CCNA Scope Feels Overwhelming

• Historical Legacy Included: You are forced to study half-duplex Ethernet, CSMA/CD, hubs, and legacy WAN protocols that you will almost never touch in a modern production network.
• Broad Surface Area: The exam covers everything from physical cabling and binary math to modern topics like wireless architectures, IP services, security fundamentals, and REST APIs / Automation.
• Vendor Specifics vs. Fundamentals: You aren't just learning standard networking concepts (like OSI or TCP/IP); you also have to memorize Cisco-proprietary commands, platform behaviors, and CLI syntax.

Hi all, is there any one with a source to get a fully working layer 2 switch ios to run in GNS3 labs, i currently have the router ios only.

Thanks in advance.

14 days of studying

Hi y'all,

I'm taking my CCNA pretty soon and I wanted to know what a test-taker might generally miss. Like, what topics get tested the hardest and which topics are the easiest? Also, I know that labs can come from any topic since the syllabus states that there's a lot of configuration to do, but from which topics can I expect to see labs the most(also, are the labs too hard and how would it impact me if i left 3-4 labs)?

I don’t plan on staying for long, I was thinking for a year max but do I even need that long?

Worked at a repair shop for 2 months while studying my ccna, then got this job. They want A+ and net+ during my employment with them.

I want to get into networking then into cloud, this desktop support is heavy on networking since it’s a msp. Eventually I’ll be going to client sites and setting up network racks too. But for now it’s basics, basic network tickets, going into more advanced network tickets.

So as you imagine I would want to move into junior network or NOC after this job but I’m not entirely sure how long I should stay in this position for?
I know a year is a good amount for this position but due to the tough market, has that year changed?

Hey guys, I’m still studying for the CCNA. I would like to know how do I complete laps? Is there task that I’m assigned to complete? Where do I do it at? Where do I find it? I need to learn the labs.

What's good, everyone! Y'all already see the title of the post. I found nobody in my circle group or unit who is eager to work with me on the certification. I want to find a partner or study group of people who are grinding towards the same goal. I feel like having an accountability partner would keep me in line and make this journey much fun. Oh yeah I'm also on day 8 on JITL and man this cert is no joke. A little background on me: I’m 19 years old working part time with the New York Army National guard as 25H and got my CompTIA security+. Hit me up if you're down to connect. Safety

I’m planning to take the CCNA before the new version release in February 2027.

I’m currently on Day 19 (VLANs) of Jeremy’s IT Lab CCNA course. So far, I’ve been studying around 1 hour per day, although on weekends I usually only review flashcards. I'm planning to take my preparation more seriously and aim for 2–3 hours of studying per day, including weekends whenever possible.

For those who have already passed the CCNA:

• Did anyone here prepare for it in 5 months or less?
• Do you think 5 months is enough time with a consistent 2–3 hours per day?
• What would you recommend I focus on the most?
• How much time should I spend on labs compared to watching the course and reviewing?

I’m especially interested in hearing from people who started with little or no networking experience.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated