NetBrain Technologies Inc.

Document the CCIE Lab

With NetBrain Personal Edition Plus

1. Install and activate NetBrain Workstation ........................................................................................... 3

1.1 Setup NetBrain Workstation Personal Edition Plus ................................................................... 3

1.2 Activate the license ................................................................................................................... 3

2. Setup Workspace .............................................................................................................................. 4

2.1 Import configurations ................................................................................................................ 4

2.2 Set up the live network access .................................................................................................. 5

2.3 Tune Live Access ...................................................................................................................... 7

3. Use Map for Network Analysis ........................................................................................................... 8

3.1 Navigate on Q-map ................................................................................................................... 9

3.2 Decode Network Design via Design Reader ........................................................................... 10

3.3 Annotate Network Configuration in the Map ............................................................................ 12

3.4 Create New Maps ................................................................................................................... 15

3.5 Monitoring ............................................................................................................................... 16

4. Use Map to Document the Lab ........................................................................................................ 16

4.1 Document CLI show command results .................................................................................... 16

4.2 Benchmark the Lab ................................................................................................................. 19

4.3 Add Map Notes ....................................................................................................................... 20

5. Configure, Document and Review the Network Change .................................................................. 21

5.1 Configure the Lab ................................................................................................................... 22

5.2 Update the Map ...................................................................................................................... 23

5.3 Compare Configurations and Routings ................................................................................... 24

5.4 Compare the Show Command Results ................................................................................... 25

6. Other Ways to Setup Workspace ..................................................................................................... 26

6.1 Import Dynamips Virtual Lab ................................................................................................... 26

6.2 Discover the Live Network ...................................................................................................... 27

1. Install and activate NetBrain Workstation

1.1 Setup NetBrain Workstation Personal Edition Plus

To install and set up NetBrain Workstation, you must have administrator access to the computer in

which you install the software.

Double click the Personal Edition Plus (PE-Plus) setup file. Follow the instructions in the NetBrain

Workstation Personal Edition 3.1 – Installshield Wizard window.

1.2 Activate the license

The license of PE-Plus is free charged for the first year. The first time you use PE Plus, you must

activate the license.

1. Launch NetBrain Workstation PE 3.1. The Welcome to NetBrain window opens.

2. Fill in the Email address and Activation Key and click the Next button to start the activation

process.

Note:

If your PC is not connected to Internet directly, click the Internet Proxy link to set up the

Internet proxy.

The Email and Activation Key are included in the email sent to you from NetBrain after you

submit the download request from the NetBrain website. If you do not have the Activation

Key, please visit http://www.netbraintech.com/register/pe-plus/download.php and fill in the form.

2. Setup Workspace

NetBrain PE-Plus provides a visual environment to help you learn the network technology either for the

career growth or the network certification such as CCIE. To start with NetBrain, you need build the

workspace, a virtual environment to emulate the network such as your live or virtual CCIE lab. You can

just import the configuration files to set up a workspace. Refer to section 6 for other ways to set up the

workspace such as discovering the live or virtual Dynamics lab.

2.1 Import configurations

Before importing configurations, you need retrieve the configuration files and save them as text files in

your PC.

1. Collect configuration files into a file

folder.

Note: if you do not have configuration

files ready, you can download a set of

files from here.

2. Drag and drop the folder into the

Workstation.

3. A map is automatically created for all

devices in the folder.

Tip: you may also copy and paste a device’s configurations to Workstation.

2.2 Set up the live network access

Enter the credentials to access the live network so that you can work on your network from the

Workstation.

1. Click the Import

Configuration button.

2. Click the From

Clipboard… button.

3. Paste the configurations

here from the output of

show run command in CLI

command, for example.

4. Click the Import button.

1. Click Workspace >> Live

Network Setting.

2. Click the Telnet/SSH login

tag.

3. Click the Add button.

4. Enter the corresponding values.

5. Repeat step 3 and 4 to add all

possible Telnet/SSH login

credentials.

6. Click the other tags in Live

Network Setting window to

add Privilege Password,

SNMP community and

Jumpbox.

Note:

If the Workstation can access

your network directly, then

you do NOT need set a

Jumpbox. Otherwise you do

need set a Jumpbox.

Live Network Setting Examples

Telnet/SSH login Username nb

Password nb

Privilege Password nb

SNMP community nb

Jumpbox

IP address 72.85.225.144

Username netbrain

Password netbrain

Login Prompt login:

Command Prompt: :/>

2.3 Tune Live Access

Check the reach-ability of a device and fill in the credentials (device settings) for each device.

