CCNP Practical Studies: Troubleshooting (CCNP Self-Study)

This book was a tremendous help to me. I had passed the other three CCNP exams with only the Cisco Press "Exam Certification Guides", but for CIT, it just wasn't enough.The main point I'd like to make about the book is this: the author writes repeatedly that there are enough screen prints in the book for the user to follow along without equipment. Some of the reviews I've read (here and elsewhere) challenge that assertion. I couldn't disagree more. I got great use from the book, and all I have access to is a raggedy old 800.On another note, the discussions of IPX and CatOS are illuminating, but these topics seem to have fallen off the radar screen as far as CCNP certification goes.Also, just as the CIT certification guide is not enough to pass, neither is this book. No fault of the author's; it's just that the exam syllabus has changed somewhat since publication.Finally, I emailed a question to the author, and had my response almost as soon as I clicked "send". I was very grateful, and only wish I could award a sixth star.

What is troubleshooting? It's the approach that you take to resolving an issue. Do you have a sound, documented method of shooting trouble before it shoots you? CCNP Practical Studies: Troubleshooting takes you through the general troubleshooting methodology that Cisco has defined and goes further to detail how to take this approach at the various levels of the OSI model. This helps you to develop the tools that you need to become a professional in the art of troubleshooting. You will learn protocol characteristics, the tools you'll need to assist you, troubleshooting IP, IPX, Ethernet, switches, VLANs, and WAN all the while giving real-world Trouble Tickets to hone your skills. I found that I could apply what I learned from this book in my job right away. The author goes through good examples of how to use debug and logging commands in a production environment to effectively troubleshoot an issue.There are a few things that I look for in a good technical manual (listed in priority): examples, diagrams, detail, and references. I usually drop books right away that try to be humorous and lack detail. The author of this book, Donna L. Harrington, does an excellent job at providing ample examples of actions that you need to take to accomplish a task as well as the results of those actions. Visual diagrams (even the actual photographs of her lab) are presented in the proper locations. She provides so much detail in the book that it is bordering on too much. Where the detail stops before it gets off-topic, references are given to find more detail, even the ones that Cisco would rather you not know about. She sticks to the focus of the book by not going into detail about things that you should already know from being a CCNA, so if you haven't already studies that material I would not recommend this book for you.I enjoy Cisco Press books as I find them more detailed than the exam-cram type of study materials. In my opinion, I would rather learn the details of what will help me on the job rather than what will help me to simply pass the associated exam. I am not a very good test taker, so I would rather learn the details and use them in a lab or real-world environment. Cisco Press does a good job at providing those detailed materials. This book lacked a lot of the errors that I find in other technical manuals, allowing me to enjoy the learning experience without having to constantly question the material as I read and absorb it.Overall, this manual will be on my desk as reference material as long as I'm interested in networking. It covers all requirements for the CCNP Internet Troubleshooting Support Exam (CIT 642-831). After working through the example Trouble Tickets in the manual and practicing in a lab or other practice environment, you will be well prepared to pass the exam.

The title "CCNP Practical Studies: Troubleshooting" ( ISBN : 1-58720-057-0, Donna Harrington, Cisco Press) is very appropriate for this book. Beginning in chapter 1, the foundation is laid for a troubleshooting methodology, and builds in a logical manner from there. The book consists of 10 chapters, with the majority of the chapters covering topics that involve routers; there are, however, 2 very good chapters (6 & 7) devoted to the coverage of switching technology. With this said, the reader should have at least CCNA-level knowledge, and some previous hands-on exposure to a "Cisco" router.Most of the book's coverage surrounds protocols at the first three layers of the OSI model. Of course Ethernet is the dominant Layer 2 LAN protocol discussed, with IP being the dominant Layer 3 protocol referenced. As dominant as IP is in the world networking, the book does offer more than token coverage of IPX; chapter 4 is devoted solely to IPX issues. In the WAN environment, Frame Relay is dominates the Layer 2 discussion - an excellent discussion I might add.The two chapters that focus on switching provide a balanced coverage of both IOS- and CatOS-based switches. The reader is provided the CatOS compliment (and vice versa) of IOS switch commands throughout these chapters.The person that will find this book most useful will be that technologist that: 1) needs to develop a troubleshooting methodology, 2) wants to know what areas to focus on in troubleshooting LAN and WAN issues and, 3) wants to prepare for the Cisco "Cisco Internetwork Troubleshooting Support" exam.The book contains an example for every major issue discussed. The examples are fortified with diagrams that complement the verbal content exceptionally well. Also, the book references files that can be download and pasted into the router (or switch) when performing the actual configuration - for those persons that don't wish to type each configuration. Also, the configuration files that can be downloaded, serve as a solid means to check one's own configurations. While this book's focus is on "troubleshooting" at the intermediate level, I did find that it covers some information that is assisting me with CCIE-level studies.When learning networking technology, it is a no-brainer that comprehension will be accomplished best by actually performing task (i.e. getting hands-on exposure) vs. digesting a pile of theory only. The format of "CCNP Practical Studies: Troubleshooting" is definitely hands-on oriented. For this reason, I will definitely consider future titles presented by Donna L. Harrington. Readers who do not have access to any router or switch equipment will find the illustrations and practical examples invaluable. Because I had access to only a single router, I cannot imagine getting the full flavor of the book's content without the diagrams and configuration examples. The title "CCNP Practical Studies: Troubleshooting" is not just some "catchy" title. The book's cont