CCNP Exam Prep Tips and Must Knows about Maintenance Methodologies

Things You’ll Need to Know about Maintenance Methodologies

Network Maintenance Methodology

• Examples
• IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL)
• FCAPS
• Telecommunications Management Network (TMN)
• Cisco Lifecyle Services (PPDIOO)

FCAPS Model

• Fault Management
• Configuration Management
• Accounting Management
• Performance Management
• Security Management

Common Maintenance Tasks

• Adds, moves, and changes
• Installation and configuration of new devices
• Replacement of failed equipment
• Configuration and creation of software backups
• Network failure diagnosis and resolution
• Software upgrades and patches
• Network monitoring
• Performance measurement and capacity planning
• Writing and updating documentation

Benefits of Scheduled Maintenance

• Reduces network downtime
• Ensures that long-term maintenance tasks will not be neglected or forgotten
• Results in predictable lead times for change requests
• Allows disruptive maintenance tasks to be scheduled during assigned maintenance windows, reducing downtime during production hours

Change Control Procedures

• Balance
  • Urgency
  • Necessity
  • Business benefits

• Against
  • Risk
  • Impact
  • Resources

Important Factors in Network Maintenance Process

• Up-to-date documentation
• Teamwork and communication
• Consistency
• Disaster recovery
• Network performance monitoring and measurement

Network Maintenance Tools, Applications, and Resources

• Utilize Backup Servers for Router and Switch Configurations
  • TFTP, FTP, SCP, HTTP, and HTTPS

• Archive Configurations
  • Can be created locally on the device or on the network

• Implement NTP
  • Used to synchronize the clocks of all network devices

• Implement Logging Services
  • Routers and switches can log to various location

• Online Resources
  • Cisco Dynamic Configuration Tool
  • Cisco Feature Navigator
  • SNMP Object Navigator
  • Cisco Power Calculator

• Network Monitoring System
  • Continuously checks the availability and status of your network devices

Applying Troubleshooting Methodologies

Fundamental elements of diagnosing the nature and cause of a problem

• Information gathering
• Analysis
• Elimination of problem
• Proposing hypothesis
• Testing

Common Troubleshooting Approaches

• Top Down
• Bottom Up
• Divide and Conquer
• Follow the Path
• Spot the Difference
• Move the Problem

Planning and Implementing Troubleshooting Procedures

• Define the problem
• Gather relevant information
• Analyze the facts
• Eliminate the possible causes
• Propose a hypothesis
• Test the hypothesis
• Solve the problem

Integrating Troubleshooting into the Network Maintenance Process

• Create a baseline
• Communication during the planning and implementing troubleshooting procedures
• Ask: Has anything changed recently?

Maintenance and Troubleshooting Tools

• Define the problem
  • Network monitoring and even reporting
  • Logging system messages to Syslog
  • Event notification using SNMP
  • Event notification using Cisco IOS Embedded Event Manager (EEM)

• Gather information
  • Incident-related information gathering
  • SPAN and RSPAN for traffic capturing

• Analyze
  • Baseline creation and traffic accounting
  • Statistics gathering using SNMP
  • Traffic accounting using NetFlow
• Test the hypothesis
  • Configuration rollback
  • Configuration replace and configuration rollback

Make sure you are familiar with:

• Network maintenance methodology
• FCAPS
• Common maintenance tasks
• Benefits of scheduled maintenance
• Factors in network maintenance process
• Configuration backup
• Implementing NTP
• Logging services
• Fundamental elements of diagnosing the nature and cause of a problem
• Common troubleshooting approaches
• Planning and implementing troubleshooting procedures
• Integrating troubleshooting into the network maintenance process
• Maintenance and troubleshooting tools

Be able to:

• Troubleshoot EIGRP
• Troubleshoot eBGP
• Troubleshoot routing redistribution solution
• Troubleshoot a DHCP client and server solution
• Troubleshoot NAT
• Troubleshoot first hop redundancy protocols
• Troubleshoot IPv6 routing
• Troubleshoot IPv6 and IPv4 interoperability
• Troubleshoot switch-to-switch connectivity for the VLAN-based solution
• Troubleshoot loop prevention for the VLAN-based solution
• Troubleshoot Access Ports for the VLAN-based solution
• Troubleshoot private VLANs
• Troubleshoot port security
• Troubleshoot general switch security
• Troubleshoot VACLs and PACLs
• Troubleshoot switch virtual interfaces (SVIs)
• Troubleshoot switch supervisor redundancy
• Troubleshoot switch support of advanced services (i.e., wireless, VoIP, and video)
• Troubleshoot a VoIP support solution
• Troubleshoot a video support solution
• Troubleshoot Layer 3 security
• Troubleshoot issues related to ACLs used to secure access to Cisco routers
• Troubleshoot configuration issues related to accessing the AAA server for authentication purposes
• Troubleshoot security issues related to IOS services (i.e., finger, NTP, HTTP, FTP, RCP, etc.)

Learn More
Learn more about how you can improve productivity, enhance efficiency, and sharpen your competitive edge through training.

• ROUTE – Implementing Cisco IP Routing v1.0
• SWITCH – Implementing Cisco IP Switched Networks v1.0
• TSHOOT – Troubleshooting and Maintaining Cisco IP Networks