Cisco CCNA Certification Exam Tutorial: The Config Register And Password

Whether you're preparing for the CCNA certification exam or not, you must be prepared for the following question:

"Hey, I reloaded this router and it wants an enable password. Do you know it?"

Because if you don't, and there's no one available who does, you need to perform a password recovery technique on the router - without erasing the current configuration. This involves manipulating the config register, and a misstep here can be fatal to the router's chances of recovery!

Obviously, that can make you pretty nervous about changing the config register, CCNA or not. Different Cisco routers and switches have different techniques for password recovery, so the following discussion is limited to the 2500 series. If you need to do this for another model, do a quick search engine check for "password recovery cisco" and you should quickly find a document for the Cisco router you're working with.

For the 2500 series, you start by reloading the router and sending a BREAK signal during the first 60 seconds of the reload. Depending on the terminal program you're using, this can be the hardest part of the entire process! For most, just press CTRL-BREAK during this one-minute period. If this doesn't work, you may need to check Help in your terminal program to find out how to send this break signal.

As a result of the break sequence, the router will go into ROM Monitor mode. The commands here are totally different than the ones you're used to working with in the router's IOS. Use the command o/r 0x2142 to change the config register setting, and reload the router by entering the letter "i".

This config register setting doesn't erase anything, but it does make the router ignore the contents of NVRAM. This means that you'll be prompted to go into the dreaded Setup Mode, which you do NOT want to do. Simply press "N" and type "enable" when you're at the router prompt. (If you do go into Setup Mode, you can always get out with CTRL-C, a handy command to know for the CCNA exam and for real life, as you can see!)

Be very careful with the next step. You want to enter the command "configure memory" or "copy start run" at this point - don't enter "write memory" or "copy run start". Success on the CCNA exam and in working with real-world networks is all about the details, and this is a very important detail.

At this point, you can look at the running configuration and see the passwords, and change them if you wish. However, we're not done. The config register needs to be set back to its default of 0x2102, and you do so with the global command "config-register 0x2102". Now you want to save your config with "write memory" or "copy run start", and reload the router. The router will now boot as it normally would.

Knowing how to recover from a lost password is a vital skill for both the Cisco CCNA certification exam and for success in real-world networks. It's not something we have to do every day, but when the time calls for it, we have to do it correctly and completely - and that includes that final config-register change!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of over 100 free certification exam tutorials, including CCNA and CCNP tutorials. CompTIA Network+, Security+, and A+ certification tutorials are available, also!

Visit his blog and sign up for Certification Central, a daily newsletter packed with CCNA, Network+, Security+, A+, and CCNP certification exam practice questions! A free 7-part course, ?How To Pass The CCNA?, is also available.

Coming in 2007 -- Microsoft Vista certification with The Bryant Advantage!

Discover Your Heart in San Francisco

Besides the Golden Gate Bridge and the funky neighborhoods, are you really aware of all that San Francisco has to offer as a vacation destination? Art, culture, history and fun permeate the city and spring up in various forms around every corner. Dull moments and dreary days are few and far between, and there are about five million possible itineraries to choose from. If filling your days with constant sensory stimulation sounds like your idea of a fabulous getaway, you simply must check out the whirling, spinning, energy-rich mecca that is San Francisco.

The Bay area in general is perfect for biking, walking, and cable car riding, so forget about your gas-guzzling beast and plan on getting a little fresh air and exercise. The distinctive architecture, the tranquil wharf and the people watching will all keep you constantly encouraged to move along, meaning that you'll probably end up burning a few calories without even realizing it. Historical walking tours will fill your head with a little knowledge, or if you're the spontaneous type, just hop on your bicycle and see where the day takes you.

If artistic endeavors get your motor running, dozens of opportunities will compete for your attention. The Asian Art Museum is one of the largest collections of Eastern inspired art in the world, and the San Francisco Modern Art Museum is considered a can't miss attraction. Galleries line the more fashionable streets and local artisans are hawking their wares in the most unexpected places; in other words, if you keep your eyes open you're sure to get your art fix.

Its location on the coast of course makes San Francisco properly ocean-oriented, so whether you're looking out across the bay from on of the city's higher vantage points or getting right up close to the action at Pier 39 at Fisherman's Wharf. Sea lions, food vendors and Broadway-style musicals are just a few of the attractions in this area, so save some time to properly appreciate the whimsical offerings. The Conservatory of Flowers is a fragrant and fascinating draw, and most tourists won't be able to leave the Bay area without hopping on a ferry and visiting a famed and intriguing sightseeing spot - Alcatraz.

The theme parks, nature preserves, and cultural spots of interest are compiled in lists and articles much longer than this one, so once you arrive be sure to check out the scene, maybe ask a local, and wander your way through what is sure to be a satisfyingly busy vacation. Don't let yourself get too worn out though; when taking city getaways it can be tempting to run yourself ragged and end up feeling relaxed but tired; avoid post-vacation fatigue by penciling in some downtime.

Play a round of golf on one of San Francisco's gorgeous courses; stop by one of the many high-class spas for a facial, massage or pedicure, or kick back at a casual or upscale restaurant for a delicious meal. Since you've been running around all day, don't worry about calories for once. Indulge in a fantastic dinner (seafood and wine, perhaps?) and go ahead and order dessert. With hundreds of restaurants to choose from, food heads will be in heaven.

Shopping is also a tempting diversion, so spend-a-holics beware that your credit card may be making a few key appearances. From specialty gift stores to upscale boutiques, candy and flower shops to antique markets, it's all here. Considering that this is in the neighborhood of wine country, there are all sorts of tours and tastings to take advantage of. Give your taste buds an awakening, see the process that grapes undergo before reaching your table in the form of sweet nectar in a long-stemmed glass, and take a few bottles home with you as the perfect souvenir.

To add a final touch to the trip, one that will make you look and feel as if you're a professional vacationer who knows how to make a good holiday great, opt to reserve a San Francisco Vacation Rental. With a condo or apartment located downtown, all the hottest activities will be right outside your door and it will greatly aid your vacation state of mind to live like a local.

Or, check out the properties that are tucked away along the coast or in the hills; these will give you more peace and quiet than the typical hotel, and aren't necessarily more expensive when you take into consideration all the fabulous extra amenities that come wrapped up in a vacation rental package. It's at least worth a look, so check out the dozens of houses, town homes and cottages today.

San Francisco isn't a hard sell; there's something for everyone to take interest in and the city knows how to show visitors a good time. If it's time for you to take a break from responsibility for a while, consider heading to this sparkling metropolis as soon as you can swing it.

Visit HomeAway.com as you start to plan your next vacation.#BREAK# #TITLE#How to become a Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA)#/TITLE#

As a professional certifications add value to your CV from the point of view of potential employers. Not only do they demonstrate that you have a certain level of knowledge in a given area but they also demonstrate that you can apply yourself to a project or task and are able to see it through to a successful completion. This article explains how to go about becoming a Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA).

To become a CCNA you will need to pass either:

Exam - 640-821 INTRO and Exam - 640-811 ICND or Exam - 640-801 CCNA (a composite of the above two exams).

In order to sit the exams you will need to register with an authorised test centre and a fee is involved (currently around ?84 plus VAT). You can do this at Pearson VUE or Thomson Prometric. You should be able to find a location and date that suits you. (If you are attending the below courses your training provider should help you with this.)

In order to gain the necessary knowledge to pass these exams Cisco recommends the following courses:

INTRO - Introduction to Cisco Networking Technologies (http://www.inventioconsulting.co.uk/intro.htm) ICND - Interconnecting Cisco Network Devices (http://www.inventioconsulting.co.uk/icnd.htm)

Self study is also an option and is cheaper than sitting the courses. Self study guides can be bought at online bookstores such as Amazon.co.uk

Either way whether you are attending courses or doing the self study it is advisable to spend time reading up from your course notes or books and doing some of the practice exams which can be found at various websites to build your knowledge and gain confidence before sitting the exams.

David Carrier founded Inventio Consulting (http://www.inventioconsulting.co.uk) in 2003 and has over 10 years experience in the IT training and education industry.

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification Exam: Troubleshooting Direct Serial

Connecting Cisco routers directly via their Serial interfaces works really well once you get it running - and getting such a connection up and running is easy enough. You can use show controller serial x to find out which endpoint is acting as the DCE, and it's the DCE that must be configured with the clockrate command.

R3#show controller serial 1

HD unit 1, idb = 0x11B4DC, driver structure at 0x121868

buffer size 1524 HD unit 1, V.35 DCE cable

R3(config)#int serial1

R3(config-if)#ip address 172.12.13.3 255.255.255.0

R3(config-if)#clockrate 56000

R3(config-if)#no shut

Failure to configure the clockrate has some interesting effects regarding the physical and logical state of the interfaces. Let's remove the clockrate from R3 and see what happens.

R3(config)#int s1

R3(config-if)#no clockrate 56000

R3(config-if)#

18:02:19: %LINEPROTO-5-UPDOWN: Line protocol on Interface Serial1, changed state to down

The line protocol doesn't drop immediately, but it does drop. Let's run show interface serial1 to compare the physical and logical interface states.

