Finding the Best Starting Point for You

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Because this book has been designed to be self-paced, you can skip some lessons and revisit them later. Use the following table to determine the best starting point for you:

If...	Follow this learning path
You are preparing to take the Microsoft Certified Professional exam 70-058, Networking Essentials...	Read the "Getting Started" section of this chapter. Be sure to focus on the exam objectives as presented in the "Networking Essentials" portion of the "Where to Find Specific Skills in This Book" section. Work through the remaining chapters in any order you prefer.
You are preparing to take the Network+ exam...	Read the "Getting Started" section of this chapter. Be sure to focus on the exam objectives as presented in the "Network+" portion of the "Where to Find Specific Skills in This Book" section. Work through the remaining chapters in any order you prefer.
You'd like to review information about specific topics for either of the exams...	Use the "Where to Find Specific Skills in This Book" section that follows this table.

Where to Find Specific Skills in This Book

The following tables provide a list of the skills measured on the Microsoft certification exam 70-058, Networking Essentials, and on the CompTIA Network+ certification exam. The tables describe each skill and where in this book you will find the lesson relating to that skill.

NOTE

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Microsoft Certified Professional exam skills are subject to change without prior notice and at the sole discretion of Microsoft. CompTIA Network+ exam skills are subject to change without prior notice and at the sole discretion of CompTIA.

Networking Essentials

Standards and Terminology

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Define common networking terms for LANs and WANs.	Chapter 1, Lesson 1; Chapter 2, Lesson 1
Compare a file and print server with an application server.	Chapter 1, Lesson 2; Chapter 4, Lesson 1; Chapter 6, Lesson 3
Compare user-level security with access permissions assigned to a shared directory on a server.	Chapter 9, Lesson 1; Chapter 10, Lesson 1
Compare a server-based network to a peer-to-peer network.	Chapter 1, Lesson 2; Chapter 8, Lesson 1; Chapter 9, Lesson 1
Compare connection-based communications with connectionless communications.	Chapter 2, Lesson 3
Distinguish whether SLIP or PPP is used as the communications protocol for various situations.	Chapter 7, Lesson 2
Define the communication devices that communicate at each level of the OSI reference model.	Chapter 5, all lessons; Chapter 6, Lesson 2
Describe the characteristics and purpose of the media used in IEEE 802.3 and IEEE 802.5 standards.	Chapter 3, Lesson 1; Chapter 6, Lesson 3; Chapter 7, Lesson 1
Explain the purposes of NDIS and Novell ODI network standards.	Chapter 5, Lesson 3

Planning

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Select the appropriate media (including twisted-pair cable, coaxial cable, fiber-optic cable, wireless technology) considering various situational elements including cost, distance limitations, and number of nodes.	Chapter 2, Lesson 1; Chapter 12, Lesson 2
Define the limitations of media.	Chapter 2, Lesson 1
Select the appropriate topology for various token-ring and Ethernet networks.	Chapter 2, Lesson 1; Chapter 3, Lessons 3 and 4; Chapter 7, Lesson 2
Understand network and transport protocols.	Chapter 6, all lessons
Describe connectivity for Token Ring and Ethernet (repeaters, bridges, routers, and so on).	Chapter 3, Lessons 3 and 4; Chapter 7, Lessons 1 and 2
Define characteristics of WAN connections (X.25, ISDN, frame relay, and ATM).	Chapter 7, Lesson 2

Implementation

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Create an administrative plan for performance, accounts, and security.	Chapter 9, Lessons 1 and 2; Chapter 10, Lesson 1
Design a disaster recovery plan.	Chapter 10, Lesson 3
Install and configure network hardware.	Chapter 8, Lessons 3 and 4; Chapter 12, Lesson 2
Implement NetBIOS.	Chapter 6, Lesson 4
Describe hardware and software monitoring tools.	Chapter 12, Lesson 1; Chapter 13, Lesson 2

Troubleshooting

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Identify common errors associated with communications components.	Chapter 13, Lesson 1
Diagnose and resolve connectivity problems with cards, cables, and related hardware.	Chapter 12, Lesson 2; Chapter 13, all lessons
Resolve broadcast storms.	Chapter 7, Lesson 1
Identify and resolve network performance problems.	Chapter 12, Lesson 2; Chapter 13, all lessons

Network+

The Network+ exam objectives are divided into two broad categories: Knowledge of Networking Technology and Knowledge of Networking Practices.

