to answer the questions posed in the lab.

Packet racer Lab 1.3.5.2 Reflection

This activity demonstrates how a router using the routing table. Furthermore, the activity also focuses on some key principles of routing tables and routing in general. From reading the instructions for this lab, I learned three key principles of routing:

• Routers make their decisions based on whatever information is made available to them in their routing tables.
• Second, just because one router has a complete routing table, that does not necessarily mean that every other router in the network has the same information.
• Finally, having the routing information about a path from one network to another does not necessitate that there is information for the route back.

In this lab, the first thing I had to do was troubleshoot why PC1 could not successfully ping PC3. So what I did is ping PC1 from PC3 and then when the ping came up unsuccessful, I followed the instructions on how to fix the issue and then finally, viewed the ping from PC1 to PC3 in Simulation mode. Then, I had to resolve the routing issue on R3 which was causing problems with pings. I basically repeated the steps again according to the directions to fix this issue.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.3.4.2 Reflection

After static routing, there is another type of routing called dynamic routing. That is what this lab is about. Unlike static routes, dynamic routes allow routers to automatically discover new networks from other routers, that is just one thing I learned from this lab. Another is that routing tables can contain and manipulate dynamic and static routes. For this lab, I had to configure the RIP on each of the routers and this was very time consuming. After configuring the RIP as the dynamic routing protocol on the routers, the next step was to verify the static and dynamic routes. The lab was incredibly long and to basically sum it up, I had to configure static and dynamic routes in all the routers in order to create a full fledged routing table. In order to verify the routes, I had to use the ping command. Overall, I think this was a good preview of what being a network engineer is like.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.3.3.2 Reflection

From this point on, we got into the more complicated aspects of routing and networking protocols. One form of routing is static routing, which is what this lab is about. The activity in the lab is centered around on how to add remote networks to routing tables using static routing. The lab was fairly long so instead of explaining everything step-by-step, I'll simplify it and sum it up. Basically, there were 3 routers in the topology provided and the goal was to create static routes from one router to another for each router. In order to do this, I had to access the CLI and then enter a few commands, which I found to be a beneficial experience, and configure routes into the routing table for routers for R1, R2, and R3.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.3.2.2 Reflection

This lab is centered around how to work with routing tables and how they are created manually. The main focus of the activity are routers R1 and R2 and the networks configured on their ports. The things I learned from this lab are how a routing table functions and it's main purpose in a router's configuration, in addition to that, I have also learned how a router manages the directly connected routes in the routing table. The first thing I had to do was enable the interfaces on R1 that had been shutdown. In order to do that, I had to access the CLI and follow the commands given to me by the instructions. After I enabled the FastEthernet and Serial interfaces, I had to verify the interfaces through pings. This lab was a good activity for me and it gave me a good idea of how to deal with possible complications I may face in configuring a router which include enabling previously disabled ports.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.2.2.4 Reflection

This lab was the first time in the unit that I was able to actually configure a router and verify that the configuration was done correctly. The lab had me first rename the router and then configure the interfaces on the router. These interfaces were the FastEthernet0/0 and Serial0/0/0 ports. The next step in configuring the router was configuring the passwords for the router, more specifically the console and vty passwords, but along with that, I also had to enable secret passwords. Then I also had to configure a login banner, this banner was known as "banner motd". After all that, the configuration was saved to the NVRAM and then in order to verify that the configuration was correct, I had to use the show commands which I felt was a good opportunity for me to get used to the CLI.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.2.1.2 Reflection

The name of this lab is "Connecting and Identifying Devices" and from that, we can infer that the lab is going to teach us how to set up devices in the network and how to properly name so that they can be easy to keep track of. In this lab, I learned how to connect all the devices using the proper cable and name all the devices in the network. This was necessary because naming the devices helps avoiding any kind of confusion. The lab was very simple actually and all I really had to do was just rename the devices according to the names specified in the instructions.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.1.5.4 Reflection

Since this is only the second unit of the CCNA Curriculum, the creators of the labs probably assumed that we are still getting used to how the Packet Tracer labs work and how the program is designed. I feel this lab was necessary because it taught me how to use the Device tabs in the program. The Device tab is arguably the most necessary tab in Packet Tracer since you can't have a network without any devices. In this lab, I basically made a topology and learned how to configure devices in the network.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.1.5.3 Reflection

This lab was about another integral aspect to routing and networking concepts. That aspect is properly cabling devices and getting them to work in unison and to work flawlessly. The lab was fairly short and simple which made it much quicker to understand. Basically, all I had to do was use the type of cable I felt fit or the specified cable in order to connect two devices on the topology that was already predetermined by the creators of the lab. I felt this lab, although it was short, taught me the importance of connecting cables to the proper ports because I made a mistake by connecting the cable to the wrong port and the network did not work.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.1.4.3

This lab is just another step in getting accustomed to the way Packet Tracer works as well as seeing how a router goes into the Setup Mode and operates from there. The first thing we had to do was enter the CLI for a router in the given topology provided by Packet Tracer. After entering the CLI of the router, there was a list of instructions I had to follow in order to enter the Setup Mode and then manipulate it. From this lab, I learned a few imperative skills to networking and configuring routers. The most important thing I learned was how to interact with a router through its CLI.

