CompTIA Network+ Certification Boot Camp (N10-008)

What’s included?

• Authorized Courseware
• Intensive Hands on Skills Development with an Experienced Subject Matter Expert
• Hands-on practice on real Servers and extended lab support 1.800.482.3172
• Examination Vouchers & Onsite Certification Testing- (excluding Adobe and PMP Boot Camps)
• Academy Code of Honor: Test Pass Guarantee
• Optional: Package for Hotel Accommodations, Lunch and Transportation

Curriculum

1.0 Networking Fundamentals

1.1 Compare and contrast the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model layers and encapsulation concepts.

• OSI model
– Layer 1 – Physical
– Layer 2 – Data link
– Layer 3 – Network
– Layer 4 – Transport
– Layer 5 – Session
– Layer 6 – Presentation
– Layer 7 – Application
• Data encapsulation and decapsulation within the OSI model context
– Ethernet header
– Internet Protocol (IP) header
– Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)/User Datagram Protocol (UDP) headers
– TCP flags
– Payload
– Maximum transmission unit (MTU)

1.2 Explain the characteristics of network topologies and network types.

• Mesh
• Star/hub-and-spoke
• Bus
• Ring
• Hybrid
• Network types and characteristics
– Peer-to-peer
– Client-server
– Local area network (LAN)
– Metropolitan area network (MAN)
– Wide area network (WAN)
– Wireless local area network (WLAN)
– Personal area network (PAN)
– Campus area network (CAN)
– Storage area network (SAN)
– Software-defined wide area network (SDWAN)
– Multiprotocol label switching (MPLS)
– Multipoint generic routing encapsulation (mGRE)
• Service-related entry point
– Demarcation point
– Smartjack
• Virtual network concepts
– vSwitch
– Virtual network interface card (vNIC)
– Network function virtualization (NFV)
– Hypervisor
• Provider links
– Satellite
– Digital subscriber line (DSL)
– Cable
– Leased line
– Metro-optical

1.3 Summarize the types of cables and connectors and explain which is the appropriate type for a solution.

• Copper
– Twisted pair
– Cat 5
– Cat 5e
– Cat 6
– Cat 6a
– Cat 7
– Cat 8
– Coaxial/RG-6
– Twinaxial
– Termination standards
– TIA/EIA-568A
– TIA/EIA-568B
• Fiber
– Single-mode
– Multimode
• Connector types
– Local connector (LC), straight tip (ST), subscriber connector (SC), mechanical transfer (MT), registered jack (RJ)
– Angled physical contact (APC)
– Ultra-physical contact (UPC)
– RJ11
– RJ45
– F-type connector
– Transceivers/media converters
– Transceiver type
– Small form-factor pluggable (SFP)
– Enhanced form-factor pluggable (SFP+)
– Quad small form-factor pluggable (QSFP)
– Enhanced quad small form-factor pluggable (QSFP+)
• Cable management
– Patch panel/patch bay
– Fiber distribution panel
– Punchdown block
– 66
– 110
– Krone
– Bix
• Ethernet standards
– Copper
– 10BASE-T
– 100BASE-TX
– 1000BASE-T
– 10GBASE-T
– 40GBASE-T
– Fiber
– 100BASE-FX
– 100BASE-SX
– 1000BASE-SX
– 1000BASE-LX
– 10GBASE-SR
– 10GBASE-LR
– Coarse wavelength division multiplexing (CWDM)
– Dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM)
– Bidirectional wavelength division multiplexing (WDM)

1.4 Given a scenario, configure a subnet and use appropriate IP addressing schemes.

• Public vs. private
– RFC1918
– Network address translation (NAT)
– Port address translation (PAT)
• IPv4 vs. IPv6
– Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA)
– Extended unique identifier (EUI-64)
– Multicast
– Unicast
– Anycast
– Broadcast
– Link local
– Loopback
– Default gateway
• IPv4 subnetting
– Classless (variable-length subnet mask)
– Classful
– A
– B
– C
– D
– E
– Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) notation
• IPv6 concepts
– Tunneling
– Dual stack
– Shorthand notation
– Router advertisement
– Stateless address autoconfiguration (SLAAC)
• Virtual IP (VIP)
• Subinterfaces

