Cisco CCNA Certification Exam Case Study: Frame Relay, Pings, And Routing Protocols

Cisco CCNA certification training includes troubleshooting your own work and that of others. The best CCNA certification training you can do is indeed troubleshooting your own Cisco router and switch configurations - as I'm always telling my students, "I can guarantee that any error you make has been made before, and you'll probably see it again one day." One such common error involves two very important CCNA certification topics - Frame Relay and routing protocols.

A student was working on his CCNA exam home lab and came up with an interesting problem. He set Frame Relay up in a hub-and-spoke configuration with R1 as the hub and R2 and R3 as the spokes. He wrote the following frame map statements:

frame-relay map ip 172.12.123.2 122

frame-relay map ip 172.12.123.3 123

He was able to ping both spokes from the hub, so he assumed everything was working correctly. Then he configured RIP version 2 on the router and got the following result after running "debug ip rip" and clearing the routing table with "clear ip route *":

03:33:01: IP: s=172.12.123.1 (local), d=224.0.0.9 (Serial0), len 72, sending broad/multicast

03:33:01: IP: s=172.12.123.1 (local), d=224.0.0.9 (Serial0), len 72, encapsulation failed

You may have already spotted the problem, and if you did, your CCNA certification exam studies are going well! The problem is that the "broadcast" option was left off the frame map statements. "broadcast" must be configured on frame map statements in order to send broadcasts and multicasts across the frame link. As you know from your CCNA certification exam studies, RIP version 1 broadcasts updates and RIP version 2 multicasts them, so the "broadcast" option must be present for either version to send updates by using those frame mappings.

He then rewrote the frame map statements as shown below....

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

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

... and the RIP updates went out as expected.

R1#debug ip rip

RIP protocol debugging is on

R1#clear ip route *

06:22:13: RIP: sending general request on Loopback0 to 224.0.0.9

06:22:13: RIP: sending general request on Serial0 to 224.0.0.9

06:22:13: RIP: ignored v2 packet from 1.1.1.1 (sourced from one of our addresses)

06:22:14: RIP: received v2 update from 172.12.123.3 on Serial0

06:22:14: 1.1.1.1/32 -> 0.0.0.0 in 3 hops

06:22:14: 2.2.2.2/32 -> 0.0.0.0 in 2 hops

06:22:14: 3.3.3.3/32 -> 0.0.0.0 in 1 hops

06:22:14: 172.12.23.0/24 -> 0.0.0.0 in 1 hops

06:22:14: 172.12.123.0/24 -> 0.0.0.0 in 1 hops

06:22:14: RIP: sending v2 update to 224.0.0.9 via Loopback0 (1.1.1.1)

06:22:14: 2.2.2.2/32 -> 0.0.0.0, metric 3, tag 0

06:22:14: 3.3.3.3/32 -> 0.0.0.0, metric 2, tag 0

06:22:14: 172.12.23.0/24 -> 0.0.0.0, metric 2, tag 0

06:22:14: 172.12.123.0/24 -> 0.0.0.0, metric 1, tag 0

06:22:14: RIP: sending v2 update to 224.0.0.9 via Serial0 (172.12.123.1)

Cisco CCNA certification depends on noticing details like these, and there's no better way to learn these details than by working on real Cisco routers and switches. Whether you're renting rack time online or buying used Cisco routers and switches, real-time debugs and configurations are the way to CCNA certification exam success!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of over 100 free certification exam tutorials, including Cisco CCNA certification test prep articles. His exclusive Cisco CCNA study guide and Cisco CCNA training is also available!

Visit his blog and sign up for Cisco 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, and you can attend an in-person or online CCNA boot camp with The Bryant Advantage!

 

Cisco CCNP CIT Exam Training: Creating A Network Baseline

 

Creating a network baseline is an important skill for the CCNP exams, and it's even more important in real-world networks.  Learn the basic of creating a baseline from Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933.

The first thing we've got to do in order to document our network is to create a network baseline.  After all, if we don't know our goals, we can't accomplish them.  A baseline is really a "network snapshot", a picture of our network devices and their performance - which also helps us spot issues before they happen.

Every network has its "breaking point", the point at which it can no longer transfer data effectively.  By creating a baseline, you can see what the current network load is now - and by maintaining that baseline, you can spot network issues well before they become critical.  For example, say you baseline all your network routers, and part of that is noting the CPU capability and usage.  By maintaining the network baseline, you can note smaller, gradual increases in CPU usage and do something about it before the situation becomes critical.

Establishing a baseline also gives less-experienced network personnel a starting point for troubleshooting, and it gives new network support personnel a starting point as well.

To begin that task, we've got to define where this baseline will begin and end - in other words, we must define the scope of the baseline.  Some questions to ask:

What is the scope of this baseline?

What goals do we have for our network?

What network devices will be part of this baseline?

What is the objective here?  Why are we creating this baseline?

Baseline construction methods differ from one vendor to another, but I recommend the first thing you do  when creating a baseline is taking inventory.  Why?  First, it's hard to create a full network picture if you don't know everything that's in your network; second, many networks are poorly inventoried.

When you're creating network documentation, consistency is vital.  This goes for abbreviations, symbols, and icons.  There are sets of Cisco icons for use in Microsoft Visio - find and use these icons when documenting and diagramming your network.  Keep your usage of these icons consistent as well.

