CCNP ENCOR 350-401: Switching & VLANs (Part 1/5)

Explore Cisco certification updates effective February 2020 and the track-based specialization across technologies from switches and routers to data center, wireless, VoIP, and security devices.

Consolidates Cisco ENCOR tracks into a single foundation, removing specializations and entry-level prerequisites, and enables direct paths into security or enterprise tracks.

Cisco re-certifications now carry a three-year validity for all certifications, including tsa and specialist certs; formerly some certs were two years, with activation and deactivation like sleep mode.

Explore six CCNP Enterprise tracks spanning wide and wireless networks, with two wireless modules and a core paper guiding your path to expert level, including datacenter security and service portal.

Explore the six tracks of the CCNP Enterprise ENCOR program, detailing enterprise infrastructure and enterprise wireless paths, plus related tracks like data center, security, and collaboration.

Explore Cisco's migration tool to determine what certification status you will receive after migrating existing exams to the new enterprise tracks, including recertification every three years.

Explore the CCNP enterprise core exam and concentration tracks, covering foundational routing and switching concepts, wireless design for enterprise networks, automation foundations, and enterprise network solutions for certification.

Master the coexistence of IPv4 and IPv6 in enterprise networks, and explore virtualization, routing, and security for wired and wireless infrastructures in the CCNP ENCOR 350-401 overview.

Explore core enterprise networking topics across architecture, forwarding, switching and routing, with coverage of ospf, bgp, ipv6, security, wireless, fabric technologies, and network assurance.

Explore CCNP Enterprise lab options, comparing physical dedicated setups with virtual and simulation tools like GNS3, track rentals, and license-based labs for routing and switching practice.

Learn about supported virtual images for GNS3 and EVE-NG, including L2 and L3 Cisco images, how to upload images, and simulating devices in a virtual lab.

Use GNS3 as a virtual lab to replace hardware for CCNP ENCOR labs. It supports many devices with downloadable virtual images like Cisco IOS and Juniper, enabling realistic simulations.

Install gns3 on Windows by downloading the official installer from the website, signing in, and following the setup steps, with virtualization enabled in the BIOS.

Explore how to set up and add ios images in gns3, sourcing images via Cisco login or local files, and configure image options and slots using the setup wizard.

Explore the default topology in GNS3 for ccnp enterprise encor 350-401, using loopback logical interfaces and basic iOS configurations to simulate multiple subnets and lab connectivity.

Set up the iOS default topology by dragging and dropping images, wiring with cables, configuring slots, starting the topology, and using the console to verify and save the initial configurations.

Connect your physical Windows computer to a GNS3 topology using virtual interfaces and the Microsoft Lubeck adapter, enabling you to run applications and manage devices on the computer.

Install and configure GNS3 with VMware, align veum images and versions, integrate with VMware Workstation, and troubleshoot VM network connectivity by matching subnets.

Learn to set up GNS3 with IOSv for layer 2 and 3 simulations by importing appliance and image files, and dragging images to devices to boot and console.

Learn to set up the ASAv firewall in GNS3 by importing the appliance and ASA images, selecting the correct version, naming it, and powering it on to connect.

Learn how to configure GNS3 IOU-L2-L3 images with a license file, add devices, browse images, and drag and drop to simulate Cisco devices for internal testing.

Set up eve-ng by downloading and importing the vm, configure ram and cpu, power on to obtain an ip, then build labs with devices and images.

Navigate the EVE-nG professional license, including free community and pro options, learn to download images, run in a VM, and activate licenses via the web portal for sd-wan labs.

Learn to upload L-3 images into eve-ng, place them in the correct folders, create labs, add switches or routers, adjust resources, start devices, and access their consoles.

Upload sd-wan images to EVE-NG image manager, using a pro license if needed, and transfer the four files (vBond, vEdge, vManage, vSmart) from local drive to EVE-NG.

Add Viptela devices in an EVE-NG lab by uploading preconfigured images, organizing folders, applying proper permissions, and launching vManage and other devices for hands-on configuration.

Learn how to upload ASA images to EVE-NG, copy them from your local machine, and boot ASA nodes via the security CLI.

Learn to run Windows client or server operating systems inside an Eve-NG topology using either ISO files or preconfigured images, and access them via VNC.

Learn to run ASA 8.4 images in eve-ng, using older images when needed for labs like port channel and failover, and upload the RSA image to access the CLI.

Connect a Windows server to the existing network to enable Vmanage login and serve as a certificate authority for controller and VE edges authentication; verify IP configuration and reachability.

Connect the Windows server to the internet by using a management cloud interface, dhcp ip assignment, and remote desktop access on the same subnet.

Explore using the seesaw ibis XY image as a one-edge device and the CSR1000 with iris XY in EVE-NG, focusing on data plane concepts, image upload, and topology setup.

Explore local area networks (LANs) within a single location, focusing on high-speed, secure wired Ethernet and wireless LAN connections, including devices, switches, and radio frequency transmission media.

Explains ethernet as a standard for framing data, encapsulation, protocols, cabling, connectors, and device identification via mac addresses, enabling interconnection of switches, routers, and hosts in a local area network.

Explore how a small office/home office LAN uses an all-in-one device with a switch, router, and access point to connect wired and wireless devices to the internet.

Explore how enterprise lan uses dedicated switches per floor, a centralized distribution switch, wired and wireless access points, and cabling installed by electricians to connect hundreds of devices.

