Beginner Questions

jgrossmac · ‎01-13-2013

Hello All,

I am new to cisco networking (I just passed my A+ test and am working on my Network + test with an end goal to finish with a CCNP) and I bought a Cisco 2620 XM and a 1605R to figure out how to setup and practice on. In my house we have Verizon Fios with the standard Verizon appliance feeding internet to the rest of the house. My question is that will my Cisco appliances be usable with an out connection from the Verizon appliance? I am concerned because the connection that comes into my room from the Verizon router would be considered a LAN connection, not a WAN? Also in order to configure the router, I believe it needs an RJ-45 to serial to plug into a computer for setting up. My computer doesn't have a serial port so will an RJ-45 to USB work (since that is serial as well)? Any help or links would be much appreciated. Thanks!

Peter Paluch · ‎01-13-2013

Hello Jason,

Congratulations to passing your A+ test! Keep up the great work and good luck for your next certifications!

will my Cisco appliances be usable with an out connection from the  Verizon appliance?  I am concerned because the connection that comes  into my room from the Verizon router would be considered a LAN  connection, not a WAN?

I assume that the connection coming to your room is Ethernet and you want your routers to connect to this connection, right? Cisco routers do not distinguish between WAN and LAN, contrary to some SOHO routers that like to label different Ethernet ports as "LAN" or "WAN". While we also speak about LAN and WAN interfaces when referring to Cisco routers, we distinguish between them because of the interface technology used. LAN interface is today universally understood to be Ethernet, while WAN interfaces are usually (not always) non-Ethernet interfaces, such as serial interfaces, DSL, ISDN, cable etc. However, with respect to passing IP packets, all these interfaces are considered equal.

So as long as your routers have at least two Ethernet interfaces, you can use them to connect to the Ethernet handoff coming to your room (one Ethernet port is for the handoff, the other for your PC).

My computer doesn't have a serial port so will an RJ-45 to USB work (since that is serial as well)?

Yes, it should work. It is commonly used with today's PCs that have no RS-232 COM ports. Make sure it is configured for 9600bps, 8 data bits, no parity, 1 stop bit, no flow control.

Best regards,

Peter

jgrossmac · ‎01-13-2013

Thanks for the info Peter!

Yes, it should work. It is commonly used with today's PCs that have no RS-232 COM ports. Make sure it is configured for 9600bps, 8 data bits, no parity, 1 stop bit, no flow control.

Is the cable specificed at that configuration or is that something I specify within iOS? Also, is iOS accessed from the terminal?

Peter Paluch · ‎01-13-2013

Hi Jason,

Is the cable specificed at that configuration or is that something I  specify within iOS?  Also, is iOS accessed from the terminal?

Note, it's IOS, not iOS Anyway, the configuration of serial port speed etc. is performed in your terminal emulator software running on your PC, i.e. PuTTY, Tera Term, Hyperterminal, SecureCRT or similar. And yes, after you get your COM port or your USB-to-serial converter set up in this terminal emulator software, you will then use it to access the IOS command line.

Best regards,

Peter