What happens in Stage 2?

Today, well yesterday, in class, we did an activity that simulated the boot-up process of a router. The process was broken into two stages and the first was just basic steps a router takes to start up such as performing the POST, copying the configuration files and such. The second stage focused on demonstrating how routers perform one of their main functions, which is forwarding packets. Stage two demonstrates how a packet is received from the Local Area Network via the NIC, represented by Student 6, and how the packet is processed before being forwarded to the next router through WAN.

Packet Tracer Lab 1.1.1.5 Reflection

This lab was very simple. Basically, all I had to do was watch a simulation of how a corporate network operates. The first thing I did was just examine the network diagram that was setup already in the Packet Tracer. Then, I read the instructions that came with the activity and clicked on Simulation mode. By clicking on Simulation mode, I was able to see how a corporate network actually comes together and operates. Once I did that, the lab was complete.

Essay

On Wednesday, I participated in a web seminar with Cisco's Senior Vice President, Carlos Dominguez. It was my first seminar and it was quite interesting. First of all, I had no idea of who Mr. Dominguez was until I read the paper with information about him on it. I found out that he actually has done a great amount of work in the philanthropy world and is a great innovator. He started as a regular employee at Cisco and made his way up the corporate ladder. Apart from the corporate figure Mr. Dominguez maintains, he is also an avid gamer and devoted father, or that is at least what was implied by the way he talked about his family and interactions with his children. He also considers himself a "tech nowist".

While the web seminar was going on, my classmates posed questions to be answered by Mr. Dominguez. He spoke about being what is called a "change agent". A change agent is someone who adapts to almost any transition and change in society. Mr. Dominguez stressed the importance of this quality and described it as a requisite to vocational success. When asked what being a "change agent" meant, Mr. Dominguez concisely put it as "being able to embrace change". He said that in order to be successful, we must embrace change and keep an open mind and not limit our minds to narrow, metaphorical one-way streets. We must meet change with open arms, a quality Mr. Dominguez says many people today lack. Moving on, one of the things Mr. Dominguez addressed in his seminar was how the right culture and technology can combine to create successful companies. I learned that this is possible because if the technology can meet the demands of the culture, it can make a winning combination and create successful companies.

After watching the seminar, I found there to be three main points to the seminar. The first one was to teach us how to be successful in any career we decide to pursue. He told us that we must keep our minds open and keep our hearts open. He stressed that we can't be quick to say "no" to anything and that society's naysayer attitude cannot influence us because it limits us. He told us to lead by example and not follow what everyone says, except the boss because he's the one that signs your paycheck. The other point was to prepare us for the real world. Other than the business world, another world exists which most people in business tend to forget...the real world. Mr. Dominguez tried to prepare us for the real world as well as the business world. He taught us many important life less times and the most important one perhaps, was once again, embracing change. It is an inevitable part of life and we must greet it with acceptance. The third and final point, I thought, was to show us the benefits of hard work and being in the Networking field. He shared his story of how he made it up the corporate ladder that many send their entire lifetimes trying to climb, but fall to the bottom in the end. This really inspired me to achieve my potential.

This seminar really affected me. Hearing the potential things Mr. Dominguez had to say inspired me to follow in his footsteps. I doubt I will be able to follow his exact footsteps since I highly doubt that he will be revoked from his position at Cisco, but I think I can reach some level of success and fortune if I dedicated myself and enough amounts of my time to it. The one important takeaway I had from this was that we all should strive to reach our full potential. I don't believe that you can achieve anything you put your mind too because if it was true, I would have 10 Super Bowl rings on my fingers. However, I do believe that you can achieve your realistic goals and if you really want them, surpass them. In saying that, I suppose I agree with Mr. Dominguez because he stressed the same ideals in his webinar.

All in all, I was greatly inspired by the web seminar. I learned that I can do as much as my potential will allow me to and that my potential is as much as I want to make it. I learned that my future is in my hands and that I can achieve my goals as long as I keep them realistic and keep myself at humble. Mr. Dominguez really inspired me to reach my goals and fulfill my dreams. Furthermore, the seminar increased the value I have for this course and taught me that it is a rewarding field and that Cisco is a great company. Perhaps one day I would like to work for this company, but for now I would like to stick to my realistic goals and pass the class.

Chapter 8 Case Study

a. The interference is called an "external interference".

b. It can slow down the network traffic because the signals cannot travel through cement or brick walls and since the cables are not shielded, this is the problem that occurs.

c. The results would be different because the small alarm clock cannot deter signals and the data can flow through without being interfered with. The A/C unit is thick and signals cannot travel through them.