CCSP SECUR Exam Certification Guide [With CDROM]

I'm an old CCIE/CNE/CISSP, and I have purchased dozens of technical study guides over the years. I believe this is one of the better exam certification guides. Additionally, it contains real world examples and explanations. I refer to this book often in my day-to-day operations. If you want the best study guide out there for the SNRS exam, then you need not look any further. Good luck!

Best reference for the exam. It covered everything necessary for the SNRS exam. I wish all the books gave me as much information as this for the specific exam. Nice job!

This book covers everything on the exam and then some. I passed the exam on the first try! I also found the IPS and 802.1x chapters very informational. I wish all the exam prep books were as resourceful as this one!

This book covers preparation for taking the Cisco SNRS examination number 642-502. The SNRS exam is the replacement for the older SECUR exam that had the number 642-501. As such this book is kind of a second edition of a book for a test that changed its name. This book, as its name implies is an exam guide. It is not intended to be an all encompassing study of security principles and practices. It instead concentrates on those items that are covered in the exam. It will help you pass the test, to actively work in network security you will need to know more. But having said that, the first chapters of the book give a pretty good introduction to basic security fundamentals. I particularly like the comment that the words 'network security' may be a contradiction in terms. But we all deal with networks, and security has certainly become a problem as the bad guys out there seem to be constantly trying to break in. As with other Cicso books, each chapter of this one starts with a short quiz to allow you do decide if you need to spend time with this chapter. This can be a real time saver by allowing you to concentrate where you need to.

The CCSP consists of 5 exams that focus on security. This first exam revolves around the use of security on Cisco routers. The exam itself has traditionally been one that requires a very high pass rate and leaves very little room for error. This book addresses all the exam objectives and goes into enough detail on each topic to provide a foundation and guideline for preparing for this exam. The book is divided into six sections. The first section is unique to Cisco Press exam guides. It provides several chapters on security basic and theory. While these topics are not listed in the exam objectives on Cisco's Web site, these chapters provide the building blocks for the remaining chapters. They consist of the general attacks, defenses and policies that are required to begin charting a secure environment. Section II goes over the management and security of routers. Section III tackles Authentication, Authorization and Accounting (AAA). This section provides detailed instruction on setting up routers to use AAA. The last chapter of this section introduces Cisco AAA server called Cisco Secure Access Control Server. The author gives examples in the form of screen shots to illustrate the appropriate pages on the ACS for AAA router configurations. Section IV goes on to discuss access-list, IOS firewall, CBAC, and IDS on routers. Again, examples of configurations are provided for each command. Section V provides detailed instruction on setting up VPNs. This part of the SECUR exam can be the most difficult and the author clearly lays out the commands as well as the reasoning behind them. Section VI provides scenarios that allow the reader to review the content of the book in almost a lab format. The scenarios are broken down into tasks and each task has several subtasks that instruct the reader on what needs to be configured. The book then gives examples of the commands required to complete each task. This section really pulls the book together. It provides examples of configurations that the reader may be presented with either during a Cisco written or lab exam or while on the job in his day to day network security. Overall this book is an excellent addition to the resources required to successfully take and pass the SECUR exam. It gives a good guide of the test objectives and gives the reader the direction that needs to be taken when preparing for the test. Each chapters has excellent examples and illustrations for the reader to see implemented exactly was they have just read. I would rate this book a 5 out of 5 and would highly recommend it to anyone who is preparing for this exam. I have read many Certification Exam guides and the common theme that most readers tend to forget is that it is a "guide". It is not the "answer guide". It is not going to give you the answers to the questions on the exam. It does provide the outline of what needs to be studied and gives the basics that you need to know, but you wil