CCNA Tutorial for Beginners

This CCNA Tutorial is well-suited for the beginner as well as professionals, and It will cover all the basic to advanced concepts of CCNA like Components of Computer Networking, Transport Layer, Network Layer, CCNA training, Cisco Networking, Network Design, Routing and Switching, etc. which are required to prepare for the certification. So let’s go through the tutorial to learn all these important topics.

What is CCNA?

CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate) is a popular certification course for networking by Cisco Systems. The CCNA certification is designed to test the candidate’s knowledge and skills required to install, configure, operate, and troubleshoot medium-size enterprise branch networks. CCNA certification course includes various domains such as the basics of networking, network security, network infrastructure, and network automation. 

• Cisco certificate validates the ability to configure, understand, operate, and troubleshoot the switched and routed networks.
• It guides the users to create a point-point connection.
• CCNA guides and illustrates how to build a network address.
• You will get a highly-paid job if you learn from CCNA.

CCNA Tutorial

S.No.	CCNA – Tutorial
1	Computer Networking – Introduction
2	Computer Networking – Components
3	Transport Layer
4	Network Layer
5	IPv4 Addressing
6	Subnetting
7	Data Link Layer
8	Physical Layer
9	Cisco Networking Devices
10	Basic Network Troubleshooting
11	IPv4 Routing
12	Dynamic Routing Protocols
13	Interior Gateway Protocols
14	Open Shortest Path First (OSPF)
15	Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN)
16	Inter-VLAN Routing
17	Dynamic Host Control Protocol (DHCP)
18	Hot Standby Routing Protocol (HSRP)
19	Spanning Tree Protocol (STP)
20	Ethernet Channel
21	Switch Security
22	Access Control List (ACL)
23	Network Address Translation (NAT)
24	IPv6 Addressing and Routing
25	Wide Area Network
26	Security Concepts
27	Network Device Security
28	Network Device Management
29	Wireless Networking

Computer Networking – Introduction

• What is a Network?
• Local Area Network (LAN)
• OSI & TCP/IP Models
• TCP/IP Suite of Protocols
• Encapsulation

Computer Networking – Components

• NIC Explanation
• Switch Explanation
• Hub Explanation
• Router Explanation
• Cable Explanation

Transport Layer

• Transport Layer Explanation
• Ports
• TCP
• TCP Three-Way Handshake
• UDP

Network Layer

• IP Header
• Unicast, Multicast, and Broadcast Addresses
• Types of IP Addresses

IPv4 Addressing

• Ipv4 Address Explanation
• Converting IP Address – Decimal to Binary
• Subnet Mask
• Classes of IP Addresses

Subnetting

• Subnetting
• CIDR (Classless Inter-Domain Routing)
• Create Subnets
• Variable Length Subnet Masks (VLSM)
• Private IP Addresses 

Data Link Layer

• Ethernet 
• Ethernet Frame
• MAC & IP Address

Physical Layer

• Types of Ethernet Cabling
• IEEE Ethernet Standards
• Cisco PoE Explained

Cisco Networking Devices

• Network Devices
• Network Hubs 
• Network Switch
• CSMA/CD
• Collision & Broadcast Domain
• Layer 2 Switching
• Network Router
• What Is Layer 3 Switch and How it Works in Our Network?

Life of a Packet

• What is the Domain Name System (DNS) and How Does it Work?
• Map Hostnames to IP Addresses
• How to Configure a Cisco Router as a DNS Server?
• no ip domain-lookup Command
• ARP (Address Resolution Protocol) Explained
• ARP Table on a Cisco Router

Router and Switch Basic Configuration

• IOS Basic Commands
• Configure an IP Address on a Switch
• Interface Range Command
• Power on a Cisco Device
• Half Duplex and Full Duplex
• Configure Speed and Duplex
• Link Layer Discovery Protocol (LLDP)
• Cisco Discovery Protocol (CDP) overview
• Interface Status Codes

Cisco Device Management

• Types of Memory on a Cisco Device
• Router IOS Boot Sequence
• How to Reset a Cisco Router or Switch to Factory Default
• IOS files
• Backing up IOS Configuration
• FTP & TFTP
• Copy Files with FTP
• How to Upgrade Cisco IOS
• Erasing Configuration Files

Basic Network Troubleshooting

• Network Troubleshooting Methodology and Techniques
• ICMP (Internet Control Message Protocol)
• Ping Explained
• Traceroute Command
• Lead Process Command

IPv4 Routing

• What is IP Routing?
• Routing Table
• Connected, Static, & Dynamic Routes
• Floating Static Route – Explanation and Configuration
• Default Static Route
• Create a Static Host Route
• What is a Static Summary Route?

