CCNP Certification Library (CCNP Self-Study 642-801, 642-811, 642-821, 642-831) (3rd Edition) (CCNP study guides) [Hardcover]

Clare Gough (Author), Amir Ranjbar (Author), David Hucaby (Author), Craig Dennis (Author), Brian Morgan (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1587201046 | ISBN-13: 978-1587201042 | Publication Date: December 12, 2003 | Edition: 3

Review and practice for the CCNP exams with the official Cisco Exam Certification Guides

Coverage of all four CCNP exams enables you to identify and fill your knowledge gaps before the exam date

• CCNP BSCI Exam Certification Guide, Third Edition, coverage includes advanced IP addressing concepts, routing principles, managing routing updates, and configuring EIGRP, OSPF, IS-IS, and basic BGP
• CCNP BCMSN Exam Certification Guide, Second Edition, coverage includes Spanning Tree Protocol, VLAN design and deployment, multicast networks, QoS solutions for voice networks, multilayer network design using the Enterprise Composite Model, and troubleshooting multilayer switched networks
• CCNP BCRAN Exam Certification Guide, Second Edition, coverage includes assembling and cabling WAN components, configuring asynchronous connections with modems, traffic control methods, scaling IP address with NAT and access control with AAA, and a DSL and VPN overview
• CCNP CIT Exam Certification Guide, Second Edition, coverage includes network information discovery and documentation, applying effective troubleshooting strategies, and isolating and correcting problems at the physical, data link, network, transport, and application layer

CCNP Certification Library, Third Edition, is a comprehensive review and practice self-study package for the four CCNP exams: BSCI, BCMSN, BCRAN, and CIT. The four books contained in this package, CCNP BSCI Exam Certification Guide, CCNP BCMSN Exam Certification Guide, CCNP BCRAN Exam Certification Guide, and CCNP CIT Exam Certification Guide, present complete reviews and ample opportunity to test your knowledge of CCNP exam topics. These authorized Cisco CCNP self-study guides are written by CCIE certified individuals and certified Cisco Systems instructors, bringing years of teaching and consulting experience together in an ideal test preparation format.

CCNP BSCI Exam Certification Guide, Third Edition, helps you evaluate your ability to build, manage, and optimize scalable, routed Cisco internetworks. This book covers all the topics on the CCNP BSCI exam 642-801, including OSPF, EIGRP, BGP, and IS-IS. CCNP BCMSN Exam Certification Guide, Second Edition, covers all the topics on the CCNP BCMSN exam 642-811 and helps you understand how to build networks using multilayer switching techniques and how to deploy a global intranet. CCNP BCRAN Exam Certification Guide, Second Edition, covers all the topics on the CCNP BCRAN exam 642-821 and tests your ability to configure, operate, and troubleshoot WAN and other remote access networks while maximizing bandwidth utilization over remote links. CCNP CIT Exam Certification Guide, Second Edition, covers all the topics on the CCNP CIT exam 642-831 and examines your ability to diagnose, isolate, and correct performance problems and failures in a converged network environment.

Every chapter in each Cisco Press Exam Certification Guide focuses your study and tests your knowledge of the subject through specially designed assessment features. "Do I Know This Already?" quizzes assess your knowledge and help you decide how much time you need to spend on each section. The detailed Foundation Topics sections review the exam topics you will need to master. Each chapter includes a Foundation Summary section full of tables and concise reviews for quick reference. Challenging chapter-ending review questions and scenario-based exercises test your knowledge of the subject matter, reinforce key concepts, and ensure that you understand how all the technologies work together in a real-world environment. Finally, each book's companion CD-ROM has a robust, customizable test engine with simulation-based question types that allows you to take practice exams that mimic the real testing environment. You can take a full sample exam, focus on particular topic areas, randomize answers for reusability, track your progress, examine your strengths and weaknesses, and refer to an electronic version of the book to review concepts.

CCNP Certification Library, Third Edition, is part of a recommended learning path from Cisco Systems that includes simulation and hands-on training from authorized Cisco Learning Partners and self-study products from Cisco Press. To find out more about instructor-led, e-learning, and hands-on instruction offered by authorized Cisco Learning Partners, please visit www.cisco.com/go/authorizedtraining.

