MikroTik - MTCNA
In recent years, the Latvian company manufacturing equipment under the MikroTik brand has forced them to love their equipment and, in particular, the operating system RouterOS. As time goes by, the company grows and develops, and with each year it expands its range, including in the direction of the Enterprise sector. Of course, to such giants as Cisco, Juniper, HP is still far away for him, but MikroTik enters the masses in our country more and more actively, and now “wherever you spit” is surely worth MikroTik somewhere.
The company won the love for itself, for two reasons - affordable price and functionality. The process of choosing the equipment comes down to choosing the hardware component, and for everything else there is a RouterOS with a huge functionality. Naturally, as a good and proven network equipment manufacturer, MikroTik has its own system of certification of engineers and IT specialists.
There are several levels of training:
')
Level 1 - the initial base.
Level 2 - engineering certificates in the directions.
Level 3 - the highest, suitable for those who work with carrier-class networks, or similar.
Today we will talk about the initial certification training MikroTik, namely, the introductory course MTCNA.
There can be a lot of answers to this question. But since this is an introductory course, then without it you will not be able to claim all the other certificates. If we talk about the level of knowledge that this course will give you, then this is the initial setup level of MikroTik, as well as basic knowledge of network technologies.
There is a simple scheme
By configuring src-nat, you made a mistake by writing a rule like this:
It should be
I often see how "Engineers", setting up a normal NAT, use netmap or same instead of srcnat instead of dst-nat. Of course it will work, but this does not mean that it is correct.
If you can’t answer the above questions with confidence or you set up MikroTik with “copy-paste” on other people's articles, then the course will be NEEDED for you.
On all sites, without exception, it is said that the course is “for all those” who deal with MikroTik equipment - from a sales manager and a technical support specialist to a network engineer. Unfortunately, this is not the case: in most cases, sales managers cannot pull this course, as they must have basic knowledge of network technologies. Of course, network engineers and “bearded” administrators who have already studied MikroTik on their own during the operation will be boring course, but technical support specialists or administrators who wish to raise their level of knowledge will be just right, their own efficiency will be off scale for 100%.
But I repeat once again, if you plan to undergo further training at higher levels, then you will have to pass this exam.
Let's look at the person who has a certificate MTCNA.
At the moment, several companies and independent trainers offer certification training to MikroTik in the Russian Federation. However, if everything is less clear with the course material, it is approved by MikroTik himself, and 90% consists of a pre-arranged presentation, then the training itself will be conducted by a specific trainer, so it is very important to approach the choice issue. The learning process takes place in live communication with the trainer, he must not only know the MikroTik equipment itself, but also know all the network technologies.
Unfortunately, not all coaches can “boast” with this knowledge, so I strongly recommend, first, to choose the most “titled” coaches who have all the certificates: MTCNA, MTCRE, MTCWE, MTCTCE, MTCUME, MTCINE. Secondly, study his IT service record, if this is not a CIO or a Network Engineer, then I would think about the quality of the supplied material. The theory is good, you can know it thoroughly, but the practice very often goes in the context of this data and life experience in “production” is VERY important. Also pay attention to additional information about the professional employment of the coach. Since progress does not stand still, the coach must develop in the IT sphere. If you expect to receive other certificates in the future, then I strongly recommend to pay attention to the facts mentioned above, because at the top level courses, coaching knowledge will help you a lot. You can get acquainted with the list of all coaches in Russia here.
I will not give specific figures, since all prices are publicly available on sites. In most cases, training centers are based on a distributor or reseller, respectively, so if you buy equipment from them, you may well ask for a discount. If you go in a group - ask for a discount. If you just go on your own, then ask for a discount, just think up a reason.
Although we must pay tribute, because the price usually includes 3 days of training, including theory and labs, and yes even the certification exam and RouterOS as a gift, therefore, in general, the cost is comparable or even sometimes cheaper than similar training from other manufacturers.
So, your employer gave the go-ahead and paid you a course, and also praised you for getting a discount;) Usually the course lasts three days. It is necessary to take a laptop with Wi-Fi and a regular network with you, do not drag on MacBook courses, take a regular laptop with Windows. Take also just in case two patch cords that work exactly, a notebook and a pen.
The training itself is divided into blocks, divided by topics. First, the coach tells you the theory, in the form of a presentation, then some time is allotted for questions and discussion of the material, after which you are invited to undergo laboratory work on the topic covered. If something does not work, then you can immediately disassemble the errors, or change the conditions of the problem.
