CCNA is one of the top paying IT certifications, a Cisco certified network associate with most valuable routing and switching knowledge. I have collect the step by step guides of CCNA articles in this post, named Packet Tracer CCNA Practical Labs for those who are new in CCNA.

The best way to learn about networking is to do it. Hands-on equipment gets students started, but is limited to the number of devices in the lab. That’s why the Cisco Networking Academy curriculum includes Cisco Packet Tracer, an innovative network configuration simulation tool used for teaching, gaming, and assessment. Cisco Packet tracer is a network simulator software for CCNA exams preparation. This simulation software will help you quickly create a lab and start configuring like a real Cisco devices. It support most routing, switching, wireless, and basic firewall devices with latest IOS.

Cisco Packet Tracer CCNA Practical Labs

The labs are downloadable with step by step configuration guide. To practice and test this labs, you need to have Cisco packet tracer installed on your computer.

1. Configure Static Routing in Packet Tracer

Troubleshoot and Resolve Network Issues.pka. (49k) dylan vensel. Download packet tracer 8.0.0 labs designed for Cisco CCENT, CCNA v7 and CCNP Enterprise certification exams preparation. Practice switching, IP routing, WAN and security labs with ASA 5506-X or ISR routers. Learn network troubleshooting skills on a large range of Cisco simulated network devices. Packet Tracer Download. At the beginning, as a network engineer I have remembered that I was searching as “packet tracer dowload free”, “cisco packet tracer download free” etc. I am sure that you did this also. But downloading it is not difficult. It is free and you can download it here. After download, you can easily install this.

• A complete guides to configure static routing that network administrator need to configure the network routers manually instead of using routing protocols, RIP or OSPF. The benefits of static routing is minimum bandwidth usage, no overhead on router CPU and many more and perfect for small network with a few routers. But it is not without cons. Difficult to configure all routers manually in the large network and troubleshooting is always harder than configuration.

2. How to Configure Routing Information Protocol (RIP)

• This is about how to configure Routing Information Protocol (RIP) on the Cisco Routers. The RIP is one of the oldest distance-vector routing protocols and work perfectly with IPv4. The next generation of routing information protocol for IPv6 is know as RIPng (RIP next generation). So in this article we are going to test the RIP with IPv4.

3. How to Configure OSPF Routing Protocol

• Configuration of OSPFrouting protocol is easy as RIP Routing. The Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) is a routing protocol for wide area networks and enterprise network. OSPF is perhaps the most widely used interior gateway protocol (IGP) in large enterprise networks. The IS-IS, is another link-state dynamic routing protocol, which is more common in large service provider networks. The most widely used exterior gateway protocol is the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), the principal routing protocol between autonomous systems on the Internet.

4. How to Configure DHCP on Cisco Router?

• Configure DHCP on Cisco Router. The last week we had send a topic about installation and configuration of DHCP Server in Windows Server 2012 R2. We have introduced the DHCP Server and told the necessary services and network protocols requirement. If you don’t know the basic of DHCP Server? you must read the article first.

5. How to Configure Standard Access List On Cisco Router?

• The Standard Access List (ACL) on Cisco router works to permit or deny the entire network protocols of a host from being distinguishing. These decisions are all based on source IP address which filter network traffic by examining the source IP address in a packet. We can create the standard IP access list by using the access-list command with numbers 1 to 99 or in the expanded range of 1300 to 1999.

6. Configure VLAN on Cisco Switches Using Cisco Packet Tracer

• Configuring VLAN or Virtual Local area network on Cisco Switches is a most important subject of CCNA exam. A VLAN is a switched network that is logically segmented by function, project team, or application, without regard to the physical locations of the users. VLANs have the same attributes as physical LANs, but you can group computers even if they are not physically located on the same LAN segment. Any switch port can belong to a VLAN, and unicast, broadcast, and multicast packets are forwarded and flooded only to end stations in the VLAN. Each VLAN is considered a logical network, and packets destined for stations that do not belong to the VLAN must be forwarded through a router or bridge or layer 3 switches. Because a VLAN is considered a separate logical network.

7. Configure Inter VLAN Routing on a Cisco Router and Layer 3 Switches

• This is another Packet Tracer CCNA Practical Labs about how to configure Inter VLAN Routing on the Cisco router or layer 3 switches? Basically on a VLAN no host can communicate with hosts within other VLANs. It means only hosts that are members of the same VLAN can communicate with each other. So if you want your VLANs hosts can communicate with each others, you must configure inter VLAN routing using a router or a layer 3 switch. Here we completely show you the Inter-VLAN configuration using a Cisco router and a layer 3 switch.

8. How to Enable Telnet and SSH on Cisco Router and Switches?

• This article focus on configuring and enabling telnet and ssh on Cisco routers and switches. The Telnet is an old and non secure application protocol of remote control services. You can configure telnet on all Cisco switches and routers with the following step by step guides. But it’s not the best way on the wide area network. However we just going to enable telnet and ssh to test them for CCNA Certification exams.