R3#show int serial1

Serial1 is up, line protocol is down

Physically, the interface is fine, so the physical interface is up. It's only the logical part of the interface - the line protocol - that is down. It's the same situation on R1.

R1#show inter serial1

Serial1 is up, line protocol is down

While a router misconfiguration is the most likely cause of a serial connection issue, that's not the only reason for clocking issues. Cisco's website documentation mentions CSU/DSU misconfiguration, out-of-spec cables, bad patch panel connections, and connecting too many cables together as other reasons for clocking problems. Still, the number one reason for clocking problems in my experience is simply forgetting to configure the clockrate command!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.

You can also join his RSS feed and visit his blog, which is updated several times daily with new Cisco certification articles, free tutorials, and daily CCNA / CCNP exam questions! Details are on the website.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, ?How To Pass The CCNA? and ?How To Pass The CCNP?, visit the website and download your free copies. You can also get FREE CCNA and CCNP exam questions every day! And coming in 2007 -- Microsoft Vista certification from The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification Exam Lab: Frame Relay Subinterfaces

Earning your Cisco CCNA and CCNP is a tough proposition, and part of that is the fact that you quickly learn that there?s usually more than one way to do things with Cisco routers ? and while that?s generally a good thing, you better know the ins and outs of all options when it comes to test day and working on production networks. Working with Frame Relay subinterfaces and split horizon is just one such situation.

One reason for the use of subinterfaces is to circumvent the rule of split horizon. You recall from your CCNA studies that split horizon dictates that a route cannot be advertised out the same interface upon which it was learned in the first place. In the following example, R1 is the hub and R2 and R3 are the spokes. All three routers are using their physical interfaces for frame relay connectivity, and they are also running RIPv2 172.12.123.0 /24. Each router is also advertising a loopback interface, using the router number for each octet.

R1(config)#int s0

R1(config-if)#ip address 172.12.123.1 255.255.255.0

R1(config-if)#no frame inverse

R1(config-if)#frame map ip 172.12.123.2 122 broadcast

R1(config-if)#frame map ip 172.12.123.3 123 broadcast

R1(config-if)#no shut

R2(config)#int s0

R2(config-if)#encap frame

R2(config-if)#no frame inver

R2(config-if)#frame map ip 172.12.123.1 221 broadcast

R2(config-if)#frame map ip 172.12.123.3 221 broadcast

R2(config-if)#ip address 172.12.123.2 255.255.255.0

R3(config)#int s0

R3(config-if)#encap frame

R3(config-if)#no frame inver

R3(config-if)#frame map ip 172.12.123.1 321 broadcast

R3(config-if)#frame map ip 172.12.123.2 321 broadcast

R3(config-if)#ip address 172.12.123.3 255.255.255.0

R1#show ip route rip

2.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

R 2.2.2.2 [120/1] via 172.12.123.2, 00:00:20, Serial0

3.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

R 3.3.3.3 [120/1] via 172.12.123.3, 00:00:22, Serial0

R2#show ip route rip

1.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

R 1.1.1.1 [120/1] via 172.12.123.1, 00:00:06, Serial0

R3#show ip route rip

1.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

R 1.1.1.1 [120/1] via 172.12.123.1, 00:00:04, Serial0

The hub router R1 has a route to both loopbacks, but neither spoke has a route to the other spoke's loopback. That's because split horizon prevents R1 from advertising a network via Serial0 if the route was learned on Serial0 to begin with.

We've got two options here, one of which is to disable spilt horizon on the interface. While doing so will have the desired effect in our little network, disabling split horizon is not a good idea and should be avoided whenever possible. We?re not going to do it in this lab, but here is the syntax to do so:

R1(config)#interface serial0

R1(config-if)#no ip split-horizon

A better solution is to configure subinterfaces on R1. The IP addressing will have to be revisited, but that's no problem here. R1 and R2 will use 172.12.123.0 /24 to communicate, while R1 and R3 will use 172.12.13.0 /24. R3's serial0 interface will need to be renumbered, so let's look at all three router configurations:

R1(config)#interface serial0

R1(config-if)#encap frame

R1(config-if)#no frame inverse-arp

R1(config-if)#no ip address

R1(config-if)#interface serial0.12 multipoint

R1(config-subif)#ip address 172.12.123.1 255.255.255.0

R1(config-subif)#frame map ip 172.12.123.2 122 broadcast

R1(config-subif)#interface serial0.31 point-to-point

R1(config-subif)#ip address 172.12.13.1 255.255.255.0

R1(config-subif)#frame interface-dlci 123

R2(config)#int s0

R2(config-if)#ip address 172.12.123.2 255.255.255.0

R2(config-if)#encap frame

R2(config-if)#frame map ip 172.12.13.3 221 broadcast

R2(config-if)#frame map ip 172.12.123.1 221 broadcast

R3(config)#int s0

R3(config-if)#ip address 172.12.13.3 255.255.255.0

R3(config-if)#encap frame

R3(config-if)#frame map ip 172.12.13.1 321 broadcast

R3(config-if)#frame map ip 172.12.123.2 321 broadcast

A frame map statement always names the REMOTE IP address and the LOCAL DLCI. Don't forget the broadcast option!

Show frame map shows us that all the static mappings on R1 are up and running. Note the "static" output, which indicates these mappings are a result of using the frame map command. Pings are not shown, but all three routers can ping each other at this point.

R1#show frame map

Serial0 (up): ip 172.12.123.2 dlci 122(0x7A,0x1CA0), static,

broadcast, CISCO, status defined, active

Serial0 (up): ip 172.12.13.3 dlci 123(0x7B,0x1CB0), static,

broadcast, CISCO, status defined, active

After the 172.12.13.0 /24 network is added to R1 and R3?s RIP configuration, R2 and R3 now have each other's loopback network in their RIP routing tables.

R2#show ip route rip

1.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

R 1.1.1.1 [120/1] via 172.12.123.1, 00:00:20, Serial0

3.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

R 3.3.3.3 [120/1] via 172.12.123.1, 00:00:22, Serial0

R3#show ip route rip

1.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

R 1.1.1.1 [120/1] via 172.12.13.1, 00:00:20, Serial0

2.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

R 2.2.2.2 [120/1] via 172.12.13.1, 00:00:22, Serial0

While turning split horizon off is one way to achieve total IP connectivity, doing so can have other unintended results. The use of subinterfaces is a more effective way of allowing the spokes to see the hub's loopback network.

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.

You can also join his RSS feed and visit his blog, which is updated several times daily with new Cisco certification articles, free tutorials, and daily CCNA / CCNP exam questions! Details are on the website.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, ?How To Pass The CCNA? and ?How To Pass The CCNP?, visit the website and download your free copies. You can also get FREE CCNA and CCNP exam questions every day! And coming in 2007 -- Microsoft Vista certification from The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification Exam: Cabling Your Home Lab

More CCNA and CCNP candidates than ever before are putting together their own home labs, and there's no better way to learn about Cisco technologies than working with the real thing. Getting the routers and switches is just part of putting together a great CCNA / CCNP home lab, though. You've got to get the right cables to connect the devices, and this is an important part of your education as well. After all, without the right cables, client networks are going to have a hard time working!

For your Cisco home lab, one important cable is the DTE/DCE cable. These cables have two major uses in a home lab. To practice directly connecting Cisco routers via Serial interfaces (an important CCNA skill), you'll need to connect them with a DTE/DCE cable. Second, if you plan on having a Cisco router act as a frame relay switch in your lab, you'll need multiple DTE/DCE cables to do so. (Visit my website's Home Lab Help section for a sample Frame Relay switch configuration.)

If you have multiple switches in your lab, that's great, because you'll be able to get a lot of spanning tree protocol (STP) work in as well as creating Etherchannels. To connect your switches, you'll need crossover cables.

You'll need some straight-through cables as well to connect your routers to the switches.

Finally, if you're lucky enough to have an access server as part of your lab, you'll need an octal cable to connect your AS to the other routers and switches in your lab. The octal cable has one large connector on one end and eight numbered RJ-45 connectors on the other end. The large connector should be attached to the async port on your AS, and the numbered RJ-45 connectors will be connected to the console ports on your other routers and switches.

Choosing and connecting the right cables for your Cisco CCNA / CCNP home lab is a great learning experience, and it's also an important part of your Cisco education. After all, all great networks and home labs all begin at Layer One of the OSI model!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.

You can also join his RSS feed and visit his blog, which is updated several times daily with new Cisco certification articles, free tutorials, and daily CCNA / CCNP exam questions! Details are on the website.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, ?How To Pass The CCNA? and ?How To Pass The CCNP?, visit the website and download your free copies. You can also get FREE CCNA and CCNP exam questions every day! And coming in 2007 -- Microsoft Vista certification from The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification Exam: Caller ID Screening And Callback

As a CCNA and/or CCNP candidate, you've got to be able to spot situations where Cisco router features can save your client money and time. For example, if a spoke router is calling a hub router and the toll charges at the spoke site are higher than that of the hub router, having the hub router hang up initially and then call the spoke router back can save the client money (and make you look good!)