Dynamic Routing Protocols

• Routing Protocols
• Comparing Internal Routing Protocols (IGPs)
• Administrative Distance & Metric
• Equal Cost Multi-Path (ECMP) Explanation & Configuration
• Understanding Loopback Interfaces and Loopback Addresses
• Passive-Interface Command

Interior Gateway Protocols

• RIP Overview
• Advertise Default Routes Using RIP
• Configuring RIPv2
• EIGRP Overview
• EIGRP Diffusing Update Algorithm (DUAL)
• EIGRP Reliable Transport Protocol (RTP)
• Wildcard Masks
• Wildcard Mask in EIGRP
• EIGRP Automatic & Manual Summarization
• EIGRP Summary

Open Shortest Path First (OSPF)

• OSPF Overview
• Differences Between OSPF and EIGRP
• Cisco Bandwidth Command vs Clock Rate and Speed Commands
• OSPF Cost – OSPF Routing Protocol Metrics Explained
• OSPF Configuration
• Designated & Backup Designated Router
• OSPF Passive Interface – Configuration and Why it is Used
• OSPF Default-Information Originate and the Default Route
• OSPF Load Balancing – Explanation and Configuration
• OSPF Summarization
• Configuring OSPF Network Types in Cisco

Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN)

• Cisco Three-Layer Hierarchical Model
• Collapsed Core and Three-Tier Network Architectures
• What is Spine and Leaf Network Architecture?
• What is a VLAN?
• Frame Tagging
• Configuring VLANs
• Access and Trunk Ports
• Inter-Switch Link (ISL)
• IEEE 802.1Q
• Configuring Access & Trunk Ports
• Configuring Voice VLANs
• Configuring Allowed VLANs
• Cisco Dynamic Trunking Protocol (DTP) Explained
• What is VTP?
• VTP Modes
• VTP Configuration

Inter-VLAN Routing

• Configure Inter-VLAN Routing
• Configure Cisco ROAS Router On A Stick
• Cisco Layer 3 Switch Inter-VLAN Routing Configuration

Dynamic Host Control Protocol (DHCP)

• DHCP & DNS
• Configure Cisco Router as DHCP Server
• DHCP Relay Agent
• Configure Cisco Router as a DHCP Client
• APIPA (Automatic Private IP Addressing)

Hot Standby Routing Protocol (HSRP)

• What is Network Redundancy and What are its Benefits?
• Cisco First Hop Redundancy Protocol (FHRP) Explained
• Cisco Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP) Explained
• Cisco Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP) Configuration
• Cisco Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP) Preempt Command

Spanning Tree Protocol (STP)

• What is STP?
• Network Bridge Explained
• How STP Works
• Electing the Root Switch in STP
• Spanning Tree Priority: Root Primary and Root Secondary
• Select STP Root Port
• Selected STP Designated Port (DP)
• Spanning Tree Modes: MSTP, PVST+, and RPVST+
• What is RSTP?
• How RSTP Works
• Configuring RSTP
• Cisco HSRP and Spanning Tree Alignment Configuration
• Spanning Tree Portfast, BPDU Guard, Root Guard Configuration

Ethernet Channel

• What is EtherChannel and Why Do We Need It?
• EtheChannel Port Aggregation Protocol (PAgP)
• EtherChannel Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP)
• Multichassis EtherChannel (MEC) and MEC Options
• Cisco Layer 3 EtherChannel – Explanation and Configuration

Switch Security

• What is DHCP Snooping? – Explanation and Configuration
• Dynamic ARP Inspection (DAI) Explanation & Configuration
• What is 802.1X Authentication and How it Works?
• Port Security
• Cisco Port Security Violation Modes Configuration

Access Control List (ACL)

• What are ACLs?
• Types of ACLs
• Configuring Standard ACLs
• Configuring Extended ACLs
• Configuring Named ACLs

Network Address Translation (NAT)

• What is NAT?
• Static NAT
• Dynamic NAT
• Port Address Translation (PAT) Configuration

