CCNP Cit Exam Certification Guide (CCNP Self-Study, 642-831)

I passed the CCNP Support Exam 640-506 on Feb 18 2001. I had purchased Amir Ranjbar's book 3 weeks ago,last week of Jan 2001. I also bought CORIOLIS support Exam Cram by Matthew Luallen. The following is what I did to pass the exam.1. I read Mr. Ranjbar's book cover to cover 11 Chapters. Second time around I read the Q & A in each section and the Foundation Summary in each Chapter. ( Excellent layout ). Third time around I just paid attention to the screen print out of all commands, there are many and Mr. Ranjbar has done a great job of explaining various sections of the output. Great diagrams of the ISDN, Internal architecture of 7000 & 7500 series Routers, and troubleshooting scenarios. These are actual printouts of the commands just visualize you are looking at a screen on a PC, and you will be fine. This book is GREAT !!! on the job too, it is practical.2. Tear out the cram sheet on the Coriolis exam cram book. it has 103 commands and brief description of each, this is imperative to know,laminate this sheet at office depot for one dollar. Keep this laminated sheet with you wherever you go, good for rush hour commute, waiting at Dentist's office etc. Keep looking at it every day, it will make sense in a week or so.3. 3-4 days before the exam, just read the Coriolis book 13 short and easy reading fun chapters, take the exam at the end of the book, keep in mind that the actual exam is much more harder than that, fill in the blanks are great.4. Take the exam on the test engine provided by Mr. Ranjbar's CD that comes with his book, keep taking the exam until you start getting above 90% and close to 100%. If you fllow the above directions, with discipline, dedication and hard work you can pass this exam too. Good Luck to You.

The CCNP Support Examination Certification Guide, by Amir S. Ranjbar, is an essential addition to the library of anyone aspiring to pass the 640-506 exam and complete their CCNP 2.0. Those who has studied Cisco's CIT 4.0 official courseware will immediately recognize the excellence of Ranjbar's work as a second-generation effort. Given the breadth of Cisco's troubleshooting subject areas (such as TCP/IP, IPX, VLANs, ISDN, Frame-Relay, etc.), that traditionally have been laborious to cover, this text is one of streamlined clarity and time-saving precision. The summary tables of show and debug commands are simply outstanding, while its lucid diagrams unravel complex relationships and consolidate disparate facts. Ranjbar's obvious skills, both as an engineer and an educator, combine nicely to make this easily one of best books published by Cisco Press.

Highlights the important, combines the real-world insights and experience of a master engineer with the concise, logical and focussed approach of a professional educator. Amir, thanks for sharing your enthusiasm and experience.

I agree with Patrick Since's review. This book is a great resource for you to prepare the exam. Compare with CIT preperation guide from Cisco Press,by Laura Chappell, this one has much less errors. It is simple but very clear on all the concepts you need for the exam. I use it for the exam and my score is over 900. I think it is due to this book is published recently plus the Auther really knows what students need for the exam. One thing I like is this book not only prints out a command's output like Laura Chappell's book, it also prints out the options of the command which is missing in the other book. For exapmle: show ip ?, listed all the options from that command. It is very handy for those who have no routers by hand when they prepare for the exam. Once again, thank Cisco Press for publishing this book!