4 Companion CD-ROMs
The four companion CD-ROMs contain test banks with a total of more than 800 practice questions, including simulation-based questions, and the full text in electronic format.

This library is in the Exam Certification Guide Series offered by Cisco Press. Books in this series provide officially developed exam preparation materials that offer assessment, review, and practice to help Cisco Career Certifications candidates identify weaknesses, concentrate their study efforts, and enhance their confidence as exam day nears.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Review and practice for the CCNP exams with the official Cisco Exam Certification Guides

Coverage of all four CCNP exams enables you to identify and fill your knowledge gaps before the exam date.

* CCNP BSCI Exam Certification Guide coverage includes extending IP addresses, routing principles, scalable routing protocols, managing traffic and access, and optimizing scalable internetworks.
* CCNP Switching Exam Certification Guide coverage includes campus network design, switch connectivity, defining common workgroups, trunking with ATM LANE, interVLAN routing, multilayer switching, HSRP, multicast networks, controlling access, and troubleshooting campus networks.
* CCNP Remote Access Exam Certification Guide coverage includes assembling and cabling WAN components, configuring asynchronous connections with modems, configuring PPP and controlling network access, using ISDN and DDR, configuring Cisco 700 series routers, establishing X.25 connections, managing Frame Relay connections and network performance, scaling IP address with NAT and access control with AAA, and a VPN overview.
* CCNP Support Exam Certification Guide coverage includes support resources, troubleshooting methods, identifying targets, Cisco troubleshooting tools, troubleshooting VLANs, and diagnosing and correcting campus TCP/IP, Novell networking, AppleTalk(r), Cisco Catalyst(r), Frame Relay, and ISDN BRI problems.

CCNP Certification Library is a comprehensive review and practice self-study package for the four CCNP exams: BSCI, Switching, Remote Access, and Support. The four books contained in this package, CCNP BSCI Exam Certification Guide, CCNP Switching Exam Certification Guide, CCNP Remote Access Exam Certification Guide, and CCNP Support Exam Certification Guide, present complete reviews and ample opportunity to test your knowledge of CCNP exam topics. These authorized Cisco CCNP self-study guides are written by CCIE(r) certified individuals and certified Cisco Systems instructors, bringing years of teaching and consulting experience together in an ideal test preparation format.

CCNP BSCI Exam Certification Guide helps you evaluate your ability to build, manage, and optimize scalable, routed Cisco internetworks. This book covers all the topics on the CCNP BSCI exam #640-901, including OSPF, EIGRP, and IS-IS. CCNP Switching Exam Certification Guide covers all the topics on the CCNP Switching exam #640-604 and helps you understand how to build campus networks using multilayer switching technologies and to manage campus network traffic. CCNP Remote Access Exam Certification Guide covers all the topics on the CCNP Remote Access exam #640-605 and tests your ability to build remote access networks to interconnect central sites to branch offices and home offices, control access to the central site, and maximize bandwidth utilization over remote links. CCNP Support Exam Certification Guide covers all the topics on the CCNP Support exam #640-606 and examines your ability to diagnose, isolate, and correct network failures and performance problems.

Every chapter in each Cisco Press Exam Certification Guide focuses your study and tests your knowledge of the subject through specially designed assessment features. "Do I Know This Already?" quizzes assess your knowledge and help you decide how much time you need to spend on each section. The detailed Foundation Topics sections review the exam topics you will need to master. Each chapter includes a Foundation Summary section full of tables and concise reviews for quick reference. Challenging chapter-ending review questions and scenario-based exercises test your knowledge of the subject matter, reinforce key concepts, and ensure that you understand how all the technologies work together in a real-world environment. Finally, each book's companion CD-ROM has a robust, customizable test engine that allows you to take practice exams that mimic the real testing environment. You can take a full sample exam, focus on particular topic areas, randomize answers for reusability, track your progress, examine your strengths and weaknesses, and refer to an electronic version of the book to review concepts.

