CCNA 200-301 Official Cert Guide Library 1st Edition

I relied on Wendell's old ICND1 100-105 text to pass the CCENT and it was first rate at explaining every little detail. His style is to be very thorough, which is really important if you're new to the subject and want to master the basics. If you don't understand him the first time, re-read it a couple times and it'll come clear. His writing style is direct and easy to follow, at least from my point of view. About 75% of Volume 1 of this new CCNA 201-300 text recycles and updates the material from that (now defunct) 100-105 book. But it's nice to know that they've added and subtracted as needed to match up to the latest CCNA topics. Personally, I'd recommend adding in a few other information sources (videos, boot camps, texts, practice tests) but I believe Wendell's books could easily form the backbone of your study plans.All that said, if you are already familiar with the material to a greater or lesser extent you might get a little frustrated at his fine level of detail, slower pace and repetition you'll find in these books. But they do have "Do I Know This Already" Quizzes before each chapter so you can skim over the sections you already know. And it's nice to know the information is there for reference if you find you need it.

I couldn’t be more grateful for the CCNA OCG Bundle. Having gone through multiple CCNA books, I can confidently say this one is in a league of its own. Wendell Odom’s explanations are thorough and exceptionally well-structured, turning challenging topics into approachable, understandable material. Thanks to this book, I am now CCNA certified! My sincere thanks to Wendell Odom for creating such an outstanding resource—I highly recommend it to anyone serious about their CCNA journey. Wendell, if you read this and ever visit Bulgaria, the beer’s on me!

This book helped me to understand Cisco CCNA 200-301 to prepare for my exam, and on top of that, with this book, I have access to online books and labs... I fully recommend it

If you're looking to pass the CCNA then this book is one of the resources that you'll want to use. The writing is clear and all of it is organized in a way to help you learn the material and gauge your understanding so you know what to review further. The product comes with a few practice tests and a lab simulator as well.I felt that the tests were well written and reflected the actual test but it was, in my opinion, easier than the actual exam. The lab simulator was fine but Cisco's (free) packet tracer was a lot more helpful.The only gripe I have with this guide is that it doesn't cover ALL the material that you'll encounter on the test. Now, Cisco probably writes these tests for people who are working with this stuff or at least are exposed to a network engineering environment so some of the knowledge they probably just expect you to know practically. So do your research when studying and use more than one resource if you want to pass.

I wasn't planning on writing a review on this since it's just books and some extras. Everything came as expected. And I love all the extras that came with it. But therein lies the the reason for this review..Many have stated on the reviews that they didn't get any software, or any of the extras advertised. There have even been a few that have picked up on the fact the extras are not physically in the box. There was, in fact, a card in an envelope in the back of the books that had to code to active the product on the PearsonTestPrep site, with some discount codes for some upgrades if you wanted them. They were not a requirement to purchase.What I think a lot of people miss, or assume should have been a physical dvd in an age where media like that is becoming obsolete, is that there were also instructions on that same sheet of paper to goto the ciscopress website to activate the products using the ISBN code located on the back cover of each of the books, which then unlocks all of the extras on their website.So you didn't get robbed or bamboozled out of the free extra stuff, you just failed to read all of the instructions carefully. Which in itself should concern you if you're trying to study for this test. For those of you that picked up on the instructions, congratz and enjoy :)

My Volume 1 and Volume 2 set arrive with the seals still in tact. There was no CD. I don't think there is supposed to be a CD. The lab software is on the companion website. Once you register your book, you have access to the companion website and can download the network simulator lite.Now that i'm getting started in my studies, I'd like to point out some things: take the time to read the study plan section and get everything set up, which takes a while. Do the packet tracer course and get to know packet tracer, especially before you go drop a couple hundred on VIRL. Good luck!

One thing to note: I bought this book via Kindle. There is an issue with the Pearson Test Code. I do have a ticket in with amazon and they have passed it on to their content team. They hope to have the issue resolved in 5-7 business days. This is the main reason I wanted to write the review in case anyone else was in my boat.This book in my opinion isn't the most beginner friendly without additional resources to tie it together such as a video course or something similar. I am using it more so as a refresher to take the new CCNA 200-301 exam in the coming months and for that purpose it is serving me well.