9. Configure SNMP Protocol on Cisco Packet Tracer?

• Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) is used for network monitoring and management. It is made up of 3 parts, the SNMP manager, SNMP agent and Management Information Base (MIB). In Packet Tracer there is not a lot you can actually do with SNMP but it is possible to set up a router or switch as an SNMP agent and use a PC or laptop as an MIB browser. So although you can’t set SNMP traps or informs it is still a valuable learning tool to show the sort of information that can be retrieved and even a few things that can be set on an SNMP agent.

10. Configure Frame Relay In Cisco Router Using Packet Tracer

• Frame relay is a packet-switching protocol for connecting devices on a Wide Area Network (WAN). Here we are going to show you, how to configure Frame relay in Cisco routers using Cisco Packet Tracker. The Frame relay originally designed for transport across Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) infrastructure, it may be used today in the context of many other network interfaces. Read more about Frame relay on Wikipedia.

Cisco Packet Tracer Application

It’s not all, we will updates this post with fresh new articles related to CCNA as Packet Tracer CCNA Practical Labs.

If you have any questions about Packet Tracer CCNA Practical Labs post, feel free to ask and suggest us about how we can improve out topic and site services. So wish you success and all the best for achieving your CCNA certification.

Network simulators are one of the key ingredients of training for the CCNA. There are few network simulators as widely used as Cisco Packet Tracer. Packet Tracer has been a staple tool of CCNA students ever since it was released. With Packet Tracer, you can imitative a live networking environment.

For instance, the user can design and interact with network topologies comprised of Cisco devices. Through building networks and “troubleshooting” on Packet Tracer users can start to build their knowledge of networking before working on a live network. There are also a range of tutorials, tips and help topics to help users learn the basics of the OSI model.

If you’re preparing to take the CCNA, then Packet Tracer will help you to take that first step towards “hands on” experience. Configuring routers and switches will be just some of the skills that you learn when using the program. In this article we’re going to look at what Packet Tracer is and how you can use it to configure a router.

Why Do I Need to Use Packet Tracer?

Completing Practice Labs and Preparing for Cisco Certification

Packet Tracer is an important tool because it is an essential part of preparing for networking exams like the CCNA. Cisco certifications like the CCNA require candidates to complete practice labs, virtual environments that imitate a live networking environment.

Tools like Packet tracer are used for practice labs and help students to take their book learning and apply it to a real-time environment. Being able to design networks with topology elements like nodes, routers and cables teaches the user how networks are made.

Having the technical expertise to construct and maintain networks in a virtual environment is essential for passing the exam. The more practice you have on network simulators like Packet Tracer, the greater the chance of achieving certification.

Network Design

Packet Tracer is used by some network administrators to design networks. Creating topology guides with a tool like packet tracer is preferable to using pen and paper because you can add and remove new features without having to scribbe anything out and start from scratch!

Testing Out Changes in a Safe Environment

Cisco Packet Tracer is also used by professional network administrators for testing network changes. Before changing a network the user can try out new topology changes to see if everything works correctly. If there aren’t any hiccups then the changes can be deployed in a live network.

How to Download Cisco Packet Tracer

One of the biggest advantages of Cisco Packet Tracer is that it is a free tool. However, it is only available to members off the Cisco Networking academy (updates can also be accessed via the Cisco.Netacad.net login portal). As a result if you want to download Packet Tracer you will need to enroll in one of their courses. Once you’ve done that you’ll need to take the following steps:

• Click ‘Enroll to Download Packet Tracer’
• Enroll in the Introduction to Packet Tracer course
• Finish registration for the Networking Academy registration
• Start the Introduction to Packet Tracer courser
• Follow the download instructions

Packet Tracer can be downloaded via Windows and Linux. More information can be found via this link here. Once you’ve downloaded Packet Tracer, follow the setup wizard instructions to complete the installation.

What if I’m Not Part of the Cisco Networking Academy?

As mentioned above you can either sign up for a course, look for another means of downloading packet tracer or use another alternative tool. There are a number of other alternative network simulation tools that provide a similar service. At the end of this article we’re going to look at some of the best alternatives to packet tracer you can use instead.

Configure a Router with Packet Tracer

Once you’ve installed Packet Tracer, one of the first things you’re going to want to learn is how to configure a router. However before you start doing that, take 30 minutes to become familiar with the user interface and the various elements you can add to the topological canvas.

To begin configuring your router open Packet Tracer and select the router from the bottom left-hand corner. Drag the router into the centre of the canvas.

Next we’re going to set up a basic network that allows two computers to communicate with each other. Now you need to select end devices from the bottom left-hand corner and drag the PC icon into the main canvas. Add two computers and position them below the router on the canvas.

At this point, we’re going to connect the devices with cables. To connect routers and computers together you need to use a crossover cable. Select connections from the bottom left-hand corner, then go to the second second menu from the right at the bottom of the screen and select copper cross-over cable. Now click on Router0 and connect the cable via FastEthernet0/0:

Once you’ve done this, click PC0 and select FastEthernet. A link will be established between the two devices. However, the link isn’t functional yet. You can see this clearly from the red dots on each side of the cable. Once the connection is established successfully the red dots will turn green to show the communication is successful.

