Re: 28781 - First and Final Try !!!!!

Good job mate, congrates.

On Fri, May 6, 2011 at 8:41 AM, Roy Waterman <roy.waterman_at_gmail.com> wrote:

> Great job Nadeem, and good write up!
>
> On 6 May 2011 10:29, Nadeem Rafi <nrafia_at_gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Hi GS!
> > I have attempted Mobile Lab in Riyadh on 1st May 2011 and by the grace of
> > God i successfully passed it. Here goes my story for this journey.....
> >
> > It was around 2000 that i first time came to know about Cisco, as one of
> > mine friend advised me to go in this particular field of networking. I
> > purchased "Todd Lammle" and read few chapters. At that time i was not
> able
> > to get any kind of help or further information and job nature became
> > Microsoft oriented. I was just able to study this stuff for 2-3 weeks and
> > then shifted completely to MS and abandoned Cisco.
> >
> > It was mid 2006 that i felt i am almost done with my present job track
> and
> > started looking into Cisco again. While searching for more info i just
> came
> > to know about "Darby Weaver" and his fascinating emails :). This guy
> > impress
> > me a lot and even i shot him few mails asking for few clarifications and
> > best recommended books. This guy helped me and later on even he offered
> me
> > his racks which i declined as i already have purchased a plenty of rack
> > time
> > from different vendors. I am really thankful Darby for your amazing
> emails
> > and initial support.
> >
> > Most amazing books for starting were Jeff Doyle's Routing TCP/IP, these
> > books gave ample knowledge and understanding.
> >
> > A major boost for CCIE prep was deciding to purchase INE end to end
> > program.
> > This helped a lot to put things on fast track. I really would like to say
> > big thanks to Anthony Sequeira for his outstanding support and always
> being
> > available when i need him. I would like to say big thanks to Kady Denis
> > also, she was always very supportive.
> >
> > I have worked with INE end to end program intensively and without
> > INE/Anthony's help it was not possible to achieve this number. They are
> > best
> > and massive. They cover almost every thing you can see on blue print and
> > mostly more than required. INE's only problem is that they feed you more
> > than you need to pass :) Their volume-1 is amazing and i have done it
> more
> > than 4 times end to end :) If some one can do volume-1 end to end, i am
> > sure
> > he will not fail the exam. This volume have every thing you need to pass
> > the
> > exam. If some one want to pass CCIE with extensive knowledge and have no
> > worries about time then INE is best suited for him. Only OLS will kill
> some
> > one with short time, these are around 150+ hours in depth lectures. I
> > watched them more than twice end to end and some selected lectures
> > periodically.
> >
> > I was lucky enough that i get connected with Narbik and he offered me his
> > two workbooks. These two volumes are master piece of its kind and no
> doubt
> > best in market. I have learned a lot from Narbik and his workbooks. His
> > workbooks are precise and to the point. Best thing about his workbook is
> > being super fast to perform them. These workbooks dont take a lot of
> time.
> > If my memory serve me well i can say i have finished his both volumes
> more
> > than 3 times end to end. Narbik You are simply Best.
> >
> > I would like to thank IPExpert team; Wayne, Tyson and Jeo Astrino. Wayne
> > has
> > offered me his end to end program along with boot camp. I would like to
> > admit IPExpert study guides and videos/audio guides are superb. This
> > material is to the point and concise. If some one want to do CCIE on fast
> > track then IPExpert is best suited for him. Joe and Tyson are always
> > available on skype for any kind of question you got. Their audio and
> video
> > classes are best. I would admit i have not worked extensively with
> > IPExpert program, but what ever i have studied from IPExpert it was
> proved
> > to be good. Once again Thanks IPExpert Team.
> >
> > As i was able to work with three vendors i would recommend every one of
> > these equally. Every one of them have some thing unique to offer. My
> advice
> > for any new CCIE aspirant is to take two vendors and this will help you
> to
> > clear your doubts more effectively. Second it will help to cover missing
> > points of one particular vendor's study program.
> >
> > This journey was not an easy one. I have to steal time from family and my
> > kids, even my 5 year old daughter was understanding that "baba" is doing
> > some thing important. When she wants to do some playing or going outside
> > she
> > would say, Baba when you are done with your studies and free then we will
> > go
> > play land. These moments were really heart breaking. I am really thankful
> > for my wife for being supportive and understanding, occasionally she got
> > frustrated with this non-stop marathon. But without her help and support
> > this journey was impossible. I am proud of her.... Thanks once again for
> > your sacrifices.
> > Most difficult part was when i developed signs of RSI. I was in terrible
> > pain and afraid of this to be a permanent issue. I shut off the studies
> > for
> > at least two months and it helped to overcome affectively along with some
> > other precautionary steps. Thanks God i dont have this issue today. I
> > would
> > like to thank all of mine friends who met during this journey and we
> learnt
> > a lot of things from each other.
> >
> > Lab:
> >
> > It was CCIE Mobile lab held in Riyadh 1st of May. I reached almost 1
> hours
> > earlier. we started lab around 9:10 after short introductory lecture
> > from proctor. TS part proved to be quite easy for me i never panic in
> this
> > part of lab although my first ticket took more than 20 minutes to be
> > solved,
> > and i was thinking it was most easiest ticket to attempt. Lab topology
> was
> > huge but very well documented. Almost every thing you need to know about
> it
> > was on diagram. Monitors were big enough to hold a lot of open session
> > screens, but i had strategy to open only those sessions which involve
> with