Decide upon your scope and your goals, and stick with that decision.  Don't start documenting one part of the network and then jump to another part. 

Also, don't hide the documentation!  If I have to substitute for you at a client site, I should be able to find the documentation without asking anyone.

Most importantly, maintain the documentation.  Nothing is worse than seeing a date at the top of a network baseline doc that's from last year. (Or the last century.)  Don't fall into the trap of "I'll catch the documentation up next week", because I can practically guarantee that no matter how great your work ethic is, something's going to happen that will distract you from getting the documentation done.  Do it now.

In short, when creating network documentation, follow these rules:

Define the scope of the documentation and stick to it.

Define your objective and the values to be documented.

Consistency is key.  Keep abbreviations and terminology consistent from document to document.

Make sure the appropriate personnel have access to the documentation.

Keep the documentation current.

Your client will thank you, and those that follow you will thank you as well!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of over 200 free certification exam tutorials, including CCNA certification training articles. His exclusive CCNA study guide is also available!Visit his blog and sign up for Cisco 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, and you can attend an in-person or online Cisco CCNA training boot camp with The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNA Certification: The Proper Use Of Default Static Routes

Earning your Cisco CCNA certification means knowing the details of Cisco routing, and that includes knowing when Cisco routing terms don't quite mean what they sound like they mean. For example, the general meaning of "default" is a setting that is used unless you or I change it. On the other hand, a default route is a route taken by packets that have no other route they can take. Let's take a look at how a default static route is configured and used on a Cisco router.

Here's our current routing table:

Gateway of last resort is not set

1.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

C 1.1.1.1 is directly connected, Loopback0

172.12.0.0/16 is variably subnetted, 2 subnets, 2 masks

C 172.12.13.0/24 is directly connected, Serial1

C 172.12.21.0/30 is directly connected, BRI0

If we have packets destined for the network 15.1.1.0 /24, the packets will be dropped by this router. There's no match in that routing table for that network and the gateway of last resort is not set.

We could configure a static route to the 15.1.1.0 /24 network, but instead we'll use a default static route. The hardest part of configuring that route type is getting used to the odd syntax! As with any other static route, we can use the IP address of the next-hop router or the local router's exit interface. Here, we'll send any traffic with no more-specific match in the routing table out the local router's Serial1 interface.

R1(config)#ip route 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 serial1

Let's take a look at the routing table now.

Gateway of last resort is 0.0.0.0 to network 0.0.0.0

1.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

C 1.1.1.1 is directly connected, Loopback0

172.12.0.0/16 is variably subnetted, 2 subnets, 2 masks

C 172.12.13.0/24 is directly connected, Serial1

C 172.12.21.0/30 is directly connected, BRI0

S* 0.0.0.0/0 is directly connected, Serial1

A gateway of last resort has now been successfully configured, and the S* means that last route in the table is a static default route. Remember, the default route is not the route that all packets will take - it's the route packets use if there is no other possible match for their destination in the routing table.

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of over 200 free certification exam tutorials, including CCNA certification training articles. His exclusive CCNA study guide is also available!

Visit his blog and sign up for Cisco 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, and you can attend an in-person or online Cisco CCNA training boot camp with The Bryant Advantage!

 

CCNA Certification Training: Configuring Static Routes On A Cisco Router

 

Knowing how to quickly configure a static route is a valuable skill for both the CCNA exam and working with real-world networks.  Learn all about static routes from Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933.

The great thing about CCNA certification training is that the skills you learn will truly come in handy when working with Cisco routers and switches in production networks.  That's particularly true of static route configuration.  While most networks use dynamic routing protocols such as RIP, EIGRP, and OSPF to build routing tables, static routes still come in handy sometimes - especially if a routing protocol configuration goes awry. 

Let's say that you just added a new segment to your network and you've successfully added it to your network's routing tables.  Suddenly, on Monday morning, users on that segment can't get to a network resource such as an email server, or they can't get out to the Internet.  We all know what it's like to try to fix something while the phone's ringing like crazy.  That's when we have to do two things.

First, resist the temptation to say ?I would fix it, but I?m too busy talking to you?.

Second, use a quick fix to get the issue resolved temporarily while you resolve the issue.

Static routes are a great quick fix.  You can use a static route to get the users where they need to be, which gives you time to find out what the problem is with the dynamic routing protocol. (You must also resist the temptation to apply a static route and declare the problem fixed!)

Static routes are configured with the ip route command, followed by the destination network and mask.  After that, you must specify either the next-hop IP address or the local exit interface.  Both of the following masks are acceptable:

ip route 172.10.1.0 255.255.255.0 210.1.1.1

ip route 172.10.1.0 255.255.255.0 serial0

Using IOS Help on a Cisco router shows the various options:

R1(config)#ip route ?

  A.B.C.D  Destination prefix

  profile  Enable IP routing table profile

  vrf      Configure static route for a VPN Routing/Forwarding instance

R1(config)#ip route 172.10.1.0 ?

  A.B.C.D  Destination prefix mask

R1(config)#ip route 172.10.1.0 255.255.255.0 ?