1.5 Explain common ports and protocols, their application, and encrypted alternatives.

Protocols & Ports
• File Transfer Protocol (FTP) 20/21
• Secure Shell (SSH) 22
• Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) 22
• Telnet 23
• Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) 25
• Domain Name System (DNS) 53
• Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) 67/68
• Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) 69
• Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) 80
• Post Office Protocol v3 (POP3) 110
• Network Time Protocol (NTP) 123
• Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) 143
• Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) 161/162
• Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) 389
• Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) [Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)] 443
• HTTPS [Transport Layer Security (TLS)] 443
• Server Message Block (SMB) 445
• Syslog 514
• SMTP TLS 587
• Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (over SSL) (LDAPS) 636
• IMAP over SSL 993
• POP3 over SSL 995
• Structured Query Language (SQL) Server 1433
• SQLnet 1521
• MySQL 3306
• Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) 3389
• Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) 5060/5061
• IP protocol types
– Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP)
– TCP
– UDP
– Generic Routing Encapsulation (GRE)
– Internet Protocol Security (IPSec)
– Authentication Header (AH)/Encapsulating Security Payload (ESP)
• Connectionless vs. connection-oriented

1.6 Explain the use and purpose of network services.

• DHCP
– Scope
– Exclusion ranges
– Reservation
– Dynamic assignment
– Static assignment
– Lease time
– Scope options
– Available leases
– DHCP relay
– IP helper/UDP forwarding
• DNS
– Record types
– Address (A vs. AAAA)
– Canonical name (CNAME)
– Mail exchange (MX)
– Start of authority (SOA)
– Pointer (PTR)
– Text (TXT)
– Service (SRV)
– Name server (NS)
– Global hierarchy
– Root DNS servers
– Internal vs. external
– Zone transfers
– Authoritative name servers
– Time to live (TTL)
– DNS caching
– Reverse DNS/reverse lookup/forward lookup
– Recursive lookup/iterative lookup
• NTP
– Stratum
– Clients
– Servers

1.7 Explain basic corporate and datacenter network architecture.

• Three-tiered
– Core
– Distribution/aggregation layer
– Access/edge
• Software-defined networking
– Application layer
– Control layer
– Infrastructure layer
– Management plane
• Spine and leaf
– Software-defined network
– Top-of-rack switching
– Backbone
• Traffic flows
– North-South
– East-West
• Branch office vs. on-premises datacenter vs. colocation
• Storage area networks
– Connection types
– Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE)
– Fibre Channel
– Internet Small Computer Systems Interface (iSCSI)

1.8 Summarize cloud concepts and connectivity options.

• Deployment models
– Public
– Private
– Hybrid
– Community
• Service models
– Software as a service (SaaS)
– Infrastructure as a service (IaaS)
– Platform as a service (PaaS)
– Desktop as a service (DaaS)
• Infrastructure as code
– Automation/orchestration
• Connectivity options
– Virtual private network (VPN)
– Private-direct connection to cloud provider
• Multitenancy
• Elasticity
• Scalability
• Security implications

2.0 Network Implementations

2.1 Compare and contrast various devices, their features, and their appropriate placement on the network.

• Networking devices
– Layer 2 switch
– Layer 3 capable switch
– Router
– Hub
– Access point
– Bridge
– Wireless LAN controller
– Load balancer
– Proxy server
– Cable modem
– DSL modem
– Repeater
– Voice gateway
– Media converter
– Intrusion prevention system (IPS)/intrusion detection system (IDS) device
– Firewall
– VPN headend
• Networked devices
– Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone
– Printer
– Physical access control devices
– Cameras
– Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) sensors
– Internet of Things (IoT)
– Refrigerator
– Smart speakers
– Smart thermostats
– Smart doorbells
– Industrial control systems/supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA)