CCNP Certification Library is part of a recommended learning path from Cisco Systems that can include simulation and hands-on training from authorized Cisco Learning Partners and self-study products from Cisco Press. To find out more about instructor-led, e-learning, and hands-on instruction offered by authorized Cisco Learning Partners, please visit cisco/go/authorizedtraining.

Companion CD-ROMs
The four companion CD-ROMs contain test banks with a total of more than 800 practice questions. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Clare Gough, CCIE No. 2829, is a certified Cisco Systems instructor and the author of three Cisco Press titles.

Dave Hucaby, CCIE No. 4594, is a networking professional in Lexington, KY, and is the author of three Cisco Press titles.

Brian Morgan,, CCIE No. 4865, is a certified Cisco Systems instructor and the author of one Cisco Press title.

Craig Dennis, CCDP, is an independent consultant and the author of one Cisco Press title.

Amir Ranjbar, CCIE No. 8669, is a certified Cisco Systems instructor for Global Knowledge and the author of one Cisco Press title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 2472 pages
• Publisher: Cisco Press; 3 edition (December 12, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1587201046
• ISBN-13: 978-1587201042
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 8 x 7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,947,493 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, February 17, 2004

By 

Rus Healy (Canadice, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: CCNP Certification Library (CCNP Self-Study 642-801, 642-811, 642-821, 642-831) (3rd Edition) (CCNP study guides) (Hardcover)

Once you have achieved the CCNA certification, your natural path points toward the Cisco Certified Network Professional certification. This title from Cisco Press is a set consisting of one book for each of the four exams specific to the CCNP certification. This set includes the following books:

--CCNP BSCI Exam Certification Guide, Third Edition, by Claire Gough
--CCNP BCMSN Exam Certification Guide, by David Hucaby
--CCNP BCRAN Exam Certification Guide, Second Edition, by Brian Morgan and Craig Dennis
--CCNP CIT Exam Certification Guide, Second Edition, by Amir S. Ranjbar

This set, covering diverse topics in significant detail, is an excellent CCNP preparation tool. The material in the books focuses on Cisco's published objectives for the CCNP exams, and covers them well. The longest and most unique book in this collection is the volume on routing (BSCI). It's structured to cover the objectives for the 642-801 exam using several tools common to all the books in the set-namely detailed but highly readable text, graphical, tabular, and router configuration examples, Q&A and "Do I Know This Already?" quizzes, and the bundled CDROM. The graphics are first-rate and illustrate key concepts clearly.

What sets the BSCI book apart from the others in the set, and other Cisco Press books I've read, is the series of lab exercises at the end of each chapter. The BSCI labs provide comprehensive scenarios that take in all the concepts taught in each chapter, in step-by-step form. Answers are provided following each example so that you can check your work. This book is particularly well-suited to self-study. This level of detail and the inclusion of labs is key, since in my opinion, the CCNP routing exam (642-801) is the most difficult one in all of Cisco's Professional-level certifications. It's appropriate that the routing book, at 950 pages, contains about a third of the pages of the entire set!

The labs in the routing book cover concepts that Cisco hits hard on the exam questions and simulations, including OSPF, BGP and IS-IS. You'll need a fair amount of Cisco equipment to do the lab work, but it's obtainable on-line and is worth the investment if you want to do well on the exams and really understand the topics. For a book of this size, the routing text is remarkably consistent and error-free. Although I found a few minor errors here and there, the book is well-suited to self-study-in part because it is so accurate. The overall structure and content of this book make it the strongest learning tool I've seen for the BSCI exam.

Although the other three books in the set don't include this comprehensive level of configuration exercises, they do provide some scenario-based material to reinforce concepts.

All the texts are good for instructor-led training, or as a text for web-based training. Although the other three books are all significantly shorter than the routing text, they share many of the excellent traits that makes this set such a strong preparation tool for the CCNP certification exams. I tried to use Exam Cram 2 texts in addition to this Cisco Press set while preparing for the BSCI and BCMSN exams, and quickly found that the Cisco Press set offers by far the clearest, most easily digested, error-free and relevant information.