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

  BRI        ISDN Basic Rate Interface

  Dialer     Dialer interface

  Loopback   Loopback interface

  Null       Null interface

  Serial     Serial

  TokenRing  IEEE 802.5

Remember, you're specifying either the next-hop router's IP address or the local router's exit interface!

Configuring static routes is a great skill to have in the network room and in the CCNA exam room.  Be ready to configure them in either situation!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of over 200 free certification exam tutorials, including CCNA certification training articles. His exclusive CCNA study guide is also available!Visit his blog and sign up for Cisco 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, and you can attend an in-person or online Cisco CCNA training boot camp with The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNA Certification Exam Training: Telnet, Passwords, and Privilege

Your CCNA certification exam is likely going to contain questions about Telnet, an application-level protocol that allows remote communication between two networking devices. With Telnet use being as common as it is, you had better know the details of how to configure it in order to pass your CCNA exam and to work in real-world networks.

The basic concept is pretty simple - we want to configure R1, but we're at R2. If we telnet successfully to R1, we will be able to configure R1 if we've been given the proper permission levels. In this CCNA case study, R2 has an IP address of 172.12.123.2 and R1 an address of 172.12.123.1. Let's try to telnet from R2 to R1.

R2#telnet 172.12.123.1

Trying 172.12.123.1 ... Open

Password required, but none set

[Connection to 172.12.123.1 closed by foreign host]

This seems like a problem, but it's a problem we're happy to have. A Cisco router will not let any user telnet to it by default. That's a good thing, because we don't want just anyone connecting to our router! The "password required" message means that no password has been set on the VTY lines on R1. Let's do so now.

R1(config)#line vty 0 4

R1(config-line)#password baseball

A password of "baseball" has been set on the VTY lines, so we shouldn't have any trouble using Telnet to get from R2 to R1. Let's try that now.

R2#telnet 172.12.123.1

Trying 172.12.123.1 ... Open

User Access Verification

Password:

R1>

We're in, and placed into user exec mode. Let's say we want to configure a new IP address on the ethernet interface on R1. We'll now go into privileged exec mode....

R1>enable

% No password set

R1>

... or maybe we won't! The default behavior of Telnet on a Cisco router is to place the incoming user into user exec mode, and require an enable password to allow that user into privileged exec mode! Right now, we can't configure anything on this router and even the show commands we would use are limited at best.

If we wanted to allow all telnetting users to be put into privileged exec mode immediately without being prompted for an enable password, the command privilege level 15 placed on the VTY lines will accomplish this.

R1(config)#line vty 0 4

R1(config-line)#privilege level 15

From R2, we'll telnet into R1 again.

R2#telnet 172.12.123.1

Trying 172.12.123.1 ... Open

User Access Verification

Password:

R1#

We were able to telnet in from R2 with the original password of "baseball", and even better, we were placed into privileged exec mode immediately!

You may or may not want to do this in real-world networks, though. If you want to assign privilege levels on an individual user basis, configure usernames and passwords and use the privilege 15 command in the actual username/password command itself to give this privilege levels to some users but not all.

R1(config)#username heidi password klum

R1(config)#username tim privilege 15 password gunn

Both users can telnet into the router, but the first user will be placed into user exec and challenged for the enable password to enter privileged exec mode. If there is no enable password, the user literally cannot get into privileged exec. The second user will be placed into privileged exec immediately after successfully authenticating.

Passwords on a Cisco router or switch are vitally important, and you're not tied down to granting "all-or-nothing" access. Knowing the details like the ones shown here help you tie down network security while allowing people to do their jobs - and it doesn't hurt to know this stuff for the CCNA exam, either!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of over 100 free certification exam tutorials, including Cisco CCNA certification test prep articles. His exclusive Cisco CCNA study guide and Cisco CCNA training is also available!

Visit his blog and sign up for Cisco 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, and you can attend an in-person or online CCNA boot camp with The Bryant Advantage!

Culture and Contemporary Life at San Francisco

San Francisco has been characterized by a high standard of living. The downtown has seen a renaissance driven by redevelopment of the Embarcadero, with the strong neighborhoods South Beach and Mission Bay. Boutiques along Fillmore Street in Pacific Heights are centralized by commerce and shopping districts downtown, with the Financial District and the area around Union Square, are very well-known.

Performing arts

San Francisco's ?War Memorial? and the ?Performing Arts Center? features some of the longest running and performing arts companies throughout the United States. The ?War Memorial Opera House? houses the ?San Francisco Opera? and ?San Francisco Ballet?, where as the ?San Francisco Symphony? is played in Davies Symphony Hall. The ?Herbst Theatre stages? an eclectic mix of real music performances, plus public radio's ?City Arts & Lectures?.

The ?Fillmore? is a music venue located in the Western Addition. It is the second incarnation of a venue that gained fame in the 1960s. Beach ?Blanket Babylon? is a zany musical revue and also a civic institution. San Francisco often hosts national touring productions of Broadway theatre shows in a number of year 1920s-era venues in the ?Theater District? including the ?Curran?, ?Orpheum?, and in ?Golden Gate Theatres?.

Museums

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) has 20th Century contemporary pieces. It moved to iconic building in South of Market during 1995 and attracted 600,000 people annually. The ?Palace of the Legion of Honor? has primary works done by Europeans. The ?De Young Museum? and the ?Asian Art Museum? have a significant anthropological and non-European holding.

