Put Yourself to the Test | CCSP CSI Exam Cram 2 (Exam Cram 642-541)

The following series of questions and observations is designed to help you figure out how much work you'll face in pursuing the CCSP certification and what kinds of resources you can consult along the way. Be absolutely honest in your answers, or you'll end up wasting money on exams you're not ready to take. There are no right or wrong answersonly steps along the path to certification. Only you can decide where you really belong in the broad range of aspiring candidates.

Two things should be clear from the outset, however:

Even a modest background in networking will be helpful.
Hands-on experience with Cisco equipment might not be required, but it will make a big difference; if you just can't get that, you will simply have to work even harder.

Educational Background

Have you ever taken any networking classes? (Yes or No)
Have you taken any classes on Cisco products in particular? (Yes or No)

If you can answer Yes to both, you will probably be able to handle the material on implementation: which products go where and how they should be configured. If you must answer No to either or both, you will have to spend more time practicing, if nothing else, with a pencil and paper, to create designs and their configurations, and then tracing the traffic flows that result.

Hands-On Experience

Another important key to success on all the Cisco tests is hands-on experience. If I leave you with only one realization after taking this Self-Assessment, it should be that it is infinitely better to have practiced the commands and used the products on which you'll be tested in some depth.

Have you installed, configured, and worked with Cisco routers and switches? (Yes or No)

If yes, make sure you understand the basic configuration commands covered in the CCNA exam, especially the differences between global and interface-specific or port-specific commands.

If you haven't worked with Cisco routers and switches, try to rent some time on a rack; opinions from users about rack-rental services can often be found in the Professional mail list at GroupStudy. Some members there also make their home lab equipment available to remote users, sometimes for a small fee and, surprisingly, often for free (as long as it is not abused, of course). With even a little time on the command line, you will learn a great deal about configuring these devices.

Have you worked with Cisco security products, such as the PIX firewall, IDS (network- and host-based), and VPN concentrators and clients ? (Yes or No)

If yes, make sure you understand the basic configuration commands for each product, especially those that are involved in setting up connections between security products, such as those required for configuring VPN tunnels. Although it is harder to obtain rental time with these products, it might be possible, so a No answer does not preclude you from pursuing this certification.

If you have the funds or your employer will pay your way, consider taking a class from a Cisco Training Partner, especially in areas in which you do not have direct access to equipment. If you can't afford that, a course book often is available from Cisco Press.

Testing Your Exam-Readiness

Whether you attend a formal class on a specific topic to get ready for an exam or use written materials to study on your own, some preparation for every Cisco certification exam is essential. At $125 for each attempt, pass or fail, you want to do everything you can to pass on your first try. That's where studying comes in.

At the end of Chapters 212 of this book is a series of practice questions, called Exam Prep questions. These are questions in the same general style as those you find on the CSI exam, but they are limited to the material from that chapter. They are not a duplicate of any question I have ever seen on a Cisco exam; that would violate the nondisclosure agreement I made with Cisco when I took those exams. However, they do cover material that I have seen on the CSI exam, as well as sometimes relevant background material, to help ensure that you can think your way through the questions you see when you take the exam.

In addition, two practice exams at the end of the book cover the entire range of CSI exam topics. These practice exams are more like the real exam because the topic might remain the same for a few questions and then change, or it might change with nearly every question you see. These practice exams also cover the material in roughly the same proportion as you will probably see on the test. As explained in Chapter 1, "Overview of Cisco Certification," you must earn 75% of the available points to pass the real CSI exam. I recommend that you consider yourself ready if you can earn at least 85% on the two practice exams and on any others you might take. That gives you room for a little bit of nerves on the real thing, and it also allows for the fact that the practice exam asks about the configurations that you must actually input during a simulation on the real exam. Asking about a command that you can see is easier for you than requiring you to know the series of commands (not to mention being able to type them in successfully on a keyboard you're not used to).

Have you read the SAFE SMR Blueprint, the whitepaper the CSI exam is based on? (Yes or No)

The CSI exam specifically tests your knowledge of the design principles in the whitepaper SAFE: Extending the Security Blueprint to Small, Midsize, and Remote- User Networks , along with your ability to implement those principles using Cisco security products. Reading this book is supposed to be a supplement to, not a replacement for, reading that document. In fact, you would be wise to also read the whitepaper SAFE VPN: IPSec Virtual Private Networks in Depth because much of the CSI exam covers connecting smaller networks to larger ones via VPNs.

When you read these whitepapers, be sure to go over the Appendixes as well as the main documents. There you will find the configurations for the devices as they were used to demonstrate the design's validity. Study those configurations: They are an excellent way to see the different pieces of security as they are put together in that device. Through the interface configurations, you can see how the devices interact securely.