Tag: guide

Passing my CCNP Switch 300-115 Exam

by Samuel Mitchell, posted in Routing & Switching

I am on a journey to certify my networking experience after years in the field by targeting the CCNP Routing & Switching certification. It is a challenging and tedious journey especially with information relating to some aspect of routing or switching which is not usually known and you will just research it on Google.

After acquiring my CCNA R&S in 2009, I decided to take a break. I ended up waiting until the certification almost expired in 2012 when I attempted the CCNA R&S composite exam on the last day in an effort to renew it but I failed miserable (which I totally regret). The expired status forced me to redo the entire CCNA R&S track ICND1 and ICND2.

I was advised not to do the composite exam because it is skills against time which will put me under pressure. I took the advise and did the exams in two parts and I was successful within one year.

With the enthusiasm after passing and achieving my CCNA R&S certification, I started on the CCNP track by tackling the CCNP R&S Switch first. After 1 month of studying and with the CCNA knowledge fresh in my mind, I took the exam and failed by a few points off. Man, this was heart rending. I decide No, this is not going to deter me. I went back after two months and did it again. Wow, the same result. This journey continued for seven (7) attempts and final I passed the exam with flying colors on November 8, 2019.

After reviewing the topics and objectives of the CCNP R&S switch 300-115 exam and seven (7) times exam experience, I formulated the following recommendations for preparing for the CCNP R&S Switch 300-115 which can apply to any Cisco exam:

  1. Know the protocol inner workings.
  2. Know the compatibility of more than one protocols working together e.g. Private-VLAN with SPAN or STP with Protected Port.
  3. Know the scenarios or cases that the features will best fit. for example Private-VLAN is good for using one IP address subnet and separating customers from each other like in an ISP case.
  4. Pay attention to the percentage or weight of each topics or sections on the blueprint and focus more on those features.
  5. Read the Cisco documentation for in dept information of each feature that is missing from other resources. this information will also help with cases or scenarios application.
  6.  Lab and practice with real gears: my recommendation:
    1. Cisco 3750: for stacking
    2. Cisco 3560 : private vlans, SVI
    3. Cisco 2960: PVLAN not supported and SVI
  7. Practice test (measureup is good)
  8. Set your Exam Date and workout a schedule from that date and stick to it.
  9. Create a Study Schedule of each topic on the exam blueprint

The resources I used to prepare:

  1. Cisco CCNP SWITCH 300-115 Hands-on Labs Exam Prep  (CBTNUggets)
  2. Cisco CCNP Routing and Switching 300-115 SWITCH
  3. CCNP Switching (300-115) Cert Prep: 1 Layer 2 Technologies – Linked Learning
  4. CCNP Switching (300-115) Cert Prep: 2 Infrastructure Security and Services – Linked Learning
  5. Cisco 3750 switch configuration guide (from Cisco docs)
  6. CCNP Routing and Switching SWITCH 300-115 Official Cert Guide (Pearson IT Certification)

I have  study notes that I will share in the coming weeks for those who are preparing for CCNP R&S Switch 300-115 exam. Although Cisco is changing their exams on February 24, 2020 , I am still aiming at completing my CCNP R&S certification before the time in which I will also earn the CCNP Enterprise certification, a plus for me.

My Exam Schedule – CCNP R&S

CCNP R&S Route – December 2019

CCNP R&S TShoot – February 2020