Customer Reviews

Cisco Secure Virtual Private Networks

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I get the sense that this book was published one draft too early. I would be embarassed to have my name as editor stamped on the cover. The book utilizes a Step 1, Step 2, Step 3, etc. structure and this fits the subject matter well. However, IOS router and PIX IPSEC/IKE configurations are similar and in the chapters detailing these subjects the layout in areas takes on a "cut and paste" feel ( Ex: cut pg 108-110, paste pg 186-188 ). In this case it leads to a glaring error. Chapter 7, PIX firewall for CA Site-to-Site, pg 186 "The PIX Firewall supports either preshared keys, RSA encrypted nonces....."
Oops. I'm almost sure the PIX DOESN'T support nonces. It is obvious that this was a cut, paste then edit oversight.

Chapter 4, explaining IOS Router for CA Site-to-Site, starts out with an example of two routers (RouterA, RouterB ) and a CA server but on Step 6 mystery router R1 makes an appearance. At this point the subject matter becomes confusing, examples of output from R1 are shown, is this router really RouterA? I'm not sure if we're using general keys or specialkeys? You flip back and forth through the chapters pages trying to overcome the confusion. Eventually you glean enough, ignoring the inconsistancies and move on.

The screen snap shots in the later chapters are of poor quality ( blurry ).

So, buyer beware. There are other errors but these annoyed me the most.

Presumably you would consider buying this book to help you pass the CSVPN test as I did. A good part of this material is available on CCO but it is fragmented among many separate documents. The one redeaming quality of this book is that it condenses that material into a portable, organized book form and , like or dislike, leaves out material that is not likely to be on the test.

I agree the comment from the reviewer:dason4500. In addition, I want to point out that 70% of the content in this book are from MCNS. The remaining 30 % are two chapters mentioning about VPN3000. If you are preparing for CCIE Security, please consider MCNS as VPN3000 is not on the equipment list in the exam.

Hi guys, I have completed this book. Plan to appear for exam soon. Unable to find any free prep questions online. Do you know of any prep site to practice. Also appreciate some tips for this exam. Your early response is awaited. Thanks - Sarah

Please, please do not waste your money on this book. The book has errors every other page, the lack of overviews and general depth do not leave you in a position to truly implement these product lines, and I was forced on a number of occasions (see Chapter 9 for an example; configuring the 3000 concentrator) to question the editors' understanding of the technology. I purchase technical books monthly, and have bought Cisco Press on a number of occasions, including the MCNS coursebooks. This was the first time ever that I felt so disappointed that I felt compelled to write the Publisher, and certainly comment publically. Please consider other alternatives.

Please, please do not waste your money on this book. The book has errors every other page, the lack of overviews and general depth do not leave you in a position to truly implement these product lines, and I was forced on a number of occasions (see Chapter 9 for an example; configuring the 3000 concentrator) to question the editors' understanding of the technology. I purchase technical books monthly, and have bought Cisco Press on a number of occasions, including the MCNS coursebooks. This was the first time ever that I felt so ripped off that I felt compelled to write the Publisher, and certainly comment publically. Please consider other alternatives.

With the first chapter, providing an overview of VPNs and IPSec, and with the following
ones, showing detailed examples, I have improved my skills in managing IPSec and VPN. Now
I can also be able to configure VPNs with IPSec between routers and concentrators.
I have found lots of useful information and clear examples
to work on IPSec with X509 and with some CAs.
I am a Cisco VPN Concentrator manager and this book provides
the right tools to work with it. With this book you will get
a good introduction to the world of Cisco network security.

I read this book before I saw the reviews on this site. I must say that the book is excellent. It covers the VPN technology overview in chapter 1 really good before going into the various configuration chapters. As a security engineer going through their CSS1, this book is invaluable and about the best IPSec resource on the market.

Buy it!

With the first chapter, providing an overview of VPNs and IPSec, and with the following ones, showing detailed examples, I have improved my skills in managing IPSec and VPN. Now I can also be able to configure VPNs with IPSec between routers and concentrators.
I have found lots of useful information and clear examples to work on IPSec with X509 and with some CAs. I am a Cisco VPN Concentrator manager and this book provides the right tools to work with it. With this book you will get a good introduction to the world of Cisco network security.

Enrico Becchetti
System & Network Manager

I found this book to be useful for simply learning the commands to troubleshoot and setup a VPN on a PIX firewall. It was basr bones and dry (as are most vender sanctioned books are). It was lacking in detailed and real world examples. It tells you the commands for troubleshooting ipsec or isakmp, but does not really give you a lot of good information on deciphering the output of these commands.
If you simply need to know the commands and how-to of setting up a VPN, then this should work ok.

Note: My review was based of of the PIX sections of the book only.

As a new VPN learner, I found the first few chapters very helpful, especially introduction to the techonolgy. However, as the chapters go into more details, I am confused by the layout and mistakes between the configuration steps and figures. This causes more confusion for new learner. For example, how do you have a 92.168.0.2 and a 192.168.0.3 in the same subnet? You can't because it's supposed to be 192.168.0.2. There are a lot of errors in this book. In addition, the book is very dry to read. You might get more from going to Cisco website.