Day organisation
The workshop runs from Monday to Friday.
Each day is divided into four slots of approximately two hours
each. Classes start promptly at 08:45 and end at around 18:15
daily. There will be a one-hour break for lunch at around 13:00,
and 15-minute breaks in mid-morning and mid-afternoon. There may be
optional evening sessions from 20:00 to 22:00 on some days.
In summary, the classes will use approximately the following
time slots. These times are not exact.
- 08:45-10:45 - Morning session 1
- 11:00-13:00 - Morning session 2
- 14:00-16:00 - Afternoon session 1
- 16:15-18:15 - Afternoon session 2
- 20:00-22:00 - Optional evening sessions
Related documents
In addition to this detailed course outline, there is a
summary timetable
showing the entire course at a glance.
The Track 2 main page will also be
of interest.
Monday morning
-
Introduction and logistics [APB]
-
IP and networking basics [APB]
- Topics include: the protocol stack, hop by hop forwarding,
IP addresses, netmasks, CIDR prefix notation, ethernet ARP,
binary arithmetic.
- Students will be able to:
- recognise the ISO OSI seven-layer model
- understand the relationship between the TCP/IP model
and the ISO model
- describe the unifying effect of the network later
- describe how IP addresses are constructed:
network part, host part
- understand old classful networking terminology:
class A, B, C
- understand modern classless networking terminology:
CIDR, prefix length, VLSM
- convert between prefix length and netmask notation
- identify network and broadcast addresses
- find lowest/highest possible IP address in a prefix
- subdivide prefixes
- understand the concepts of subnetting and supernetting
- distinguish between different network types:
broadcast, point-to-point, NBMA
- explain the purpose of ARP
- describe the forwarding process and `longest match'
rules
- Presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
-
IP addresses - Additional material
Monday afternoon
-
Cisco router configuration basics [ZA/MT]
- Topics include: RAM, NVRAM, Flash. Logging in. Running
versus startup configurations, what they do, how they can
be displayed, how to change them. Configuring interfaces,
startup information, static routes. How to set passwords.
Updating IOS, TFTPing configuration files.
- Students will be able to:
- use FreeBSD as serial console (/etc/remote, tip)
- login to a cisco router
- perform basic commands
- show the running and stored configuration files
- make configuration changes
- change the IP address of an interface on a Cisco router
- add static and default routes to a cisco router
- TFTP a config file
- Presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
-
Operating systems and routers - Additional material
-
FreeBSD notes, in
HTML.
-
The same FreeBSD notes, imported from HTML to MS Word,
and reformatted for use as a double-sided one-page handout, in
MS Word format,
PDF.
-
Static routing exercise using Unix and Cisco equipment [ZA/MT]
- Students will configure static routes on their Unix systems
and routers in order to have reachability to the rest of the lab.
- Topics include: configuring IP addresses on interfaces of
Unix host and cisco router. Configuring static default route on
Unix host. Configuring static routes on Cisco router.
Troubleshooting using ping and traceroute.
- Students will be able to:
- configure FreeBSD as IP client (/etc/rc.conf)
- change the ip address of an interface on a Unix system
(ifconfig)
- add static routes to a Unix system (route, netstat)
- use FreeBSD as serial console (/etc/remote, tip)
- erase configuration of a Cisco router (write erase)
- configure IP forwarding on Cisco
- change the IP address of an interface on a Cisco router
- add static routes to a Cisco router
- perform basic network troubleshooting tasks such as
ping and traceroute
- explain what a default route is
- Presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
-
OSPF "Magic" Exercise [APB]
- (This was planned for Tuesday morning but actually
performed on Monday afternoon.)
- This simple exercise consists of the following steps:
- Keep the topology and numbering unchanged from the
preceding static routing exercise.
- Keep the PC configuration unchanged (with a static default
route to the cisco router.
- Remove all static routes from the cisco routers.
- Enable OSPF on all cisco routers, by entering a few commands
without understanding their meaning.
- Observe that OSPF soon learns the routes, as if by magic.
- This exercise uses quick and dirty techniques that are not
recommended in practice.
- If time permits after the exercise, instructors can provide
external connectivity by injecting an OSPF default route
at the classroom border gateway. Students can then read email,
or browse the web until the classroom is closed.