1. Click Workspace >> Tune Live

Access.

2. Click Start Tuning.

3. Click an entry to view its log.

4. After the process is finished,

right click an entry and view

its device setting or

telnet/SSH to it.

Tip: if you get failure for some

devices, you can click Start

Tuning button again without

closing window. The system will

only try the devices which failed

in last testing.

3. Use Map for Network Analysis

Once a data-driven Q-Map is created, many network analyses can be automated from the map. The

frequently used functions can be launched from the context menu (also called the floating menu) bar.

The context menus change when different types of network objects are selected in the Q-map.

Context Menu Network Analysis

Q-Map Floating Menu

Click the blank space in a Q-map to

bring up the context menu for a map.

Highlight routing protocol

Validate an existing map

Compare Configurations and

routings

Monitor

Retrieve live data

Add map note

Export to Visio and Word document

Router Floating Menu

Click a router to bring up the context

menu for a device.

View configurations and config-let

via design reader

View route table

Live access

View MAC table (only applicable to

switch)

Extend neighbor

3.1 Navigate on Q-map

Apply Digital Zoom to a -Map

1. Scroll the mouse wheel forward to

zoom in the map and view the detail

data along the link.

Mouse over any Text in a Q-Map

1. Mouse over a text along a

link to display the relevant

configuration-let in the Tip

Window.

Tip: Click the button on the

Map ribbon menu to turn on/off Tip

Window.

One-Click Visio Diagram

1. Click the Export to Visio button

in context menu.

2. The system creates the Visio

diagram.

3.2 Decode Network Design via Design Reader

NetBrain design reader extrapolates detail design out of the configurations. The detail design can be

viewed in tip window conveniently and in design reader comprehensively.

1. Scroll the mouse wheel forward to zoom in the map and view the detail data along the link.

2. Move the mouse over the labels and the tip window opens (click the Map > Show Tip button

in the ribbon if it does not open).

3. Click the design reader button in tip window. The design reader pane opens.

4. Select a design filter in the left pane.

5. Click a device in the map to apply the design filter.

6. Click the button to view the sample.

Tip: You can use Design Reader to learn best practice by click view sample button. A map along with

common configure-let opens.

3.3 Annotate Network Configuration in the Map

Annotate Configuration in a Q-map

1. Move the mouse over the labels and the tip window opens (click the Map > Show Tip button

in the ribbon if it does not open).

2. Click the button to save the tip window in the map.

Tip: You many need to apply zoom in order to see multicasting label such as PIM-DM or PIM-SM

shown up in the map.

Highlight routing protocols in L3 map

1. Click highlight in context menu and select highlight routing protocol.

2. To clear the highlight, click highlight in the context menu and select Clear All.

3.4 Create New Maps

NetBrain provides many ways for you to create a L2/L3 map on-the-fly for a task in hand. For example, you can

map around a device, map the traffic path and map the trace route results.

Create map via Extending neighbors

1. Create a new map.

2. Drag a device from

the workspace pane

to the map.

3. Click button to

open the neighbor

window.

4. Double click all

neighbors or one

neighbor to draw the

neighbor(s) in the

map.

Please refer to Video Tutorials for other methods to create the maps.

3.5 Monitoring

Turn on a regular map to the heat map in one click. The device and interface status as well as the

performance data are displayed and updated in the heat map so that you can discover the hot pot

instantly.

1. Open or create a map.

Click the Monitor button

in the context menu.

2. The map is turned into

the heat map.

Tip: if the interface delay or

bandwidth usage is not

visible, you can zoom in the

Q-map or drag the link longer

to make them visible.

4. Use Map to Document the Lab

NetBrain Q-map is a knowledge map ideal to document the lab. You can highlight the routing design and

annotate the configure-let in the map as shown in section 3.3. The benchmarked results including the

customized show command results can also be added into the map as a hyperlink in the device or map

note.

4.1 Document CLI show command results

You can telnet to a network device from NetBrain, issue CLI show commands and save the results as

the note or a link in the map note.

1. Select a device from the map and click CLI Telnet/SSH CLI. The system automatically brings up CLI

windows and logins to the device.

2. Issue the show command.

3. Select and right click the show command results. From the pull down menu select Document Show

Command Results.

4. Select or create a map DataFolder and Click the OK button in the Document Show Command

Results window.

