JNCIP Certified - Finally...

Today I receive an email from Ramesh, the proctor in JNCIP exam I took yesterday. He told me that I passed the JNCIP exam. Finally....:D

Actually before he sent me that email, after the test was done, I've already felt very happy :P. That's because I'm confidence that I will pass after re-checking my work repeatedly.

It was not done without any struggling.

For this test, I sacrificed my holiday a week for doing preparation thoroughly. I just want to make sure 100% that I will pass the test. Having failed two times because of not enough preparation, I learned my lesson very well. The preparation was done using excellent Sybex book pdf made freely available on Juniper website (Thank you Harry Reynolds for such a wonderful book ^_^) and olive.

So what does it means - passing the JNCIP exam? It proves three things.

First, everybody with a determination can pass the JNCIP. (I used to be OSS engineer, didn't I :P).

Second, it shows that my claim was right that I was ready and needed a couple of weeks for doing preparation. Well, actually I was worry I would be a laughing stock if I fail again this time -> that's why I couldn't sleep on the exam day. Bad for me, because it made me sleepy. That's why checking and re-checking tactics over and over again at that time works very well.

And third, if you don't want to attend official Juniper training, you may still pass the exam like me. But you have to prepare yourself mentally for facing the failure (I've told you that I failed two times, haven't I?). Among other engineers in my office, I was unfortunate to not be sent to any Juniper trainings by my company. The other engineers who passed JNCIP, all have attended official Juniper training. So when it comes to calculation cost, you can count yourself. I gained JNCIP certification by taking it three times. The other did it at their first or second time. Add training cost and you can count which strategy more sufficient for you (and your wallet :P) .

Actually there is a funny story behind my passing the JNCIP exam. On the test day, I accidentally skipped reading the OSPF area assignment because the paper was hidden accidentally under other paper. So I thought it was my task for doing OSPF design as well. After thinking for a while, I decided to separate the area according to the summarization task I have to do later. And the area name was assigned based on the clue in redistribution task. It was not 30 minutes before the end of exam time that I found the missing paper. Hurriedly, I checked the area assignment I supposed to do. Fortunately, all was correct!

So I feel very glad. It's not only I have passed the exam and gained JNCIP certification, but it raised up my confidence level of my networking skill. I'm still not an expert - though. I think I still need to learn many things anyway :).

Well for you that want to take JNCIP exam, I will share you some tips below :

1. Read Sybex book very carefully and read it until you understand not only the task for configuring the router but the essence of routing protocols.
2. Do lab practice by using M-series router or olive. It was possible to practice almost every configuration in JNCIP using olive. I have proven that since I did lab practice only using qemu since the M5 and M7i lab was occupied by my colleagues.
3. Never feel over-confidence for we are human. And human do mistakes! So always check and re-check again your configuration eventhough you feel everything have been put into the right place.
4. Enroll to Juniper official training if you don't want to face failure several times like me :)

Next target is to retake my soon-to-be-expired JNCIS-ER and to finish CCIP. Well actually since I have gained JNCIP, I think I won't push myself off limits for CCIP. I am only a human and human do need recreation time :). This year or next year won't be a problem for me because I take it only for fun anyway ;).

Enough said.

JNCIP Exam again, finally....

It's been a long time since I updated my blog for the last time. Well, I've been busy - as always. One of the reason that keeps me really busy is I will undergo JNCIP exam again at the end of this month. Finally, the time has come again for me :). I'm really excited this time.

And this time my preparation is really better than the past. I've done JNCIP lab since last week...uhmm repeating the same lab that I had practised at the beginning of this year when my JNCIP application is rejected by my superior.

It almost two years since my last JNCIP exam. And yes, I have forgotten all the exam questions I had before. But I have no worries since I'm now very comfortable with myself. And last *cough* Cisco *cough* test showed me my strength and weakness :D. I'm really aware of it and I know I have to do practice it more in the next few weeks if I want to make sure I'll 100% pass it.

I know there are people who dislike me and I believe they will be very happy if something wrong happens and I fail in the exam again. But suppose I fail again, it won't be the end for me because I will pursue this eventhough I have to use my own money. This time, I'm really happy because my company are willing to sponsor me again :D.

Maybe because I haven't received any trainings in the last 1,5 years from my company. But that's quite understandable because I think I made some people very upset by resigning from my position in OSS and chosen to take the Routing path more seriously. And have I told you that I still keep my IVCD certificate safe in my home instead of submitting it to my company :P?

They don't appreciate my work well as an IVCD holder so I think it's best if I frame it and hang it on my room wall in my house as a proof of my achievement. That way, someday I would be able to tell my kids the story of their father when he was young.

Okay, so I think I have to do lab again now :D. After I pass this JNCIP, I will have to renew my JNCIS-ER that is about to expire in next month. If I count it well, I have collected 5 JNCIS that is still valid now plus JNCIA-EX. And don't forget I'm still pursuing my CCIP. Well, I postpone it for a while since JNCIP is my priority now. Still a lot of work until the end of this year. I don't know if I would be able to accomplish all but I wish to and I also wish at the end of this year I will be able to play basketball as good as I was again.