A popular method of doing this is using PPP callback, but as we all know, it's a good idea to know more than one way to do things in Cisco World! A lesser-known but still effective method of callback is Caller ID Screening & Callback. Before we look at the callback feature, though, we need to know what Caller ID Screening is in the first place!

This feature is often referred to simply as "Caller ID", which can be a little misleading if you've never seen this service in operation before. To most of us, Caller ID is a phone service that displays the source phone number of an incoming call. Caller ID Screening has a different meaning, though. Caller ID Screening on a Cisco router is really another kind of password - it defines the phone numbers that are allowed to call the router.

The list of acceptable source phone numbers is created with the isdn caller command. Luckily for us, this command allows the use of x to specify a wildcard number. The command isdn caller 555xxxx results in calls being accepted from any 7-digit phone number beginning with 555, and rejected in all other cases. We'll configure R2 to do just that and then send a ping from R1 to R2. To see the results of the Caller ID Screening, debug dialer will be run on R1 before sending the ping. I?ve edited this output, since the output you see here will be repeated fire times ? once for each ping packet.

R2(config-if)#isdn caller 555xxxx

R1#debug dialer

Dial on demand events debugging is on

R1#ping 172.12.12.2

Type escape sequence to abort.

Sending 5, 100-byte ICMP Echos to 172.12.12.2, timeout is 2 seconds:

03:30:25: BR0 DDR: Dialing cause ip (s=172.12.12.1, d=172.12.12.2)

03:30:25: BR0 DDR: Attempting to dial 8358662.

Success rate is 0 percent (0/5)

R1 doesn't give us any hints as to what the problem is, but we can see that the pings definitely aren't going through. On R2, show dialer displays the number of screened calls.

R2#show dialer

BRI0 - dialer type = ISDN

Dial String Successes Failures Last DNIS Last status

8358661 1 0 00:03:16 successful

7 incoming call(s) have been screened.

0 incoming call(s) rejected for callback.

The callback option mentioned in the last line shown above enables the router to reject a phone call, and then call that router back seconds later.

R2 will now be configured to initially hang up on R1, and then call R1 back.

R2(config-if)#isdn caller 8358661 callback

R1 will now ping R2. The pings aren't returned, but seconds later R2 calls R1 back.

R1#ping 172.12.12.2

Success rate is 0 percent (0/5)

R1#

03:48:12: BRI0: wait for isdn carrier timeout, call id=0x8023

R1#

03:48:18: %LINK-3-UPDOWN: Interface BRI0:1, changed state to up

R1#

03:48:18: BR0:1 DDR: dialer protocol up

R1#

03:48:19: %LINEPROTO-5-UPDOWN: Line protocol on Interface BRI0:1, changed state to up

R1#

03:48:24: %ISDN-6-CONNECT: Interface BRI0:1 is now connected to 8358662 R2

show dialer on R2 shows the reason for the call to R1 is a callback return call.

R2#show dialer

BRI0 - dialer type = ISDN

Dial String Successes Failures Last DNIS Last status

8358661 3 0 00:00:48 successful

7 incoming call(s) have been screened.

10 incoming call(s) rejected for callback.

BRI0:1 - dialer type = ISDN

Idle timer (120 secs), Fast idle timer (20 secs)

Wait for carrier (30 secs), Re-enable (15 secs)

Dialer state is data link layer up

Dial reason: Callback return call

Time until disconnect 71 secs

Connected to 8358661 (R1)

The drawback to Caller ID Callback is that not all telco switches support it, so if you have the choice between this and PPP Callback, you're probably better off with PPP Callback. However, it's always a good idea to know more than one way to get things done with Cisco!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.

You can also join his RSS feed and visit his blog, which is updated several times daily with new Cisco certification articles, free tutorials, and daily CCNA / CCNP exam questions! Details are on the website.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, ?How To Pass The CCNA? and ?How To Pass The CCNP?, visit the website and download your free copies. You can also get FREE CCNA and CCNP exam questions every day! And coming in 2007 -- Microsoft Vista certification from The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification Exam: Same Command, Different Results

As a CCNA or CCNP, one thing you've got to get used to is that change is constant. Cisco regularly issues new IOS versions, not to mention the many different kinds of hardware they produce! While it's always nice to have "the latest and the greatest" when it comes to routers, switches, firewalls, etc., we have to be prepared for the fact that not all our clients are going to have that latest and greatest!

For instance, there are still quite a few Catalyst 5000 switches out there humming away, and if you're used to working on IOS-driven switches like the 2950, the same command can have dramatically different results.

Let's say you're going to examine the spanning tree protocol (STP) setup of a new client. You're used to working with newer 2950 switches, and you've always run show span on those switches to display spanning-tree information. Then, you run show span on a Catalyst 5000 - and something like this shows:

switch (enable) show span

Destination : Port 6/1

Admin Source : Port 6/2

Oper Source : Port 6/2

Direction : transmit/receive

Incoming Packets: disabled

Learning : enabled

Multicast : enabled

Filter : -

Status : active

Total local span sessions: 1

What's going on here?

The command show span on a 5000 will not show spanning tree stats - instead, what you're going to see are statistics relating to Switched Port ANalyzer (SPAN). Surprise!

Consider an example where you're used to running show span on 5000 switches to see SPAN information. When you run that on a 2950, you know now what you're going to get - spanning tree information! On a 2950, you'll need to run show monitor session, followed by the SPAN session number.

SW1#show monitor session 1

Session 1

---------

Type : Local Session

Source Ports :

Both : Fa0/1

Destination Ports : Fa0/2

Encapsulation : Native

Ingress: Disabled

As a CCNA and CCNP, this is one of those things you just have to get used to. Commands are going to be different, sometimes radically so, between models. That's why you need to be adept with both IOS Help and Cisco's online documentation site. IOS Help is easy, but the online doc site take a little getting used to. Once you learn how to navigate that site, a world of Cisco knowledge is at your fingertips.

Besides, when you sit for the CCIE lab exam, that will be the only friend you have! And a valuable friend it can be - you're just going to have to trust me on that one. :)

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.

You can also join his RSS feed and visit his blog, which is updated several times daily with new Cisco certification articles, free tutorials, and daily CCNA / CCNP exam questions! Details are on the website.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, "How To Pass The CCNA" and "How To Pass The CCNP", visit the website and download your free copies. You can also get FREE CCNA and CCNP exam questions every day! And coming in 2007 -- Microsoft Vista certification from The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification Exam: Frame Relay Encapsulation Types

When you're studying to pass the Cisco CCNA and CCNP certification exams, you quickly learn that there's always something else to learn. (You'll really pick up on this in your CCIE studies, trust me!) Today we'll take a look at an often-overlooked topic in Frame Relay, the encapsulation type. You don't exactly change this on a daily basis in production networks (not if you want to stay employed, anyway!), but it's an important exam topic that you must be familiar with.

The DCE and DTE must agree on the LMI type, but there's another value that must be agreed upon by the two DTEs serving as the endpoints of the VC. The Frame encapsulation can be left at the default of Cisco (which is Cisco-proprietary), or it can be changed to the industry-standard IETF, as shown below. If a non-Cisco router is the remote endpoint, IETF encapsulation must be used. Note that the default of Cisco isn't listed as an option by IOS Help, so you better know that one by heart!

R1(config)#int s0

R1(config-if)#encap frame ?

ietf Use RFC1490/RFC2427 encapsulation

 

R1(config-if)#encap frame ietf

What if a physical interface is in use and some remote hosts require Cisco encapsulation and others require IETF? The encapsulation type can be configured on a per-PVC basis as well. One encap type can be used on the interface, and any map statements that require a different encap type can have that specified in the appropriate map statement. In the following example, all PVCs will use the default Cisco encapsulation type except for PVC 115. The frame map statement using that PVC has ietf specified.

R1(config)#int s0/0

R1(config-if)#encap frame

R1(config-if)#frame map ip 172.12.123.3 123 broadcast

R1(config-if)#frame map ip 172.12.123.2 122 ietf broadcast

show frame map shows us that the mapping to DLCI 123 is using Cisco encapsulation, and DLCI 122 is using IETF.

R1#show frame map

Serial0 (up): ip 172.12.123.3 dlci 123(0x7B,0x1CB0), static

broadcast, CISCO, status defined, active

Serial0 (up): ip 172.12.123.2 dlci 122(0x7B,0x1CB0), static

broadcast, ietf, status defined, active

Just remember that Cisco is the default, and all PVCs will use Cisco unless you specify IETF in the frame map statement itself. You could also change the entire interface to use IETF for all mappings with the frame-relay encapsulation IETF command. For Cisco exams, as well as work on production networks, it's always a good idea to know more than one way to do something!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.

You can also join his RSS feed and visit his blog, which is updated several times daily with new Cisco certification articles, free tutorials, and daily CCNA / CCNP exam questions! Details are on the website.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, ?How To Pass The CCNA? and ?How To Pass The CCNP?, visit the website and download your free copies. You can also get FREE CCNA and CCNP exam questions every day! And coming in 2007 -- Microsoft Vista certification from The Bryant Advantage

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification Exam: Frame Relay BECNs and FECNs

BECNs and FECNs aren't just important to know for your Cisco CCNA and CCNP certification exams - they're an important part of detecting congestion on a Frame Relay network and allowing the network to dynamically adjust its transmission rate when congestion is encountered.

