CIT - Cisco Internetwork Troubleshooting

Network Engineers
The second major audience for this book includes those who work in the Wide Area Network environment every day. The major challenge faced by these individuals is how to keep the network running with the minimal amount of "down-time"." All networks will fail at some point. The challenge is to get the network running again quickly. This book will teach network engineers a structured approach that results in finding the problem promptly and preventing the problem from recurring. People at all levels, from the beginner to the seasoned expert, will benefit from using this book as a reference. Virtually all of the employed network engineers have at least a basic knowledge of how the systems work on a theoretical basis. However, many of them have never been taught a logical and methodic approach to problem solving.

This is the book that will bind all of the reader's previous learning and experience into a single guide used to maintain, diagnose, and troubleshoot both one-time occurrences and recurring issues on a daily basis. This book will allow the reader to combine theoretical and hands-on knowledge with these sound techniques to allow him to quickly and easily solve virtually any problem that can be encountered.

Contents

• Chapter 1, "Introduction to Cisco Internet Troubleshooting." This chapter is the introduction to the book. It gives an overview of the book, describes the conventions used in the book, discusses why the reader should buy the book, and lists the requirements for Cisco certifications.
• Chapter 2, "Troubleshooting Methodology." This chapter may be the most critical in the book. The most important point of the chapter is to show you how to approach a problem. The main point this chapter (in fact, the whole book) stresses is that every problem is easily solved if you work from the bottom layers of the OSI model toward the top layers.
• Chapter 3, "Troublesbooting Tools." This chapter shows the basic hardware and software tools that are available for the network engineer to purchase. Although it doesn't tell you exactly how to use a cable tester, it does show you when to use one and what a cable tester will do for you.
• Chapter 4, "Basic Diagnostic Commands." This chapter discusses the "nuts-and-bolts" commands that allow the network engineer to troubleshoot a network. This is an essential chapter because the remainder of the book relies on the tools presented.
• Chapter 5, "Troubleshooting LANs." Chapter 5 introduces the reader to troubleshooting techniques used in simple LANs. This is the first practical application of Chapters 2, 3, and 4. This chapter also lays the foundation necessary for Chapters 6 and 7.
• Chapter 6,"Troubleshooting Switched LANs." Chapter 6 adds complexity to the network by introducing switches and VLANs. Building on Chapter 5, you learn how complexity does not change troubleshooting methodology.
• Chapter 7, "Cisco Switches." In Chapter 7, the specifics of dealing with Cisco switches are discussed. This is a large chapter that reflects the emphasis the exam places on these switches.
• Chapter 8,"Serial, Frame Relay, and X.25 Connectivity." Chapter 8 moves the reader from the LAN environment to the WAN environment. Although the techniques remain the same as those in the LAN environment, new commands and tools are introduced that are specific to the Serial, Frame Relay, and X.25 environments.
• Chapter 9, "Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)." In Chapter 9, troubleshooting TCP/IP is discussed. Some of the issues raised include access lists, routing, and subnet masking.
• Chapter 10, "AppleTalk." Although AppleTalk is not a predominant protocol, there are still a large number of installed AppleTalk networks. This chapter looks at the issues unique to troubleshooting AppleTalk networks in both the LAN and WAN environments.
• Chapter 11, "Novell Internet Packet Exchange/Sequenced Packet Exchange (IPX/SPX)." This chapter looks at the issues of troubleshooting IPX in both the LAN and WAN environments. We also discuss how SAP filters work, how to filter them, and the unique problems associated with IPX and Novell networks.
• Chapter 12, "Routing Protocols." Chapter 12 helps you understand the issues involved in troubleshooting routing protocols. We cover IGRP, EIGRP, OSPF, and RIR We also examine how access lists affect routing protocols.
• Chapter 13, "Troubleshooting ISDN Basic Rate Interface (BRI)." The emphasis in this chapter is how to troubleshoot ISDN BRI connections. It covers dial maps, access lists, dialing pools, rotary groups, and lowlevel debugging of ISDN connections. Although this chapter is a "mustread" for those who use ISDN, there will not be a great audience because most companies do not use ISDN. However, the tests stress ISDN debugging, which is thoroughly covered.
• Chapter 14, "Cisco Support." This chapter deals with both the support tools available from Ciseo Systems and the way in which the Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC) handles problems. This is rated as the least popular chapter, mainly because most of the everyday problems will not need to be directed to Cisco after studying this book.
• Chapter 15, "Advanced Troubleshooting Techniques." This chapter "brings it all together" for the reader. The purpose of this chapter is tobring all the elements discussed in the book together in the form of complex, yet easily approachable real-world examples.