Each book in this set comes with a CD that contains a high-quality practice exam engine (sourced by Boson), as well as the PDF text of the book and some sample material from other Cisco Press titles. I found the CDs very useful-especially the test engines, since a key part of studying for certification exams that are as difficult as Cisco's CCNP exams is assessing what you've learned and how well you can apply it. The self-tests include questions of each type that appear on the exams, including basic simulation-type questions that are probably best called scenarios; they don't have the look and feel of an actual router or switch interface during configuration, as the exams do. They do, however, show you clearly whether you understand the command syntax and topics being covered. The practice test questions are harder and less forgiving, overall, than what's on the exams. I found that if I could make 75% or better on the sample tests, my scores were significantly better on the CCNP exams.

The weakest book in this set is the CIT text, which sticks strictly to Cisco's published objectives for the exam. As such, it's a bit simplistic and doesn't exercise your mind much when it comes to troubleshooting for results-it's oriented toward procedure rather than outcome. The author lets you know to expect this going in, and I appreciated his honesty. The three scenarios offered at the end of the book are rather weak; I was hoping for substantial troubleshooting exercises. But all of the topics on the CIT exam are fully covered in this book.

The BCMSN and BCRAN books are both excellent long-term references, along with the BSCI text, and cover not only the core topics of the exams but also a lot of information useful to networking people after the exams are distant memories. This trait is the core strength of this set. The layout, graphics, quality writing and editing, and extra learning tools make for an outstanding value. Overall, I can't recommend this set highly enough. The highly motivated learner will find everything in this set that's needed to pass the CCNP exams. That said, however, it is important to have either professional experience, a set of readily available routers and switches, or both, to make it over the CCNP hurdles.

These books have a prominent place on my bookshelf at work and at home. I have two sets because I think the books are that good. Anyone interested in networking at the geek level of detail will be well-served by this set.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good value, good books, June 21, 2005

By 

Eric J. Wu (cambridge, ma USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: CCNP Certification Library (CCNP Self-Study 642-801, 642-811, 642-821, 642-831) (3rd Edition) (CCNP study guides) (Hardcover)

Overall, thought the BCMSN was best, then BSCI, then BCRAN, then CIT.


BCMSN is an excellent book, well written and comprehensive. It some nice practice scenarios at the end that are tough and really test your knowledge. Almost everything on the exam was in the book.


BCSI book is also excellent. There are nice practice scenarios at the end of each chapter that test your knowledge. It's a thick book (~900 pages!) and there were very few unpleasant surprises on the exam. Only quibble is that the ISIS chapters could've been easier to understand.


BCRAN is good, but there are a few holes. In particular, there are 2 topics that are woefully inadequate for the exam. Also, no practice scenarios.


CIT is definitely the weakest. It's the shortest book, unnecessarily IMO. It pretty much assumes that you remember all of the "show" and "debug" commands from the previous 3 tests (plus the CCNA) and doesn't really give any examples. The three practice scenarios (only 3 scenarios for a troubleshooting exam!!!) are so-so and there aren't enough of them. To pass the CIT, you definitely need supplmentary materials.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Everything You Need to Know, Updated to Current Tests, November 8, 2005

By 

John Matlock "Gunny" (Winnemucca, NV) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: CCNP Certification Library, 4th Edition, (Cisco Systems CCNP Self-Study) (Hardcover)

Cisco Press has re-issued the complete Certification Library in a Third Edition. These four books cover:
BSCI Exam 642-801
BCMSN Exam 642-811
BCRAN Exam 642-821
CIT Exam 642-831
which are the current versions of the exams as listed on Cisco's web site (November 8, 2005).

The set of four books contains updated copies of:
CCNP Self-Study CCNP CIT Exam Certification Guide
CCNP Self-Study CCNP BSCI Exam Certification Guide
CCNP Self-Study CCNP BCRAN Exam Certification Guide
CCNP Self-Study CCNP BCMSM Exam Certification Guide. It includes four companion CD-ROMs that contain test banks with a total of more than 800 practice questions.

Although this is a somewhat intimidating amount of material, buying it in a bundle like this gives you everything you need in one storage box and at a good cost savings over buying the books separately.