2.2 Compare and contrast routing technologies and bandwidth management concepts.

• Routing
– Dynamic routing
– Protocols [Routing Internet Protocol (RIP), Open Shortest Path First (OSPF), Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP), Border Gateway Protocol (BGP)]
– Link state vs. distance vector vs. hybrid
– Static routing
– Default route
– Administrative distance
– Exterior vs. interior
– Time to live
• Bandwidth management
– Traffic shaping
– Quality of service (QoS)

2.3 Given a scenario, configure and deploy common Ethernet switching features.

– Data virtual local area network (VLAN)
– Voice VLAN
– Port configurations
– Port tagging/802.1Q
– Port aggregation
– Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP)
– Duplex
– Speed
– Flow control
– Port mirroring
– Port security
– Jumbo frames
– Auto-medium-dependent interface crossover (MDI-X)
– Media access control (MAC) address tables
– Power over Ethernet (PoE)/Power over Ethernet plus (PoE+)
– Spanning Tree Protocol
– Carrier-sense multiple access with collision detection (CSMA/CD)
• Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)
• Neighbor Discovery Protocol

2.4 Given a scenario, install and configure the appropriate wireless standards and technologies.

• 802.11 standards
– a
– b
– g
– n (WiFi 4)
– ac (WiFi 5)
– ax (WiFi 6)
• Frequencies and range
– 2.4GHz
– 5GHz
• Channels
– Regulatory impacts
• Channel bonding
• Service set identifier (SSID)
– Basic service set
– Extended service set
– Independent basic service set (Ad-hoc)
– Roaming
• Antenna types
– Omni
– Directional
• Encryption standards
– WiFi Protected Access (WPA)/WPA2 Personal [Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)/Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP)]
– WPA/WPA2 Enterprise (AES/TKIP)
• Cellular technologies
– Code-division multiple access (CDMA)
– Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM)
– Long-Term Evolution (LTE)
– 3G, 4G, 5G
• Multiple input, multiple output (MIMO) and multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO)

3.0 Network Operations

3.1 Given a scenario, use the appropriate statistics and sensors to ensure network availability.

• Performance metrics/sensors
– Device/chassis
– Temperature
– Central processing unit (CPU) usage
– Memory
– Network metrics
– Bandwidth
– Latency
– Jitter
• SNMP
– Traps
– Object identifiers (OIDs)
– Management information bases (MIBs)
• Network device logs
– Log reviews
– Traffic logs
– Audit logs
– Syslog
– Logging levels/severity levels
• Interface statistics/status
– Link state (up/down)
– Speed/duplex
– Send/receive traffic
– Cyclic redundancy checks (CRCs)
– Protocol packet and byte counts
• Interface errors or alerts
– CRC errors
– Giants
– Runts
– Encapsulation errors
• Environmental factors and sensors
– Temperature
– Humidity
– Electrical
– Flooding
• Baselines
• NetFlow data
• Uptime/downtime

3.2 Explain the purpose of organizational documents and policies.

• Plans and procedures
– Change management
– Incident response plan
– Disaster recovery plan
– Business continuity plan
– System life cycle
– Standard operating procedures
• Hardening and security policies
– Password policy
– Acceptable use policy
– Bring your own device (BYOD) policy
– Remote access policy
– Onboarding and offboarding policy
– Security policy
– Data loss prevention
• Common documentation
– Physical network diagram
– Floor plan
– Rack diagram
– Intermediate distribution frame (IDF)/main distribution frame (MDF) documentation
– Logical network diagram
– Wiring diagram
– Site survey report
– Audit and assessment report
– Baseline configurations
• Common agreements
– Non-disclosure agreement (NDA)
– Service-level agreement (SLA)
– Memorandum of
understanding (MOU)

