Practice labs

CCNA & CCNP practice labs — hands-on Cisco CML scenarios

Hands-on CCNA and CCNP practice labs — OSPF, VLANs, ACLs, routing, NAT and more, each a real Cisco Modeling Labs scenario you build and grade against the answer key.

Browse the 19 free labsBrowse by theme: all practice topics or certification tracks.

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IntermediateLocked

CCNA EIGRP: Passive Interfaces

Build and verify EIGRP on a small routed topology while marking the user-facing LAN interface as passive. You will advertise the LAN into EIGRP without forming an adjacency on that segment, preventing rogue neighbors and reducing control-plane noise. Focus on deterministic EIGRP configuration, wildcard-based network inclusion, and verification using show commands.

CCNA35 min6 objectives

BeginnerLocked

EIGRP Wildcard Masks: Enabling the Right Interfaces

Build a two-router, two-LAN EIGRP domain and practice precise wildcard-masked network statements so only the intended interfaces participate. R1 has an extra LAN on Ethernet0/2 (172.16.99.0/24) that must be excluded from EIGRP. Validate with show commands and end-host pings that the correct LANs are exchanged and the excluded LAN is not advertised.

CCNA45 min4 objectives

BeginnerFree2026-07-03

EIGRP Fundamentals: First Adjacency & Route Exchange

Bring up EIGRP in AS 100 between two routers over a /30 transit and advertise a single LAN. Verify the first adjacency forms and that R2 learns R1's LAN via EIGRP. Includes realistic end hosts on a shared LAN for path testing.

CCNA35 min5 objectives

Free with an account

AdvancedLocked

EIGRP Unequal-Cost Load Balancing with Variance

Build a 3-router EIGRP domain where R1 reaches R3’s loopback over two paths (direct and via R2). You will tune interface delay so the indirect path becomes the successor and the direct path remains a feasible successor, then enable variance to install both unequal-cost paths in R1’s routing table. Two Alpine hosts validate end-to-end reachability while router show commands confirm unequal-cost load sharing.

CCNP65 min5 objectives

IntermediateLocked

EIGRP Metric: Steering Paths by Tuning Delay

Tune EIGRP path selection by manipulating cumulative delay. Three routers (R1-R2-R3) form EIGRP 100 adjacencies over three /30 point-to-point links. R3 originates 192.168.30.0/24 on Loopback0. You will enable EIGRP and then increase delay on R1’s direct link to R3 so R1 prefers the indirect path via R2 to reach 192.168.30.0/24. Two Alpine hosts validate end-to-end reachability and path choice.

CCNA38 min5 objectives

AdvancedLocked

EIGRP Lab 7: Securing Adjacencies with MD5

Harden EIGRP adjacencies with MD5 authentication between two iol-xe routers over a /30 transit, then validate that only trusted peers form neighbors. You will configure a key chain, bind it to the transit interface, and enable EIGRP (AS 100) to exchange two user LANs. Verification includes neighbor state, key chain presence, and end-to-end host reachability.

CCNP45 min4 objectives

AdvancedLocked

EIGRP Stub Routing on a Spoke (Hub-and-Spoke, AS 100)

Configure a classic hub-and-spoke EIGRP domain where the single-homed branch (R2) is made an EIGRP stub, limiting query scope while still advertising its LAN. Validate that R1 flags R2 as a stub neighbor, routes still exchange, and query behavior is scoped appropriately.

CCNP50 min5 objectives

IntermediateDailyLocked

Static Routing Troubleshooting: Return Routes & Bad Next-Hops

Troubleshoot classic static routing and connectivity issues in a 3-router, 2-site network. Faults seeded include a missing return route, wrong next-hop/mask, and a missing/misconfigured default route. Learners must identify and correct Layer 3 faults to restore end-to-end reachability between branch clients.

CCNA45 min4 objectives

BeginnerLocked

CCNA HSRP 2: Controlling the Active Router with Priority

Set HSRP priority to deterministically choose the active default gateway on a shared LAN. Two IOS routers (R1, R2) and one access switch serve a small user LAN with a single virtual gateway IP. By default R2 becomes active due to its higher interface IP; raise R1’s HSRP priority so it becomes the designated active router for group 1 while hosts keep a single virtual gateway.

CCNA35 min4 objectives

IntermediateLocked

HSRP Preempt: Reclaiming the Active Role

Intermediate CCNA lab focused on HSRP preempt behavior. Two routers share a virtual default gateway on a single user VLAN. The baseline already has HSRP group 1 with R1 at higher priority, but HSRP doesn't preempt by default — if R1 reboots, R2 stays active even after R1 returns. The learner enables preempt on R1 so it deterministically reclaims the active role whenever it's up, keeping the intended primary in control. Verification uses show standby on routers and basic host pings to the virtual gateway.

CCNA30 min5 objectives

IntermediateLocked

Tuning HSRP Timers for Faster Failover

Configure HSRP on two routers with a shared virtual gateway and speed up failover by tightening hello/hold timers to 1/3 seconds. Validate deterministic active/standby selection and confirm timer settings via show commands.

CCNA & CCNP35 min5 objectives

AdvancedLocked

Moving to HSRP Version 2

Migrate a single-subnet LAN from HSRP version 1 assumptions to HSRP version 2, enabling group numbers above 255. Configure HSRPv2 on two routers that share one virtual default gateway IP so hosts retain gateway resilience without reconfiguration.

CCNA & CCNP35 min4 objectives

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