Here are some questions on static routing, the OSI model, IP version 6, and other topics to help prepare you for CCNA, CCENT, and CCNP certification exam success! Network+ candidates, I didn’t leave you out!

CCNA Certification:

What character or combination of characters indicates a statically configured default route?

Answer: An "S*" next to a route indicates that it is a default static route. If there were no asterisk, the route type indicated would be a static route – but not a default static route.

CCENT Certification / Network+ Certification Question:

Which one of the following networking terms is not associated with the same OSI layer as the others?

A. router

B. packet

C. TCP

D. IP

Answer: C. TCP runs at the Transport layer of the OSI model. The other three terms are associated with the Network layer. The Network layer is sometimes referred to as the “routing layer”.

CCNP Certification / BSCI Exam:

If an IPv6 address begins with "FF", what kind of address is it?

A. broadcast

B. unicast

C. anycast

D. multicast

Answer: D. Any IPv6 address beginning with "FF" is a multicast. IPv6 does not use broadcasts.

CCNP Certification / BCMSN Exam:

You've configured an Etherchannel and note that the trunk has gone down. You check the interfaces on one switch and note that two are "err-disabled". The corresponding ports on the other switch are not. What should you do?

A. Nothing - that's the normal and desired behavior.

B. Shut and reopen the err-disabled interfaces.

C. Shut and reopen the non-err-disabled interfaces.

D. Use the err-abled command on the err-disabled interfaces.

Answer: B. After finishing the config, shut and reopen the err-disabled interfaces. If the configuration is correct, that will do the trick. This is common when you configure all of the ports on one switch and then start configuring the other switch, rather than going back and forth between the appropriate ports on the switches.

See you soon with more CCNA, Network+, CCNP, and CCENT questions!




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Reasons to Migrate from Microsoft Access to MySQL

Use of MySQL as a storage manager for Access offers several benefits. One is that
you can use your information in additional ways when it's not locked into Access.
Other differences pertain more specifically to the case where you intend to continue
using Access as the user interface to your information.
Deployment of information. When your information resides in MySQL, you're free
to continue using it from Access if you wish, but a number of other possibilities open
up as well. Any kind of MySQL client can use the information, not just Access. This
allows your data to be exploited more fully in more contexts, and by more people. For
example, other people can use the data through the standard MySQL client programs
or from GUI-based applications. Your database also becomes more accessible over
the Web. Access now provides some capabilities for making a database available on
the Web, but if MySQL manages the database, you have a wider range of options.
MySQL integrates easily with Web servers like Apache through any of a number of
languages, such as Perl, PHP, Python, Java, and Ruby. This allows you to provide a

Web interface to your database with the language of your choice. In addition, the
interface can be accessed by browsers on many types of machines, providing a
platform-independent entryway to your information. All of these components can be
obtained for free--MySQL, Apache, and the languages just mentioned have been
released as Open Source. You can also obtain them in packages that include support.
Multiple-user access. Although Access provides some data sharing capabilities, that
is not really its strength. It has the feel of a single-user data manager designed for
local use. MySQL, on the other hand, easily handles many simultaneous users. It was
designed from the ground up to run in a networked environment and to be a multiple-
user system that is capable of servicing large numbers of clients.
Management of large databases. MySQL can manage hundreds of megabytes of
data, and more. Care to try that with Access?
Security. When Access tables are stored locally, anyone can walk up to your
Windows machine, launch Access, and gain access to your tables. It's possible to
assign a database a password, but many people routinely neglect to do so. When your
tables are stored in MySQL, the MySQL server manages security. Anyone attempting
to access your data must know the proper user name and password for connecting to
MySQL.
Backup management. If you work in an organization that supports many Access
users, migrating data to MySQL provides a benefit for backups and data integrity.
With Access databases centralized in MySQL, they're all backed up using the regular
MySQL backup procedures that already exist at your site. If individual Access users
each store their data locally, backup can be more complicated: 50 users means 50
database backups. While some sites address this problem through the use of network
backups, others deal with it by making backups the responsibility of individual
machine owners--which unfortunately sometimes means no backups at all.
Local disk storage requirements. Local Access database files become smaller,
because the contents of tables are not stored internally, they're stored as links to the
MySQL server where the tables reside. This results in reduced local disk usage. And,
should you wish to distribute a database, less information need be copied. (Of course,
anyone you distribute the database to also must have access to the MySQL server.)
Cost. MySQL can be obtained for free. Access cannot. Providing other means of
using your database (such as through a Web interface) can reduce your dependence on
proprietary software and lower your software acquisition and licensing costs.
Hardware choices. MySQL runs on several platforms; Access is a single-platform
application. If you want to use Access, your choice of hardware is determined for you. Read More...

Microsoft Access or MySQL?