The ?Palace of Fine Arts?, was originally built for the 1915 ?Panama-Pacific Exposition?, now houses the ?Exploratorium?, a popular science museum devoted to teaching through hands-on-hands interaction. The ?California Academy of Sciences? is a natural history museum, which hosts the ?Morrison Planetarium? and ?Steinhart Aquarium?. The ?San Francisco Zoo? cares for about 250 animal pet?s species out of which 39 have been deemed endangered or threatened.

San Francisco is all about having contemporary life. The culture is maintained from long time. One can enjoy and explore themselves at San Francisco with great experience.

Amjath is a great tourist guide of San Francisco and is also a good copywriter who has worked for many sites describing many hotspots of San Francisco. For Further details on San Francisco tours, culture and life please visit http://www.sanfranshuttletours.com/ or contact Amjath through mail: sanfranshuttletours@gmail.com

 

CCNA Certification Exam Training: Passwords, Cisco Routers, And Network

CCNA certification is important, and so is securing our network's Cisco routers! To reflect the importance of network security, your CCNA certification exam is likely going to contain quite a few questions about the various passwords you can set on a Cisco router. Let's take a look at some of those passwords and when to apply them.

If the previous user has logged out of the router properly, you will see a prompt like this when you sit down at the router console:

R1 con0 is now available

Press RETURN to get started.

R1>

To get into enable mode, by default all I have to do is type "enable".

R1>enable

R1#

See how the prompt changed? By default, I can now run all the show and debug commands I want, not to mention entering global configuration mode and doing pretty much what I want. It just might be a good idea to password protect this mode! We do so with either the enable password command or the enable secret command. Let's use the enable password command first.

R1(config)#enable password dolphins

Now when I log out and then go back to enable mode - or try to - I should be prompted for the password "dolphins". Let's see what happens.

R1>enable

Password:

R1#

I was indeed prompted for a password. Cisco routers will not show asterisks or any other character when you enter a password; in fact, the cursor doesn't even move.

The problem with the enable password command is that the password will show in the configuration in clear text, making it easy for someone to look over your shoulder and note the password for future use, as shown below:

hostname R1

enable password dolphins

We could use the "service password-encryption" command to encrypt the enable password, but that will also encrypt all the other passwords in the Cisco router config. That's not necessarily a bad thing! Here's the effect of this command on the enable password we set earlier.

enable password 7 110D1609071A020217

Pretty effective encryption! However, if we want to have the enable password automatically encrypted, we can use the enable secret command. I'll use that command here to set this password to "saints", and note that I'm not removing the previous enable password.

R1(config)#enable secret saints

After removing the "service password-encryption" command, we're left with two enable mode passwords, and they appear in the Cisco router config like this:

enable password dolphins

enable secret 5 $1$kJB6$fPuVebg7uMnoj5KV4GUKI/

If we have two enable passwords, which one should we use to log into the router? Let's try the first password, "dolphins", first:

R1>enable

Password:

Password:

When you're prompted for the password a second time, you know you got it wrong the first time! Let's try "saints":

R1>enable

Password:

Password:

R1#

When both the enable secret and enable password commands are in use on a Cisco router, the enable secret password always takes precedence. "dolphins" didn't get us in, but "saints" did. That's valuable information for both the CCNA certification exam and real-world networks, because there's no worse feeling than typing a password at a Cisco router prompt and then getting another password prompt!

This is just one way to perform basic Cisco router security with passwords. We'll take a look at other methods in a future CCNA certification exam training tutorial!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of over 100 free certification exam tutorials, including Cisco CCNA certification test prep articles. His exclusive Cisco CCNA study guide and Cisco CCNA training is also available!

Visit his blog and sign up for Cisco 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, and you can attend an in-person or online CCNA boot camp with The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNP Certification Training : The New CCNP BCMSN 642-812 Exam

Cisco CCNP certification is about to become more valuable and more difficult! Cisco is making major changes to the CCNP certification program, retiring two exams (BCRAN and CIT) while updating two old friends, the BSCI and BCMSN exam. Today, we'll take a look at the changes in the Building Converged Cisco Multilayer Switched Networks (BCMSN) exam.

According to Cisco's exam blueprint, there are some major additions with the introduction of the 642-812 exam. Wireless access, security, and voice are all rapidly growing features and concerns in today's real-world networks, and Cisco is responding to that by adding all three of these topics to the CCNP BCMSN exam. Cisco CCNP candidates should expect to be questioned on WLANs as well as wireless clients.

There were some security topics on the 642-811 BCMSN exam, port security and 802.1x among them. The successful Cisco CCNP certification candidate will now be expected to know about the different network attacks that can take place at the data link layer of the OSI model, including DHCP Spoofing and VLAN Hopping.

There was also just a bit of voice material on the 642-811 BCMSN exam, but you'll have to know more voice to pass the 642-812 exam. Voice VLANs, voice QoS, and IP Phone configuration are just some of the topics being added to the new BCMSN exam.

