What if I told you that there are over 700 practical Cisco networking tutorials waiting for you on a single website that can help you learn hundreds of different Cisco networking topics? The resource I’m talking about above is NetworkLessons.com and is probably one of the few online education portals with so many practical lessons on Cisco […]
About Harris Andrea
Top 10 PRTG Alternatives for Monitoring Networks and IT Infrastructure
The Paessler PRTG network monitoring solution is well known to network engineers and administrators. It conveniently monitors network activity including bandwidth usage, IP allocation, device status, network health, and even CPU utilization on networked devices (plus much more). Paessler requires users to use a PRTG core server system running on Windows server OS (or two […]
How to Configure SNMP on Cisco Devices (Routers, Switches)
Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), so “simple” yet so powerful. SNMP delivers a standardized framework that can be used for the monitoring and management of network devices. SNMP is one of the most powerful tools that can be used by today’s network administrators and engineers. SNMP allows admins to poll for data such as CPU […]
Comparison of TCP/IP vs OSI Models in Networking
Communication is key in modern life. Emails, phone calls, video calls are obvious examples. But, video streaming, ecommerce, eLearning, gaming etc are also a kind of communication. We are performing some type of communication in most of our life aspects. Successful communication requires that all participating parties know how to “talk” to each other and, […]
Prevent Spoofing Attacks on Cisco ASA using RPF
A common attack found on TCP/IP networks is IP spoofing. This is usually used for Denial-of-Service, Identity hiding, or even to bypass firewalls or Access-Lists security rules. The spoofing attack works like that: A malicious attacker sends packets towards a target host. The attacker disguises itself by inserting a fake source IP into the packet. […]
A Complete Guide to Scaling your Network Monitoring Solution
If your organization is growing, you know first-hand how important it is to have a network monitoring solution. But what do you do when your network starts to outgrow your current monitoring solution? Here is what you need to know about scaling based on your organizational goals. Your organization can efficiently tackle the ongoing and […]
12 Best Computer Networking Books for Beginners & Experts
I have read tens of books (both in ebook format and also hard copy textbooks) in my networking professional career over the last 18 years. In fact, all of my preparation for my Cisco and other IT certifications was based on book studying (in addition to hands-on practice of course). Personally, I believe that having […]
How to Setup Cisco Meraki WiFi Access Point Devices (With Pictures)
In this tutorial we will describe how to setup a Cisco Meraki WiFi Access Point (AP) together with several other useful details, so let’s get started. A Meraki access point is different to a Cisco AireOS Access point because it doesn’t need a separate Wireless LAN Controller or an embedded controller such as Mobility Express […]
10 Best Network Traffic Analyzer (NTA) Software Tools
If you’ve ever wondered why your company’s network seems to slow down at times, or how efficiently your employees are using their networked devices, then it’s time you implement a network analysis strategy. Network Traffic Analyzer (NTA) tools can help you find bottlenecks in traffic, analyze what types of network traffic is being used within […]
11 Best Alternatives to Putty as SSH and Telnet Clients (For Connecting Remotely to Devices)
PuTTY is a free terminal emulation tool that’s been available for 20 years. Originally released for Microsoft Windows, this versatile remote administration tool can be used to access workstations, servers, network devices etc using various protocols such as secure shell connection (SSH), Telnet, Rlogin etc. While it continues to be popular for accessing network devices […]
11 Free TFTP Server Software for Windows Computers (Useful in Cisco Networks)
I first got acquainted with TFTP at the beginning of my networking career. The first use-case of TFTP protocol is when I first upgraded the IOS firmware of a Cisco router using a little software utility called “TFTPD32”. Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) software provide a key service to many network and system administrators for […]
10 Networking Companies Like Cisco (Competitors)
Every network engineer is familiar with Cisco, and with its multiple brand acquisitions, it’s even become a household name for consumers in addition to business professionals. Cisco isn’t the only major player in the hardware and TCP/IP networking game, however. This technology giant has at least a dozen formidable competitors, many of which have developed […]
Cisco Switch Layer2 Layer3 Design and Configuration
Layer2 and Layer3 switches are the foundation of any network. After all, any network devices (routers, firewalls, computers, servers etc) have to be connected to a switch. Sooner or later, as a network engineer you will be faced with the task of deploying a switch network for a customer or for your own company. Therefore, learning […]