If you are thinking about learning Cisco networking, you’ll need to get practice on Cisco routers and switches. To practice, most of us build a home lab that we can use to build topologies and configure our network devices. If you are interested in becoming CCNA certified, you probably have no idea what equipment you should buy to study, so in this lesson, I want to help you by explaining your options to build a home lab.
To practice everything in CCNA, you will need some routers and switches. There are three options:
- Real hardware
- Emulator
- Simulator
There are pros and cons to each option. We’ll go through these.
For a detailed explanation about home labs that goes into more detail than a CCNA home lab, check out the How to build a network home lab lesson.
Real Hardware
If you are new to networking and/or Cisco and have never worked with their routers/switches before, buying some real hardware might be a good idea. You’ll have to figure out:
- What to buy
- How much flash memory you need.
- How much RAM you need.
- What software to use.
- If you need any licenses or not.
- Whether it supports all protocols you need to know for CCNA.
- How to cable everything.
This might sound time-consuming and painful. Honestly, it is, in a way. Time spent figuring out what to buy can’t be spent on actual studying. However, this time isn’t completely wasted because learning what hardware to pick is a useful thing to learn. You’ll run into this sooner or later in your career. Also, passing CCNA and applying for a job without ever seeing a Cisco device might raise some eyebrows. Keep in mind that most routers and switches are designed to run in a data center or server room. They can be noisy, so it’s not ideal to put them next to your computer.
For CCNA, you need routers and switches. To make it simple, I’ll provide an overview of different switches and routers you can use and what to be aware of. Without going into too much detail for now, you’ll know what to buy and avoid.
If you have any questions about a specific model, let us know, and we’ll update this list.
If you buy routers or switches, you might have to upgrade the IOS image so it supports all features. Cisco IOS routers and switches don’t enforce the license with activation, so doing this afterward is no problem.
To get an idea of fair prices, eBay is usually a good option.
Switches
Let’s start with the switches. For most switches, it doesn’t matter whether you buy the 8, 24, or 48-port model. You don’t need many ports for CCNA. A switch with only 8 ports is usually quieter because it draws less power, and some of them are fanless. Also, it doesn’t matter much if you have FastEthernet, Gigabit, or 10 Gigabit interfaces. If you want to learn VoIP or wireless networking in the future, you might want to look for a switch that supports Power over Ethernet (PoE). This lets you power an IP phone or wireless access point (AP) from the switch with only a network cable.
Cisco Catalyst 2950
This is an old layer two switch, which means it can do switching, but it can’t do routing. We need this if you want to use your switch as a router. If you are on a budget, you can still use these switches to practice 90% of the CCNA topics. I would not advise getting these unless you can get them for free.
Cisco Catalyst 2960
Similar to the 2950 but newer. This switch is decent for CCNA but if you plan to study CCNP later, I would recommend buying something else.
Cisco Catalyst 3550
The 3550 does everything the 2950 can do, but it also supports routing. It’s also an old switch, but like the 2950, you can still practice 90% of the CCNA commands. I wouldn’t recommend getting this unless you can get it for free.
Cisco Catalyst 3560
This is an upgrade from the 3550 which supports some extra commands. This is an old switch like the 2950 and 3550. You could use this switch for CCNA, but I would still recommend getting something newer.
Cisco Catalyst 3650
The Cisco 3650 is a newer model than the 3560. Similar to the 3560. This is a good switch that you can use for both CCNA and CCNP.
Cisco Catalyst 3750
This switch is similar to the 3560. Depending on the exact model it is quite old but still sufficient for CCNA and CCNP.
Cisco Catalyst 3850
This switch is similar to the 3750. It would be overkill for CCNA, but it’s a good investment if you can get one cheap. It’s more suitable for CCNP and CCIE.
Cisco Catalyst 9200
These switches run Cisco IOS-XE and are currently being used in production networks. Great switches, but expensive and overkill.
Cisco Nexus switches
The Cisco nexus switches run a different operating system (NX-OS) which is not on the CCNA exam. Don’t buy these.
Routers
Let’s talk about the different routers.
Cisco 800 series
The 800 series are smaller routers normally used for small branch sites or home users. I don’t recommend buying these for a home lab.
Cisco 1800 series
The 1800 series is a small router that supports most commands for CCNA. It’s an older router, end-of-life, and end-of-support. This means Cisco doesn’t offer any software downloads for it anymore.
There are four different models:
- 1811
- 1822
- 1841
- 1861
This router has two FastEthernet interfaces and two slot modules (called WICs) that can be used to insert various interfaces, including serial interfaces. The 1861 router has one slot module and is pricier than the 1841 router.
The 1811 and 1822 only have two FastEthernet interfaces. Just keep in mind that you can’t use serial interfaces, which are required to test some WAN protocols, or connect analog phones to your router when you want to play with VoIP.
You can practice most of the CCNA commands, but not everything. I recommend getting these only if you can get them for free.
Cisco 1900 series
This is the successor of the 1800 series. It’s end-of-life, but the latest IOS software contains everything you need for CCNA.
Cisco 2800 series
The 2800 series has one advantage over the 1800 series, which is that it’s a rack model. If you plan to buy a small server rack, you can easily mount these but don’t forget to check if they come with rack mount brackets.
One disadvantage of this router is that it’s noisy. It produces far more noise than the 1800 series, so if you plan to buy these routers and sit next to them, I would look for the 1841 router instead. There are different models: 2801, 2811, 2821, and 2851.
You can practice most of the CCNA commands, but not everything. I recommend getting these only if you can get them for free.
Cisco 2900 series
The successor of the 2800 series. These are very affordable and great for both CCNA and CCNP. I can recommend these.
Cisco 4000 series
These great routers support everything for CCNA, CCNP, or CCIE. You have to be aware of the clock signal bug, though. The Intel Atom C2000 CPUs have a clock signal problem that causes devices to brick. It’s possible that you buy a router that works until it suddenly won’t boot anymore. Before you buy one of these, check the serial number in the Cisco Serial Number Validation Tool. This will tell you whether the device is affected or not. If so, find another one.
Flash Memory and RAM
Routers come with flash memory and RAM. The flash memory stores the operating system (Cisco IOS or IOS XE). The RAM is required to run the OS and its processes. You want to ensure the router has enough flash memory and RAM to store and run the OS.
This can be a problem for older routers. On newer routers, you usually have more than enough flash storage and RAM. It is possible to upgrade both, but it’s easier to buy a router that already has enough RAM and flash memory.