- Instructions in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
Monday evening - Optional sessions
Tuesday morning
-
Network Wiring and Devices [GJ]
- Topics include:
- Tell about various type of ethernet, 10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE_T, HDX/FDX
- Understand media autonegotiation
- Understand structured wiring
- Understand fiber optics
- Tell the difference between hubs, routers and switches
- Presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
-
Dynamic Routing Protocols [PFS]
- Students will be able to:
- explain when to use an IGP, and when not
- list advantages of OSPF over RIP and static routing
(fast convergence, scalability, equal-cost multipath,
authentication, bandwidth, classless!)
- list the main differences between OSPF, EIGRP and ISIS
- explain the difference between forwarding and routing;
can have multiple routing databases for different
protocols but one forwarding table
- Dynamic Routing Presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
-
Forwarding and Routing Simulation on Paper [APB]
- An exercise in which students simulate packet forwarding,
distance vector routing, and link state routing on paper.
- We do the following:
- Create a network topology on paper
- Give each group of students information about their
directly connected links, but do not give them information
about more distant aspects of the topology.
- Pass distance-vector routing messages around on paper
while updating forwarding tables on paper.
- Pass echo request, echo response and unreachable messages
around on paper while consulting the forwarding tables.
- Repeat the exercise for a link-state protocol instead of a
distance-vector protocol.
- Presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
Tuesday afternoon
-
OSPF and IGPs [PFS]
- Students will be able to:
- explain when to use an IGP, and when not
- explain the difference between forwarding and routing;
can have multiple routing databases for different
protocols but one forwarding table
- identify the lowest-cost path and equal-cost paths
- describe the formation of neighbour relations
- list default values for hellointerval / routerdeadinterval
- briefly describe the database flooding and recalculation,
and purpose of DR/BDR
- OSPF Presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
-
OSPF exercise [PFS/APB]
- Students will be able to:
- rebuild the classroom exercise using single area OSPF
- configure appropriate link costs, MD5 authentication,
enable OSPF on specific interfaces
- perform simple inspection of OSPF database (neighbours,
routes, DR/BDR)
- alter topology and observe altered routes
- originate default route
- configure loopback interfaces
- save configs to TFTP server
- Exercise, in
HTML,
PDF.
- OSPF Cheat Sheet, in
plain text,
PDF.
- addressing plan, in
plain text.
-
Resilient network design concepts [PFS]
- Topics:
- Explain the concept of a well designed network, modular
functional design
- Describe good design for a resilient network with
dual core switches, dual-attached border routers and access
routers, physically separate networks for different types of
traffic.
- Highlight platform needs, infrastructure needs, redundant cable
paths.
- Outline features for resilience, scalability, ease of
maintenance.
- Highlight need for non-blocking switches, HSRP and other
features
- The need to KISS! (Keep it Simple Stupid :-)
- Presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
Tuesday evening - Optional sessions
Wednesday morning
-
Why BGP? [PFS]
- Topics include: What is BGP? Why do we want to use it? Transit,
and peering.
- Presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
-
The Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) [PFS]
- Topics include: How BGP works, BGP attributes, BGP configuration
- Students will be able to:
- Explain why you need an EGP (you want to be able to exchange
traffic/ routes with other networks; cost of transit vs peering.
Can't use static routes, can't use IGP)
- Define autonomous system
- Describe the key characteristics of BGP4 (point-to-point peering,
TCP, incremental updates, routes + attributes, eBGP and iBGP)
- List important attributes: AS path, nexthop, localpref, MED,
communities
- Describe typical path selection by length of AS path, and
outline use of prepending to influence upstream path selection
- Explain the recursive lookup of nexthop attribute
- Use the list of BGP route-selection rules
- Read a table of 'distances' for which protocol wins
- Remember that longest prefix always wins
- Presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
Wednesday afternoon
-
BGP Practical [PFS/APB]
- (Although the BGP practical work and the BGP presentation
appear separately in this course outline, we actually
mix them together.)
- Students will be able to:
- set up a BGP peering session to an upstream provider
- set up a BGP peering session to a peer
- Announce nailed-up route
- show ip bgp summary
- understand how to filter routes
- set up a iBGP and OSPF within their AS
- Exercise notes, in
MS Word format,
HTML.
