CCNA Practice Questions (Exam 640-802) [With CDROM]

Reviews are always a bit subjective, but probably even more so with certification material like this book. I feel that this was a very effective book in my case so thats a 5 * to me. First of all the CCNA Exam Cram assumes that you are involved in networking and your interest in obtaining certification, therefor the concentrate on giving you the Cisco specific information you need to pass. The biggest thing to recommend this series is what they are not. The most popular book in the CCNA prep field seems to be the Lammle book which is 1000 pages and is really a time waster for someone who has been involved in networking for a few years. For instance Todd Lammle would say "Pay attention because this is very important" and then launch into 7 pages on how basic IP networking works. The experienced reader is then obligated to read through all of that looking for new information since Todd said pay attention, but then there is nothing new for someone who is in the field. Lammle's approach is valuable for someone with little experience or someone coming over from server admin, but the sheer bulk of Lammle (and the two Cisco press books at 700 pages each) make it difficult for the experienced student to just pick out the material that will be relevant to them. In contrast Exam Cram CCNA (not this questions book) flags particular material as "Exam Tips" in a boxed sections and indicates that some material is "Highly Testable". In my experience with the exam they were exactly right- the type of material they flagged was exactly what was on the exam. Here is the biggest reason for my recommendation of Exam Cram- the questions are hard enough to be useful to the student. The biggest problem in passing the CCNA Exam is know at what level you should be preparing. On a scale of difficult from 1-10 (devious) the questions in Exam Cram are pitched at 6-8 level. The Lammel book's questions are at a 4. The Actual Cisco exam is a 5-7.5. So even though Exam Cram is probably a bit more difficult than the actual exam it will prepare you for the multiple correct answer questions which can be tricky and for the indirect way Cisco tests your knowledge of some of the skills. For instance, Lammle might ask what a "desirable" mode is in trunking and give you 4 definitions to pick from, while the cisco exam will give you a interface config and will ask you how the switch port will behave based on some settings for a neighboring port. Exam Cram also covers the following areas better than Lammle- STP designated port process, Wireless BSS/ISS and channel overlap, Security, IPv6. If you just followed Lammle there will probably be questions on your exam that you could not answer. In particular I had about 4 questions on STP designated ports that could not have been answered based on Lammle's treatment. A word about the exam engine- I could suggest several improvements. It lets you test several different ways including a pop up display of the correct answer and a reasona

Outstanding value for a book with this many questions and answers that have brief explanations of their rationale. I highly recommend for its price performance factor.

Writing a book to help you prepare for and pass an exam is no easy task but the author and publishers have done a fine job here. Don't be misled by the title - you can find practice questions in a variety of places but when you begin to use this book you realize that you have something more than just questions and answers. The first extra appears the moment you turn back the front cover; a CCNA cram sheet usefully printed on stiff card which you can tear out and take with you for those last nervous minutes in the exam centre. Nicely laid out and grouped under logical headings are all the facts you need to have in your short-term memory before your date with destiny. There are no subnetting cheats or tables however; if you're reliant on these you'll need to add them yourself. Another gem can be found at the foot of the page containing the publisher's blurb that nobody ever reads. If you're a Safari fan, you'll find here the access codes to get 45 days of unrestricted online access to the book absolutely free. Choose your start date wisely and you could really benefit from this as you study. In the book itself you find not one but two contents lists. The first and shortest of these shows which sections relate to each part of the CCNA syllabus. That's right; although the book gives you everything you need to sit the 640-802 combined exam you can also use it to prepare for each of the twin exams 640-822 and 640-816 without studying unnecessary material. The second contents list breaks the material out into chapters. The chapter structure is excellent with thoughtful design and layout to help you access the material efficiently. Each chapter begins with an overview of the subject area followed by the questions themselves. These are written to make you think about the material and test your understanding while still requiring multiple-choice answers. You'll also find screenshots, sample output and exhibits (diagrams) as you would in the exam. The author has done a good job of including the kind of phrasing and underlying Cisco mentality you are going to come across in the exam; this is valuable as it teaches you to think in the right way to score those all-important marks. For each question the right-hand margin offers links to both a quick answer and a detailed answer; the former for checking your score and the latter for when you got it wrong and want to know why. We checked a sample of questions across the book and found without exception the questions to be fair and the answers lucid and correct. However we did find one typographical error which sent us screaming to the Detailed Answer section to find out what was going on. In case you buy the book, and I still recommend you do, beware the lower case `b' in Question 9 on Page 6. But to put this in context, we're still awarding the coveted Firewall.cx 10/10 score. Given the author's evident concern to help you pass it came as no surprise to find an exam simulator inside the back cover. T

If you have studied the content for the 640-802, 640-822, or 640-816 exams and feel you are ready to put your knowledge to the test, but you are not sure that you want to take the real exam yet, this book is for you. Author Jeremy Cioara, has done an outstanding job of writing the third edition of this book to provide you with practice questions complete with answers and explanations to help you learn, drill, and review for the 640-802, 640-822, and 640-816 certification exams. Cioara, begins by describing how a network works. Then, the author shows you how to implement a small switched network. The author also describes routing operations. He continues by looking at how to implement an IP addressing scheme and IP services to meet network requirements for a small branch office. Then, the author discusses how to implement a small, routed network. Next, he explains and shows you how to select the appropriate administrative tasks required for a WLAN and Identify security threats to a network and describe general methods to migrate those threats. The author continues by showing you how to implement and verify WAN links. Then, he shows you how to configure, verify, and troubleshoot a switch with VLANs and interswitch communications. He continues by looking at how to implement an IP addressing scheme and IP services to meet network requirements in a medium-size Enterprise branch office network. Next, the author shows you how to configure and troubleshoot basic operations and routing on Cisco devices. He also shows you how to implement, verify, and troubleshoot NAT and ACLs in a medium-size Enterprise branch office network. Finally, the author continues showing you how to implement and verify WAN links. This most excellent book offers a large number of questions to practice each exam objective that will help you assess your knowledge before you write the real exam. Perhaps more importantly, the detailed answers to every question will help reinforce your knowledge about different issues involving the design and configuration of Cisco networks.