3.3 Explain high availability and disaster recovery concepts and summarize which is the best solution.

• Load balancing
• Multipathing
• Network interface card (NIC) teaming
• Redundant hardware/clusters
– Switches
– Routers
– Firewalls
• Facilities and infrastructure support
– Uninterruptible power supply (UPS)
– Power distribution units (PDUs)
– Generator
– HVAC
– Fire suppression
• Redundancy and high availability (HA) concepts
– Cold site
– Warm site
– Hot site
– Cloud site
– Active-active vs. active-passive
– Multiple Internet service providers (ISPs)/diverse paths
– Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol (VRRP)/First Hop Redundancy Protocol (FHRP)
– Mean time to repair (MTTR)
– Mean time between failure (MTBF)
– Recovery time objective (RTO)
– Recovery point objective (RPO)
• Network device backup/restore
– State
– Configuration

4.0 Network Security

4.1 Explain common security concepts.

• Confidentiality, integrity, availability (CIA)
• Threats
– Internal
– External
• Vulnerabilities
– Common vulnerabilities and exposures (CVE)
– Zero-day
• Exploits
• Least privilege
• Role-based access
• Zero Trust
• Defense in depth
– Network segmentation enforcement
– Perimeter network [previously known as demilitarized zone (DMZ)]
– Separation of duties
– Network access control
– Honeypot
• Authentication methods
– Multifactor
– Terminal Access Controller Access-Control System Plus (TACACS+)
– Single sign-on (SSO)
– Remote Authentication Dial-in User Service (RADIUS)
– LDAP
– Kerberos
– Local authentication
– 802.1X
– Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP)
• Risk Management
– Security risk assessments
– Threat assessment
– Vulnerability assessment
– Penetration testing
– Posture assessment
– Business risk assessments
– Process assessment
– Vendor assessment
• Security information and event management (SIEM)

4.2 Compare and contrast common types of attacks.

• Technology-based
– Denial-of-service (DoS)/distributed denial-of-service (DDoS)
– Botnet/command and control
– On-path attack (previously known as man-in-the-middle attack)
– DNS poisoning
– VLAN hopping
– ARP spoofing
– Rogue DHCP
– Rogue access point (AP)
– Evil twin
– Ransomware
– Password attacks
– Brute-force
– Dictionary
– MAC spoofing
– IP spoofing
– Deauthentication
– Malware
• Human and environmental
– Social engineering
– Phishing
– Tailgating
– Piggybacking
– Shoulder surfing

4.3 Given a scenario, apply network hardening techniques.

• Best practices
– Secure SNMP
– Router Advertisement (RA) Guard
– Port security
– Dynamic ARP inspection
– Control plane policing
– Private VLANs
– Disable unneeded switchports
– Disable unneeded network services
– Change default passwords
– Password complexity/length
– Enable DHCP snooping
– Change default VLAN
– Patch and firmware management
– Access control list
– Role-based access
– Firewall rules
– Explicit deny
– Implicit deny
• Wireless security
– MAC filtering
– Antenna placement
– Power levels
– Wireless client isolation
– Guest network isolation
– Preshared keys (PSKs)
– EAP
– Geofencing
– Captive portal
• IoT access considerations

4.4 Compare and contrast remote access methods and security implications.

• Site-to-site VPN
• Client-to-site VPN
– Clientless VPN
– Split tunnel vs. full tunnel
• Remote desktop connection
• Remote desktop gateway
• SSH
• Virtual network computing (VNC)
• Virtual desktop
• Authentication and authorization considerations
• In-band vs. out-of-band management

4.5 Explain the importance of physical security.

• Detection methods
– Camera
– Motion detection
– Asset tags
– Tamper detection
• Prevention methods
– Employee training
– Access control hardware
– Badge readers
– Biometrics
– Locking racks
– Locking cabinets
– Access control vestibule (previously known as a mantrap)
– Smart lockers
• Asset disposal
– Factory reset/wipe configuration
– Sanitize devices for disposal