Cisco is obviously raising the bar with the new CCNP exams, and this certification is going to be harder to get than ever before. That also makes it more valuable than ever before, and 2007 will be the best year yet in which to earn your CCNP certification. Make your plans to earn this valuable Cisco certification, and then put that plan into action!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage, home of over 100 free certification exam tutorials, including Cisco CCNA certification test prep articles. His exclusive Cisco CCNA study guide and Cisco CCNA training is also available!

Visit his blog and sign up for Cisco 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, and you can attend an in-person or online CCNA boot camp with The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNP Certification Training: What's New

The CCNP exams are changing at the end of 2006.  What's new about the new BSCI exam?  Find out from Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933.

CCNP certification is getting a new look at the end of 2006.  The BSCI and BCMSN exams are being updated, and the CIT and BCRAN exams are being retired.  Let's take a look at what to expect from the new BSCI exam.

According to Cisco's exam blueprint - admittedly a very broad blueprint at this time - the major new topics are IP version 6 (IPv6) and multicasting.  The addition of these two topics will make an already demanding Cisco certification exam that much tougher, but this is a great change for the exam and for the candidate.  IPv6 is just going to become more and more prevalent in today's networks, and multicasting is as well. 

Multicasting for the Cisco CCNP BSCI exam is going to go far beyond what you learned about it in your CCNA studies.  For the new BSCI exam, you'll need to know the different methods of creating multicast groups as well as assigning members to them.  This material was previously limited to CCIE-level books, and while I don't look for the questions to be as hard as the CCIE written exam, multicasting is not an easy topic and should not be taken lightly by the CCNP candidate in 2007.

One major CCNP exam topic that isn't going anywhere is BGP.  The Border Gateway Protocol has been a big part of previous BSCI exams, and that looks to continue.

If you're pursuing your CCNP certification in 2007, be sure to monitor Cisco's website for additions to the CCNP blueprint.  It's obvious that Cisco has raised the bar for CCNP certification, and earning this important Cisco certification will in turn raise your market value and networking knowledge like never before.  Watch for future articles taking a closer look at the other three new CCNP exams!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage (http://www.thebryantadvantage.com).

For his FREE seven-part course, ?How To Pass The CCNA?, visit the website and sign up today! Daily free CCNA, CCNP, Network+, Security+, and A+ certification questions, too!

Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers

It's a week 11 NFL match up of division foes. The Seahawks lead the series 8-6 and have plowed through the 49ers in the last 6 meetings. They could very well post another 14+ point victory this week.

The 49ers are coming off another victory--they are 4-5 now--and hope to make it three in a row. Two weeks ago they beat the Minnesota Vikings in San Francisco 9-6. To say this game was boring is an understatement. Last week they went to Detroit and beat a lackluster Lions team 19-13. I think the Detroit Tigers would have gave them a better run for the money.

The Seahawks continue to move forward without MVP running back Shaun Alexander and Pro Bowl QB Matt Hasslebeck. However, there's good new from Seahawks camp. Both will be practicing this week. They might get some limited duty this weekend--depending how the game goes. Last week backup RB Morris and QB Wallace helped the Seahawks beat division foe St. Louis. The play of the game was the 90ish yard return by newly sign WR Nate Burleson.

Wallace is playing pretty well and the 49ers aren't exactly a top team. We might see Hasslebeck play a series or even take another week off. The remaining schedule favors the Seahawks, so they can be a bit cautious here.

I'm looking for the Hawks offense to explode on the soft 49ers secondary. This is a team--49ers--that gave up 40+ points to Chicago, Kansas City and San Diego. They also gave up 34 to Arizona and 38 to Philadelphia. This could be another explosive day for the Seahawks offense. Look for them to open it up early to get a lead and give their returning stars the opportunity to "practice" during the game. This is another great opportunity for the Seahawks defense to tighten up and work on some issues.

The author writes articles on many topics including sports wagering, jeu casino, and paris en ligne.

Cisco CCNP Certification / BSCI Exam Tutorial: Comparing IRDP And HSRP

To pass the BSCI exam, you need to know the difference between IRDP and HSRP. While they have the same basic function, the operation and configuration of each are totally different.

The aim of both is to allow hosts to quickly discover a standby router when the primary router fails. IRDP is commonly used by Windows DHCP clients and several Unix variations, but you do see it in Cisco routers as well. IRDP is defined in RFC 1256.

IRDP routers will multicast Hello messages that host devices hear. If a host hears from more than one IRDP router, it will choose one as its primary and will start using the other router if the primary it's chosen goes down.

HSRP is a Cisco-proprietary protocol that is designed for quick cutover to a secondary router if the primary fails, but the host devices don't "see" either the primary or secondary router. The hosts use a virtual router as their default gateway. This virtual router has its own IP and MAC address! All the while, the router chosen as the primary is actually the one doing the routing. If the primary router goes down, the secondary router quickly takes over with no major interruption to network services.

The HSRP routers communicate by multicasting updates to 224.0.0.2, and its through these hellos that the HSRP routers decide which router is primary and which is secondary. HSRP is defined in RFC 2281.

The configuration of each of these will be covered in a future tutorial. In the meantime, I urge you to read the RFCs mentioned in this article, and visit www.cisco.com/univercd to read about the configurations and options available for both of these vital protocols.