The Forward Explicit Congestion Notification (FECN, pronounced "feckon") bit is set to zero by default, and will be set to 1 if congestion was experienced by the frame in the direction in which the frame was traveling. A DCE (frame relay switch) will set this bit, and a DTE (router) will receive it, and see that congestion was encountered along the frame's path.

If network congestion exists in the opposite direction in which the frame was traveling, the Backward Explicit Congestion Notification (BECN, pronounced "beckon") will be set to 1 by a DCE.

If this is your first time working with BECNs and FECNs, you might wonder why the BECN even exists - after all, why send a "backwards" notification? The BECN is actually the most important part of this entire process, since it's the BECN bit that indicates to the sender that it needs to slow down!

For example, frames sent from Kansas City to Green Bay encounter congestion in the FR cloud. A Frame Switch sets the FECN bit to 1. In order to alert KC that it's sending data too fast, GB will send return frames with the BECN bit set. When KC sees the BECN bit is set to 1, the KC router knows that the congestion occurred when frames were sent from KC to GB.

Frame Relay BECN Adaptive Shaping allows a router to dynamically throttle back on its transmission rate if it receives frames from the remote host with the BECN bit set. In this case, KC sees that the traffic it's sending to GB is encountering congestion, because the traffic coming back from GB has the BECN bit set. If BECN Adaptive Shaping is running on KC, that router will adjust to this congestion by slowing its transmission rate. When the BECNs stop coming in from GB, KC will begin to send at a faster rate.

BECN Adaptive Shaping is configured as follows:

KC(config)#int s0

KC(config-if)#frame-relay adaptive-shaping becn

To see how many frames are coming in and going out with the BECN and FECN bits set, run show frame pvc.

R3#show frame pvc

< some output removed for clarity >

input pkts 306 output pkts 609 in bytes 45566

out bytes 79364 dropped pkts 0 in FECN pkts 0

in BECN pkts 0 out FECN pkts 0 out BECN pkts 0

in DE pkts 0 out DE pkts 0

out bcast pkts 568 out bcast bytes 75128

pvc create time 01:26:27, last time pvc status changed 01:26:27

Just watch the "in"s and "out"s of BECN, FECN, and DE in both the exam room and your production networks!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.

You can also join his RSS feed and visit his blog, which is updated several times daily with new Cisco certification articles, free tutorials, and daily CCNA / CCNP exam questions! Details are on the website.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, ?How To Pass The CCNA? and ?How To Pass The CCNP?, visit the website and download your free copies. You can also get FREE CCNA and CCNP exam questions every day! And coming in 2007 -- Microsoft Vista certification from The Bryant Advantage!

The Advantages of Official Microsoft and Cisco Certification Training

Lots of aspirants in design and network management channel all their efforts in order to obtain highly recognized certifications such as MCSE (Microsoft Certified System Engineer) and MCSA (Microsoft Certified System Administrator). These world-recognized certifications are much desired, as they can easily make the difference between a prosperous, lucrative career in designand an average, low-rewarding job as a programmer. Most people would do anything to obtain such world-recognized certifications and they invest lots of money and time in the process, with little or no prospect of ever achieving their goals.

There are thousands of scammers on the Internet who commonly lure people into buying various second-hand tutorials and self-study oriented training programs, promising great results with minimal effort. However, there are also many solid, reliable websites on the World Wide Web that provide students with elaborate, well-structured and comprehensive materials, facilitating the process of learning and guaranteeing success. Considering this fact, it is very important to distinguish between average speculants and professional websites that actually provide effective MCSE and MCSA training programs.

If your time allows it, consider attending to a short classroom training course instead of using self-study oriented programs. There are websites that offer advanced MCSE and MCSA accelerated training courses, laboratories and seminaries, taught by well-trained, experienced professionals. Such classes are far superior to self-training programs, as they involve active participation, better comprehension and learning, stimulating students? thinking and enhancing their overall skills. By participating to a 14-day official MCSE and MCSA training course, one is able to rapidly assimilate vital information regarding solution design and network management with the help of well-trained professionals. In addition, such training programs allow students to acquire a complete set of practical abilities that will help them in their future careers. Official MCSE and MCSA training programs guarantee graduates acceptance in the best companies of the w orld!

Similar to MCSE and MCSA, CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate) and CCIE (Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert) certifications are also highly requested in present. There are various professional training centers that offer people the opportunity to participate to elaborate CCNA and CCIE training programs in exchange for a reasonable sum of money. By attending a five or six-day CCNA and CCIE training course, students can quickly familiarize themselves with latest Cisco technologies and hardware. During CCNA and CCIE training sessions , attending students receive constant support and feed-back from well-trained professionals. Such training courses are not only focused on theory; they are also aimed at forming and enhancing students? practical skills regarding various aspects of Cisco technologies and hardware. Thousands of graduates recommend professional CCNA and CCIE training courses to people who wish to build a solid, successful c areer in the field.

So if you want to find out valuable information about MCSE training or CCNA training, or even CCIE training, please follow these links, they will direct you to the safest way to take your courses.

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Exam Tutorial: Testing ISDN Links Without Pings

To earn your Cisco CCNA and CCNP certifications, you've got to master ISDN - and despite what some people say, there's still a lot of ISDN out there that needs to be supported. And when it comes to troubleshooting ISDN, there's a lot to look at. Is the correct ISDN switchtype configured? Are the dialer map statements correct? What about the dialer-group and dialer-list commands? And that's just the start.

I always say that all troubleshooting starts at Layer 1, the Physical layer of the OSI model. The usual method of troubleshooting ISDN is sending pings across the link, but the connection can be tested without using pings or even before assigning IP addresses to the BRI interfaces!

It's a good idea to place these test calls before configuring the interfaces - that way, you know you've got a valid connection before beginning the configuration (and there's a lot of config to go along with ISDN!)

To place a test call without using pings, use the isdn call interface command.

R1#isdn call interface bri0 8358662

R1#

03:54:43: BR0 DDR: Attempting to dial 8358662

03:54:43: %LINK-3-UPDOWN: Interface BRI0:1, changed state to up

03:54:44: BR0:1 DDR: dialer protocol up

03:54:45: %LINEPROTO-5-UPDOWN: Line protocol on Interface BRI0:1, changed state to up

03:54:49: %ISDN-6-CONNECT: Interface BRI0:1 is now connected to 8358662 R2

To tear the test call down correctly, use isdn disconnect interface. IOS Help displays the options with this command.

R1#isdn disconnect interface bri 0 ?

all Disconnect the data call(s) on all b channels

b1 Disconnect the data call on b1 channel

b2 Disconnect the data call on b2 channel

R1#isdn disconnect interface bri 0 all

03:58:36: BR0:1 DDR: disconnecting call

03:58:36: BR0:2 DDR: disconnecting call

03:58:36: %ISDN-6-DISCONNECT: Interface BRI0:1 disconnected from 8358662 R2, call lasted 20 seconds

03:58:36: %LINK-3-UPDOWN: Interface BRI0:1, changed state to down

03:58:36: BR0:1 DDR: disconnecting call

03:58:37: %LINEPROTO-5-UPDOWN: Line protocol on Interface BRI0:1, changed state to down

I say "correctly" because the one thing you don't want to do to end an ISDN call, test or otherwise, is just shut the interface. Telcos don't like it, and ISDN lab devices like it even less. Always let the d-channel do its work and tear the call down in an orderly fashion - don't just cut it off by shutting the interface down.

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.

You can also join his RSS feed and visit his blog, which is updated several times daily with new Cisco certification articles, free tutorials, and daily CCNA / CCNP exam questions! Details are on the website.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, ?How To Pass The CCNA? and ?How To Pass The CCNP?, visit the website and download your free copies. You can also get FREE CCNA and CCNP exam questions every day! And coming in 2007 -- Microsoft Vista certification from The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification Exam Tutorial: Floating Static Routes

To pass the Cisco CCNA and CCNP certification exams, as well as becoming a world-class networker, you've got to know how and when to use floating static routes. And if you're wondering what makes them "float" -- read on!

In this example, R1 and R2 are running OSPF over a Frame Relay network, 172.12.123.0 /24. They're also connected by a BRI ISDN link, 172.12.12.0 /24. R1 is advertising a loopback network, 1.1.1.1 /32, via OSPF. We want R2 to have a route to that loopback even if the frame goes down - and here, we'll use a floating static route to make that happen.

R2 sees the route to the loopback interface via OSPF, and can ping that interface successfully.

R2#show ip route ospf

1.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

O 1.1.1.1 [110/65] via 172.12.123.1, 00:00:02, Serial0

R2#ping 1.1.1.1

Type escape sequence to abort.

Sending 5, 100-byte ICMP Echos to 1.1.1.1, timeout is 2 seconds:

!!!!!

Success rate is 100 percent (5/5), round-trip min/avg/max = 68/68/68 ms

This is when it's important to know your administrative distances.... or at least know where to look to see them! The AD of OSPF is 110, which means we can configure a static route to 1.1.1.1 /32, and as long as the AD of the static route is higher than 110, it won't be used unless the OSPF route leaves the routing table. That's why this kind of route is called a "floating" static route - the route "floats" in the routing table and isn't seen unless the primary route leaves the table.