You can see the main topics on the official website in the corresponding outline descriptions for each training.
The last training hours are devoted to “debriefing” for those who have missed something. Before the test starts, the trainer will run through the tables of contents of the entire course in order to refresh his memory. The exam is taken as an online test on the mikrotik.com website, so first you register. The coach will send an invitation to your mailbox as a link, if you do not have access to corporate mail from the outside, specify the mailbox to which you have access. Immediately at the time of passing the exam, the test page cannot be updated, the testing system will think that you are trying to deceive it, so just do not update the page. And do not try to print via chrome in pdf. By the way, about the language, all the tests are written in English, but in the process of passing the test, you can switch to Russian, but I warn you, the translation is not the best quality.
Also in the process of passing the test, you can contact the coach with a request for a transfer, or give some explanation on the issue. The test takes 1 hour to answer 25 questions, this time is enough. Many are interested in whether it is possible to get training or pass an exam in absentia, without personal attendance at the training, the answer is NO in both cases, it is impossible to pass the exam without passing full-time study under the conditions of MikroTik itself.
Let's start with the worst option, if you scored less than 50%, then the exam is not passed (according to my coach, he hasn't had such). I could be wrong in the numbers (check with the trainer), but if you scored 50-60%, then the exam is considered not passed, but you will be given a second chance in an hour to retake. During this time, the coach will look at what topics you "floated", and again he will repeat for you the main points or analyze incomprehensible moments. If you scored from 60% and above, then you become the holder of the certificate. For everyone who has successfully passed the exam, in the personal account, the license of the 4th level will be credited as a gift.
The company won the love for itself, for two reasons - affordable price and functionality. The process of choosing the equipment comes down to choosing the hardware component, and for everything else there is a RouterOS with a huge functionality. Naturally, as a good and proven network equipment manufacturer, MikroTik has its own system of certification of engineers and IT specialists.
There are several levels of training:
')
Level 1 - the initial base.
- MTCNA - MikroTik Certified Network Associate
Level 2 - engineering certificates in the directions.
- MTCRE - MikroTik Certified Routing Engineer
- MTCWE - MikroTik Certified Wireless Engineer
- MTCTCE - MikroTik Certified Traffic Control Engineer
- MTCUME - MikroTik Certified User Management Engineer
Level 3 - the highest, suitable for those who work with carrier-class networks, or similar.
- MTCINE - MikroTik Certified Inter-networking Engineer
Today we will talk about the initial certification training MikroTik, namely, the introductory course MTCNA.
Who will benefit from the MTCNA course?
There can be a lot of answers to this question. But since this is an introductory course, then without it you will not be able to claim all the other certificates. If we talk about the level of knowledge that this course will give you, then this is the initial setup level of MikroTik, as well as basic knowledge of network technologies.
check yourself
There is a simple scheme
By configuring src-nat, you made a mistake by writing a rule like this:
chain=srcnat action=masquerade It should be
chain=srcnat action=masquerade out-interface=ether1 - The first question is: why did half of the letters fall into spam, and the remaining letters do not reach at all?
- Second question: If you have configured the mail server without authorization from the local network, what will your SMTP server turn into?
I often see how "Engineers", setting up a normal NAT, use netmap or same instead of srcnat instead of dst-nat. Of course it will work, but this does not mean that it is correct.
If you can’t answer the above questions with confidence or you set up MikroTik with “copy-paste” on other people's articles, then the course will be NEEDED for you.
On all sites, without exception, it is said that the course is “for all those” who deal with MikroTik equipment - from a sales manager and a technical support specialist to a network engineer. Unfortunately, this is not the case: in most cases, sales managers cannot pull this course, as they must have basic knowledge of network technologies. Of course, network engineers and “bearded” administrators who have already studied MikroTik on their own during the operation will be boring course, but technical support specialists or administrators who wish to raise their level of knowledge will be just right, their own efficiency will be off scale for 100%.
But I repeat once again, if you plan to undergo further training at higher levels, then you will have to pass this exam.
What knowledge do you get?
Let's look at the person who has a certificate MTCNA.
- MTCNA certificate holder, knows how to restore MikroTik, after incorrect configuration or unsuccessful firmware, using the program NetInstall.
- He knows how to raise a small office, configure NAT, configure a DHCP server and connect to the provider. Also, if it is a branch office, it can raise a PPP VPN server / client and register static routes to offices.
