Cisco Certified

Support
Technician
CCST
Networking
100-150
Official Cert Guide

RUSS WHITE, CCIE NO. 2635

Cisco Press
iv Cisco Certified Support Technician CCST Networking 100-150 Official Cert Guide

Cisco Certified Support Technician CCST

Networking 100-150 Official Cert Guide
Russ White

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 v

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 vii

About the Author

Russ White has more than 20 years of experience in designing, deploying, breaking,
and troubleshooting large-scale networks. Across that time, he has coauthored 48
software patents, has spoken at venues throughout the world, has participated in the
development of several Internet standards, has helped develop the CCDE and the
CCAr, and has worked in Internet governance with the ISOC. Russ is currently a senior
architect at Akamai Technologies, where he works on next-generation data center designs,
complexity, security, and privacy. His most recent books are The Art of Network
Architecture, Navigating Network Complexity, and Problems and Solutions in
Network Engineering.

MSIT Capella University, MACM Shepherds Theological Seminary, PhD Southeastern

Baptist Theological Seminary, CCIE No. 2635, CCDE 2007:001, CCAr

About the Technical Reviewer

Patrick Gargano is a content developer and instructor on the Enterprise Technical
Education team within Learning & Certifications at Cisco. Before that, he worked as
a Cisco Networking Academy instructor; he has been an instructor-trainer since 2000
and a Certified Cisco Systems Instructor (CCSI) since 2005 for Fast Lane UK, Skyline
ATS, and NterOne, teaching CCNA and CCNP courses. Recently, he was responsible
for developing Cisco’s official ENARSI and ENSDWI course content. He has published
four Cisco Press books; is a regular speaker at Cisco Live; and holds CCNA, CyberOps
Associate, and CCNP Enterprise certifications. He also holds BEd and BA degrees from
the University of Ottawa and has a Master of Professional Studies (MPS) degree in
computer networking from Fort Hays State University. He lives in Quebec, Canada, with
his wife and son.
CHAPTER 10

Basic Network Hardware

This chapter covers the following exam topics:

4. Infrastructure
4.1. Identify the status lights on a Cisco device when given instruction by an
engineer.

Link light color and status (blinking or solid)

4.2. Use a network diagram provided by an engineer to attach the

appropriate cables.

Patch cables, switches and routers, small topologies

4.3. Identify the various ports on network devices.

Console port, serial port, fiber port, Ethernet ports, SFPs, USB port, PoE

Routers, switches, and network appliances—middleboxes—are the bread and butter of the
network world. Creating a network by connecting these things is more than plugging in a
few cables and using the network. Laying out the physical and logical design of a network
requires a great deal of thought and work.
This chapter begins with the physical form factor of different kinds of middleboxes and
then goes into the ports you will encounter in networks. The first section also considers
the status lights on many network devices, a common—and quick—network diagnostic
tool.
The second section covers the two basic kinds of network diagrams, the kinds of informa-
tion they contain, and what they are used for. The third section considers the kinds and uses
of network wiring and correlating physical layer network diagrams with physical wiring. The
final section considers heat and power problems in a network facility.

NOTE Chapter 23, “Configuring a Network,” covers configuring Cisco Systems routers and
switches in more detail.

“Do I Know This Already?” Quiz

Take the quiz (either here or use the PTP software) if you want to use the score to help you
decide how much time to spend on this chapter. Appendix A, “Answers to the ‘Do I Know
This Already?’ Quizzes,” found at the end of the book, includes both the answers and
explanations. You can also find answers in the PTP testing software.
Table 10-1 “Do I Know This Already?” Foundation Topics Section-to-Question Mapping
Section Questions
Hardware, Ports, and Lights 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Network Diagrams 6
Network Wiring 7
Handling the Heat 8

CAUTION The goal of self-assessment is to gauge your mastery of the topics in this
chapter. If you do not know the answer to a question or are only partially sure of the answer,
you should mark that question as wrong for purposes of the self-assessment. Giving yourself
credit for an answer you incorrectly guess skews your self-assessment results and might
provide you with a false sense of security.