You learned how to write a static route in your CCNA studies, but you also remember that the default AD of a static route is either 1 or 0... and both of those values are less than 110! To change the AD of a static route, configure the desired distance at the end of the ip route command.

R2(config)#ip route 1.1.1.1 255.255.255.255 bri0 ?

<1-255> Distance metric for this route

A.B.C.D Forwarding router's address

name Specify name of the next hop

permanent permanent route

tag Set tag for this route

R2(config)#ip route 1.1.1.1 255.255.255.255 bri0 111

The static route has an AD that's only one higher than that of the OSPF route, but that's enough to make the route "float" and not yet be seen in the routing table.

R2#show ip route

1.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

O 1.1.1.1 [110/65] via 172.12.123.1, 00:06:44, Serial0

172.12.0.0/24 is subnetted, 2 subnets

C 172.12.12.0 is directly connected, BRI0

C 172.12.123.0 is directly connected, Serial0

Let's see the effect on the routing table when the Serial0 interface is closed.

R2(config)#int s0

R2(config-if)#shutdown

12:04:53: %OSPF-5-ADJCHG: Process 1, Nbr 172.12.123.1 on Serial0 from FULL to DOWN, Neighbor Down: Interface down or detached

12:04:55: %SYS-5-CONFIG_I: Configured from console by console

12:04:55: %LINK-5-CHANGED: Interface Serial0, changed state to administratively down

12:04:56: %LINEPROTO-5-UPDOWN: Line protocol on Interface Serial0, changed state to down

R2#show ip route

1.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

S 1.1.1.1 is directly connected, BRI0

172.12.0.0/24 is subnetted, 1 subnets

C 172.12.12.0 is directly connected, BRI0

The floating static route appears in the table, but the ISDN link will not come up until the BRI interface has traffic to send. Let's ping 1.1.1.1 and see what happens. debug dialer was configured on R2 before sending the ping.

R2#ping 1.1.1.1

Type escape sequence to abort.

Sending 5, 100-byte ICMP Echos to 1.1.1.1, timeout is 2 seconds:

12:16:01: BR0 DDR: Dialing cause ip (s=172.12.12.2, d=1.1.1.1)

12:16:01: BR0 DDR: Attempting to dial 8358661

12:16:01: %LINK-3-UPDOWN: Interface BRI0:1, changed state to up.!!

12:16:01: BR0:1 DDR: dialer protocol up!!

Success rate is 80 percent (4/5), round-trip min/avg/max = 36/37/40 ms

The link comes up and traffic can still reach 1.1.1.1. Once R2 becomes an OSPF neighbor of R1 again, the OSPF route will again become the primary path and the floating static route leaves the routing table.

R2(config)#int s0

R2(config-if)#no shut

R2#show ip ospf neighbor

Neighbor ID Pri State Dead Time Address Interface

172.12.123.1 1 FULL/DR 00:01:57 172.12.123.1 Serial0

R2#show ip route

1.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

O 1.1.1.1 [110/65] via 172.12.123.1, 00:00:16, Serial0

172.12.0.0/24 is subnetted, 2 subnets

C 172.12.12.0 is directly connected, BRI0

C 172.12.123.0 is directly connected, Serial0

A floating static route is an excellent "back door" that will keep the ISDN link down while allowing that link to serve as a backup route. Just make sure the ISDN link comes down when you expect it to - always check that with show isdn status!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.

You can also join his RSS feed and visit his blog, which is updated several times daily with new Cisco certification articles, free tutorials, and daily CCNA / CCNP exam questions! Details are on the website.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, ?How To Pass The CCNA? and ?How To Pass The CCNP?, visit the website and download your free copies. You can also get FREE CCNA and CCNP exam questions every day! And coming in 2007 -- Microsoft Vista certification from The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification Exam Tutorial: Configuring PPP Callback

You may run into situations where a router in a remote location needs to dial in to a central router, but the toll charges are much higher if the remote router makes the call. This scenario is perfect for PPP Callback, where the callback client places a call to a callback server, authentication takes place, and the server then hangs up on the client! This ensures that the client isn't charged for the call. The server then calls the client back.

In the following example, R2 has been configured as the client and R1 is the callback server. Let's look at both configurations and the unique commands PPP Callback requires.

Client:

username R1 password CCIE

interface BRI0

ip address 172.12.12.2 255.255.255.0

encapsulation ppp

dialer map ip 172.12.12.1 name R1 broadcast 5557777

dialer-group 1

isdn switch-type basic-ni

ppp callback request

ppp authentication chap

Most of that configuration will look familiar to you, but the ppp callback request command might not. This command enables the BRI interface to request the callback.

Simple enough, right? The PPP Callback Server config requires more configuration and an additional map-class as well.

Server:

username R2 password CCIE interface BRI0

ip address 172.12.12.1 255.255.255.0

encapsulation ppp

dialer callback-secure

dialer map ip 172.12.12.2 name R2 class CALL_R2_BACK broadcast 5558888

dialer-group 1

isdn switch-type basic-ni

ppp callback accept

ppp authentication chap

map-class dialer CALL_R2_BACK

dialer callback-server username

Examining the PPP Callback Server command from the top down...

dialer callback-secure enables security on the callback. If the remote router cannot be authenticated for callback, the incoming call will be disconnected.

The dialer map statement now calls the class CALL_R2_BACK, shown at the bottom of the config excerpt.

ppp callback accept enables PPP callback on this router.

dialer callback-server username tells the callback server that the device referenced in the dialer map statement is a callback client.

The only way to find out if the config works is to test it, so let's send a ping from R2 to R1 and see if the callback takes place.

R2#ping 172.12.12.1

Type escape sequence to abort.

Sending 5, 100-byte ICMP Echos to 172.12.12.1, timeout is 2 seconds:

02:45:42: BR0 DDR: Dialing cause ip (s=172.12.12.2, d=172.12.12.1)

02:45:42: BR0 DDR: Attempting to dial 5557777

02:45:42: %LINK-3-UPDOWN: Interface BRI0:1, changed state to up

02:45:42: BR0:1 DDR: Callback negotiated - Disconnecting now

02:45:42: BR0:1 DDR: disconnecting call

02:45:42: %ISDN-6-CONNECT: Interface BRI0:1 is now connected to 5557777 R1

02:45:42: %LINK-3-UPDOWN: Interface BRI0:1, changed state to down

02:45:42: DDR: Callback client for R1 5557777 created

02:45:42: BR0:1 DDR: disconnecting call.....

Success rate is 0 percent (0/5)

R2#

02:45:57: %LINK-3-UPDOWN: Interface BRI0:1, changed state to up

R2#

02:45:57: BR0:1 DDR: Callback received from R1 5557777

02:45:57: DDR: Freeing callback to R1 5557777

02:45:57: BR0:1 DDR: dialer protocol up

02:45:58: %LINEPROTO-5-UPDOWN: Line protocol on Interface BRI0:1, changed state to up

The callback was successfully negotiated, and the call then disconnected. R1 then called R2 back, and show dialer on R1 confirms the purpose of the call.

R1#show dialer

BRI0 - dialer type = ISDN

Dial String Successes Failures Last DNIS Last status

5558888 2 4 00:00:20 successful

0 incoming call(s) have been screened.

0 incoming call(s) rejected for callback.

BRI0:1 - dialer type = ISDN

Idle timer (120 secs), Fast idle timer (20 secs)

Wait for carrier (30 secs), Re-enable (15 secs)

Dialer state is data link layer up

Dial reason: Callback return call

Time until disconnect 99 secs

Connected to 5558888 (R2)

Pretty cool! PPP Callback isn?t just important for passing your CCNA and CCNP exams ? in circumstances such as shown in this example, it can save your organization quite a bit of money!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.

You can also join his RSS feed and visit his blog, which is updated several times daily with new Cisco certification articles, free tutorials, and daily CCNA / CCNP exam questions! Details are on the website.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, "How To Pass The CCNA" and "How To Pass The CCNP", visit the website and download your free copies. You can also get FREE CCNA and CCNP exam questions every day! Get your CCNA study guide from The Bryant Advantage! And coming in 2007 ? Microsoft Vista certification!

 

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification Exam Tutorial: Dialer Watch

Dialer Watch is a vital part of your CCNA and CCNP studies, particularly for the BCRAN exam, but it's one of the most misunderstood technologies as well. To help you pass the CCNA and CCNP certification exams, here's a detailed look at Dialer Watch.

Dialer Watch allows you to configure a route or routes as "watched" when the watched route leaves the routing table and there is no other valid route to that specific destination, the ISDN link will come up. In the following example, R1 and R2 are connected by both a Frame Relay cloud over the 172.12.123.0 /24 network and an ISDN cloud using the 172.12.12.0 /24 network. The routers are running OSPF over the Frame cloud, and R1 is advertising its loopback of 1.1.1.1/32 as well as an Ethernet segment, 10.1.1.0/24, via OSPF. R2 has both of these routes in its OSPF table, as shown below.