Microsoft Access is a popular data management application that allows you to store
information in tables that it manages directly from the local disk. You can also use
Access as a front end, that is, as an interface to information that is located elsewhere
and handled by another storage management system. In this case, Access acts as a
client that connects to a server that provides the data. The MySQL database system is
one such storage manager; if you install the MySQL Connector/ODBC driver
(formerly known as MyODBC), Access can make ODBC connections to MySQL
servers over the network. You can still use the contents of your tables through Access,
but the tables themselves are hosted by the MySQL server.
Access has its strengths, such as an easy to use interface. Access also has its
limitations--it's generally used as a personal or single-user application, typically for
managing limited amounts of data. (Access is not commonly used for databases
hundreds of megabytes in size, for example.) Because of its storage management
limitations, you may be considering how to retain the Access interface but migrate
your information to a storage manager with greater capabilities. Or you may even be
considering a move away from Access entirely. This article outlines some benefits
that you stand to gain by using MySQL to manage your data, and provides some
guidelines to help you migrate locally stored Access tables to MySQL. The final
section of the article lists links to locations where you can find the tools discussed
here. Read More...

Use of MySQL as a storage manager for Access offers several benefits. One is that

you can use your information in additional ways when it's not locked into Access.

Other differences pertain more specifically to the case where you intend to continue

using Access as the user interface to your information.

Deployment of information. When your information resides in MySQL, you're free

to continue using it from Access if you wish, but a number of other possibilities open

up as well. Any kind of MySQL client can use the information, not just Access. This

allows your data to be exploited more fully in more contexts, and by more people. For

example, other people can use the data through the standard MySQL client programs

or from GUI-based applications. Your database also becomes more accessible over

the Web. Access now provides some capabilities for making a database available on

the Web, but if MySQL manages the database, you have a wider range of options.

MySQL integrates easily with Web servers like Apache through any of a number of

languages, such as Perl, PHP, Python, Java, and Ruby. This allows you to provide a

Web interface to your database with the language of your choice. In addition, the

interface can be accessed by browsers on many types of machines, providing a

platform-independent entryway to your information. All of these components can be

obtained for free--MySQL, Apache, and the languages just mentioned have been

released as Open Source. You can also obtain them in packages that include support.

Multiple-user access. Although Access provides some data sharing capabilities, that

is not really its strength. It has the feel of a single-user data manager designed for

local use. MySQL, on the other hand, easily handles many simultaneous users. It was

designed from the ground up to run in a networked environment and to be a multiple-

user system that is capable of servicing large numbers of clients.

Management of large databases. MySQL can manage hundreds of megabytes of

data, and more. Care to try that with Access?

Security. When Access tables are stored locally, anyone can walk up to your

Windows machine, launch Access, and gain access to your tables. It's possible to

assign a database a password, but many people routinely neglect to do so. When your

tables are stored in MySQL, the MySQL server manages security. Anyone attempting

to access your data must know the proper user name and password for connecting to

MySQL.

Backup management. If you work in an organization that supports many Access

users, migrating data to MySQL provides a benefit for backups and data integrity.

With Access databases centralized in MySQL, they're all backed up using the regular

MySQL backup procedures that already exist at your site. If individual Access users

each store their data locally, backup can be more complicated: 50 users means 50

database backups. While some sites address this problem through the use of network

backups, others deal with it by making backups the responsibility of individual

machine owners--which unfortunately sometimes means no backups at all.

Local disk storage requirements. Local Access database files become smaller,

because the contents of tables are not stored internally, they're stored as links to the

MySQL server where the tables reside. This results in reduced local disk usage. And,

should you wish to distribute a database, less information need be copied. (Of course,

anyone you distribute the database to also must have access to the MySQL server.)

Cost. MySQL can be obtained for free. Access cannot. Providing other means of

using your database (such as through a Web interface) can reduce your dependence on

proprietary software and lower your software acquisition and licensing costs.

Hardware choices. MySQL runs on several platforms; Access is a single-platform

application. If you want to use Access, your choice of hardware is determined for you.

Read More...

Microsoft Access is a popular data management application that allows you to store

information in tables that it manages directly from the local disk. You can also use

Access as a front end, that is, as an interface to information that is located elsewhere

and handled by another storage management system. In this case, Access acts as a

client that connects to a server that provides the data. The MySQL database system is

one such storage manager; if you install the MySQL Connector/ODBC driver

(formerly known as MyODBC), Access can make ODBC connections to MySQL

servers over the network. You can still use the contents of your tables through Access,

but the tables themselves are hosted by the MySQL server.

Access has its strengths, such as an easy to use interface. Access also has its

limitations--it's generally used as a personal or single-user application, typically for

managing limited amounts of data. (Access is not commonly used for databases

hundreds of megabytes in size, for example.) Because of its storage management

limitations, you may be considering how to retain the Access interface but migrate

your information to a storage manager with greater capabilities. Or you may even be

considering a move away from Access entirely. This article outlines some benefits

that you stand to gain by using MySQL to manage your data, and provides some

guidelines to help you migrate locally stored Access tables to MySQL. The final

section of the article lists links to locations where you can find the tools discussed

here.

Read More...