CCNA certification prep: Network fundamentals [updated 2020]

What percentage of the exam focuses on network fundamentals?

The network fundamentals section is 20% of the CCNA 200-301’s topics. It’s neither the largest nor the smallest. The fact that the percentage increased from 15% in the previous version indicates that Cisco has emphasized the importance of having a strong base in this topic, on top of which you can add more advanced knowledge.

What topics are covered in this section of the exam?

Although the topics covered in this section are numerous and diverse, they can be categorized in just few major subsections:

• Network components: Routers, switches, access points, firewalls — basically, what makes a network infrastructure
• Network topology architectures 
• Cabling
• TCP and UDP protocols
• IPv4: Addressing, configuration and verification
• IPv6: Addressing, configuration and verification
• Wireless principles

High-level overview of network fundamentals topics

Network components (devices) routers, switches, firewalls, access points, endpoints

This subsection covers the network infrastructure components along with the end user devices and their role in the network.

Routers

Just remember that at a basic level, a router’s job is to route packets between different subnets. 

Switches

Although not limited to this, a switch is moving packets between different interfaces in the same VLAN, a process known as switching. At some point, you will encounter the terminology of L2 or L3 switches. A L3 switch is just like a router but has fewer routing features.

Firewalls

A firewall’s purpose is to protect the network against network attacks. Firewalls are becoming more and more capable and are even able to protect the network against viruses, ransomware and phishing, among other types of attacks.

Access points

In a world where mobility is critical, Wi-Fi availability becomes critical. An access point converts electrical signals to electromagnetic waves and the other way around. They facilitate the connection of a (Read more...)