R2#show ip route ospf

1.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

O 1.1.1.1 [110/65] via 172.12.123.1, 00:00:07, Serial0

10.0.0.0/24 is subnetted, 1 subnets

O 10.1.1.0 [110/128] via 172.12.123.1, 00:00:08, Serial0

We want R2 to place a call to R1 if either the loopback or Ethernet networks leave R2's routing table, but we don't want to have to depend on interesting traffic. That dictates the use of Dialer Watch.

First, configure the list of watched routes with dialer watch-list. Only one of the watched routes needs to leave the routing table for the ISDN link to come up. In this example, R2 will watch both routes from its OSPF routing table.

Be careful with this command. The entries here need to match exactly the routes and masks being watched. Dialer watch-lists use subnet masks, not wildcard masks.

R2(config)#dialer watch-list 5 ip 10.1.1.0 255.255.255.0

R2(config)#dialer watch-list 5 ip 1.1.1.1 255.255.255.255

Configure the dialer watch-group command on the BRI interface, AND frame map statements for the watched routes. As with dialer-list and dialer-group, the group number referenced in the dialer watch-group command must match the number assigned to the dialer watch-list.

The Dialer Watch configuration will not work without frame map statements for each watched route. I repeat this because this is the step a lot of people leave out.

R2(config)#interface bri0

R2(config-if)#dialer watch-group 5

R2(config-if)# dialer map ip 1.1.1.1 255.255.255.255. name R1 5557777 broadcast

R2(config-if)# dialer map ip 10.1.1.0 255.255.255.0 name R1 5557777 broadcast

To test Dialer Watch, the Serial0 interface on R2 will be shut down. Since we're running OSPF, the route table will be updated almost immediately and the ISDN link should come up right after that.

R2(config)#int s0

R2(config-if)#shut

01:12:47: %OSPF-5-ADJCHG: Process 1, Nbr 1.1.1.1 on Serial0 from FULL to DOWN, N eighbor Down: Interface down or detached

01:12:47: %LINK-3-UPDOWN: Interface BRI0:1, changed state to up

01:12:48: %SYS-5-CONFIG_I: Configured from console by console

01:12:48: %LINEPROTO-5-UPDOWN: Line protocol on Interface BRI0:1, changed state to up

01:12:49: %LINK-5-CHANGED: Interface Serial0, changed state to administratively down

01:12:50: %LINEPROTO-5-UPDOWN: Line protocol on Interface Serial0, changed state to down

01:12:53: %ISDN-6-CONNECT: Interface BRI0:1 is now connected to 5557777 R1

Within five seconds, the ISDN link is up. show dialer verifies that Dialer Watch is the reason the line was brought up.

R2#show dialer

BRI0 - dialer type = ISDN

Dial String Successes Failures Last DNIS Last status

5557777 2 0 00:00:11 successful

0 incoming call(s) have been screened.

0 incoming call(s) rejected for callback.

BRI0:1 - dialer type = ISDN

Idle timer (120 secs), Fast idle timer (20 secs)

Wait for carrier (30 secs), Re-enable (15 secs)

Dialer state is data link layer up

Dial reason: Dialing on watched route loss

Time until disconnect 108 secs

Connected to 5557777 (R1) A final note regarding Dialer Watch ... it will not work with RIP, but will with all our other dynamic IGPs (IGRP, EIGRP, OSPF).

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.

You can also join his RSS feed and visit his blog, which is updated several times daily with new Cisco certification articles, free tutorials, and daily CCNA / CCNP exam questions! Details are on the website.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, ?How To Pass The CCNA? and ?How To Pass The CCNP?, visit the website and download your free copies. You can also get FREE CCNA and CCNP exam questions every day! Get your CCNA study guide from The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Certification Tutorial: Frame Relay End-To-End

One of the first things you learned about Frame is that the LMI also serves as a keepalive, or a heartbeat - and if three consecutive LMIs are missed, the line protocol goes down. There's a limitation to LMI as a keepalive, though. The LMI is exchanged only between the DTE and the closest DCE. The LMI is therefore a local keepalive that does not reflect any possible issues on the remote end of the virtual circuit.

Taking the LMI concept to the next logical level, Frame Relay End-To-End Keepalives (FREEK, one of the least-heard Cisco acronyms for some reason) are used to verify that endpoint-to-endpoint communications are functioning properly.

What you have to keep in mind about FREEK is that each and every PVC needs two separate keepalive processes. Remember, with a PVC, there's no guarantee that the path taking through the frame relay cloud to get from R1 to R2 is going to be the same path taken to go back from R2 to R1. One process will be used to send requests for information and handle the responses to these requests; this is the send side. When the send side transmits a keepalive request, a response is expected in a certain number of seconds. If one is not received, an error event is noted. If enough error events are recorded, the VC's keepalive status is marked as down.

The process that responds to the other side's requests is the receive side.

This being Cisco, we've got to have some modes, right? FREEK has four operational modes.

Bidirectional mode enables both the send and receive process enabled on the router, meaning that the router will send requests and process responses (send side) and will also respond to remote requests for information (receive side).

Request mode enables only the send process. The router will send requests and process responses to those requests, but will not answer requests from other routers.

Reply mode enables only the receive process. The router will respond to requests from other routers but will initiate no requests of its own.

Finally, passive reply mode allows the router to respond to requests, but no timers are set and no events are tracked.

Frame Relay End-To-End Keepalive defaults:

Two send or receive errors must be registered in order for the VC to be considered down.

The event window size is three. The event window is the number of events considered by the router when determining the status of the VC. Therefore, using the defaults, two send or receive errors would have to be received within the event window of three events for the VC to be considered down.

The timer mentioned earlier - the amount of time a router waits for a response - is set to 10 seconds

Working with Frame Relay end-to-end keepalives is just one Frame skill you?ll need to pass the CCNP exams ? and I wouldn?t be surprised to see them on a CCIE exam. Know the details and you?re on your way to Cisco certification exam success!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages.

You can also join his RSS feed and visit his blog, which is updated several times daily with new Cisco certification articles, free tutorials, and daily CCNA / CCNP exam questions! Details are on the website.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, ?How To Pass The CCNA? and ?How To Pass The CCNP?, visit the website and download your free copies. You can also get FREE CCNA and CCNP exam questions every day! Get your CCNA study guide from The Bryant Advantage!

Hertz Rent-a-Car in San Francisco

I wanted to make a three-day car reservation for a visit to San Francisco.

I called Hertz Rent-a-Car, where I am a member of the ?Hertz Number One Club? for frequent travelers. I planned to use an award coupon for one free-day rental from American Airlines and additional award coupons for two more free days from United Airlines.

The telephone reservations officer provided impeccable service. She greeted me pleasantly, acknowledged me as a member of the Hertz Number One Club, confirmed my dates, flights, pick-up location and choice of automobile.

Then she asked me what time I would be returning the car after the first day of rental. ?I want the car for all three days,? I replied.

?You can?t keep the same car for all three days,? she asserted. ?After the first day you have to bring the car back and pick up a different car for the next two days. The first day is paid for with your American Airlines coupon, but the next two days are paid for with your United coupons.?

?So what?s the difference??, I responded. ?I am the same person, with the same Hertz Number One Club member. I am the rightful owner of both the award coupons, and I want a Hertz automobile for three consecutive days. Surely you will let me keep the same car, so I don?t have to come back to the airport in the middle of my Bay Area vacation.?

?That?s not the way our system works here, Mr. Kaufman,? she replied.

?But it should work that way, don?t you agree??, I asked, appealing to her sense of elementary logic, simple concern and practical customer care.

?I don?t make the rules here, Mr. Kaufman. I just follow them. What time will you be returning the car after the first day??

Somewhere within the heart of Hertz, a group of senior rule-makers live comfortably with their precise policy of ?one airline, one coupon, one car, no exceptions?.

But somewhere close to this customer?s heart lies frustration, inconvenience and incredible disbelief.

I?m not the type of customer who gives up in these situations. When my first ?one-day? reservation began, I had a long chat with the most senior Hertz rental manager I could find. He let me keep the same car for all three days.

Someone at Hertz Rent-A-Car was listening.

Key Learning Point
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Elementary logic and practical customer care are the best rules to use in many situations. At Nordstroms clothing store, famous for excellent service, they simply tell the staff: `The rule is to use your common sense. There are no other rules.'

Action Steps
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If your rules and regulations don't make sense to your customers, they need to be rewritten. If you can see logic where your customers cannot, it's not your customers' sight that needs refocusing.

Ron Kaufman is an internationally acclaimed educator and motivator for partnerships and quality customer service. He is author of the bestselling "UP Your Service!" and founder of "UP Your Service College". Visit http://www.UpYourService.com for more such Customer Service articles, subscribe to his Newsletter, or to buy his bestselling Books, Videos, Audio CDs on Customer Service from his secure Online Store. You can also watch Ron live or listen to him at http://www.RonKaufman.com.

Assume the Life of a Local in a San Francisco Vacation Rental

Perhaps you live in a small town and you've always felt that something was missing; you'd like to know what it's like to enjoy a vibrant urban atmosphere if only for a little while. Or, you live in the suburbs of a large metropolis but hate all the driving that you have to do, not to mention the weather. Satisfy your yearnings by holing up in one of America's most colorful cities, ensuring an authentic experience by choosing to stay in a unique vacation rental rather than a hotel.

Not that there's anything wrong with hotels, but sometimes it's fun to try something different. Vacation rentals are definitely a change from the usual thing, considering that they come in all shapes and sizes and provide access to all different corners of the city. Depending on your personal taste and budget, you could end up in any number of charming, one-of-a-kind places that will add to your holiday in all kinds of ways.

For example, if a high rise apartment in the heart of one of San Francisco's funky neighborhoods, perhaps within walking distance to Fisherman's Wharf, Union Square or Lombard Street, sounds like your kind of set-up, this is perfectly possible. Choose a modern, stylish two-bedroom space in the heart of the city that not only looks out across the skyline and the bay, but connects you to a whole world of vacation opportunities. As you ride the elevator to your privileged perch high above the milieu, you might even allow yourself to pretend that this is your life; you are a San Franciscan.

This will be especially easy thanks to the little things your rental will provide. Shop for groceries at the corner market and fill your pantry, this will let you save money and feel super cozy at the same time as you and your companions fix a home-cooked meal after a day of sightseeing. Your comfortable bed, the big closets, plenty of towels and sheets, an entertainment center, wireless internet and all the other details will come together to create an experience you may not have been expecting. Within a couple of days, you feel totally at home.

If you'd prefer a larger spot, perhaps for the whole family, consider a house that sits near Golden Gate Park. A real yard, a driveway, and plenty of room for everyone to eat, sleep, and coexist peacefully will catapult this trip into the stratosphere. No more fighting over the remote control or arguing about sleeper sofas; this home away from home will create a sense of utter harmony and provide the perfect foundation for all city explorations. There are all sorts of restaurants nearby, including Thai, Indian, vegan and raw, but if the BBQ grill out back is calling out to the chef of the house, feel free to stay in for an evening of your own culinary design. Vacation rentals are all about choices, as you will soon see.

We all know that San Francisco isn't the cheapest place to live or visit, but there are ways to find good deals. Start researching early in order to snag a bargain vacation rental or a special offer, and ask around as far as activities go. Walking through the park, stumbling upon a hole in wall eatery in Chinatown and window shopping are all easy on the pocketbook, so be creative and you're sure to emerge from this trip with money still in the bank.

On that note, it's best to start now. Go online to seek out the San Francisco Vacation Rental that will best complement your upcoming trip and prepare to try a new lifestyle on for size, if only temporarily.

HomeAway.com will take care of all your vacation rental needs.

San Francisco Gets Serious About Arts Education

The Arts Education Master Plan

September 28 was the beginning of a new era for arts education in San Francisco schools. The San Francisco Unified School district and the City are partnering on a historic effort to bring back the arts for all students. The Arts Education Master Plan will revitalize the education of San Francisco?s young citizens by capturing the diverse cultural and artistic energy of a city that is internationally renowned for its love of the arts.

At 10:30 a.m. at the San Francisco Performing Arts Library and Museum, Mayor Gavin Newsom, SFUSD?s Interim Superintendent Gwen Chan, and SF Arts Commission President P.J. Johnston joined members of the Board of Supervisors and SFUSD Board of Education, arts providers from across the city and students from Lowell High School, Claire Lilienthal and George Washington Carver Academic Elementary Schools in celebration of the Arts Education Master Plan.

"This master plan is a living document that exemplifies the partnership between the City and the school district on arts education," said Mayor Newsom. "San Francisco's efforts are unprecedented - and over the next few months, we will witness 'order of magnitude' changes in the arts education that children receive," continued the Mayor.

The Arts Education Master Plan is San Francisco Unified School District's blueprint for integrating the arts into each student's daily curriculum. The Plan calls for a sequential, comprehensive arts education program that reflects the high quality of San Francisco's artistic landscape in the areas of dance, drama, music, visual arts and literary arts.
The guiding principle of this plan is that all students deserve both access to and equity in arts education and each school community, no matter the neighborhood or academic emphasis, will be called upon to embrace the notion that every student must be provided with the arts as an integral part of the academic day.

Interim Superintendent Gwen Chan said ?In San Francisco, we are committed to providing every student with a well-rounded education. For too many years, some students have not had opportunities to develop artistic literacy. Every school and every student will benefit from this plan.?

Community Involvement

The Master Plan reflects the views of more than 1,500 students, parents, teachers, administrators, arts providers, and civic and business leaders. Proposition H approved by San Francisco voters in 2004, became the catalyst, making the Arts Education Master Plan, completed in August 2006, a funded mandate. The extensive increase in arts education spending, programming, support and resources that the Plan recommends will be funded largely by Prop H funds. Additional funding, such as the new State funding for the arts, will be aligned to the Arts Education Master Plan.

The new plan will hopefully keep San Francisco school students in touch with the vibrant artistic community around them and help them to take advantage of the many enriching opportunities for art in the classroom and beyond. San Francisco schools are ready to implement the new curriculum program at all levels to ensure a consistent and fulfilling learning experience for all students. Students, parents, and teachers at San Francisco schools are confident that the Arts Education Master Plan will mark their community as one committed to continued arts education.

Stacy Andell is a staff writer for Schools K-12, providing free, in-depth reports on all U.S. public and private K-12 schools. For more information on San Francisco schools visit http://www.schoolsk-12.com/california/san-francisco/index.html

 

San Francisco Group Travel Guide

San Francisco's abundance of museums, outdoor activities and culturally diverse neighborhoods combined with a yearlong temperate climate make the city the ideal destination for group meetings and large conventions. Its no wonder tourism has become San Francisco's largest revenue generator - the city isn't too far from being perfectly well-rounded. San Francisco has previously shown strength in four travel industry sectors: commercial, meeting and group, and leisure. In the early 1980s, many large corporations left San Francisco because high-operating costs threatened profitability.

Time permitting, your group will get the best grasp of contemporary San Francisco by visiting as many of the city's neighborhoods as possible. Alamo square, Chinatown, Fisherman's Wharf, Mission District and Pacific Heights should not be overlooked, nor should Nob Hill, Richmond District or Sacramento Street. The city's progressive nature is underscored when the food, arts and culture of these places come together to form such an admirable whole, and there's certainly no danger of your group being at a loss for entertainment.

Know More About: San Francisco Group Travel Guide

Get More Information On: Group Travel Guide

San Francisco- Fisherman's Wharf

After truly leaving my heart in San Francisco, we visited again a year and a half later. This time we opted to stay right on Fisherman's Wharf. This we found to be just as, if not even more, enjoyable as staying on Union Square. We booked through the Radisson at Fisherman's Wharf and were very happy with it. I had read mixed reviews about it. Some people were so unhappy that they switched hotels the second night. I found no validation for this. The staff was awesome, the location couldn't be beat. I'm not really sure nor do I remember why they didn't like it but oh well, I'm glad it didn't deter me. I've written before about San Francisco stating that we don't rent a car when there, well, we didn't this time either and again I found no reason to. I suppose if you were to drive up into the Wine Country from there you would need one for that but once again we were on our way to Hawaii and only had a few days in the city. We found plenty to do right there. A must see is Pier 39. Actually you hear it before you see it. The most awesome sea lions all basking, playing and barking if you will, just waiting for you to snap their picture. The food and shopping is nice too. We ate at Bubba Gump's and had excellent service. We took the Alcatraz tour one day and have added this to the must see list as well. The particular day we went, it was rainy and grey. (Not an unusual day out there I hear.) Truthfully that only added to the ambience of the infamous Rock. Definitely get the headsets that point out interesting tidbits about the prison. Take your time there and make sure to take in the short cinema they have. It is all so very interesting. You won't be disappointed.

Book your stay at great SanfranciscoHotels or find LowAirfare and deals on Lastminutetravel online.

George Quick, San Francisco-based Performance Coach, Launches Website

San Francisco, California, September 1, 2006 ? a San Francisco-based performance coach who coaches actors, singers, executives, etc., has launched his website at www.performancecoachsf.com. George Quick, a San Francisco theatre director and actor, who most recently directed Jay Kuo?s new hit musical Insignificant Others, at San Francisco?s New Conservatory Theatre Center, has been performing and directing in San Francisco since 1979. Earlier this season he appeared in the role of Kenny in the west coast premiere of Richard Kramer?s Theatre District also at The New Conservatory Theatre Center. Besides coaching singers on the technical aspects of vocal production and acting a song, Mr. Quick works with actors who want to improve their casting possibilities, executives who need to make a speech and even realtors working on improving their sales techniques.

George Quick has been a professional actor since 1975. During the late 1970s, he studied at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, in New York. George began his directing career in 1992. Over the past twenty years, he has coached singers, actors, dancers, clergy, executives, lawyers and sales professionals, using performance, presentation and vocal techniques, together with tools for creating more satisfying interactions, whether in a large auditorium, a conference room, a cabaret, a recording studio, a sanctuary or one on one. Mr. Quick?s students at the high school level have consistently garnered top honors at local, regional and national speech competitions.