1. What is the primary purpose of the management network port?

a. Provide access to the device’s command-line interface
b. Carry customer traffic within the local network
c. Connect to a low-speed out-of-band management network
d. Carry customer traffic to destinations outside the local network
2. What is the primary purpose of the console port?
a. Provide access to the device’s command-line interface
b. Carry customer traffic within the local network
c. Connect to a low-speed out-of-band management network
d. Carry customer traffic to destinations outside the local network
3. How are ports numbered on a router?
a. Module or slot, kind of port, submodule, and port number on the module
b. Kind of port, module or slot, submodule, and port number on the module
c. Port number, kind of port, module or slot, submodule
d. By the physical location of the port on the device
4. What are the four common light indicators on network devices?
a. Green, malfunctioned; green flashing, passing traffic; yellow, connecting or
malfunctioned; red, operating correctly
b. Green, passing traffic; green flashing, operating correctly; yellow, connecting or
malfunctioned; red, malfunctioned
c. Green, operating correctly; green flashing, passing traffic; yellow, connecting or
malfunctioned; red, malfunctioned
d. Green, operating correctly; green flashing, malfunctioning; yellow, passing traffic;
red, disconnected
198 Cisco Certified Support Technician CCST Networking 100-150 Official Cert Guide

5. Do the color and status of lights on all routers and switches indicate the same things?
a. Every network device uses the same colors and patterns of lights to mean the
same thing.
b. The colors of the lights always mean the same things, but the flashing patterns
may vary between vendors.
c. The colors of the lights may vary between vendors, but the flashing patterns
always mean the same thing.
d. The colors and flashing patterns may vary between individual devices.
6. What diagrams are commonly used in network engineering? (Choose two.)
a. Topological
b. Physical
c. Logical
d. Overlay
e. Routing
7. Why is it important to manage cables through management hardware?
a. Because OSHA regulations require well-organized cables
b. To prevent cables from hanging off their connectors
c. Because engineers generally like neatness
d. To aid in the end-to-end tracing of cables
8. What is the importance of separating hot and cold air in a networking equipment room?
a. To provide a comfortable environment for technicians
b. To prevent the mixing of hot and cold air, increasing equipment cooling efficiency
c. To prevent the mixing of hot and cold air, increasing equipment heating efficiency
d. To use the heat from the equipment more efficiently in the building

Foundation Topics
Hardware, Ports, and Lights
Racks of equipment, wire running all over the place, lights blinking on and off—when you
walk into a large room holding lots of networking gear, you might wonder, “What is all this
stuff?” You might feel like the person in Figure 10-1.
The good news is there are only a few classes of equipment in any data processing or
networking facility:

■ Routers

■ Switches

■ Patch panels

■ Compute servers

■ Storage devices

■ Optical gear

■ Other middleboxes
 Chapter 10: Basic Network Hardware 199

Figure 10-1 Racks of Equipment

The bad news is all these kinds of devices tend to look alike. Figure 10-2 shows a few pieces
of computer networking equipment of different kinds (without wiring).

3RU

2RU

1RU

1RU

Figure 10-2 Stacked Networking Equipment

From top to bottom, Figure 10-2 shows: 10

■ A Cisco 4000 series integrated services router (ISR). You would generally see this kind
of router in a small office, where it provides connectivity to the corporate network and
Internet as well as voice, security, and other services.

■ A Cisco 1004 series optical networking convergence system. You would generally see
this type of device in a service provider facility or perhaps used for corporate campus
connectivity.
200 Cisco Certified Support Technician CCST Networking 100-150 Official Cert Guide

■ A Cisco UCS C220 rack server. This is a set of hosts attached to the network rather
than providing network connectivity.

■ A Cisco email security appliance. This specialized appliance is wired into the network
so email traffic can pass through rather than providing network connectivity.

