ICND2 Help

[Sniffer2112]

I just took the ICND2 test and did not past it. Does anyone have recommendations on where to find some good test questions for review?

I do have a lab that I can work on but after taking the test, it seems like practice tests would be very helpful. I felt like I knew the material, but needed more practice tests. I think a major area that I needed to focus on was troubleshooting and knowing the routing protocols (OSPF, EIGRP, RIP).

 

[stubnski]

Hi,

Sorry about not passing but Cisco has a good site for learning


Stubnski

 

[DonMc67]

I just passed CCNA a few weeks ago, how2pass is an awesome testing site... looks very much like the test and some the the questions are almost too similar and they have excellent explanations too

 

[Sniffer2112]

Thanks for the help. I will look into them.

 

[CiscoGuy33]

Sniffer2112,

Practice tests should be used for 1 thing - helping you determine what areas you need to spend more time on - NOT LEARNING QUESTIONS !!!!!!!!!!!!

I do not know if "How to Pass" is a legit testing software or a "dump" like Test King, if you are concerned just ask up at the Cisco Learning Network at

http://www.cisco.com

If it is a "dump" then you are just heading towards a "paper cert" and if you need a "brain dump" to pass CCNA then you are laying a poor foundation for CCNP or any other Cisco Cert.

If it is not a "dump" and you "learn" the questions you take a chance on seeing something like it on the real exam and missing it - YOU HAVE GOT TO UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPTS LIKE THE BACK OF YOUR HAND!!!!!

Take a practice test and see what you still don't know and crack the books and fire up the lab and just do it !!!!!

If you have not used/read the Sybex CCNA Study Guide by Todd Lammel front to back and worked all the labs - that is where you should be right now - $30 on Amazon !!

Good luck and check out with the Cisco Learning Network your "study material/ practice exams" and avoid the dumps

E.A. Broda
CCNA, CCDA, CCAI, Network +

 

[Sniffer2112]

Thanks for the tip CiscoGuy. I do not think I have the Sybex Study Guide. I'll lok that up.

When I took the test I felt like I knew the material from doing my own studying. I used the CBTNuggets videos and my own practice lab. I was able to do all different setups and felt like I learned what I was doing. I think my downfall was not doing enough troubleshooting. When I was going for the ICND1, I had to set up my lab from scratch and did a lot of troubleshooting which helped.

Well I am off to look for more study materials. I'll be sure to avoid those "dump" options. I wasn't aware of those things so now I know to look out for them.

 

[Dinkytoy]

I recently passed the ccna exam and my advice is two fold.

First, you can't beat labs, doing and repeating and repeating and breaking. If you know someone with some decent cisco knowledge borrow them to break your lab for you then fix it yourself. Expect to get a large lab probably involving NAT in the exam. This was my weak point and I almost failed because of it. 20 minutes I wasted because I used an extended access list in my NAT lab rather than a simple then had to trouble shoot as it didn't work.

Secondly, practice tests avoid Test King. I used Measure up and Pass 4 Sure and only once I was satisfied I had the pracitals nailed. None of them simulate the sims properly anyway. Pass 4 Sure might be a dump though I had 2 questions word for word on the exam that I remembered from it (I got them right from day 1 and wouldn't have caused me to fail had I not anyway).

I did approx 7-8 practice tests all different question sets in the week leading to the exam (1-2 a day) with minimal overlap and it really is satisfying seeing the results improve. I didn't actually manage to pass a practice until the night before the exam which was scary.

Rebook the exam as soon as you can it'll give you focus to get the work done as well.

 

[DonMc67]

measureup is horrible imo.

I'm telling you... the majority of the explanations on the how2pass tests tell you what page of the cisco press books to look at...

not a dump

 

[jmc012]

Here's what certguard has to say about howtopass:
howtopass.com = Braindump

Guess thats why the questions look so similar.

 

[burtsbees]

Pass4sure=dump

How2Pass is not a dump. Have YOU ever looked into it? I have, and American Pie has it right---they EXPLAIN everything rather than give you screenshots.

/

tim@tim-laptop ~ $ sudo apt-get install windows
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
E: Couldn't find package windows...Thank Goodness!

 

[jmc012]

Burt
Yes, I did investigate it. I always check with

http://www.certguard.com/

before I sign up for any practice test since it is the best way to find out. That's what they had to say about it, not me. I was actually thinking about signing up until I looked in to it further.

 

[burtsbees]

The way I look at it, if you know the material but are not necessarily a great test taker (some people have a load of "common sense", aka "street knowledge", if you will, and can configure the you-know-what out of a router but cannot pass the test), there is nothing wrong with practice questions. I am one of those people, actually. I can read a book and get it, and I know my stuff (sort of) when it comes to Cisco, but I am not the best test taker. I can go through any interview and pass their tests after the HR interview---ask Cluebird or CiscoGuy about what sort of interviews I am talking about.