- Lab layout, part 1, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
- Lab layout, part 2, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
- Lab layout, part 3, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
- BGP Cheat Sheet, in
plain text.
Wednesday evening - Optional sessions
Thursday morning
-
Internet exchange points [BW]
- Topics include: What is an exchange point. Why you need one.
Basic XP design.
- Students will be able to:
- explain what is an exchange point
- explain why people use XPs
- understand why XPs are important
- review some current XP designs used today
- think about how to set up an exchange point in your
environment
- understand why Route Servers are useful
- explain what routing registries do and why you should use one
- Policy presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
- History presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
- Construction presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
- Economics presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
Thursday afternoon
-
Exchange points exercise [BW]
- Students will be able to:
- build a simple exchange point
- demonstrate how an XP benefits their network
- Students will be introduced to and be able to understand the
following problems:
- Not providing transit to your peer
- Not providing transit across the Exchange Point
- Not seeing own routes from anyone else
- Not accidentally receiving the whole Internet
routes from peer
- Not receiving internal IGP routes accidentally
announced by peers
- Not trusting customers to generate correct routes
-
OSPF/IBGP exercise [PFS]
- Students demonstrate knowledge gained from the week by building an
ISP network from scratch:
- appoint an ip address manager and do the address space
allocation
- build OSPF across the backbone
- build a full mesh IBGP cloud
- appoint a network manager to coordinate the network roll out
and configuration consistency
- establish eBGP peering with two external ASNs
- get full Internet connectivity and learn how to
filter prefixes
- Exercise notes, in
MS Word format,
PDF.
- Lab layout, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
- Typical
configuration
for one of the network routers.
Thursday evening - Optional sessions
- IP Telephony talk by Bill Woodcock.
- We did not actually do a presentation,
but there are some notes, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
Friday morning
-
BGP Best Current Practices [PFS]
- Topics include:
- What BGP is used for, what IGPs are used for
- Aggregation, how to generate aggregate, how to announce
aggregate
- What prefixes to receive from any eBGP neighbour
- What prefixes to send to any eBGP neighbour
- Know about the special prefixes which should never appear on the
Internet
- How to inject prefixes into BGP
- Best Current Practices presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
-
BGP Best Current Practices [PFS]
- Topics include:
- BGP Peer-groups
- Route Reflectors
- Route Flap Damping
- BGP Route Refresh
- BGP scaling presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
-
NOC services and applications [BL/SF]
- Topics include: Fault Management, Configuration/Change
Management, Performance Management, Security Management,
Accounting Management.
- Students will be able to:
- Explain the need for a Network Operations Center
- Identify the elements of Network Management
- Explain why ticket systems are necessary in a NOC
- Use a simple ticket system effectively
- Explain the different types of tools that can be used
for network monitoring
- Use a basic monitoring system to observe the health
of the network, detect faults and respond appropriately
- Demonstrate where traffic is flowing and the economics of peering
- Communicate with providers, peers and customers
- Fix Network problems where devices are unreachable
- Understand the concepts behind Change Management
- Presentation, in
Powerpoint,
HTML.
- SNMP Exercise, in
HTML.
- Help Desk Responsibilities: tips for NOC operators, in
MS Word format,
PDF,
HTML.
- Big Brother Setup notes, in
plain text.
- Netsaint setup notes, in
plain text.
- MRTG exercise notes, in
HTML.
- Cricket configuration notes, in
HTML.
- WebTTS Ticket System configuration notes, in
plain text.
- OTRS Ticket System notes, in
plain text.
Friday afternoon
-
Network Monitoring [BL/BW]
- Topics include: What is network monitoring? Why is it
important to monitor my network? What tools can I use for
network monitoring? Network Monitoring and Security.
- Students will be able to:
- Explain why network monitoring is essential
- Define various types of network monitoring
- Configure a syslog server and tools to trigger alarms
- Identify suspicious network activity/trends
-
Open Question and Answer Session.
Friday evening - Teardown
- Some equipment will need to be packed up.
- Some equipment will need to be left in place.
- Some equipment will need to be moved.
- All this will be done with careful planning.