In Figure 10-2, each device’s height is labeled in rack units (RUs). An RU is 1.75 inches or
44.45 mm high. Designers are always trying to make more functionality fit into a single RU.
Equipment with more ports or requiring more cooling surface will require more RUs.
Beyond broad generalizations, the only way to know which equipment does what is to
read the labels and recognize broad classes of equipment based on their model numbers.
Recognizing hardware based on model numbers is not as hard as it might seem because most
companies use only a limited range of equipment. For example, they will use only a few
models of routers, switches, and other appliances in any individual facility.
Because the ISR router serves many different purposes, it has many kinds of ports. Look at
each section of the ISR’s back panel, beginning with the upper-left corner in Figure 10-3.

Ten Gigabit Ethernet

0/0/4 and 0/0/5
Management Gigabit Ethernet
Network Port 0/0/0 and 0/0/1

Auxiliary and Gigabit Ethernet Network Interface

Console Ports 0/0/2 and 0/0/3 Module 1

USB Ports
Figure 10-3 ISR Upper-Left Corner Ports

The first ports on the left, up to the two 10 Gb/s ports, are fixed. You cannot replace fixed
ports. Note the lack of screws or a separate plate, unlike the four ports on the left.
The management network port connects to a low-speed (normally 1 Gb/s) network to
access and manage network equipment. User data is never carried over this network, usually
called the out-of-band management network. Not all operators build out-of-band manage-
ment networks. Instead, they manage all their equipment in-band, using the same network to
carry management and user traffic.
The auxiliary port and console port provide access to the router’s command-line inter-
face (CLI) via a terminal application. Console connections come in many forms, including
lower-speed Ethernet ports, various kinds of universal serial bus (USB), and multi-pin
serial connectors. Most network engineers who spend a lot of time working with physical
 Chapter 10: Basic Network Hardware 201

hardware build a collection of connectors to connect a laptop or tablet computer to network

equipment.
Operators typically use console ports to configure a device to connect to the network. Once
the device is connected, operators use telnet, Secure Shell (SSH), and other methods to con-
nect to and configure the device. You can think of the console port in most modern
networks as a sort of “backup plan”; this is how you connect if all the other ways fail.

NOTE Chapter 21, “Managing Networks,” and Chapter 23, “Configuring a Network,” cover
accessing routers through Telnet and SSH.

Gigabit Ethernet 0/0/0 and 0/0/1 are the first two network ports in this fixed configuration
portion of the router. Each of these ports can be used in one of two ways: as a Power over
Ethernet (POE) port using an RJ-45 connector or by inserting a pluggable optical connector
into the slot next to the RJ-45 port. The single marked-out area over these four ports indi-
cates only one port can be used at a time for each of these interfaces. Inserting a pluggable
interface disables the RJ-45 port.

NOTE Chapter 7, “Wired Networks,” covers pluggable and optical connectors.

Gigabit Ethernet 0/0/2 and 0/0/3 are RJ-45-only 1 Gb/s Ethernet ports. These ports do not
support POE or pluggable interfaces.
Ten Gigabit 0/0/4 and 0/0/5 are pluggable high-speed interfaces. These are the last two
interfaces in the fixed portion of the router configuration.
The first network interface module (NIM) is to the right of the two 10 Gb/s ports. Each
kind of NIM supports different interface combinations. NIM1 in Figure 10-3 is a 4BR, which
supports voice and Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) connections. The screws
on the left and right sides of the NIM indicate this part of the router is replaceable.
Two more unfilled NIM slots are available to the right of NIM1; Figure 10-3 does not show
these slots.
Figure 10-4 shows the center-right module of the ISR.

Kind of Port
Ports Numbers

10

Port Lights
Figure 10-4 ISR Center-Right Ports

This set of ports and the one to the left of them are replaceable, as you might expect,
because of the screws on either end of the module. Each router with replaceable modules
202 Cisco Certified Support Technician CCST Networking 100-150 Official Cert Guide

uses different terminology, such as NIM, 5M slot (as shown here), VIP, and many others.
These different names describe some significant physical characteristic or capability of the
module.
Chassis devices also have line cards. There are two differences between a line card and
some kind of module:

■ A line card normally has a separate forwarding engine, while a module uses the router’s
forwarding engine.