George began working as an actor and a musician during the 1970s at Knott?s Berry Farm?s Birdcage Theatre. Quick says, ?at that time, we did six shows a day and before each show we would ?pitch? the show around the park to get people to come to each performance. Very old fashioned street corner barking in teams of two. This one task, repeated half a dozen times each day, taught me self-confidence (and unrepentant salesmanship). We had fun getting people to come see the show while we gave them an idea of how fun the show itself was going to be. We also had to learn to use our voices properly, since in addition to hollering on the street corner, we performed the show six times per day!?

After studying at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York, George Quick came back to California where he appeared in numerous plays and musicals in the San Francisco Bay Area from 1979 to 1983 -- such award winning original productions as Marco Polo and Berlin 1932; while working as a cabaret singer in San Francisco and Los Angeles. As an actor, George appeared in many productions throughout Southern California from 1983 to 1996. In 1993, he became the founding executive director of The Musical Theatre Company in Orange County, California where he produced, directed and performed in many musical productions including of Man Of La Mancha and Sunday In The Park With George (garnered him a Drama-Logue Award for best performance in a musical). Meanwhile, he continued his private coaching while directing critically acclaimed productions of The Music Man, Sweeney Todd and A Little Night Music, among others. In 1997, George returned to San Francisco, continuing his acting and directing career. In addition to such productions as the west coast premieres of The Harvey Milk Show (he played Harvey), A Man Of No Importance (director) and A New Brain (director), he has directed or acted in Chess, Passion, and Key West at The New Conservatory Theatre Center, where he served as Managing Director from 2000 to 2004. In 2004, he filled in as the Business Representative for the San Francisco office of Actors? Equity Association for about one year. George is currently directing the upcoming workshop production of Jay Kuo?s newest musical Homeland for a very limited engagement in December here in San Francisco.

?Within the past several years it has dawned on me that performing - acting and singing - hold even more significance for life than I previously thought,? says Quick. ?While I?ve always realized the value of teaching acting and speech techniques to executives and sales professionals, etc., as well as to actors and singers; there is something more to it than that ? these skills of story telling, letting go of the result and living in the moment are essential skills for living a fully realized life! I?ve started this business to discover where those ideas can take my clients and me in the months and years to come. I think we can make a big difference in the world.?

Mr. Quick accepts students of all kinds and has prices to fit all budgets, including special rates for sessions purchased in advance and full-time student discounts. To find out more about his performance coaching, pricing or to schedule an appointment, Mr. Quick recommends that people visit his website at www.performancecoachsf.com to get a more detailed look at his coaching practice.




George Quick is a San Francisco based performance coach. George has been a professional actor for over 30 years, a performance coach for 15 years and a professional theatre director for more than 10 years. George is a voice coach, executive speech coach and an acting teacher.

How to Find San Francisco DUI Lawyer

DUI or Drunk Driving offense in San Francisco is considered a criminal offense. The legal proceedings can be long wounded. Sometimes the person arrested under dui, himself/herself makes things more complicated by telling or saying things which are not in the interest of the case in hand and the same statements can be used as an evidence against him/her in the court as and when the matter goes for trial.

Anyway without wasting time, I will begin with San Francisco DUI Lawyer. But before that let us discuss San Francisco Dui laws so that the role of San Francisco DUI Lawyer can be understood more clearly and easily.?

As per San Francisco DUI Law if you are arrested on suspicion of DUI in San Francisco first thing, your Driver's License will be confiscated by the police offer making the arrest. Make sure within ten days you request a hearing in the Motor Vehicle Department so that you can get a temporary driver's license. If you don't request a hearing within the given period of time your Driver's License will be automatically suspended. Remember you have only ten business days to request a hearing.?

Like I informed you earlier its considered a criminal offense and can have severe outcomes like heavy fines, increased insurance cost and possible jail time besides community service and Alcohol Reduction Risk Course. People have lost their jobs because of dui arrests. Your life goes out of gear for being caught driving under influence even once.

While hiring a San Francisco DUI Lawyer you should make sure that his/her area of practice is exclusively DUI and not general. Expertise of a San Francisco DUI Lawyer will be far greater and sharper than a general lawyer. He will have a better insight and understanding about the subject and progress of your case. He/she will build and develop the case in your favor right from the day he/she is hired.?

An effective San Francisco DUI Lawyer firm will be well supported by technical staff. Technical staff like people who know about the intoxilyzer machine, accuracy of Blood Alcohol Content test and about credibility of various machines used to perform these road side tests.?

One can also look at the past records of San Francisco DUI Lawyer he/she intends to hire. Ask him questions. Take free consultation. See if you can vibe. Its important. See if your dui lawyer is ready to make a contract. Is he/she ready to put everything in writing?? These are some of the basic points to consider while hiring San Francisco DUI Lawyer

Purva Mewar operates two dwi/dwi attorney websites. How to find a suitable San Francisco DUI Lawyer and Austin DWI Attorney. Read about laws related to dui/dwi in various states in the US and learn how to find a competent dui/dwi lawyer.

San Francisco Web Development

A bad website is a deterrent to a website visitor and he leaves the website as soon as he visits the website. The main culprits of a bad website are bad web design, bad navigation and irrelevant content. If you have a website your primary objective is to attract target customers to your site. A website design company provides a professional touch to the website design. A professional web design company is equipped with the proper tools and relevant experience to design a website that is powerful as well as effective. The company insures that expert professionals do the job so as to provide quality and creativity of the website. It is necessary that the content of the website is written in a manner which attracts the right kind of attention from the target audience. The content should be search engine friendly, without any spelling and grammatical errors. The web content should be able to attract the target audience's attention and convey the message that the website wants to give and be consistent. #10 is a San Francisco web development company that provides efficient web design services and offer a slick, sweet and user friendly website. The main reason why you should employ a web design company is that it offers a cost effective solution to the client. As a client you get easily accessible website that has high search visibility. The website is visually attractive with relevant content and has all the requisite links to the main content. A good content should answer the visitor's queries about the product or service which the website is advertising. #10 is the perfect company for development of web in San Francisco as it offers web design and development services to the client. The company offers web design solutions that emanate character and professionalism. As a client your feedback and inputs are taken into account through the whole designing process. #10 makes sure that your website stands out among the plethora of competitor's websites. The good website attracts quality website traffic and a visitor who stays and explores the site, as they find the site interesting and attractive enough. Web development San Francisco services include a wide variety of promotion and marketing strategies. Long term maintenance and innovation are the two worthwhile qualities of the ecommerce solutions provided by #10. Visit the site www.web-design.nr10.com to get a search engine optimized and user-friendly navigation website.

Tom is a well known author and has been writing content for web design site for so many years. His content is worth reading as it gives you an insight about different web design. For more information visit www.web-design.nr10.com

Romantic

San Francisco is one of the most romantic cities to visit in California. There are a number of things for couples, both young and old, to see and do in the city. In this article, we will go in depth and cover some of the best romantic spots and attractions that San Francisco has to offer. We will also take the time cover some of the area?s finest restaurants.

Part 1: See the City

When anybody comes to a new city for a vacation, the first thing that they want to do is see the city and take in all the sights and sounds it has to offer. In the case of San Francisco, there are a number of world famous tourist attractions, such as the Golden Gate Bridge or the Alcatraz Prison (maybe not the most romantic spot, but a very interesting visit regardless) that you should take the time to see. A must stop location for all couples who visit the city is Fisherman?s Wharf. The area is the number one travel destination for those looking to relax in a lively atmosphere filled with street music and entertainment, shopping, and casual dining. A walk along the Wharf and the various piers during sunset is one of the most romantic things you can do in the city. Also, be sure to take a ride in the cable cars that will help you get anywhere you need to go around the city quickly. These cable cars cannot be found anywhere else in the world.

When in the Bay Area, no trip is complete without taking the time to visit the Golden Gate Bridge. The bridge features a parking lot?many couples will park and take a long walk along the sidewalks. If you do plan on walking the bridge, be sure to bring a jacket as it is often colder and much windier on the bridge, than it is in the city. There are also a good number of both biking and walking tours that will take you around the city and across the Golden Gate Bridge.

Part 2: Dining

San Francisco is very well known for the number of top notch restaurants it offers. Since we can?t possibly touch on all of them, we will briefly mention a few of the most popular ones. Cote Sud is a great restaurant to enjoy French cuisine and was voted the best French restaurant in the Bay Area in both 2004 and 2005. A. Sabella's Seafood and Steaks is another top restaurant in the area and is perfect for any seafood lover. A Sabella?s was voted the best restaurant in Fisherman?s Wharf by the San Francisco Chronicle and is a great place to go for a romantic night out.

San Francisco is a wonderful city for couples to visit and is thought by many to be one of the most romantic places on the West Coast. There is a lot to do and see, but the whole environment is laid back and the weather is just perfect all year round, so be sure to spend a lot of your time outdoors just walking through the city, resting on one of the area?s many sandy beaches, or taking in the sites and sounds San Francisco has to offer.

Ron Zvagelsky has a degree in Business Administration from the University of Southern California. He graduated Magna Cum Laude in May 2006. He is currently the Chief Executive Officer of PlanJam.com -- where you can find romantic date ideas in San Francisco.