- Able to configure Wi-Fi in the form of a client, and in the Access Point, and easily configure the Access List.
- Able to analyze the employment of radio channels to select the optimal settings.
- Will be able to secure your local network with firewall filters.
- Can set up simple queues to prioritize traffic.
- He knows about the licenses of RouterOS and can pick up the necessary version.
- Able to use CLI
- Knows about things like PCQ and NV2
How to choose a coach?
At the moment, several companies and independent trainers offer certification training to MikroTik in the Russian Federation. However, if everything is less clear with the course material, it is approved by MikroTik himself, and 90% consists of a pre-arranged presentation, then the training itself will be conducted by a specific trainer, so it is very important to approach the choice issue. The learning process takes place in live communication with the trainer, he must not only know the MikroTik equipment itself, but also know all the network technologies.
Unfortunately, not all coaches can “boast” with this knowledge, so I strongly recommend, first, to choose the most “titled” coaches who have all the certificates: MTCNA, MTCRE, MTCWE, MTCTCE, MTCUME, MTCINE. Secondly, study his IT service record, if this is not a CIO or a Network Engineer, then I would think about the quality of the supplied material. The theory is good, you can know it thoroughly, but the practice very often goes in the context of this data and life experience in “production” is VERY important. Also pay attention to additional information about the professional employment of the coach. Since progress does not stand still, the coach must develop in the IT sphere. If you expect to receive other certificates in the future, then I strongly recommend to pay attention to the facts mentioned above, because at the top level courses, coaching knowledge will help you a lot. You can get acquainted with the list of all coaches in Russia here.
What's the price?
I will not give specific figures, since all prices are publicly available on sites. In most cases, training centers are based on a distributor or reseller, respectively, so if you buy equipment from them, you may well ask for a discount. If you go in a group - ask for a discount. If you just go on your own, then ask for a discount, just think up a reason.
Although we must pay tribute, because the price usually includes 3 days of training, including theory and labs, and yes even the certification exam and RouterOS as a gift, therefore, in general, the cost is comparable or even sometimes cheaper than similar training from other manufacturers.
I signed up, what's next?
So, your employer gave the go-ahead and paid you a course, and also praised you for getting a discount;) Usually the course lasts three days. It is necessary to take a laptop with Wi-Fi and a regular network with you, do not drag on MacBook courses, take a regular laptop with Windows. Take also just in case two patch cords that work exactly, a notebook and a pen.
The training itself is divided into blocks, divided by topics. First, the coach tells you the theory, in the form of a presentation, then some time is allotted for questions and discussion of the material, after which you are invited to undergo laboratory work on the topic covered. If something does not work, then you can immediately disassemble the errors, or change the conditions of the problem.
You can see the main topics on the official website in the corresponding outline descriptions for each training.
Exam will be?
The last training hours are devoted to “debriefing” for those who have missed something. Before the test starts, the trainer will run through the tables of contents of the entire course in order to refresh his memory. The exam is taken as an online test on the mikrotik.com website, so first you register. The coach will send an invitation to your mailbox as a link, if you do not have access to corporate mail from the outside, specify the mailbox to which you have access. Immediately at the time of passing the exam, the test page cannot be updated, the testing system will think that you are trying to deceive it, so just do not update the page. And do not try to print via chrome in pdf. By the way, about the language, all the tests are written in English, but in the process of passing the test, you can switch to Russian, but I warn you, the translation is not the best quality.
Also in the process of passing the test, you can contact the coach with a request for a transfer, or give some explanation on the issue. The test takes 1 hour to answer 25 questions, this time is enough. Many are interested in whether it is possible to get training or pass an exam in absentia, without personal attendance at the training, the answer is NO in both cases, it is impossible to pass the exam without passing full-time study under the conditions of MikroTik itself.
Passed or not passed?
Let's start with the worst option, if you scored less than 50%, then the exam is not passed (according to my coach, he hasn't had such). I could be wrong in the numbers (check with the trainer), but if you scored 50-60%, then the exam is considered not passed, but you will be given a second chance in an hour to retake. During this time, the coach will look at what topics you "floated", and again he will repeat for you the main points or analyze incomprehensible moments. If you scored from 60% and above, then you become the holder of the certificate. For everyone who has successfully passed the exam, in the personal account, the license of the 4th level will be credited as a gift.
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Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/269211/
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