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage (http://www.thebryantadvantage.com), home of free CCNP and CCNA tutorials! For my FREE "How To Pass The CCNA" or "CCNP" ebook, visit the website and download your copies. Pass your CCNP exam with The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNP / BSCI Exam Tutorial: OSPF Route Redistribution Review

OSPF route redistribution is an important topic on the BSCI exam, and it's a topic full of details and defaults that you need to know for the exam room and the job. To help you pass the BSCI exam, here's a quick review of some of the OSPF route redistribution basics.

To see if a router is an ABR or ASBR, run show ip ospf. This also displays any routes being redistributed into OSPF on this router.

R1#show ip ospf

Routing Process "ospf 1" with ID 1.1.1.1

Supports only single TOS(TOS0) routes

Supports opaque LSA

It is an area border and autonomous system boundary router

Redistributing External Routes from,

connected, includes subnets in redistribution

rip, includes subnets in redistribution

When redistributing RIP into OSPF, the "subnets" option is needed to include subnets in redistribution. When redistributing OSPF into RIP, a seed metric must be specified. (OSPF gives redistributed routes a default metric of 20 - this can be changed, but a seed metric does not have to be set.)

R1(config)#router ospf 1

R1(config-router)#redistribute connected

% Only classful networks will be redistributed

R1(config-router)#redistribute connected subnets

R1(config-router)#redistribute rip subnets

R1(config-router)#router rip

R1(config-router)#redistribute connected metric 1

R1(config-router)#redistribute ospf 1 metric 1

By default, routes redistributed into OSPF are marked as E2 routes. The metric for these routes reflects only the cost of the path from the ASBR to the destination network and does not include the cost of the path from the local router to the ASBR. By contrast, E1 routes include the cost of the entire path from the local router to the destination network.

O E2 5.1.1.1 [110/20] via 172.34.34.3, 00:33:21, Ethernet0

6.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

O E2 6.1.1.1 [110/20] via 172.34.34.3, 00:33:21, Ethernet0

172.12.0.0/16 is variably subnetted, 2 subnets, 2 masks

O E2 172.12.21.0/30 [110/20] via 172.34.34.3, 00:33:32, Ethernet0

O E2 7.1.1.1 [110/20] via 172.34.34.3, 00:33:21, Ethernet0

15.0.0.0/24 is subnetted, 1 subnets

O E2 15.1.1.0 [110/20] via 172.34.34.3, 00:33:32, Ethernet0

To redistribute routes into OSPF and mark them as E1 upon redistribution, use the metric-type option with the redistribution command.

R1(config)#router ospf 1

R1(config-router)#redistribute rip subnets metric-type ?

1 Set OSPF External Type 1 metrics

2 Set OSPF External Type 2 metrics

R1(config-router)#redistribute rip subnets metric-type 1

Look at the same two routes in R4's routing table, which are now displayed as E1 routes:

O E1 5.1.1.1 [110/94] via 172.34.34.3, 00:04:13, Ethernet0

6.0.0.0/32 is subnetted, 1 subnets

O E1 6.1.1.1 [110/94] via 172.34.34.3, 00:04:14, Ethernet0

BSCI exam success and earning your CCNP certification depends on knowing the details, and there are plenty of details involved in OSPF route redistribution! Keep studying, practice different scenarios in your CCNA / CCNP home lab or rack rental, and you'll master these details and pass the exam!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage (http://www.thebryantadvantage.com), home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials! For my FREE "How To Pass The CCNA" or "CCNP" ebook, visit the website and download your copies. Get your CCNA study guide from The Bryant Advantage!

Cisco CCNP / BSCI Exam Tutorial: Not All Static Routes Are Created Equal

As a CCNP candidate, as a CCNA, and in getting ready to pass the BSCI exam, you may be tempted to breeze through your static route studies, or even skip them! That's because static routes are easy enough to configure, and as long as you remember the syntax of the ip route command, you're in good shape.

But there's one vital detail regarding static routes that many exam candidates miss. That's because many CCNA and CCNP books say "the administrative distance of a static route is 1", but that is not quite accurate.

You know from your CCNA studies that the ip route command is used to create a static route, and that you have the option of configuring a local exit interface or a next-hop IP address at the end of the command. However, the administrative distances are not the same. The AD of a static route that uses a local exit interface is zero! (That's because the router considers a static route with a local exit interface to actually be a directly connected network.) The AD of a static route with a next-hop IP address is 1.

Therefore, if the router has the following two ip route statements to consider...

Router(config)#ip route 172.1.1.1 255.255.255.255 fast0

Router(config)#ip route 172.1.1.1 255.255.255.255 210.1.1.1

... the prefix lengths are the same, so the static route using the local exit interface fastethernet0 will be preferred due to its lower AD, and will be installed into the routing table.

Keep the details in mind on the job and in the exam room, and you're on your way to CCNP exam success!

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage (http://www.thebryantadvantage.com), home of free CCNP and CCNA tutorials! For my FREE "How To Pass The CCNA" or "CCNP" ebook, visit the website and download your copies. Pass your CCNP exam with The Bryant Advantage!