Knowledge of Networking Technology

Basic Knowledge

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Understand network structure.	Chapter 1, Lesson 3; Chapter 2, Lesson 1
Describe network operating systems, clients, and directory services.	Chapter 1, Lesson 2; Chapter 3, Lesson 3; Chapter 4, Lessons 1, 2, 3, and 4; Chapter 8, Lesson 1
Define IPX, IP and Net BEUI.	Chapter 5, Lesson 1; Chapter 6, Lessons 1 and 4; Chapter 7, Lesson 2;
Describe fault tolerance and its implementation methods.	Chapter 10, Lesson 3
Describe the OSI reference model and identify the protocols, services, and functions that relate to each layer.	Chapter 5, all lessons
Recognize and describe types and characteristics of network media (coaxial, fiber-optic, UTP, STP, 10BaseT, 100Base, VGAnyLan, RJ24, BNC, and so on).	Chapter 2, Lesson 1; Chapter 3, Lesson 3; Chapter 8, Lesson 1
Describe the basic attributes, purposes, and functions of such network elements as: Full and half duplexing. WANs and LANs. Servers, workstations, and hosts. Server-based and peer-to-peer networking. Cabling, NICs, and routers. Broadband and baseband transmission. Use of gateways as default IP routers and the means by which to connect dissimilar systems or protocols.	Chapter 2, Lesson 1 Chapter 1, Lesson 1 Chapter 2, Lesson 2 Chapter 1, Lesson 2; Chapter 8, Lesson 1 Chapter 2, Lessons 1 and 2 Chapter 2, Lesson 1 Chapter 4, Lessons 2 and 5; Chapter 7, Lesson 1

Physical Layer

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Configure and troubleshoot network interface cards.	Chapter 2, Lesson 2; Chapter 12, Lesson 2; Chapter 13, Lesson 1
Describe and differentiate the following network components:
Hubs.	Chapter 1, Lesson 3; Chapter 2, Lesson 1
MAUs.	Chapter 3, Lessons 1 and 4
Transceivers.	Chapter 2, Lesson 2
Repeaters.	Chapter 1, Lesson 3; Chapter 7, Lesson 1

Data-Link Layer

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Define bridges and why they are used.	Chapter 2, Lesson 3; Chapter 3, Lesson 3; Chapter 5, Lesson 1; Chapter 7, Lesson 1; Chapter 8, Lesson 3
Explain the IEEE Project 802 specifications, including 802.2, 802.3, and 802.5.	Chapter 5, Lesson 2
Describe the function and characteristics of MAC addresses.	Chapter 5, Lesson 2

Network Layer

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Define the following routing and network-layer concepts: Routing, including the difference between static and dynamic routing. The difference between a router and a brouter. The difference between routable and nonroutable protocols Default gateways and subnetworks. The reason for employing unique network IDs.	Chapter 7, Lesson 1 Chapter 7, Lesson 1 Chapter 6, Lesson 4 Chapter 6, Lesson 2 Chapter 2, Lesson 2; Chapter 13, Lesson 3

Transport Layer

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Describe the purpose of name resolution.	Chapter 5, Lessons 1 and 3; Chapter 6, Lesson 1
Describe the difference between connection and connectionless transport.	Chapter 2, Lesson 3; Chapter 7, Lesson 2

TCP/IP Fundamentals

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Demonstrate knowledge of the following TCP/IP fundamentals:
IP default gateways.	Chapter 6, Lesson 2
DHCP, DNS, WINS, and host files.	Chapter 13, Lesson 3
Main TCP/IP protocols, including TCP, UDP, POP3, SMTP, SNMP, FTP, HTTP, and IP.	Chapter 6, Lesson 2
Broad acceptance of TCP/IP by operating systems and hosts worldwide.	Chapter 6, Lesson 2
Internet domain name server hierarchies.	Chapter 13, Lesson 3
TCP/IP addressing, including the A, B, and C classes of IP addresses and the use of port numbers (HTTP, FTP, SMTP) and the port numbers commonly assigned to a given service.	Chapter 5, Lesson 2; Chapter 6, Lesson 1
TCP/IP configuration concepts, including IP proxy and the identity of the normal configuration parameters for a workstation, including IP address, DNS, IP proxy configuration, WINS, DHCP, host name, and Internet domain name.	Chapter 10, Lesson 1; Chapter 13, Lesson 3

