Exam Remote Access (640-505) Vendor Cisco Status Live Reviewer's Rating “The thing that makes Remote Access a real challenge is that it goes into great depth in many subjects.” Who Should Take This Exam? Those seeking their CCNP and CCDP certifications. Test Objectives URL Click here

ISDN and Stuff
If I were asked to name this exam for Cisco, I would have called it “ISDN and some other stuff…” OK, that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but ISDN is definitely the dominant part of what you need to understand about remote access work. If there’s any part you don’t understand, get back to your studies because you won’t be ready to tackle the test.

Make sure you know the standards, how to troubleshoot the layers of an ISDN connection, the way ISDN devices communicate to each other, and how to change configurations on your router in different circumstances. If you can get access to an ISDN router, take the time to run all the different debugs; study the output; understand what’s happening through the building of the circuit and authentication process.

Tip: In the documentation section of CCO I found a great article on ISDN troubleshooting that clearly defines how to go step by step through ISDN problems. You can almost hear the voice of a TAC engineer as you read it. Before taking this exam, look around on the site. You’ll find some great reference material free and online.

Frame relay is an inexpensive alternative to a T1. That means a lot of businesses now use it to connect to remote sites where they had no connections previously. So it shouldn’t surprise us that you’ve better understand frame solutions for this test. I like working on frame relays -- understanding how it operates and knowing show and debug commands. In fact, I find it the easiest type of circuit to troubleshoot. Understand how frame relay works and how the PVCs are created.

Tip: Don’t just skim information you find on DLCIs.

Windows and PSTN and Modems, Oh, My!
I made the assumption that my MCSE training and a couple of years of working with dial-up meant I had little to learn on that topic. However, it was quite the opposite. While most people with a PC or Microsoft background shouldn’t have much trouble with the Windows topics covered by Cisco, and PSTN itself was lightly brushed over in my material, it’s the modems that I was surprised about. It’s fascinating to drill down on something I now realize I’ve always taken for granted. Now I actually understand what a modem does and how a router uses one to communicate. I read a lot of posts on the Internet warning of this mystical thing called “reverse telnet.” No Big Deal. Read it, understand it, then do it -- like any dentist will tell you, it’ll only hurt for a minute… After you’ve set up a couple of modems, you’ll understand how easy it is and you won’t soon forget how to do it.

Tip: In all these parts of my prep I found that Cisco was looking for real, usable skill and knowledge. I really like the fact that I was studying the same stuff I was already doing on the job. This means the skills being tested are a good fit in today’s workaday world of internetworking.

The 700 Series
I had a hard time convincing myself I should take the time to learn the 700 series interface when I’ve only ever seen one in a catalog. I seriously considered buying one to learn the command line interface since it doesn’t run IOS, but I’m glad I didn’t. While I spent time to get familiar with the 700’s functions and features, I found that working with routers in general, troubleshooting ISDN, and configuring NAT doing remote access types of installations was just as big a help.

The ATM Gap
I need to get something off my chest. ATM. The ATM objectives have been removed from the new Switching exam. Why mention that in the Remote Access review? Because I was hoping for ATM coverage. I’ve installed three times as many ADSL solutions as ISDN. Sure, it’s a developing technology, and maybe DSL isn’t ready to become testable material yet. But what this means is that there’s no ATM-based technology in the CCNP track. We could conceivably have an entire generation of CCNPs who won’t know what ATM stands for!

Tip: I consider the 700 router and X.25 objectives outdated. They’re quickly dying technologies, if not already dead. I think I had to put a little too much effort into learning about things I might never need to know.

Other Topics for Consideration
Your preparation for the Remote Access test should also cover a bunch of smaller but important subjects, like queuing, compression, algorithms, and UART. Make sure you have a good, complete study guide. That’s one good way to work your path through the list of objectives.

This is the perfect second test after the CCNA because it expands what most CCNAs will be working on, the small office/home office or soho environment. I think most of CCNAs don’t need a design certification to get by day to day, and not very many of us spend a lot of time working on 5000 switches. Likewise, ISDN would usually be what we face before tackling those BGP enterprise networks.

That’s why I recommend Remote Access before DCN, Switching or Routing. I really liked preparing for this exam, although I spent more time and scored lower on this test than any other Cisco test.

My Preparation
As I began my pursuit of the CCNP credential, I decided to take this exam first, since I had just finished a handful of ISDN and frame relay installs. I picked up a copy of Sybex’s CCNP Remote Access Study Guide. I was blown away by its depth and detail in things like queuing, authentication, and the 700 series router. It took much more time than I expected to prepare for. But I plowed through the Sybex book and worked with a handful of routers and modems to practice before the exam, and that did it for me. One test down...

Have you taken this exam? How difficult was it? Rate it below or discuss it in our Forums.

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