■ A line card usually is larger than a module.

Many line cards or modules indicate the kind of port they contain, such as the one shown
in the upper left of Figure 10-4. This module contains twenty-four 1 Gb/s ports using RJ-45
connectors. The module’s model number, SM-X, is just to the left of the port indicator. You
can search for this model number on the Cisco website to discover the capabilities of each
port in this module, such as whether they support POE.
In this case, the port numbers are all along the top of the module. A small arrow beside each
port number indicates whether the number relates to the upper or lower port. Odd ports are
almost always on the top of a row of ports, while even ports are almost always on the bottom.
You might have noticed the ports in Figure 10-3 contained three numbers—TE0/0/4 and
TE0/0/5, for instance. Port numbers follow a fairly standard convention across all network
equipment manufacturers:

■ Two or three letters indicate the speed of the port. GE is for Gigabit Ethernet, TE is
for Ten Gigabit Ethernet, etc.

■ If there is one number, the router has only fixed ports. These ports are numbered
starting at 1 and ending at the maximum port count.

■ If there are two numbers, the router has slots for modules or line cards. The first num-
ber indicates the line card or module slot, and the second indicates the port number
on the module or line card.

■ If there are three numbers, the router has slots for modules or line cards, and the mod-
ules or line cards have slots for submodules. The first number indicates the line card or
module slot, the second indicates the submodule slot, and the third indicates the port
number on the module or line card.

A small sticker with a table is shown on the right side of Figure 10-4. The table’s upper-left
cell is marked with a 1, indicating the upper-left slot contains module 1. The upper-right cell
in the table is marked with a 2, indicating the upper-right slot contains module 2.
Figure 10-4 shows the module in the upper-right slot according to the table, so the interfaces
in this module would be GE2/0/1 through GE2/0/24. In this case, the center number is 0
because these ports are connected to the main module itself, not a submodule.
Finally, there is a light for each port along the bottom of the module, shown in Figure 10-4.
Almost every port you encounter in computer networks will have an associated light. These
lights, or light-emitting diodes (LEDs), are an important diagnostic tool—if you know what
 Chapter 10: Basic Network Hardware 203

the color and condition of the light mean. Some lights are generally assumed to be common
among all networking hardware, such as

■ A solid green status light means the port is operating correctly.

■ A flashing green status light means the port is connected and data is being transmitted.

■ A yellow status light means the port is connecting or has malfunctioned.

■ A red status light means the port has malfunctioned.

Unfortunately, however, these lights do not always mean the same thing on every piece of
networking hardware. For instance, on the Cisco 1120 Connected Grid Router, the pluggable
Ethernet 1/1 and 1/2 ports have two lights—one for port speed and another for port status.

■ If the port speed light blinks green twice and then pauses, the port is connected at
100 Mb/s.

■ If the port speed light blinks green three times and then pauses, the port is connected
at 1 Gb/s.

■ If the port status light is solid green, the port is connected and active.

■ If the port status light is yellow, the port is connected, but there is an error condition.

■ If the port status light is flashing green, the pluggable interface can be safely removed.

If you believe a flashing green light means data is being transmitted on a Cisco 1120
Connected Grid, you could be misled.
To add confusion, you can program the lights on many systems to use any color combina-
tion you like. Many large-scale operators prefer to use blue rather than green and only solid
lights. When you walk into a large data center, the sheer volume of flashing lights can be a
bit overwhelming, making it harder to find failed connections rather than easier.
You should always check the equipment manual if you are unsure about the different states
of the port lights.
Figure 10-5 shows the lowest of the three sections of the ISR.

