How to build a CCIE lab at home?

The answer to this question is quite simple, but many times the candidates got confused and take another rack rental. So, in this article, I would be clearing your confusion. Well, it is going to be dependent on what CCIE you are willing to obtain. Generally, it is quite easy to go for CCIE Routing and Switching or CCIE Service Provider. For those, certification, you are not required to have anything, as you could just rent virtual labs from Cisco directly, which is again not too much expensive, or you can build them yourself using tools like GNS3,

The software that would be empowering network professionals, and Cisco IOU, IOSv or IOS XRv, virtualized versions of the Cisco operating systems. You should have the knowledge that with the exception of the “unofficial” IOU, all the rest of the options that you are taking a lot of RAM and you shall consider about 2 to 4GB per virtual instance.

The CCIE R&S labs are practically using the same software now, so you are not required to buy routers and have them at home at all. Generally, you would just need 2 Ethernet switches and 2 to 4 routers and as said earlier that everything could be virtualized and fully official, for further info just check out the Virtual Internet Routing Lab.

The main difference between the tools that are needed for CCIE SP compared to CCIE RS is Cisco IOS XR, which is extensively used in CCIE SP.

If you are going for CCIE Security, you might need some virtualized ASA devices and also some other appliances. CCIE Voice could be virtualized too, but you might be needing 1or 2 Cisco IP Phones at home.

So again, to your question, it depends on what type of CCIE you are going for. But most of the things are virtualized today, and even the LAB exams taken utilizing the virtualized environment. You could rent labs from Cisco like VIRL, or you may opt for building one yourself on your own hardware which could again be rented or hosted over the internet, where you would need GNS3 like tools or similar products, which are some other, are much lighter, that you could easily find over the internet.

I would think it would be simple, just buy 2 Cisco routers, 2 Cisco switches, and other Cisco products if needed, you would need just 2 of each to practice more configurations. And if you are asking about how to set them up, I would be a bit concerned about how you would your CCNP.

It would cost a pretty penny to practice labs, but if you are going for CCIE you would easily get that money back with a pay estimation of $70 per hour.

But is it going to bother you in a real sense? All you need to do is to just use packet tracer for the commands. And for the physical aspects of it, you just need to go down to your local university and pay or ask to use it for a few hours, I'm sure they would be happy to let you do it since CCNP.

Conclusion:

So, you are now required to decide that which Cisco Certification, you would opt for, and then go for the Lab Rentals of equipment. If you are still confused, then I would recommend you gain the training through some reputed training center, like the SPOTO CCIE Club. SPOTO is considered to be one of the best training centers, who provides you training in any Cisco Certification, which you opt for and that too with passing guarantee. So, join them and achieve your dream of success.