> > one particular Ticket. When i was done with that ticket i would close all
> > those sessions. I was able to verify 90% of tickets working as expected.
> > When i was done with TS section in 1:55 minutes. Over all experience with
> > TS
> > section was quite satisfying. Speed of the terminals was quite amazing.
> IOU
> > is really fast as compared to GNS.
> >
> > My advice for TS section, as it worked for me.
> >
> > I think candidate can start from any vendor's workbook to understand and
> > enhance his TS skills. Then he should create his own topology for 30-40
> > routers in Dynamips. He can try to put as many configs as possible and
> > then
> > break them, getting help from friends to break configs and don't let you
> > know, whats have been broken can make this whole process a lot more
> "fun",
> > and it helped me a lot.
> >
> > To solve issues, diagram in lab is very crucial, it has every thing you
> > need to understand the scenario. But plz dont waste time to understand in
> > depth whats going on, its not required to do so.
> > Time is very important factor to solve the lab, given 120 minutes for 10
> > tickets, if you stuck on any ticket it will give you a lot of stress
> while
> > solving other tickets. First try to solve tickets which you feel are easy
> > to
> > fix and then return to other tickets. Solving each ticket is not required
> > but at least 8 are must. TS is all about basic skills, not in dept or
> > gotcha/tricky commands. If you know basic skills, its more than enough to
> > pass TS.
> >
> > Try to increase the speed which can only be done through practice. This
> > practice will help you to make your plan to solve tickets in different
> > approaches, like top down approach, from down to upward or try to solve
> it
> > from middle. No single approach can help, and practice will give you what
> > all you need to work with TS. TS is best part of Lab which i liked and it
> > helped me a lot to understand things in quick and precise manner.
> >
> > Try to work with debug and show commands as much as possible, but don't
> > forget that there is no restriction to "do sh run". You just have to find
> a
> > proper equilibrium among sh run and other show/debug commands.
> >
> > These are just my recommendations and every one can have his own way of
> > doing stuff.
> >
> > Config Section:
> > Config section proved to be a real heart breaker for me. It was a very
> > lengthy lab, with lot of services and non-core stuff, and fun was that
> this
> > non-core was actually "core" of the lab. I struggled with this part, and
> at
> > least tried twice but it was not working. At one point i was thinking to
> > leave the lab after lunch but then i decided to leave this "non-core"
> topic
> > and finish other tasks. When i was done with my all other tasks i was
> left
> > with only 20-30 minutes. As a final try i checked again this "non-core"
> > task
> > and found some very silly mistakes, as soon as i rectified these mistake
> i
> > was up and routes were behaving as expected. At that point i was sure
> that
> > i
> > have nailed this big day. I have to consult doccd on few occasions and
> this
> > is only friend you can get in your lab, so be friend with it during your
> > prep time.
> >
> > If any thing is on Cisco Blue Print then its fair game, you can expect it
> > in
> > your lab. Even if you heard that this is just introductory stuff dont
> > believe, that stuff can be a "core" in your version of lab. If you have
> > some
> > thing in blue print do that stuff in depth.
> >
> > I have studied following books during this journey and these helped a
> > lot............May be i am missing some other books but....
> >
> > CCNP Self-Study BCMSN Official Exam Certification Guide, 4th Edition
> > CCNP BSCI Official Exam Certification Guide 4th Edition
> > CCNP ISCW Official Exam Certification Guide 1st Edition
> > CCNP ONT Quick Reference Sheets 2007
> > Cisco Press CCSP SNRS Exam Certification Guide 2nd Edition
> > Building Scalable Cisco Internetworks (BSCI) (Authorized Self-Study
> Guide)
> > (3rd Edition)
> >
> > KnowledgeNet - Cisco Multicast
> > KnowledgeNet - Cisco QoS
> > KnowledgeNet - Cisco MPLS
> >
> > CCIE Routing and Switching Exam certification guide 3rd
> > CCIE Routing and Switching Exam certification guide 4th
> > CCIE Routing and Switching Flash Cards (Sequeira and Wallace, ISBN#
> > 1587201291)
> > CCIE Routing and Switching Exam Quick Reference Sheets: Exam 350-001 v3.0
> > (Sequeira, ISBN #1-58705-337-3)
> >
> > Cisco LAN Switching (Clark, Hamilton, ISBN# 1578700949)
> > Cisco Press LAN Switching Fundamentals
> >
> > Routing TCP/IP, Volume II (CCIE Professional Development)Routing TCP/IP,
> > Volume I, Second Edition (Carroll, Doyle, ISBN# 1587052024)
> > Routing TCP/IP, Volume II (CCIE Professional Development) (Doyle, DeHaven
> > Carroll, ISBN# 1578700892)
> >
> > Cisco OSPF Command and Configuration Handbook (Parkhurst, ISBN#
> 1587050714)
> >
> > Cisco Press Configuring BGP StudentGuide Vol.1
> > Cisco Press Configuring BGP StudentGuide Vol.2
> > Internet Routing Architectures, Second Edition (Sam Halabi, ISBN#
> > 15787050862)
> > Cisco BGP-4 Command and Configuration Handbook (Parkhurst, ISBN#
> > 158705017X)
> >
> > MPLS Fundamentals
> > Cisco Press MPLS Configuration on Cisco IOS Software
> >
> > Developing IP Multicast Networks, Volume I (Beau Williamson, ISBN#
> > 1578700779)
> >
> > Cisco QOS Exam Certification Guide (IP Telephony Self-Study) (2nd
> Edition)
> >
> > Best Regards,
> >
> > Nadeem Rafi
> > R&S # 28781
> >
> >
> > Blogs and organic groups at http://www.ccie.net
> >
> > _______________________________________________________________________
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> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
>
> --
> Regards
> Roy
>
>
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>
> _______________________________________________________________________
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>

-- 
*Narbik Kocharians
*CCSI#30832, CCIE# 12410 (R&S, SP, Security)
www.MicronicsTraining.com <http://www.micronicstraining.com/>
Sr. Technical Instructor
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