IPv6 Addressing and Routing

• What is IPv6?
• IPv6 Address Format
• IPv6 Interface Identifier
• Differences Between IPv4 and IPv6
• Types of IPv6 Addresses
• IPv6 Unicast Addresses
• IPv6 Global Unicast Addresses
• IPv6 Unique Local Addresses
• IPv6 Link-Local Addresses
• IPv6 Multicast Addresses
• IPv6 Address Prefixes
• How to Configure IPv6
• IPv6 SLAAC – Stateless Address Autoconfiguration
• IPv6 Routing – Static Routes Explained and Configured
• IPv6 Default Static Route and Summary Route
• IPv6 Routing Protocols
• Neighbor Discovery Protocol – NDP Overview

Wide Area Network

• Wide Area Network
• What is VPN (Virtual Private Network)?
• WAN Connection Types – Explanation and Examples
• Leased Line Definition, Explanation, and Example
• Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) Explained & Configured
• What is PPPoE? Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet.
• Different Wide Area Networks (WAN) Topologies

Security Concepts

• Cybersecurity Threats and Common Attacks Explained
• The Different Types of Firewalls Explained
• Firewalls, IDS, and IPS Explanation and Comparison
• Symmetric vs Asymmetric Encryption
• HTTP and HTTPS explained
• Cyber Threats Attack Mitigation and Prevention

Network Device Security

• Telnet & SSH
• Setting Up Telnet
• Setting Up SSH
• Cisco Console Port Security
• exec-timeout Command
• Encrypt Local Usernames and Passwords
• Cisco Privilege Levels – Explanation and Configuration
• What is AAA? Authentication, Authorization, & Accounting
• Configuring AAA on Cisco Devices – RADIUS and TACACS+
• Configuring a Cisco Banner: MOTD, Login, & Exec Banners
• Configure Timezone and Daylight Saving Time (DST)
• NTP (Network Time Protocol)
• Configure NTP on a Cisco Router

Network Device Management

• Syslog Explained
• Syslog Message Format
• Cisco IOS Syslog Logging Locations
• logging synchronous Command
• Debug Command
• Terminal Monitoring Command
• SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol)
• SNMPv3 Overview and Configuration

Wireless Networking

• What is Wireless Network and What are its Types?
• Wireless Access Point Operation Explained
• Autonomous AP Access Point Configuration
• Lightweight Access Point (AP) Configuration
• Cisco Wireless Architecture Overview and Examples
• Cisco Wireless LAN Controller Deployment Models
• 2.4 GHz vs 5 GHz Wi-Fi Frequency Spectrum
• Understanding Wi-Fi Security – WEP, WPA, WPA2, and WPA3.

Job Opportunities after CCNA Certification

A few of the Cisco CCNA certification edges are as below:

• Network Administrator: The role is Network Monitoring, Installing, and Implementing Security Programs.
• Network Engineer: The role is to Maintenance and Configuration of Network. Mainframe, VPNs, and Routers are also handled by Network Engineers.
• Network Specialist: The role is to Designing, Monitoring, Maintenance, and Repair a network.
• Network Analyst: The role is to Analyse and optimize Network Requirements. 
• Network Manager: The role is to handle a Network and Operating Systems.
• Network Designer: The role is to design and Maintain the topology of a network system.
• Network Support Technician: The role is to Development and Maintenance of the IT networks like Monitoring, Optimizing, Repairing and Security of the data of a company is also the responsibility of a Network Support Technician.
• Network Support Engineer: The role is to Manage and Ensure the troubleshooting of all the programs or software at required times.
• System Engineer: The role is to Manage, configure, Test, and Monitor all the installed systems and infrastructures.

FAQs on CCNA Tutorial

Q1. What is CCNA?

Answer:

CCNA stands for Cisco Certified Network Associate, is a certification by CISCO company. It is designed to test the knowledge of networking fundamentals that are often asked in the network roles of the IT industry. 

Q2. Is CCNA certification tough?

Answer:

CCNA is an advance level certification course which is tough to complete. It requires knowledge about how networking works and about the networking devices. The above article contains all the topics that are included in the course.

Q3. What is the CCNA certification cost?

Answer:

The cost of CCNA certification is around INR 22,000 – INR 25,000 in India.

Q4. How to prepare for the CCNA exam?

Answer:

Here are the following tips to keep in mind while preparation:

1. Get Practical Experience by performing lab practicals in the course.
2. Obtain the Proper Resources to study from
3. Schedule Practice Tests during preparation