CCIE R&S V5 Topology Many vendors utilize a “lab topology” for all of their labs. Most of the topologies would be having 4 switches and 9 routers. 3 of the routers are considered to be the “backbone” routers, pretty much the same as what you could expect on the CCIE R&S lab exam. The backbone routers are pre-configured and believed to be “out of your control”. They are utilized to inject routing information as well as some other neat tricks. The number of routers & switches and also the interfaces, cables, router/switch models as well as IOS versions would be depending upon the topology that you would be utilizing. The routers are connected to each other utilizing the serial interfaces and there’s also a lot of FastEthernet links. You should first decide what vendor workbooks you wish to use before you start thinking about lab equipment. Each vendor would be having a list with the routers, switches, interfaces and IOS versions that they utilize. The physical topology wouldn’t be changed throughout the workbooks that you would be using. You could make an infinite amount of logical topologies with a lab like this. Before you consider buying any hardware, double-check if you could use it for version 5 of the CCIE R&S lab. In the previous version (v4) the real lab had 4x 3560 switches so that’s what all vendors would be utilizing. Since version 5 of the lab exam, Cisco doesn’t utilize a particular switch model and the entire lab is virtual. Topology Wiring: Virtual Routers & Physical Switches Diagram        There are three main diagrams which would be supplied with the workbook provided by the SPOTO Club: two physical cabling diagrams as well as the Logical Layer 3 addressing diagram. These should be utilized together to give you a complete understanding of the network topology. Generally, there would be no separate diagrams per section. For sections that would be having specific pre-configurations, like the parts of BGP as well as Multicast, additional diagrams would be provided. For more information and diagrams, you should gain the courses, which are provided at the SPOTO Club. Assume that these three main diagrams are considered to be the foundation for every section in this workbook. We would be highly recommended that you should re-draw the Logical Layer 3 diagram and also extend it as appropriate for every section. For example, adding routing protocol domains and additional addressing if utilized. Remember that some sections, like those which are centered across the Layer 2 technologies, might not make use of the Layer 3 diagram at all, because they would be concentrating mainly on switching and bridging topics. Currently, the CCIE R&S v5 Workbook is considered to be in a state of change between our CCIE R&S v4 Topology and CCIE R&S v5 Topology. Tasks that would be still formatted for the v4 topology are listed as in the table of contents. When working on these tasks you should take the reference of the CCIE R&S v4 Topology Diagrams and Initial Configurations. When you would be studying for CCIE R&S or any other track you would have to spend a lot of time, around 600 to 1000 hours, configuring your routers and switches. Hence, you should check whether the courses, which you are opting for, are having the lab equipment, which matches your needs. I would recommend you join the courses, offered by the SPOTO Club. They cover each and every topic and have a team of experts, which will guide you throughout your study plan until you receive the CCIE Routing and Switching Certification.