How2Pass has questions that are similar to the actual test, I admit, but they have a forum to ask questions about the material and in order to pass their test, you have to know your stuff. Get around a 90% on their test, and you're good to go. Some organizations require their employees to be certified (for example, to obtain a partnership level with Cisco to be an actual reseller and support entity). I know CCIE's who can't tell you why it is a bad idea to plug a new switch into a network with STP configured without checking the revision and STP mode, yet they can configure the hell out of AppleTalk and Token Ring. I also know people that have no certs that can design multiple 6509 switch topologies according to Cisco recommendations, and can run circles around certain IE's. It is about 80% of what you know, and 20% of what cert(s) you have.

There are also people with certs that have labs they use daily, but have little professional experience...

/

tim@tim-laptop ~ $ sudo apt-get install windows
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
E: Couldn't find package windows...Thank Goodness!

 

[burtsbees]

BTW, the number one reason people (most) don't pass?

TIME!!!

They can learn and know material, but it may take them over the minute and a half to read and comprehend Cisco's "special" way of asking questions. Then they get to the sims and have no time left. I fatfinger just about everything I type, so I need time enough to do the sims myself...lol\

/

tim@tim-laptop ~ $ sudo apt-get install windows
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
E: Couldn't find package windows...Thank Goodness!

 

[Sniffer2112]

Glad to hear that Burtsbees. I had like 2 minutes left with 6 questions. So I quickly glanced over the last few questions and gave it my random guess answer. And I agree, having to read and comprehend their questions was not so easy. Plus having to trouble shoot their scenario took time as well.

I'll admit though, there were questions that I did study for but forgot the answer, but mostly it was reading the question and going through their network scenario. It's back to the lab I go!!

-Todd-
CCENT, A+

**Mathmatics affects 7 out 5 people each day**

 

[lerdalt]

I'm with Burt, put me on the gear, and I can definitely get around, but put me in a paper test, and I do nothing but struggle. I always thought if there were more sims (not those stupid little testlets, but actual sims) I'd score far better on every test.

Time does always seem to be a top issue when taking the tests. At one point, I started looking into one of those speed reading courses to try and not only help my study time, but the test taking itself.

 

[SteveTheGeek]

Along those lines, I have a couple (relatively) quick questions:
Do 'wr' and the ? work on the exam practical sections?

And, I've had the Lammle book for a while and am fairly familiar with the material in it now. A friend just gave me the CiscoPress ICND2 book. There's definitely more depth in several areas in that book (the example that comes to mind immediately is multi-area OSPF, the Lammle book just covers single-area) - is the CiscoPress material overkill, or does the Lammle book skim occasionally?

 

[jmc012]

I think Cisco like's #copy run start so I never tried #wr. I believe the ? works, but I was going so fast I never bothered to try it.

I found ICND2 easier than ICND1, the Cisco Press book goes into a lot more detail than you need to pass the test. Although if you have all the details down the test will seem easy. As far as I know the test just covers single area OSPF.

I read both of the ICND1 and 2 books, sometimes the details get to be too much. I really like Chris Bryant's CCNA study guide, I think he nails it on what you need to know. It's definitely worth the money.
Good Luck

 

[SteveTheGeek]

Thanks jmc, that's good to know. I'm taking the ICND2 test tomorrow, having taken the weeklong class several months ago and having the CiscoPress ICND2 book and the Lammle book (along with PacketTracer and a couple old routers at work to mess with). My biggest problem at this point is not having any very good practice tests. The Lammle book has four of them, but they are about 80% ICND1 (among each 60-some questions there are maybe two or three on OSPF/EIGRP, and a half-dozen on the OSI model). The CiscoPress book has one but as it is a loaner it (being an internet download) is already registered to someone else. I can't see spending nearly as much money to buy practice exams as I'm spending on the exam itself. On the other hand, I'm fairly good at taking exams, so I'm hoping that the wager pans out.

 

[jmc012]

Steve
I wouldn't worry about practice test's, as long as you know the material. I didn't use them for the ICND2, I decided just to study for 6 months and give it a try. I came out of the test center thinking that test was easy. Probably just because I studied the material over and over again until it burned in my brain. When I left the center for ICND1 I didn't think that test was easy. It should be the other way around. Good Luck, let us know how it goes.

 

[SteveTheGeek]

wr" doesn't work (it actually says so when you try it, fortunately) and the ? does work. And yeah, I passed (958) with a reaction similar to yours - the ICND1 exam felt more difficult to me than the ICND2. I now understand why people praise the Lammle book so much, too.