Status Lights 10Gb/s Ethernet

10

Host Console USB Ports Hard Drives

Power and Management Port

Reset
Figure 10-5 Host (Server) Module in ISR
204 Cisco Certified Support Technician CCST Networking 100-150 Official Cert Guide

The lower section of this ISR contains a host. For some small offices, having a local server
installed in a device like this might be useful to support email, web hosting, or other applica-
tions. This host module has its own power indicator, reset button, status lights, and console
port. There is also a management port for the out-of-band management network described
earlier.
This host (server) module has two 10 Gb/s Ethernet ports. These ports would be configured
through the host console rather than the router CLI. Four hard drives are also included on
this module’s right side; each pair has its own cover plate.
Figure 10-6 illustrates the back of another kind of Cisco router—a Cisco 8200 series.

Figure 10-6 A Cisco Systems 8200 Series Router

Some routers or other network devices have console, management network, or other ports
along the back. The Cisco 8200, however, has only three components. There are two power
supplies, one on either side of the router. Each of these power supplies can be removed
and replaced. You need to see if you can replace these while the router is powered up and
running.
Four fans, often called fan trays, are along the back of the router. These draw air through the
router, across the optical ports, electrical ports, and processors. It is critical to cool these
components correctly. The fans are replaceable.

Network Diagrams
Networking diagrams are crucial to the documentation required to operate, troubleshoot,
and modify a network. Building a good network diagram requires a solid grasp of how the
network is built, how it works, and what the diagram itself is supposed to accomplish. There
are two broad categories of network diagrams: physical and logical.
Figure 10-7 illustrates a physical network diagram.
In Figure 10-7:

■ CO: Core router

■ ED: Edge router

■ FW: Firewall

■ SV: Server

■ PP: Patch panel

■ NET: Internet connection router
 Chapter 10: Basic Network Hardware 205

To Internet

ACROSS
PORTS MAP
NET1
ED1

NET2

FW1 PP1

FW2 To Client Hosts

CO1

ACROSS
PORTS MAP
CO2 ED2

SV1

PP2
SV2
To Client Hosts

SV3

SV4

Figure 10-7 A Physical Network Diagram

Physical diagrams show where each wire originates and terminates in a network or section. It
is common for large-scale networks to require hundreds of physical diagrams to accurately
describe how each cable runs, what it connects to, etc.
Physical diagrams are good for understanding a network’s physical component, location, and
how cables are physically run. For instance, the physical diagram is a good place to start if

■ You want to ensure two redundant cables do not run through a single cable tray or
conduit—called circuit grooming.

■ You want to plan out how many cables are needed of a specific length.

■ You want to know about the physical size of a piece of equipment—perhaps so you
can plan for a replacement.

Physical diagrams do not always contain the following: 10

■ Port numbers, because these can be inferred from where a cable is shown connecting
to a piece of equipment. For instance, you can infer the connection from CO1 port 2 is
connected to CO2 port 3 from this simple diagram.

■ Any kind of addresses. You normally will not find IP addresses, physical interface
addresses, or any other addresses on a physical network diagram.
206 Cisco Certified Support Technician CCST Networking 100-150 Official Cert Guide

Figure 10-8 shows a logical diagram of the same network.

Internet

SV1
FW1 FW2

ge05
ge05
SV2 ge
02
ge01
CO1 ED1
ge11
ge03
04 ge
ge 24

Hosts
ge
ge0 01
2
SV3 11
ge03 ge

ge24
ge04
CO2 ED2

SV4

Figure 10-8 Logical Network Diagram

Logical network diagrams are abstracted in some ways:

■ Notice the patch panels are not shown in the logical diagram.

■ You can no longer tell which cable runs might be longer or shorter.

■ You can no longer tell what device each rack is in.

Use a logical diagram to follow the traffic flow or understand the control plane configuration
and operation. Logical diagrams can also contain the following:

■ Which routing protocol is running between pairs of routers

■ Any policy implemented at a given point in a network, such as packet filtering, route
aggregation, etc.