Explore transmission media types, including copper utp and coaxial cables, fiber optic, and wireless lan. Learn straight-through and cross-over cabling, color coding, crimping, and basic connectivity testing.

Explore fiber cables for long-distance enterprise links, including switch-to-switch connections with SFP ports enabling 10 gig speeds, and contrast with LAN use and wireless access points for mobility.

Perform a basic local area network setup by connecting four computers to a single switch, assign ip addresses on the same subnet, and verify connectivity with ip config and ping.

Explore how arp broadcasts resolve a device ip to its mac address, enabling switches to forward frames by mac addresses rather than ip.

Define a broadcast domain as devices that receive a broadcast from a member, and explain how switches flood when entries are missing; trunking options divide domains to optimize broadcast traffic.

Explore how VLAN divides a single broadcast domain into multiple logical networks, limiting broadcasts by department subnets for improved performance and security.

Identify vlan types such as default vlan 1, data vlan, and voice vlan for IP phones, data, and management traffic, and apply separate management vlan best practices.

Understand vlan ranges: the default vlan, the normal range 2 to 1001, and the extended range 1006 to 4094. Note that 1006–4094 are reserved on many platforms and not visible.

Create and name VLANs in configuration mode, verify with show vlan, and assign switch ports to the VLAN to enable inter-PC connectivity within the same VLAN and subnet.

Assign switch ports to specific VLANs using interface range commands to create logical separation, verify that devices in the same VLAN communicate while others do not.

Design VLAN best practices by placing departments in separate subnets and VLANs to minimize broadcast traffic. Verify topology and IP schemes in lab; use routing for inter-VLAN communication in production.

Learn to configure data and voice VLANs on switches, assign ports to each VLAN, and verify with show commands, including ports carrying both voice and data for IP phones.

Create a dedicated management vlan (vlan 100) to separate management traffic, assign an ip to the switch, and assign ports 20 and 21 to vlan 100 for remote access.

Learn how a single vlan can span multiple switches, using trunking and uplinks to connect switches so users on different floors can communicate within the same broadcast domain.

Trunk links provide a single switch-to-switch connection that carries multiple vlan traffic, eliminating per-vlan links, enabling scalable inter-switch communication with potential redundancy and support 1 gb, 10 gb interfaces.

Explore the difference between access links and trunk links in vlan networks. Access links connect end devices to a single vlan, while trunk links carry multiple vlan traffic between switches.

Explain the 802.3 ethernet frame format, including source and destination MAC addresses, the type field, and the payload carrying the IP packet, with CRC, preamble, and frame size rules.

Add tagging on trunk links to identify the VLAN for each frame, enabling switches to forward traffic within the correct VLAN and remove the tag at the destination.

Compare trunking protocols that add and remove vlan tags on trunk links, focusing on isl and dot1q tagging methods. Explain how isl, a Cisco proprietary encapsulation, encapsulates a complete frame with more overhead, while dot1q, a standard protocol, adds only four tag bytes and is widely supported across platforms.

Configure trunk links between switches to carry VLANs 10 and 20, assign ports to each VLAN, and verify connectivity with pings before and after enabling trunking and appropriate encapsulation (dot1q).

Explore why inter-VLAN routing is required to forward traffic between VLANs, and learn how gateways and IP routing enable hosts in different VLANs and subnets to access servers and resources.

Explore inter-VLAN routing methods to enable inter-department communication across VLANs. Compare legacy methods, trunk-based approaches, and layer 3 switch routing that forwards packets by IP addresses.

Explore inter vlan routing using a physical gateway, a legacy yet useful option for understanding routing between vlans. Configure a gateway for each vlan on same subnet, noting scalability drawbacks.

Configure inter-vlan routing with a physical gateway by assigning ports to VLANs and enabling router interfaces with IP addresses, then verify connectivity via PC tests and routing table checks.

Inter VLAN routing using a physical gateway is a legacy approach due to the need for multiple physical interfaces for each VLAN, limiting scalability as VLAN count grows.

Learn inter-VLAN routing with subinterfaces on a single physical link, using trunking and a router-on-a-stick approach to connect multiple VLANs over one gateway.

explains inter-vlan routing using sub-interfaces on a single trunk link, assigning gateway IP addresses for each VLAN, and using uniquely numbered, VLAN-aligned sub-interfaces.

Configure inter-VLAN routing using router subinterfaces on a trunk link with dot1q encapsulation, create unique subinterfaces per VLAN, assign gateways, and verify end-to-end connectivity.

Examine sub interfaces to route multiple VLANs over one physical link, providing a gateway for each VLAN. Assess limitations like a single point of failure, congestion, and added latency.

Learn how a multilayer switch combines layer 2 switching and layer 3 routing, using switch virtual interfaces as logical gateways to interconnect VLANs and enable dynamic routing without physical gateways.

Configure switch virtual interfaces on an L3 switch to route between VLANs using SVIs, create VLANs, assign ports, enable ip routing, and test inter-VLAN reachability.

Configure switch virtual interfaces to route between VLANs by creating VLANs, assigning ports, configuring SVIs with IP addresses, enabling IP routing on a multilayer switch, and verifying end-to-end connectivity.

Explore configuring switch virtual interfaces across multiple layer 2 switches, creating VLANs and trunk links, designating a gateway, and enabling IP routing for inter-VLAN communication.

Convert a switchport to a layer three routed port (no switchport) and assign an IP to enable routing on a physical interface, using it as a gateway.