Exam Essentials

Be able to choose the appropriate media type and connectors for a particular network installation.  Essentially, the Network+ exam tests your knowledge of the kinds of cables and ends used for a particular network technology. 10BaseT and 100BaseT use UTP cable with RJ-45 ends. 10Base2 (Thinnet) uses RG-58 coax with BNC ends. Fiber-optic networks use many different types of optical fiber cable and several different types of ends.

Be able to select the appropriate NIC and configuration settings (e.g., IRQ, full/half duplex, speeds, etc.).  Every NIC has certain hardware settings. These include IRQ, I/O address, duplex (full or half), and speed (10, 100, or 1000, depending on the card). In order to successfully install a NIC, you must—either through software or manually by DIP switches or jumpers—set these parameters to appropriate values.

Be able to configure the appropriate computer/host name and username.  This can be done using the Network program in Windows 9x or the NDC in Windows 2000. To access each area, simply right-click Network Neighborhood on the Desktop.

Be able configure a workstation to connect to various kinds of servers using Windows as the client.  This is done in Windows 9x using the Network application. This application has three main parts that must be in place: the client, the NIC driver, and the protocol. The client is specific to the operating system you are connecting to, the NIC is specific to the brand/type of NIC installed in the computer, and the protocol must be the same one running on the server you want to connect to. In Windows 2000 as a client, the parts are the same, but the Network application is instead called the Network and Dial-up Connections window (a.k.a. the NDC).

Know what a punchdown tool, tone generator, media tester, and wire crimpers are used for.  Punchdown tools are used to connect cables to punchdown panels. Tone generators are used to locate a single cable within a bundle. Media testers are used to test the potential transmission quality of a network cable, and wire crimpers are used to squeeze, or crimp, connectors to the end of a cable, thus allowing a connection to be made.

Know the difference between a hub and a switch.  A hub is a network connectivity device that connects multiple computers together (usually on an Ethernet network). A switch is similar to a hub in that it connects multiple machines together. Internally, however, it functions like a bridge in that it uses MAC addresses to make a temporary, dedicated connection between two communicating stations.