■ Where links are connected (such as the labels given in Figure 10-8)

■ IP addresses

■ Where services are running or located in the network

Many network operators assign device names based on the device’s location, bringing more
information from the physical world into their logical diagrams.
 Chapter 10: Basic Network Hardware 207

Two simple rules of thumb are extremely helpful when working with network diagrams:

■ Physical diagrams follow the flow of the wires; logical diagrams follow the flow of the
packets.

■ You should include whatever is helpful without crowding the diagram. You can always
have more than one diagram with different pieces of information.

Network Wiring
Every network engineer—at some point in their career, at least—runs network wiring, so it
is essential to understand how to perform this fundamental task. Figure 10-9 illustrates cable
management.

Figure 10-9 With and Without Cable Management

The left side of Figure 10-9 shows a rack cabled without management aids, bundling, or even
separation. The result is a tangled mess; seeing and replacing equipment is challenging. In
contrast, on the right side of Figure 10-9, the operator cabled the rack neatly and spaced the 10
equipment apart, using horizontal D-ring organizers to hold cables in neat horizontal rows.
As shown on the left side of Figure 10-9, cables hanging off their connectors will strain their
connectors. This strain can sometimes cause failures. While most commercially built cables
will have strain gages (also spelled strain gauges) to reduce damage to internal connections,
cable management techniques like those shown on the right side of Figure 10-9 can prevent
failures of this kind.
208 Cisco Certified Support Technician CCST Networking 100-150 Official Cert Guide

Other kinds of rack-mounted cable organizers include

■ Vertical fingerboards

■ Vertical lacing bars

■ Vertical cable ladders

■ Horizontal fingerboards

■ Horizontal cable shelves

■ Horizontal lacing bars

Cable management systems can take up rack space, so carefully plan the rack layout to
include these elements. Raised floors have generally been abandoned in most designs for
overhead cable racks, such as the one shown in Figure 10-10.

Figure 10-10 Overhead Cable Tray

Engineers must design overhead cable trays to carry the weight of the supported cables.
Sometimes, this weight must be calculated into ceiling or rack weight loads.
Copper cables produce heat when power is running through them. Low-power Ethernet
cables might not individually produce enough heat to cause damage, but large groups of
cables bundled into a tray can. Because of this, heat is also a factor when designing an
overhead cable tray system.
Some operators like to include loops in their optical cables, but loops should never be
included in copper cables. Copper cables should be cut or commercially built as close to
the length needed as possible. Loops add weight to the cable system, act like antennas, or
interfere with signal transmission.
 Chapter 10: Basic Network Hardware 209

You should use patch panels when wiring might frequently change, such as connecting net-
work equipment to network wall jacks in a room or building. Patch panels can also be useful
when cable lengths change while replacing equipment.
In summary, wiring to a physical network diagram is easy on the surface but more difficult if
the job is to be done correctly.

Handling the Heat

All equipment used in information technology—hosts, routers, switches, and even copper
cables—generates heat during operation. However, operating equipment at higher tem-
peratures can reduce its life span or—if the temperature is high enough—cause immediate
failures.
Heat is managed in information technology operations by

■ Vendors working to reduce the heat their devices produce.

■ Vendors designing devices for efficient airflow.

■ Liquid cooling.

■ Hot air containment.

The first three of these are outside the scope of this book. Hot air containment is common
and easily impacted by everyday maintenance tasks. Figure 10-11 illustrates a simple cooling
system without hot air containment.

Mixed Air
Rack Row Rack Row

CRAC

Figure 10-11 Simple Cooling System

10
Figure 10-11 shows a pair of rows of racks from the end. In the figure, a computer room air
conditioner (CRAC) cools the air and pushes it into the space between the building and a
raised floor. Equipment racks sit on this raised floor. This cool air is vented in front of each
rack through a floor vent and pulled through the rack, front to back, to cool the equipment.
Hot air expelled from the back of each rack rises toward the ceiling. Fans draw hot air back
into the CRAC, cooling it, and the cycle starts again.
210 Cisco Certified Support Technician CCST Networking 100-150 Official Cert Guide

When pairs of racks are placed back-to-back, a hot aisle is created. The more fully sealed
off this hot aisle is, the more efficient the cooling process is. In a fully sealed system, there is
no mixed air; hot air is directed through ductwork back into the CRAC.
Large-scale data centers may pull air from the outside and cool it through an evaporative
process, as shown in Figure 10-12.

