Part V: Final Preparation
Chapter 18 Final Preparation
C H A P T E R18
Final Preparation
The first 17 chapters of this book cover the technologies, protocols, commands, and
features you need to understand to pass the ICND2 exam. Although these chapters supply
the detailed information, most people need more preparation than simply reading the
first 17 chapters. This chapter details a set of tools and a study plan to help you complete
your preparation for the exams.
If you’re preparing for the CCNA exam by reading both this book and the CCNA ICND2
Official Exam Certification Guide, you know that both books have a final preparation
chapter. However, you can refer to just this chapter to read about the suggested study plan,
because this chapter refers to the tools in both this book and the ICND2 book. Just look
for the text highlighted in gray, like this sentence, for suggestions that apply to CCNA
(640-802) exam preparation, but not to ICND1 (640-816) exam preparation.
This short chapter has two main sections. The first section lists the exam preparation
tools that can be useful at this point in your study process. The second section lists a
suggested study plan now that you have completed all the earlier chapters.
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This section lists some information about the available tools and how to access them.
Exam Engine and Questions on the CD
The CD includes an exam engine—software that displays and then grades a set of exam-
realistic questions. These include simulation (sim) questions, drag-and-drop, and many
scenario-based questions that require the same level of analysis as the questions on
the ICND1 and CCNA exams. Using the exam engine, you can either practice with the
questions in Study Mode or take a simulated (timed) ICND1 or CCNA exam.
NOTE This chapter refers to many of the book’s chapters and appendixes, as well as
tools available on the CD. Some of the appendixes, beginning with Appendix D, are
included only on the CD that comes with this book. To access those, just insert the CD
and make the appropriate selection from the opening interface.
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The installation process has two major steps. The CD includes a recent copy of the exam
engine software, supplied by Boson Software (http://www.boson.com). The practice
exam—the database of ICND1 exam questions—is not on the CD. Instead, the practice
exam resides on the http://www.boson.com web server, so the second major step is to
activate and download the practice exam.
Install the Software from the CD
The software installation process is pretty routine as compared with other software
installation processes. The following steps outline the process:
Step 1 Insert the CD into your PC.
Step 2 The software that automatically runs is the Cisco Press software to access
and use all CD-based features, including the exam engine, viewing a PDF
file of this book, and viewing the CD-only appendixes. From the main
menu, click the option to Install the Exam Engine.
Step 3 Respond to prompt windows, as you would with any typical software
installation process.
The installation process might give you the option to register the software. This process
requires that you establish a login at the http://www.boson.com website. You will need this
login to activate the exam, so feel free to register when prompted. If you already have a
login at the http://www.boson.com site, you don’t need to register again. Just use your
existing login.
Activate and Download the Practice Exam
After the exam engine is installed, you should activate the exam associated with this book:
Step 1 Start the Boson Exam Environment (BEE) software from the Start menu. It should
be installed in a Cisco Press folder on your computer.
Step 2 The first time you start the software, it should ask you to either log in or
register an account. If you do not already have an account with Boson,
select the option to register a new account. (You must register to
download and use the exam.)
Step 3 After you are registered, the software might prompt you to download the
latest version of the software, which you should do. Note that this process
updates the exam engine software (formally called the Boson Exam
Environment). It doesn’t activate the practice exam.
NOTE The cardboard CD case in the back of this book includes the CD and a piece
of paper. The paper lists the activation key for the practice exam associated with this
book. Do not lose the activation key.
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Step 4 To activate and download the exam associated with this book, from the
exam engine main window, click the Exam Wizard button.
Step 5 From the Exam Wizard pop-up window, select Activate a purchased
exam and click the Next button. (Although you did not purchase the
exam directly, you purchased it indirectly when you purchased this
book.)
Step 6 On the next screen, enter the Activation Key from the paper inside the
cardboard CD holder, and click the Next button.
Step 7 The activation process downloads the practice exam. When this is done,
the main exam engine menu should list a new exam, with a name such as
“ExSim for Cisco Press ICND1 ECG.” If you do not see the exam, be
sure you have selected the My Exams tab on the menu. You may need to
click the plus sign icon (+) to expand the menu and see the exam.
At this point, the software and practice exam are ready to use.
Activating Other Exams
You need to go through the exam software installation process and the registration process
only once. After that, for each new exam, only a few steps are required. For instance, if
you bought both this book and the CCNA ICND2 Official Exam Certification Guide, you
could follow the steps just listed to install the software and activate the exam associated
with this book. Then, for the practice exam associated with the ICND2 book, which has
about 150 exam-realistic ICND2 questions, you need to follow only a few more steps. All
you have to do is start the Boson exam environment (if it is not still up and running) and
follow Steps 4 through 6 in the preceding list. In fact, if you purchase other Cisco Press
books, or purchase a practice exam from Boson, you just need to activate each new exam
as described in Steps 4 through 6.
You can also purchase additional practice exams from Boson directly from its website.
When you purchase an exam, you receive an activation key, and then you can activate and
download the exam—again without requiring any additional software installation.
The Cisco CCNA Prep Center
Cisco provides a wide variety of CCNA preparation tools at a Cisco Systems website called
the CCNA Prep Center. The CCNA Prep Center includes demonstrations of the exam’s
user interface, sample questions, informational videos, discussion forums, and other tools.
To use the CCNA Prep Center, you need a registered login at http://www.cisco.com.
To register, simply go to http://www.cisco.com, click Register at the top of the page, and
supply some information. (You do not need to work for Cisco or one of its partners to get
a login.)