A P P E N D I X C

Using the Simulation Software for the Hands-on Exercises

One of the most important skills required for passing the INTRO, ICND, and CCNA exams is the ability to configure Cisco routers and switches with confidence. In fact, one of the reasons that this book is relatively long is the effort put into explaining the commands, the output of show commands, and how the commands work together. Many CCNA candidates simply do not get a lot of hands-on experience, so this book is designed to help those who do not have real gear.

Another way to practice and develop hands-on skills is to use a simulator. A company called Boson Software, Inc. (www.boson.com) produces a network simulation product called NetSim™. The full NetSim product, available over the Internet from Boson, contains a large number of lab exercises and support for a large number of devices. You can even design your own network topology from scratch! It is a very impressive product.

The CD included with this book has a version of NetSim built specifically for this book. This version of NetSim includes support for several lab exercises and lab scenarios that were written just for this book. Although the software lets you work through these exercises, it is a limited-feature demo version of the actual NetSim software, which requires paid registration for full functionality. The full-feature version of NetSim includes a large set of other labs, including labs appropriate for the CCNP exams. You can also build a network topology with the full version of the product, so you can try any of the examples in this book or to just experiment with networks.

This short appendix explains the following:

■How to get to the NetSim user interface on the CD

■What hands-on exercises in the book can be performed using this special edition of NetSim