Evaporative
Cooling
Filter

Rack Row Rack Row

Figure 10-12 Evaporative Cooling

Figure 10-12 again shows a pair of data center racks from the end. In this figure, air is
drawn directly from the outside by fans, through a filter, and then through a waterfall-like
evaporative cooling system. As hotter air flows through the water, the water evaporates,
consuming heat from the air and leaving the cooler. This air is then pushed into the data
center by fans.
Equipment fans draw this cool air through the rack, cooling the equipment by heating the
air. The air is expelled into the hot aisle, wholly isolated from the cold aisle, and then pulled
by fans back into the outside environment.

Chapter Review
Users tend to think of “the network” as a sort of virtual thing: it exists “out there,” but where
“there” is, and how bits are translated into signals, signals are carried from place to place,
and data is processed are all something of a mystery. Network engineers, however, know that
while networks can be described in virtual terms, networks are built out of physical cables,
servers, racks, and cooling systems.
Understanding these components and how to use them to build a network is critical to net-
work engineering. This understanding combines wiring diagrams with knowledge of ports,
lights, racks, cable management, and cooling to build a physical network.
 Chapter 10: Basic Network Hardware 211

One key to doing well on the exams is to perform repetitive-spaced review sessions. Review
this chapter’s material using either the tools in the book or interactive tools for the same
material found on the book’s companion website. Refer to the online Appendix D, “Study
Planner,” element for more details. Table 10-2 outlines the key review elements and where
you can find them. To better track your study progress, record when you completed these
activities in the second column.

Table 10-2 Chapter Review Tracking

Review Element Review Date (s) Resource Used
Review key topics Book, website
Review key terms Book, website
Repeat DIKTA questions Book, PTP
Review concepts and actions Book, website

Review All the Key Topics

Table 10-3 lists the key topics for this chapter.

Table 10-3 Key Topics for Chapter 10

Key Topic Element Description Page Number
List Classes of networking 198
equipment
Paragraph Management network port 200
Paragraph Auxiliary and console ports 200
List Port number conventions 202
List, paragraph LED color meaning 202
Paragraph Router fan trays 204
Figure 10-7, list, paragraph Physical network diagrams 205
Figure 10-8, list, paragraph Logical network diagrams 206
Figure 10-9, paragraphs Good vs. poor cable 207
management
Figure 10-11, paragraph Cooling system 209
Paragraph Hot aisles 210

Key Terms You Should Know

Key terms in this chapter include
10
rack unit (RU), management port, auxiliary port, console port, NIM, chassis device, line
card, letters in a port number, numbers in a port number, solid green status light, flashing
green status light, yellow status light, red status light, physical network diagram, logical
network diagram, rack-mounted cable organizers, CRAC, hot aisle, cold aisle
212 Cisco Certified Support Technician CCST Networking 100-150 Official Cert Guide

Concepts and Actions

Review the concepts considered in this chapter using Table 10-4. You can cover the right
side of this table and describe each concept or action in your own words to verify your
understanding.

Table 10-4 Concepts and Actions

Management network port Connects to a low-speed out-of-band management network
Console port Provides access to the CLI
Port numbering Type, module, submodule, port number
Physical network diagram Good for understanding each physical component of a
network, where they are placed, and how they are physically
connected
Logical network diagram Good for understanding traffic flow, control plane
configuration, and control plane operation
Physical network diagram The flow of the wires
follows
Logical network diagram The flow of the packets
follows
Strain gage Helps prevent damage to a connector when the weight of the
cable is placed on the connector
Cold aisle Generally in front of equipment racks, where most equipment
is configured to draw air for cooling
Hot aisle Generally between rows of equipment; may be contained to
prevent air mixing