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CCNA (200-301) - 12-Week Practice Plan

This plan assumes 1.5-2 hours of theory + 1 hour of hands-on lab per day. Adjust if you have less or more networking background.

The single biggest factor in passing CCNA is subnetting fluency + simulator hands-on time.

Lab setup (do this in week 1, day 1)

  • Install Cisco Packet Tracer (free, requires Cisco Networking Academy account)
  • Optional: GNS3 or EVE-NG if you have Cisco IOS images
  • Build a baseline topology: 2 routers, 2 L3 switches, 2 L2 switches, 4 end hosts
  • Save it as your default starting topology - load fresh each lab session

Week 1 - Networking Fundamentals + Subnetting

Reading

Hands-on

  • In Packet Tracer: build a single-subnet network with two PCs and a switch; ping
  • Add a router; configure interfaces; ping across router
  • Practice console / SSH into devices

Subnetting drills

  • Daily 30-minute subnetting practice
  • subnettingpractice.com or printed worksheets
  • Goal: do any /24-/30 subnetting in <30 seconds without paper

Week 2 - More Subnetting + IPv6

Reading

Hands-on

  • Configure static IPv4 + IPv6 addresses on routers and PCs in Packet Tracer
  • Configure SLAAC (ipv6 address autoconfig)
  • Verify with show ipv6 interface

Subnetting drills

  • Continue daily 30 min
  • Add VLSM (Variable Length Subnet Masking) practice: given a network, design subnets for different host counts

Week 3 - Switches and VLANs

Reading

Hands-on

  • Create VLANs on two switches; assign access ports
  • Configure 802.1Q trunk between switches
  • Native VLAN configuration
  • Verify with show vlan brief, show interfaces trunk
  • Add inter-VLAN routing with router-on-a-stick AND with L3 SVI

Self-check

  • Can I configure access ports and trunks from memory?
  • Can I diagnose a native VLAN mismatch?
  • Can I configure inter-VLAN routing both ways?

Week 4 - STP and EtherChannel

Reading

Hands-on

  • In Packet Tracer: create a triangle of 3 switches with redundant links; observe which port is blocked
  • Identify root bridge, root ports, designated ports, blocked ports
  • Manipulate root with spanning-tree vlan X priority
  • Configure PortFast and BPDUguard on access ports
  • Configure LACP EtherChannel between two switches; verify with show etherchannel summary

Week 5 - Static Routing

Reading

Hands-on

  • 3-router topology: configure full reachability with static routes
  • Add a default route on the edge router
  • Configure floating static (backup with high AD)
  • Verify with show ip route, traceroute

Week 6 - OSPF Single-Area

Reading

Hands-on

  • 3-router OSPF area 0 topology
  • Configure router-IDs explicitly
  • Use loopbacks
  • Add passive-interface default + no passive-interface on uplinks
  • Verify neighbors (show ip ospf neighbor)
  • Diagnose adjacency issue (mismatch hello/dead, area, MTU - simulate one)
  • Add default-information originate for default route

Self-check

  • Can I memorize OSPF neighbor states (Down→Init→2-Way→Exstart→Exchange→Loading→Full)?
  • Can I diagnose stuck-in-EXSTART (MTU mismatch)?
  • Can I make a router DR with ip ospf priority?

Week 7 - IP Services

Reading

Hands-on

  • Configure PAT on edge router; verify with show ip nat translations
  • Configure router as DHCP server with excluded addresses
  • Configure DHCP relay (ip helper-address)
  • Configure NTP client + server
  • Configure Syslog to a remote server
  • Configure SNMPv3 with auth and priv

Week 8 - ACLs and Port Security

Reading

Hands-on

  • Standard numbered ACL: allow only one subnet
  • Extended numbered ACL: allow only HTTP/HTTPS to a server
  • Named extended ACL with insertions
  • Apply inbound vs outbound on different interfaces
  • Diagnose: trace why a packet is denied
  • Configure port security with sticky MACs and shutdown violation
  • Trigger a violation, recover with errdisable

Week 9 - Security Fundamentals + AAA + VPN concepts

Reading

Hands-on

  • Configure SSH-only access with transport input ssh
  • Configure local users with privilege levels
  • Configure AAA with RADIUS + local fallback (Packet Tracer has limited RADIUS support)
  • Configure DHCP snooping concept
  • Configure DAI (Dynamic ARP Inspection) concept

Self-check

  • TACACS+ vs RADIUS differences
  • WPA2 vs WPA3
  • What is 802.1X and where are the three roles?

Week 10 - Wireless + Automation

Reading

Hands-on

  • Configure a WLC in Packet Tracer (basic SSID, security, AP onboarding)
  • Read sample JSON / YAML; identify keys, values, types
  • Read a sample Ansible playbook; identify hosts, tasks, modules
  • Make a REST GET against any public API (httpbin.org, JSONPlaceholder)

Self-check

  • Can I tell apart 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz characteristics?
  • Do I know REST verbs and common status codes?
  • Can I identify YAML errors at a glance?

Week 11 - Practice Exams + Weak Areas

Reading

Practice exams

  • Boson ExSim CCNA (paid, considered hardest and best - if budget allows)
  • Cisco Press CCNA Cert Library practice exams
  • Free practice on exam-labs
  • Score 85%+ on multiple practice exams

Drill weak areas

  • Re-read notes for the weak domain
  • Build a Packet Tracer lab for that topic and complete it under time

Week 12 - Final Review and Schedule

Reviews

  • Subnetting: drill until /22, /23, /24, /26, /27, /28, /29, /30 are instant
  • OSPF: states, adjacency requirements, DR election
  • STP: roles, states, root election
  • ACL placement: standard near destination, extended near source
  • Port numbers (memorize the table in fact-sheet.md)

Mock exams

  • Two full mock exams, timed (120 minutes each)
  • Score 85%+ on both
  • Review every wrong answer

Schedule the exam

  • Book through Pearson VUE
  • Choose testing center or online proctor
  • Budget for 120 minutes plus 15 minutes check-in

Daily routine (suggested)

Time Activity
30 min Read notes / fact-sheet section
30 min Subnetting drills (every day, no exceptions)
60 min Hands-on lab in Packet Tracer
30 min Practice questions on the day's topic

Stop signals (when you're ready)

  • Subnetting is automatic - any /22 to /30 in under 30 seconds without paper
  • You can build a full multi-VLAN, multi-router, OSPF-routed network in Packet Tracer in <30 minutes
  • You can write extended ACL syntax from memory
  • You can configure port-security, OSPF, NAT, DHCP, syslog from memory
  • You score 85%+ on two practice exams in a row

When all are true, schedule the exam.