Packet Tracer – Connect the Physical Layer

Objectives

• Part 1: Identify Physical Characteristics of Internetworking Devices
• Part 2: Select Correct Modules for Connectivity
• Part 3: Connect Devices
• Part 4: Check Connectivity

Background

• In this activity, you will explore the different options available on internetworking devices. You will also be required to determine which options provide the necessary connectivity when connecting multiple devices. Finally, you will add the correct modules and connect the devices.


• Note: Scoring for this activity is a combination of Packet Tracer-automated scoring and your recorded answers to the questions posed in the instructions. See the Suggested Scoring Rubricat the end of this activity and consult with your instructor to determine your final score.

Part 1: Identify Physical Characteristics of Internetworking Devices

Step 1: Identify the management ports of a Cisco router.

1. Click the East router. The Physical tab should be active.


2. Zoom in and expand the window to see the entire router.
   
   Which management ports are available?
   AUX and Console ports

Step 2: Identify the LAN and WAN interfaces of a Cisco router.

1. Which LAN and WAN interfaces are available on the East router and how many are there?
   There are 2 WAN interfaces and 2 Gigabit Ethernet interfaces.


2. Click the CLI tab, press the Enter key to access the user mode prompt, and enter the following commands:
   
   East>show ip interface brief
   
   The output verifies the correct number of interfaces and their designation.The vlan1 interface is a virtual interface that only exists in software.
   
   How many physical interfaces are listed?
   4


3. Enter the following commands:
   
   East>show interface gigabitethernet 0/0
   
   What is the default bandwidth of this interface?
   1000000 Kbit
   
   East>show interface serial 0/0/0
   
   What is the default bandwidth of this interface?
   1544 Kbit
   
   Note: Bandwidth on serial interfaces is used by routing processes to determine the best path to a destination. It does not indicate the actual bandwidth of the interface. Actual bandwidth is negotiated with a service provider.

Step 3: Identify module expansion slots.

• How many expansion slots are available to add additional modules to the East router?
  1
  
  Click Switch2.How many expansion slots are available?
  5 slots are available

Part 2: Select Correct Modules for Connectivity

Step 1: Determine which modules provide the required connectivity.

1. Click East and then click the Physical tab. On the left, beneath the Modules label, you see the available options to expand the capabilities of the router. Click each module. A picture and a description display at the bottom. Familiarize yourself with these options.
   
   
   1. You need to connect PCs 1, 2, and 3 to the East router, but you do not have the necessary funds to purchase a new switch. Which module can you use to connect the three PCs to the East router?
      HWIC-4ESW module
   
   
   2. How many hosts can you connect to the router using this module?
      4
2. Click Switch2.
   
   Which module can you insert to provide a Gigabit optical connection to Switch3?
   PT-SWITCH-NM-1FGE

Step 2: Add the correct modules and power up devices.

1. Click East and attempt to insert the appropriate module from Step 1a. Modules are added by clicking the module and dragging it to the empty slot on the device.
   
   The Cannot add a module when the power is onmessage should display. Interfaces for this router model are not hot-swappable. The device must be turned off before adding or removing modules. Click the power switch located to the right of the Cisco logo to turn off East. Insert the appropriate module from Step 1a. When done, click the power switch to power up East.
   
   Note: If you insert the wrong module and need to remove it, drag the module down to its picture in the bottom right corner, and release the mouse button.


2. Using the same procedure, insert the module that you identified in Step 1b into the empty slot farthest to the right in Switch2.


3. Use the show ip interface brief command on Switch2 to identify the slot in which the module was placed.
   
   Into which slot was it inserted?
   GigabitEthernet5/1

Part 3: Connect Devices

• This may be the first activity you have done where you are required to connect devices. Although you may not know the purpose of the different cable types, use the table below and follow these guidelines to successfully connect all the devices:

1. Select the appropriate cable type.


2. Click the first device and select the specified interface.


3. Click the second device and select the specified interface.


4. If you have correctly connected two devices, you will see your score increase.
   
   Example: To connect East to Switch1, select the Copper Straight-Through cable type. Click East and choose GigabitEthernet0/0. Then, click Switch1 and choose GigabitEthernet0/1. Your score should now be 4/55.
   
   Note: For the purposes of this activity, link lights are disabled.

Part 4: Check Connectivity

Step 1: Check the interface status on East.

1. Click the CLI tab and enter the following commands:
   
   East>show ip interface brief
   
   Compare the output to the following:

   Interface              IP-Address      OK? Method Status                Protocol 
   GigabitEthernet0/0     172.30.1.1      YES manual up                    up
   GigabitEthernet0/1     172.31.1.1      YES manual up                    up
   Serial0/0/0            10.10.10.1      YES manual up                    up
   Serial0/0/1            unassigned      YES unset  downdown
   FastEthernet0/1/0      unassigned      YES unset  upup
   FastEthernet0/1/1      unassigned      YES unset  upup
   FastEthernet0/1/2      unassigned      YES unset  upup
   FastEthernet0/1/3      unassigned      YES unset  up                    down 
   Vlan1                  172.29.1.1      YES manual up                    up

   
   If all of the cabling is correct the outputs should match.

Step 2: Connect wireless devices, Laptop and TabletPC.

1. Click the Laptop and select the Config Tab. Select the Wireless0 interface. Put a check in the box labeled On next to Port Status. Within a few seconds the wireless connection should appear.


2. Click the Desktop tab of the Laptop. Click on the Web Browser icon to launch the web browser. Enter www.cisco.pka in the URL box and click Go. The page should display Cisco Packet Tracer.


3. Click the TabletPC and select the Config Tab. Select the Wireless0 interface. Put a check in the box labeled On next to Port Status. Within a few seconds the wireless connection should appear.


4. Repeat the steps in Step 2b to verify the page displays.

Step 3: Change the access method of the TabletPC.

1. Click the TabletPC and select the Config Tab. Select the Wireless0 interface. Uncheck the box labeled On next to Port Status. It should now be clear and the wireless connection will drop.


2. Click the 3G/4G Cell1 interface. Put a check in the box labeled On next to Port Status. Within a few seconds the cellular connection should appear.


3. Repeat the process of verifying web access.
   
   Note: You should not have both the wireless0 interface and 3G/4G Cell1 interfaces active at the same time. This may cause confusion to the device when attempting to connect to some resources.

Step 4: Check connectivity of the other PCs.

• All of the PCs should have connectivity to the web site and each other. You will learn to use connectivity testing in many upcoming labs.