5.0 Network Troubleshooting

5.1 Explain the network troubleshooting methodology.

• Identify the problem
– Gather information
– Question users
– Identify symptoms
– Determine if anything has changed
– Duplicate the problem, if possible
– Approach multiple problems individually
• Establish a theory of probable cause
– Question the obvious
– Consider multiple approaches
– Top-to-bottom/bottom-to-top OSI model
– Divide and conquer
• Test the theory to determine the cause
– If the theory is confirmed, determine the next steps to resolve the problem
– If the theory is not confirmed, reestablish a new theory or escalate
• Establish a plan of action to resolve the problem and identify potential effects
• Implement the solution or escalate as necessary
• Verify full system functionality and, if applicable, implement preventive measures
• Document findings, actions, outcomes, and lessons learned

5.2 Given a scenario, troubleshoot common cable connectivity issues and select the appropriate tools.

• Specifications and limitations
– Throughput
– Speed
– Distance
• Cable considerations
– Shielded and unshielded
– Plenum and riser-rated
• Cable application
– Rollover cable/console cable
– Crossover cable
– Power over Ethernet
• Common issues
– Attenuation
– Interference
– Decibel (dB) loss
– Incorrect pinout
– Bad ports
– Open/short
– Light-emitting diode (LED) status indicators
– Incorrect transceivers
– Duplexing issues
– Transmit and receive (TX/RX) reversed
– Dirty optical cables
• Common tools
– Cable crimper
– Punchdown tool
– Tone generator
– Loopback adapter
– Optical time-domain reflectometer (OTDR)
– Multimeter
– Cable tester
– Wire map
– Tap
– Fusion splicers
– Spectrum analyzers
– Snips/cutters
– Cable stripper
– Fiber light meter

5.3 Given a scenario, use the appropriate network software tools and commands.

• Software tools
– WiFi analyzer
– Protocol analyzer/packet capture
– Bandwidth speed tester
– Port scanner
– iperf
– NetFlow analyzers
– Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) server
– Terminal emulator
– IP scanner
• Command line tool
– ping
– ipconfig/ifconfig/ip
– nslookup/dig
– traceroute/tracert
– arp
– netstat
– hostname
– route
– telnet
– tcpdump
– nmap
• Basic network platform commands
– show interface
– show config
– show route

5.4 Given a scenario, troubleshoot common wireless connectivity issues.

• Specifications and limitations
– Throughput
– Speed
– Distance
– Received signal strength indication (RSSI) signal strength
– Effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP)/power settings
• Considerations
– Antennas
– Placement
– Type
– Polarization
– Channel utilization
– AP association time
– Site survey
• Common issues
– Interference
– Channel overlap
– Antenna cable attenuation/signal loss
– RF attenuation/signal loss
– Wrong SSID
– Incorrect passphrase
– Encryption protocol mismatch
– Insufficient wireless coverage
– Captive portal issues
– Client disassociation issues

5.5 Given a scenario, troubleshoot general networking issues.

• Considerations
– Device configuration review
– Routing tables
– Interface status
– VLAN assignment
– Network performance baselines
• Common issues
– Collisions
– Broadcast storm
– Duplicate MAC address
– Duplicate IP address
– Multicast flooding
– Asymmetrical routing
– Switching loops
– Routing loops
– Rogue DHCP server
– DHCP scope exhaustion
– IP setting issues
– Incorrect gateway
– Incorrect subnet mask
– Incorrect IP address
– Incorrect DNS
– Missing route
– Low optical link budget
– Certificate issues
– Hardware failure
– Host-based/network-based firewall settings
– Blocked services, ports, or addresses
– Incorrect VLAN
– DNS issues
– NTP issues
– BYOD challenges
– Licensed feature issues
– Network performance issues