Now link PC1 and connect the cable to FastEthernet0/1 (Don’t try to use FastEthernet0/0 because it is already being used by PC0. Your network should look like the following image:

Cisco Packet Tracer Download Software

Configuring the Router

At this point, the router still needs be turned on. To setup the router, click on the router icon so that the configuration menu is raised. Here you will need to verify that the router is turned on. If the router is on there will be a small green light below the switch:

The next step is to open Ethernet ports to allow communication. Currently they are physically connected by inactive in a state referred to as administrative shut down. Click on the CLI tab to raise the configuration menu. The configuration menu acts the same as Cisco IOS:

1. Press RETURN to start the session
2. Type enable to activate privileged mode (this gives you more options in configuring the router)
3. Type config terminal (or config t for short) to access the configuration menu.
4. Type interface fastethernet0/0 to access Ethernet0/0.
5. Type IP address 192.168.10.1255.255.255.0 to assign an IP address and subnet mask to the interface.
6. Type no shutdown to finish.

After following these steps, you should see the following message:

%LINK-5-CHANGED: Interface FastEthernet0/0, changed state to up

%LINEPROTO-5-UPDOWN: Line protocol on Interface FastEthernet0/0, changed state to up

Now we have to repeat the process for fastethernet0/1 to activate the connection to PC1. Remember to enter a different IP address!

1. Press Ctrl + Z to go back to the previous mode
2. Type interface fastethernet0/1
3. Type IP address 192.168.20.1 255.255.255.0
4. Type no shutdown

Once you have completed these steps, the router is configured! However, if you run a ping test you will find that the computers don’t communicate.

Configure the Gateway In Packet Tracer

The final step is to configure the gateway on each desktop computer. The gateway is the address assigned to the Ethernet port that the desktop is connected to. The gateway allows the computer to interface with another network, and ping tests won’t work without it!

Click on PC0 to view the configuration menu. Go to global sendings and find the gateway field. In the gateway field, enter the IP address of the router’s interface, which is 192.168.10.1.

Next click the FastEthernet tab in the left-hand column to set the computer’s IP address on the network. Enter 192.168.10.2 for the IP address and 255.255.255.0 for the subnet mask.

Repeat the process for PC1 but use 192.168.20.1 for the gateway address, 192.168.20.2 for the IP address, and 255.255.255.0 for the subnet mask.

To confirm that the network works you can send packets from PC0 to PC1 and PC1 to PC0. To do this you need to click the packet icon (the envelope icon) from the menu on the right hand side of the screen:

Now click on PC0 and PC1. At the bottom right hand of the screen you should see a message box that says “Successful”. If the connection isn’t a success double check the IP address or router configuration commands you entered earlier. Syntax errors can often cause connections to fail.

Once you’ve complete all these steps, you will have a functional network. While this is a limited topology with two computers and enterprise networks are considerably more complex, this will help to teach you some basic principles that you can take with you when managing larger networks.

Alternatives to Packet Tracer

There are a number of competitors to Packet Tracer that are worth considering. The three main competitors are: Boson’s Netsim, Dynamips and GNS3.

Boson’s Netsim

Cisco Packet Tracer Sample Network Downloads

Netsim is the only one of these alternatives that isn’t open source. NetSim is designed specifically for Cisco Certification training, with topology creation and the ability to share labs and topologies with the NetSim community. The price of Netsim varies depending on the package you want. In total there are three packages available to purchase;

Cisco Packet Tracer Sample Network Download Windows 7

• NetSim for CCENT $99 Single User License with 98 CCENT Labs
• NetSim for CCNA $179 Single user License 98 CCENT Labs and 73 CCNA Labs
• NetSim for CCNP $349 Single User license 98 CCENT Labs, 73 CCNA Labs, 145 CCNLP labs

You can view more information on the pricing options of NetSim via this link here.

Dynamips

Dynamips is a network simulation program that was designed specifically to help imitate Cisco devices. Dynamips is available for Windows, Mac OS and Linux. You can download it for free via this link here.

GNS3

GNS3 or Graphical Network Simulator is another network simulation tool that can be used to prepare for Cisco certifications. GNS3 is open sourced and available for Windows, Mac and Linux. GNS3 can be downloaded for free via this link here.

Packet Tracer: A Rite of Passage

Packet Tracer can be difficult to get used to when you’re starting out. While it may seem simple to add new topology elements if your networking knowledge is lacking then you’re going to have a steep learning curve. The more time you spend on Packet Tracer the more fluent you will become with running network simulations and troubleshooting.

Becoming familiar with a tool like Packet Tracer is an important intermediary step in preparing to monitor an enterprise-grade network. To many network administrators, Packet Tracer is a rite of passage. Learning how to configure a router in Packet Tracer will put you on the road towards become a competent and battle-tested network administrator.