San Francisco Giants Tickets

San Francisco Giants are one of the main and most popular League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California. Giants play in the West Division of the National League. Giants were in early days originally known as Gothams, they started as a second baseball club by John B. Day and Jim Mutrie. Giants were Day and Mutrie's real entry to the National League, although their other clubs, the Metropolitans (known as original Mets) were playing in the American Association. Initially Metropolitans were more successful club but then Day and Mutrie moved top players to the Gothams, which lead the team to win its first National League pennant in 1888. After this splendid fulfilling victory, Mutrie (who was also the team's manager) came in the dressing room and out of his pleasure and excitement shouted, "My big fellows! My giants!" And from there onwards, the club was called as the Giants. They saw high time as a team in the beginning and also bring out some remarkable top class players but on the whole they didn't come off with flying colors, they struggled a lot, but couldn't prove their best.

San Francisco Giants history.

In Contrary to the times in New York, Giants in San Francisco have diverse fortune. However lately Giants has enjoyed comparatively persistent triumph, there have been stretched times of unevenness, especially they were threatened when the club's ownership periled to move the club out of San Francisco. The most unfortunate part of the story is that Giants managed to have a huge fan base since they arrive in the city, but Giants couldn't so far thrive for a World Series title for San Francisco.

When there was a break in Seals Stadium, Giants shifted to Candlestick Park, which was also known as "The Stick" but unfortunately that very stadium proved to be one of the most hostile stadiums in the sports history. It was sealed in 1961. Giants stopped playing in that stadium which was later on named as 3Com Park and then Monster Park. Giants never won a World Series after moving to San Francisco, but they were always close, playing in three of them.

Giants couldn't make any other World Series until 1989, but still Giants of the '60s sustained to be pennant contenders and the gratitude goes to several future hall-of-famers, like Gaylord Perry, who pitched in 1968 a no-hitter for the Giants; Juan Marichal, another pitcher with a unforgettable high-kicking delivery; McCovey, the National League MVP award winner in 1969, and Mays, who have the all-time franchise record for most home runs, he also hit his 600th career home run in 1969.

The post-season appearance of the Giants was in 1971. Giants were effortlessly defeated in the League Championship Series by the Pittsburgh Pirates and Roberto Clemente after winning their division. 1970s also proved to be a despairing decade for Giants. Bob Lurie bought the team, to save it from being moved to Toronto in 1976.

The decade of 1980's also couldn't bring any success for the giants. Giants hired a black manager Frank Robinson 1981, though Robinson's tenure only lasted for 4 years. 1985 was the worst year in the history of San Francisco Giants. They lost 100 games (the most number of failures since moving to San Francisco). The owner then hired Al Rosen as general manager. In his management Giants gifted rookies like Will Clark, Robby Thompson, and gained players as Kevin Mitchell, Dave Dravecky, Candy Maldonado, and Rick Reuschel.

Roger Craig remained Giants' new manager from 1985 to 1992. Giants never faced a losing record in Craig's first five full seasons. That was a splendid change for team's future. Having an exceptional motto, "Humm Baby" during Roger Craig's leadership, Giants stood victorious in 83 games in 1986 and also win the National League Western Division title in 1987. Giants also won the National League pennant in 1989. 1989 proved even a better year for the Giants. After a long awaited period of 27 years, the San Francisco Giants finally were the champions of the National League. After defeating the Cubs, they confronted the Oakland Athletics in "Bay Bridge Series". That series was perhaps the best cherished due to the Loma Prieta earthquake on October 17, 1989 interrupted the intended Game 3 of the series at Candlestick Park. Oakland completed up its sweep of San Francisco, after a ten-day delay in the series.

Later on the Barry Bonds started a new dawn with a blast. Bonds created numbers for the third MVP of his career: 46 homers, 129 runs, 123 RBI, .336/. 458/. 677/1.135. Giants get a smashing record of 103-59 in Dusty Baker's first year as manager. Which also benefited Baker as he got the "Manager of the Year award". Once again the period form 1994 to 1996 was not a rewarding time.

Due to these dreadful times, Giants were led to name Brian Sabean as new general manager, replacing Bob Quinn. Prior to being named GM, Brian Sabean was already whispered to have masterminded the agreement to dig up Kirk Rueter from the Montreal Expos. His first trade as GM, stunned Giants fans throughout the world when he traded Matt Williams for apparently a handful of spare parts, and the criticism was grand enough for him to have to openly explain: "I didn't get to this point by being an idiot... I'm sitting here telling you there is a plan."

And for sure Sabean's plan worked out, because the players he got in the Williams trade - Jeff Kent, Jose Vizcaino, Julian Tavarez, and Joe Roa (also the 1 million dollar cash enabled them to sign Darryl Hamilton) - in addition his trade for J.T. Snow made the Giants to win their first NL West division title of the 1990s in 1997. Unluckily, the Florida Marlins ended the Giants' season by defeating them by a 3-0. And Marlins moved on their way to first World Series championship.

40 years later in 2000 at Candlestick, Giants opened their own privately financed ballpark, naming Pacific Bell Park. The team shocked everyone by having the best record in the National League. It was actually 2002 when the Giants again became the center of attention. Giants beaten Atlanta Braves in the NLDS three games to two and later on defeated the St. Louis Cardinals four games to one. Giant's performance was out class in the World Series and they were about to win when The Angels made a come back and win the championship, which really dishearten the Giant's fans. After this agonizing failure they once more recorded 100 victories for the seventh time in franchise history and for the third time in San Francisco. Year 2004 as well dramatically changed the whole scene, when the Dodgers rise above the Giants in a late season game, winning on a Steve Finley. Next year, 2005 was the most depressing season of 2000s for the Giants.

