CCSP SECUR Exam Certification Guide
Reviewer Name: Anthony Macaluso, Senior Network Specialist
Reviewer Certification: CCNP
Rating: ***** out of *****
Overall this book is an excellent addition to the resources required to successfully take and pass the SECUR exam. It gives a good guide of the test objectives and gives the reader the direction that needs to be taken when preparing for the test. Each chapter has excellent examples and illustrations for the reader to see implemented exactly what they have just read. I would rate this book a 5 out of 5 and would highly recommend it to anyone who is preparing for this exam. I have read many Exam Certification Guides and the common theme that most readers tend to forget is that it is a “guide.” It is not the “answer guide.” It is not going to give you the answers to the questions on the exam. It does provide the outline of what needs to be studied and gives the basics that you need to know, but you will need to study more than just this guide. I don’t think Cisco [Press] has ever labeled these as an “all you ever need to know for the test” book. I have taken the SECUR exam, and I can tell you that this guide is an excellent addition to your test preparation materials.
CCSP SECUR Exam Certification Guide
Reviewer Name: Michael Novelle, Senior Security Administrator
Reviewer Certifications: CCNP, CISSP
Rating: *** out of *****
The CCSP SECUR Exam Certification Guide is a member of the CCSP Self-Study series from Cisco Press. In the past I have read several of Cisco Press' self-study series books to prepare for the CCNA and CCNP certifications and found them to be very helpful. This book is geared toward those interested in preparing for the Cisco Certified Security Professional (CCSP) certification and the SECUR exam in particular. This book pleasantly surprised me with its straightforward layout which makes the material easy to manage and digest. The chapters are distilled down to the core of the material you need to know for the SECUR exam. The included CD-ROM contains a PDF version of the manual which is very useful for performing free-text searches of the material. An electronic test engine is also included. However, the test module can only be installed once so be sure to consider this when selecting the system to install it on.
Each chapter begins with a "Do I Know This Already?" quiz. A few of these quizzes have typos or formatting errors but this is a minor issue and does not prevent you from using these sections to gauge your knowledge prior to reading the chapters.
Overall, I found this book to be useful in my preparations for the SECUR exam. It is tightly focused on the concepts and commands needed to successfully pass the exam and I would recommend it to others. On a scale of 1 to 5 (with 5 being the highest) I would give CCSP SECUR Exam Certification Guide a 3.
CCSP SECUR Exam Certification Guide
Reviewer Name: Mark G. Reyero
Reviewer Certifications: CCIE No. 12932
First and foremost, the book is an exam study guide and not meant to replace the official SECUR course curriculum. If the reader does not have extensive, prior Cisco IOS experience or has not completed the SECUR course, he/she is advised to first review the Cisco Press book Cisco Self-Study: Securing Cisco IOS Networks (SECUR) to take the course. However, if the reader already has the requisite experience, this book will provide the reader with enough information to conquer the SECUR exam.
The book layout is concise and straightforward. Each chapter opens with a "Do I Know This Already" quiz. Each opening chapter quiz provides the reader the opportunity to test his/her existing knowledge to each chapter topic. While the book suggests the reader could skip the chapter materials if reader passes the opening quiz, why would you – you purchased this book for a reason. Each chapter succinctly reviews the exam topic and closes with a chapter Q&A. I also found each chapter's Foundation Summary extremely helpful as a review mechanism the night before the big test.
The book closes with a series of lab scenarios that reinforces not only the exam topics, but challenges the reader on the fundamentals of securing Cisco IOS routers. The reader can easily complete these labs on his/her own test-bed environment with three routers (requires 3DES!). Finally, the book includes a companion CD-ROM that includes a test engine as well the book in PDF format. For the frequent traveling consultant, such as me, the e-book format is an added bonus.
If I had to offer one drawback on the study guide, the book did not adequately cover the Cisco SDM. But, in Cisco Press's defense, the exam topics are always evolving and the reader is advised to always check with the Cisco website for the latest exam topics. I "blew-away" the exam after reading this book, and I highly recommend it to anyone planning to sit for the SECUR exam.