Still struggling with my back injure as I spend one hour a day for the treatment. Well, actually in my condition, I'm still be able to play basketball but my movement is not as free as before. I score average 12 points on the practice session but I cannot do pivoting movement well and I feel really bad about it :(.

But I'm in good spirit now anyway, very good spirit :D.

It's been so long...

Today finally I have time to update my blog again :D. Whoa, a lot have been happened to me and so far my very careful act has proven its usefulness.

As I've ever said in the beginning of this year that this ox year will bring doom to me if I act recklessly. That's one of the reason I rejected the offer from overseas company offering me a valuable salary this year. And guess what? My rejection has paid its price very well :). It's not caused of my raised salary. Well, if I compare my salary now with the offer I got, the number really becomes tiny. It's especially because this year my parent got heart attacks - twice. Fortunately, my parent still survives and I was able to visit when my parent is in hospital.

Anyone who read this maybe thinks how I really love my parent. Well, actually I don't. There is a part of me that really hates my parent. But I think I am still a good child by trying to tolerate the mess they bring to my life. And anyway, if I cannot give love to my parents then to whom should I give? None.

This month I become exactly thirty years old. And having lack of friends remembering my birthday showing that I'm no one but a forgotten being. But that's okay, I have been used to it anyway :P. Every year always the same, no celebration, no cake to cut, no party, nothing. The only thing that always come and I must face every year is trouble!

Sometimes I just wanna yell to the GOD, saying He is not fair to me by obliging me to solve problem caused by somebody else. I really hope that my uneasy life will become better and better each day. I fight everyday for it and sometimes losing my spirit because somehow there is somebody who drags me down again and again, making me frustrated.

But the fighting still continues anyway. And this month I have leaned one step closer to CCIP. How about my JNCIP? Well, I try to forget it for a while because there are no fixed schedule anyway. In near future, the closest targets I want to achieve are JNCIA-FW and JNCIS-FW. It's my debt for more than two years. Or in other words, it's been more than two years ago the last time I did firewall project. And this year, my boss gave me a small firewall project to deploy. It's only three ISG 1000 boxes for Telkom. Piece of cake.

But I'm happy anyway as this bring dejavu for me. Finally I have a lot of time for preparing the exam since the devices I must deploy won't be available at least until August :P. After this, maybe I continue studying CCIP again. And if by no means I pass CCIP before be able to take JNCIP, then it will be an irony for me.

Well, I'm a Juniper engineer working in Juniper distributor company but being certified as Cisco Professional engineer instead of Juniper. Sound stupid, eh :D.

Suspended for JNCIP-M

Yesterday my request for taking JNCIP-M exam was rejected by my superior. When I heard the news, it hit me like lightning strike on the broad daylight. Well, I have been doing several routing projects in the last three months. The first one is Excelcomm MPLS separation in which I involved as mere project engineer, i.e : helping my colleagues doing router configuration. It's very easy and it was a very good way for entering routing world once again :)...

The second one was Indosat Hongkong gateway upgrade phase 1. This task was very easy too since we encounter power capacity problem at the Hongkong site. Therefore, Indosat decided to split the delivery of the project into two phase. The first one - which had been done just recently - was meant to deliver the router physically into the site and doing some initial configuration on them. The second phase - which far more challenging and interesting since there will be migration activities - will be begun in early January.

The third one is the current project I and my team handle. This is the most interesting task I do between these three projects. In this project, we coorporate with Ericsson Indonesia delivering 3G Network for Axis, one of very fast-growing GSM provider in Indonesia.Ericsson engineer is very nice and I must say he possess networking skill more than mine right now. Being inactive for two years in routing activities is enough for me to forget many things. I'm still struggling reviewing back all the material needed for doing decent configuration.

It's really fun anyway. I realize I still need time to be back even at JNCIS level. And for taking JNCIP-M at the end of January, actually I think I'm still capable to pursue the deadline. Since there are only two more chapters in JNCIP-M that I haven't practiced. My plan previously is to sacrifice this year's Christmas, New Year and Chinese New Year event for practising JNCIP-M.

So, when my superior rejected my request and ordered me to do routing work for at least 6 months, well....first thing I feel is upset. Of course, I have already planned it since three months ago. But now well, I think that's not a really bad decision anyway. In this way, I could reduce my stress and having fun for New Year's event :). And meanwhile waiting for JNCIP-M exam opportunity again in the next 6 months, I could use the time to take another exam. My CCNA is also going to expire in less than 6 months later.

I am going to take the next level, either CCNP or CCIP, and this time I must use my own money since my company doesn't support this exam. Well, 6 million rupiahs (about $600) is not a small amount of money for me. (Well, There must a reason that keep me still single until this day, mustn't there?). My savings will decrease a lot so I don't want to waste any my hard-earned money this time.

Still a long way to go to be a truly networking expert....;)