5. In the Show Command Results Browser window click the Create Hyperlink button.

6. In the Create Hyperlink window enter the note and click the OK button.

7. Select both notes and the device (press Ctrl key and left click the mouse to select multiple objects in

the map), right click the mouse and select Manual Link menu. The note is associated to the device.

4.2 Benchmark the Lab

NetBrain allows you to retrieve the built-in data such as configurations, route tables, ARP tables, MAC

tables and CDP tables. And the system parses these types of data and provides the toolkit for you to

work on these data. You can also define and retrieve the customized show commands.

To retrieve the system built-in data,

1. In the map floating menu select Benchmark -> Retrieve Live Data.

2. Select a DataFolder to store the data. You can select a map DataFolder to associate the data to the

map.

3. Click the Start button.

To define and execute the customized show commands,

1. In the map floating menu select Benchmark -> Execute Show Commands option.

2. Select a map Datafolder to store the result.

3. Click the Add… button to add the target devices where the show commands are executed.

4. Click the Add via Template… button to add show commands via templates. Or click the Add…

button to add an individual show command.

5. Click the Start button to execute these commands.

4.3 Add Map Notes

The map note is a good place to describe the network design or best practice. In the map note you can

insert a link for the network data or external document.

1. Open a Q-map and click the icon on the left of the Q-map.

2. Click the blank of the map note then click the triangle icon ( ) on the right side of the Link icon ( ),

and then select Link to show command data option.

3. Double-click the live data or the external document and the link of the selected data is inserted into

the cursor position of the map note.

5. Configure, Document and Review the Network Change

With NetBrain Workstation you can follow the following steps to document and review a learning

scenario:

1. Benchmark the lab including retrieving the key show command results.

2. Make the network changes.

3. Benchmark the lab after changes including the retrieving key show command results.

4. Update the map.

5. Add the map note and benchmark the benchmarked results as the link.

6. Compare the data before and after change.

5.1 Configure the Lab

1. Select a device from the map and click CLI Telnet/SSH CLI.

2. The system automatically brings up CLI windows and logins to the device.

3. Enter the configuration mode and change the configurations.

5.2 Update the Map

After making the network change, you need benchmark your lab again (refer to section 4.2). The system

will rebuild the network model including the topology. Then you can update your map based on the

network data after the change.

1. Open the existing map.

2. From the map float menu select Validate -> Regenerate Map. The map is automatically updated.

5.3 Compare Configurations and Routings

Compare the network data (configuration/route tables) and find out what has been changed.

1. From the context menu click

Compare > Compare Config &

Routing.

2. At the Compare Configuration

and Routing window opens,

select two DataFolders and

then click Compare.

3. At the batch compare route

table, double click an entry to

view the route changes for a

router.

4. Click Batch Compare Config to

view the batch configuration

comparison result and

Double-click an entry to check

the configuration change

details for a device.

5.4 Compare the Show Command Results

You can also compare the show command results before and after change.

1. In context menu, click Compare and Compare Show Command.

2. Select a device.

3. Select two DataFolders.

4. Select a show command to compare.

6. Other Ways to Setup Workspace

6.1 Import Dynamips Virtual Lab

If you build a virtual network lab using tools such as dynamics/GNS3, you can load the lab into the

workspace:

1. Enable the reverse telnet to devices and configure the IP connections properly. Then save the

configurations of the network devices as a .net file.

2. Click the Load Dynamips .net File button on the start page of NetBrain Workstation. In the popped

up window select the .net file that you created in the first step. The Import Dynamips window pops

up showing the device info such as hostname, IP address and port number.

Note: If the IP address may is 127.0.0.1 and the port is not defined in the .net file, you should change the

IP address and port number here.

3. Click the Login Credential button. In the Login Credential window, enter the Username/Password and

Enable Password.

Note: You can only enter one login credential. To make sure all devices can be accessed successfully, you

should configure this login credentials for all devices.

4. Click the discover button to start discovering your virtual network. Only Cisco routers and switches are

supported here. The discovery results are displayed under the status column. If the system fails to

discover some devices, the status is labeled as “failed”, otherwise “succeed”. You can select a device and

view the log for the discovery details.

6.2 Discover the Live Network

If you have a live lab, you can use discover the live network to setup the workspace. First follow the

section 2.2 to set up the live network access and then discover the network. The discovered devices are

automatically added into the workspace.

1. Click Workspace >> Discover.

2. Enter an IP address of the

seed router. Or click Select

Device to select a seed router.

3. Click the Start button.

4. Select an entry to view the log.

Note: the discovery statistics are

updated and displayed at .