Giants celebrated in honor of Baseball Hall of Famer Juan Marichal On May 25, 2005. On July 14, 2005, Giants won their 10,000th contest beating their competitors, the Los Angeles Dodgers, 4-3, becoming the first professional sports franchise to have five digits in their winning total. Unfortunately Giants were formally eliminated from the NL West race when they lose to the 2005 champion San Diego Padres. San Francisco Giants finished the season in third place, with a record of 75-87, which was their worst season - and first losing record - since 1996.

In 2006 Slugger Barry Bonds' return alone should mean a better offense. Fans anticipate the Giants to do better then their 75-87 records in 2005. Finley is an appealing surprise. Finley hit 36 home runs, which were a career high in 2004. The Giants have great expectations from Finley, it is expected that he can have a bounce back year and possibly can hit 30 or more home runs hitting along side Bonds and Alou. Sweeney is allowed to hit regularly so that he may astonish the fans. Niekro also should bloom with better hitters around him. There is a much-polished lineup with a vigorous Bonds returning.

If Schmidt and Matt Morris could also manage a similar performance as he did last year (14 wins) then the starting rotation will be solid as well. Lowry and Hennessey also have to groom themselves in 2006 with more innings under their belts. The Giants are also looking forward to a full season from closer Armando Benitez, which should also help the bullpen. Giants should perform much better in 2006 and will chase the Padres for the NL West title. Giants always have their unique style of having a smashing come back. And their fans don't expect anything less then this from their all time favorite Giants. For more details visit http://www.ticketnest.com/sports-tickets/San-Francisco-Giants/index.php

Ron Arthur is a Search Engine Marketer working for Carlsbad, CA based web-metrics company Sofizar. He is a member of the team developing a click fraud detection software, ZarTective. While not writing expose's on the darker side of the web, he plays with his cat "Mano" and watches "Rocky Horror Picture Show" for the 17th time. Or maybe 117th.

What To Expect At The Cisco Testing Centerwww.

Sim.com Candidates can register for the CCNA exam (640-801 exam or 640-821 INTRO or 640-811 ICND ) at Pearson VUE or Prometric testing centers.

In order to do their best, candidates should know what to expect at the testing center for the Cisco CCNA certification exam. Since testing center guidelines may vary from one center to another, we recommend that the candidates call the local testing center to check about the guidelines. Here are some points providing information on what you can expect at the exam center:

Re-certification: If you have taken a Cisco CCNA certification exam before, find out your Cisco ID and specify it before you start with your registration. This will ensure that you get proper credit for the exam and will help avoid any duplicate records.

Reach before time: We strongly suggest reaching the test center before time. Failure to do so may result in cancellation of the appointment.

Sign the logbook: You may be asked to sign-in the logbook upon arrival as well as upon departure. Do check on this.

You must carry your identification: You will be required to show a valid identification (ID), perhaps including a recent, recognizable photograph. If the supervisor questions your ID, you may be required to show another ID. You should check the testing center guidelines on identification and take all supplemental identification documents with you.

Generally Accepted Identification:

Passport

Photobearing driver's license with signature

National/Military identification card

The following MAY not be accepted as valid ID:

Credit Cards (Please check with test center)

Private identification cards

Any expired ID

Read the testing center regulation form carefully: You will be provided with a Testing Center Regulation form by the supervisor. Read the regulations carefully and comply with them during the test.

Sign the confidentiality statement: The supervisor is responsible for asking you to sign the confidentially statement at the test center indicating that you will not reveal exam questions to other students after the test.

Supervisor sets up your test computer: The supervisor will ensure that the Cisco certification test displays on screen before handing over the machine to you.

Ask for sheets for scratch work: Scratch papers will be provided to you at the testing center. These are sometimes only available on request. Ask for some blank scratch sheets to do calculations and rough work. Jot down important points and tables (such as powers of 2, binary representation tables etc) before exam starts. This can be a big time saver. Do not take the scratch paper out of the testing room on completion of exam.

Items not allowed in the testing room: The candidate is not allowed to bring in the testing room personal items such as:

Books, revision sheets or notes: The exam is closed book

Cellular phones & alarms

Food or drinks may not be allowed

Calculators

Your session may be audio and video taped: Do not attempt to talk or communicate in any form to anybody in the testing room. Your session may be taped and can lead to immediate disqualification .

On exam completion: You will be explained by the supervisor what to do when you complete the exam. If not, or if you are unclear about what you should do, ask it yourself before beginning the exam.

Do not take with you the the testing material from the testing room: Return all of your testing materials, including the scrap paper, on the completion of your exam to the supervisor.

Certified copy of the exam result: Your supervisor will give you a certified copy of the exam report on completion of the test. This will list your score indicating strengths and weaknesses in the various test areas. Ask the supervisor for the certified copy, if you do not get it.

About The Author

SemSim.com provides training resources for Cisco certification exams: CCIE, CCNP, CCNA, CCDP, CCDA. It offers FREE learning resources to students such as study guides and router simulation labs. For more information visit: http://www.SemSim.com : Making Cisco cetification easy!

support@semsim.com