TCP/IP Utilities

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Explain how and when to use each of the following TCP/IP utilities to test, validate, and troubleshoot IP connectivity: ARP Telnet NBSTAT Tracert NETSTAT Ipconfig/winipcfg FTP Ping	Chapter 6, Lesson 2 Chapter 6, Lesson 1; Chapter 13, Lesson 3 Chapter 12, Lesson 1 Chapter 12, Lesson 1 Chapter 12, Lesson 1 Chapter 6, Lesson 4 Chapter 13, Lesson 3 Chapter 12, Lesson 1

Remote Connectivity

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Describe PPP and SLIP.	Chapter 7, Lesson 2
Describe PPTP.	Chapter 7, Lesson 2
Explain the attributes, advantages, and disadvantages of ISDN and PSTN (POTS).	Chapter 7, Lesson 2; Chapter 13, Lesson 3
Describe modem configurations, including serial port IRQ, I/O address, and maximum port speed.	Chapter 7, Lesson 1; Chapter 11, Lesson 3
Specify the requirements for a remote connection.	Chapter 7, Lesson 2

Security

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Describe issues to consider when selecting a security model, including user and share level.	Chapter 9, Lessons 1 and 2; Chapter 10, Lesson 1
Describe standard password practices and procedures.	Chapter 10, Lesson 1
Explain the need to employ data encryption to protect network data.	Chapter 10, Lesson 1
Explain the purpose of a firewall.	Chapter 10, Lesson 1

Knowledge of Networking Practices

Implementing and Installing the Network

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Describe accounts and their role in a network.	Chapter 9, Lessons 1 and 2; Chapter 10, Lesson 1
Demonstrate awareness that administrative and test accounts, passwords, IP addresses, IP configurations, relevant SOPs, and so on must be obtained prior to network implementation.	Chapter 9, Lesson 2; Chapter 10, Lesson 1
Evaluate environmental factors that affect networks.	Chapter 10, Lesson 2
Recognize common peripheral ports and external SCSI devices (especially DB-25 connectors).	Chapter 2, Lesson 2
Identify common network components, including:
Print servers.	Chapter 1, Lesson 2; Chapter 11, Lesson 1
Peripherals.	Chapter 1, Lessons 1 and 2; Chapter 4, Lesson 1
Hubs.	Chapter 1, Lesson 3
Routers.	Chapter 1, Lesson 3
Brouters.	Chapter 1, Lesson 3
Bridges.	Chapter 1, Lesson 3
Patch panels.	Chapter 2, Lesson 1; Chapter 3, Lesson 1; Chapter 8, Lesson 1
UPSs.	Chapter 10, Lesson 3
NICs.	Chapter 2, Lesson 2
Token Ring media filters.	Chapter 3, Lesson 4
Demonstrate awareness of such compatibility and cabling issues as trying to install an analog modem in a digital jack, variations in the use of RJ-45 connectors depending on cabling, and implications of using patch cables.	Chapter 2, Lesson 2; Chapter 3, Lesson 1; Chapter 8, Lessons 3 and 4; Chapter 13, Lessons 1 and 2

Maintaining and Supporting the Network

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Describe how to document a network.	Chapter 8, Lesson 1; Chapter 12, Lessons 1 and 2
Identify components of a network that need upgrading and describe how to upgrade them.	Chapter 12, Lesson 2; Chapter 13, Lessons 1 and 2
Explain how to restore a network by backing up data.	Chapter 10, Lesson 3
Describe the effects of computer viruses and how to protect against them.	Chapter 10, Lesson 1

Troubleshooting the Network

Skill Being Measured	Location in Book
Identify standard troubleshooting methods.	Chapter 13, Lesson 1
Address network problems by isolating the cause.	Chapter 12, Lesson 1; Chapter 13, Lesson 1
Address problems caused by user errors.	Chapter 10, Lesson 2
Troubleshoot the network by employing the following techniques:	Chapter 13, Lessons 1 and 2
Recognizing abnormal physical conditions.	Chapter 10, Lesson 2
Isolating and correcting problems with physical media.	Chapter 12, Lesson 1; Chapter 13, Lesson 1
Checking the status of servers.	Chapter 13, Lesson 1
Checking for configuration problems with DNS, WINS, and HOST files.	Chapter 13, Lesson 1
Checking for viruses.	Chapter 10, Lesson 1
Checking the validity of the account name and password.	Chapter 9, Lesson 2
Rechecking operator logon procedures.	Chapter 13, Lesson 1
Selecting and running appropriate diagnostics.	Chapter 13, Lesson 2
Describe a variety of tools for troubleshooting a network, including crossover cables, hardware loopbacks, tone generators, and tone locators.	Chapter 13, Lesson 2