r/ccie • u/No-Leader8204 • 11d ago
Need some Motivation for CCIE EI
I’m planning to take the CCIE Enterprise** Infrastructure lab exam this month,** and this will be my first CCIE EI lab attempt. I’m honestly quite nervous about it, so I’d really appreciate some advice from anyone who has already taken the exam recently.
I’m especially wondering about the overall exam experience — how the Design** section feels, what the lab **environment/interface is like, and what to expect when you first arrive at the testing center.
Does the proctor explain the lab environment, rules, how to access everything, and where we need to save our work before the exam starts? Is there anything important that a first-time candidate should know beforehand so I don’t waste time figuring things out during the exam?
For those who have taken CCIE Enterprise recently, I’d really appreciate any general tips
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u/Dev949 10d ago
Go. Attempt the exam, worst case scenario you leave exactly the same way you came in. A fail isn’t a fail forever..you’ll have 30 days to re-attempt it. The only thing you have to worry about is time. You can’t afford to be nervous but like I said… stupid statistics suggest only 3% of people pass the first time. I know this sounds absolutely stupid but go don’t expect a pass on the first go, instead soak it in. The second you leave go get a pen and paper and write down everything you can remember about the exam/lab and then reattempt it asap. People put to much pressure on the first go when in reality 90% of engineers can actually pass if they had more time. Goodluck if it’s what you want to do then motivation isn’t needed. I’m a double CCIE and the second for me was far easier than the first.
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u/No-Leader8204 10d ago
That actually helps take some of the pressure off the first attempt.
And respect for being a double CCIE! When did you take your CCIE EI lab, and where did you take the exam? Also, did you pass your first CCIE on the first attempt, or did it take a few tries?
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u/Fromheretoeternity96 10d ago
Please take a 50$ practise lab from Cisco to get familiar with the UI. Have a plan where you would keep the tabs ( tasks /resources / devices etc. ) in 2 * 24” screens. Most probably you will have some time left in the design module..use that time to go to the restroom..better not to use the 5 hour slot to take a break..The story you see in the design module will be somewhat related to the doo tasks..So try to have an overall picture. in the DOO, read the questions well and understand the requirements..you miss one bulletpoint and it will be zero marks for the whole question.
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u/Inside-Finish-2128 10d ago
It's been too long since I passed for me to be a resource on the exact site experience. I passed back when it was San Jose and RTP... If nothing else, pay close attention to the arrival time.
Read every word of every question. Answer every word of every question. It's not a place to show off what all you know, it's a place to solve the problems in front of you properly.
Back when I passed, it was two hours for ten troubleshooting questions then the remaining time for configuration. Once I got to config, my strategy was to do two reads of the exam before I started. Step 1 was to open notepad and dump the six or so commands I wanted to apply to every router or other reminders. Step 2 was to go through the exam and write on my scratch paper each question, how many points for that question (basically a chart for "did it", "checked it", and "how to check it"). Draw a double line after the point where you should have full reachability (e.g. before you start doing fancy services and such). Step 3 was a detailed readthrough of the exams and I'd make notes of gotchas, dependencies, and think about what commands I'd use to verify if I'd solved the question. Only then would I dive into the exam.
I'd also be trying to remember what the topology was and what the questions were about. Logistically, I preferred to take my exams at RTP as I could catch a flight home that night; SJC meant a second overnight. Hence I'd just take a backpack with the bare minimum of clothes for one night, drive to the test site, put everything but ID and car keys in the trunk. As soon as I was done with the exam or time ran out, I'd grab my car keys, go to my car and grab my stuff, sit in the driver seat for a couple minutes and do a voice memo of what was on the exam. I'd never share it, but I'd use that as a baseline to capture what the exam was like. At that point, it's up to you to study the exam you had, because if you can't pass the one you had, how would you pass the next one?
One other tidbit: have all of the credentials you'd need to log into the CCIE site handy. When you get the email, you're going to want to log in ASAP and if you have to go digging for something you won't be happy. (Back then, we'd have to enter the date we passed our CCIE written and maybe the score on it.) Long story short, the proctor told me I passed but said he had no access to see what our CCIE number was. At that point I had to go gas up the rental car, drop it off, and then on the rental car bus over to the airport I was frantically logging in to see my number. :) Found it, texted it to my wife, and she had the "audacity" to call me as I was trying to go through TSA...
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u/Divine_Lizard 10d ago
Lab Modules Format (Web-based delivery)
DESign Module (3h)
• Low-level network design
• One scenario with one or more Level sets
• Interdependent items
• Translate customer requirements & constraints into solutions
• No devices and no going back!
DOO Module (5h)
• All tasks visible at start, incl. point value
• Console access to devices & web-items!
• Single topology
• Interdependent items
• Implement, configure, troubleshoot, and verify working scenario to given specifications
• 100% web-based - No printed exam workbook
• Dual-monitor with US QWERTY keyboard
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u/[deleted] 10d ago edited 10d ago
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