CCNP BCRAN Exam Certification Guide, Second Edition
Reviewer Name: Bob Ingersoll, Consultant
Reviewer Certification: CCIE
Rating: **** out of *****
The CCNP BCRAN Exam Certification Guide, Second Edition (ISBN 1-58720-084-8; Brian Morgan, Craig Dennis; Cisco Press; 547 pages) is the official study guide for the Building Cisco Remote Access Networks exam (BCRAN 642-821). The Foreword to this guide states that it is a "complete study tool" for the exam. And it does appear to cover all of the topics described in the exam at www.cisco.com. The topics include traditional and emerging WAN technologies, dial-on-demand, NAT and security. The book is well structured, beginning with a high-level overview of remote access technologies and requirements and presents information in easily absorbed pieces. Very well executed figures, examples and even photographs are used liberally to help explain concepts and familiarize readers with the relevant Cisco products.
The book provides several suggested study strategies and useful tips for taking the real exam. The "Do I Know This Already?" questions at the start of each chapter allow readers with different levels of experience to focus on the specific areas they need to improve.
At the end of each chapter is a "Foundation Summary" that’s intended to reinforce concepts and to be used as review notes prior to the real exam. But the "Foundation Summary" found in several chapters consists of only a few sentences and omits commands and other ostensibly important information found in the text.
Also following each chapter is a "Q&A" section with questions that are more difficult than the ones on the real exam. These questions probe one’s understanding of a topic and don’t depend on the multiple-choice or fill-in-the-blank formats that encourage guessing at answers. All questions and answers are grouped into an appendix that makes a good review tool to use the day before the exam.
Although the back cover of the guide describes "an entire chapter of scenarios" or real world exercises, only a handful of scenarios can be found distributed among just a few chapters.
The companion CD-ROM contains practice questions and the full text in Adobe Acrobat format. A total of 276 test questions are available including 170 questions taken directly from the text and 20 lab simulations. The practice tests use the venerable Boson test engine and contain multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank and list-in-order style questions. The well-designed and functional simulator provides practice in basic configuration of many of the IOS features described in the text.
When errors are found in a practice exam at best they are a nuisance; at worst they can actually cost the reader valuable points on the real exam. Thankfully, the printed material and practice tests included here contain few obvious errors. However, no provision is made for easily reporting test errors if you do find them. There is no mention of how to go about reporting an incorrect answer. By contrast, some other products put a button on each answer that will send the questionable text along with comments directly to the author and publisher.
Although registration via Internet or telephone is required before the practice tests can be used, nothing prevents one from registering and using the product on a second computer. This "feature" will be very appreciated by those that want to install the tests on a laptop for use when traveling in addition to installing on a desktop computer. The onerous single-use license enforced by some other publishers prevents this legitimate use of their product. Let’s hope that Cisco Press continues to permit products like this to be registered and used on more than one computer.
The authors have produced a technical reference and study guide that may very well be the only BCRAN exam preparation tool that you will need. And they've done a good job of presenting a lot of information in a thoroughly readable form with relatively few weaknesses. I look forward to seeing other titles from them. Overall the guide represents a good value. It can be purchased for roughly the same price as other BCRAN practice tests that don’t include the high-quality hardcover text. On a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest rating, this guide rates a 4.