Security+ Exam Cram 2 - Softcover

Don Poulton (A+, MCSA, MCSE, Network+, Security+) has been involved with computers since the days of 80-column punch cards. After a career of more than 20 years in environmental science, Don switched careers and trained as a Windows NT 4.0 MCSE. He has been involved in consulting with a couple of small training providers as a technical writer, during which time he wrote training and exam prep materials for Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000 and Windows XP. Don has contributed to various certification texts for iLearning/LANWrights, including the MCSE Windows Server 2003 Active Directory Infrastructure 70-294 Training Guide and the 70-299 Implementing and Administering Security in a Windows Server 2003 Network Exam Cram 2 books.

Introduction to Your Lab Manual

Welcome to the Security+ Exam Cram 2 Lab Manual! This book is designed to be a perfect complement to the Security+ Exam Cram 2 and the Security+ Practice Questions Exam Cram 2 books. The Security+ Exam Cram 2 Lab Manual includes more than 30 labs with nearly 100 exercises that mimic tasks and present real-world scenarios which a network security administrator might face on the job. The exercises were developed based on the Security+ exam objectives.

Written by security instructors, the Security+ Exam Cram 2 Lab Manual provides clear step-by-step directions to help the reader through complex exercises and offers ample guidance to prevent potential pitfalls. For topics that don't lend themselves to hands-on exercises, this book includes research-based exercises, such as researching a topic on the Internet and in print media and answering a set of questions based on that research or creating a report or other such document based on that research.

The authors include references to specific chapters and topics in the corresponding Security+ Exam Cram 2 and Security+ Training Guide books; however, this lab manual is a standalone product that you can use effectively both individually and in a class setting. If you feel that you could benefit both from buying this book and taking a class, check out the many third-party vendors who offer Security+ training in addition to training offered by CompTIA.

Undoubtedly, experience with the technologies you are going to be tested on is critical. To truly be prepared for your certification exam, we recommend that you read and study, complete a lot of practice questions, and gain solid experience with the technologies you will be tested on. The last point is our intent with this book. We want to offer you plenty of opportunity to jump into the technologies the Security+ exam tests on, complete with ample guidance and feedback to assist you throughout your exercises. So after you finish this lab manual, it is our hope that you will feel more confident and competent with security fundamentals as well as the objectives you must master for the Security+ exam!

Who Is This Book For?

This is always a critical question that readers want to answer before purchasing any book. It can be a frustrating experience to buy a book that doesn't fit your needs, to say the least: We know from experience! With that said, this book is for people studying for the Security+ exam who feel they are at a point in their study that they need to put the concepts and principles of Security+ into action for greater understanding. If you are qualified to be taking the Security+ exam, you are the person right for this book. However, you should use the exercises in this book when you feel you are ready to get hands-on experience. This point, of course, will vary for every reader, but knowing how you learn and what study techniques best breed success for you is the path to passing the Security+ exam.

A word of warning is necessary here: Don't use this book as your sole study vehicle. We know it might sound weird that we are saying our book is not the sole study guide needed for exam success! Make no mistake, we want this book to succeed greatly, but we also know that successful certification students almost always have more than one study source. That is not a sales pitch for Que's other products either! That is tried and true advice that we want you to know because not every book covers items completely or to the degree you might need; having several study aides gives you a greater chance to find the information you need along with different viewpoints and experiences from various authors. That is truly a rich learning environment!

What Makes Up a Que Security+ Lab Manual?

By now, you are probably curious about what makes up a Que Security+ Lab Manual. The following list details for you what a typical chapter contains:

• Introduction—Each chapter contains an introduction that gives you the insight on what the chapter covers, why this content is important for the exam, and any other information you might need as you begin to do the exercises.

• Objectives List—This is simply a list of the Security+ objectives, quoted from CompTIA, that your particular chapter will be covering.

• Step-by-Step Lab Procedures—This is the meat of your lab manual's chapters. Here is where you exercise your skills and develop that all-important set of experiences that will help you on the job and on the Security+ exam.

• What Did I Just Learn?—This section follows your step-by-step exercises. It is a critical section that sums up and reviews the concepts and skills you should have mastered after completing the exercises. If you don't feel confident that you picked up those skills or understood the concepts provided, try the steps again and consult some of your other study books for review.

• Need to Know More?—Every chapter contains a section containing direct pointers to security resources that offer more details on the chapter's subjects. If you find a resource you like in this collection, use it, but don't feel compelled to use all the resources. On the other hand, we recommend only those resources we ourselves use regularly, so none of our recommendations will waste your time or money.

• Practice Questions—At the end of each chapter, we provide you with a small amount of practice questions too. There aren't a lot of these, but we want you to use them to make sure that you have an understanding of the concepts and skills central to the chapter you are completing. Again, if you are not comfortable or you are unsure while answering the questions, be sure to visit other study guides to get more information or review.

Other Elements You Will Encounter in Your Chapters

The preceding list gives you the major elements each chapter in your Security+ Lab Manual contains; however, you will see some other elements "floating" around. The following list details these for you:

• Figures—Periodically, you are offered a picture or diagram that will help you visualize something while you are doing your exercises.

• Exam Alerts—Throughout a chapter, you'll encounter Exam Alerts. The layout and purpose of each is as follows:

Caution - Exam alerts are offered to you as an "early warning." If you see something in an exam alert, you should take great care to know the items in it because you can be fairly certain that the topics will be on the Security+ exam.

• Tips and Notes—Throughout a chapter, you might also find information highlighted in the special layouts of Tips and Notes. The layout and purpose of each is as follows:

Tip - Tips are designed to give you some added piece of information pertaining to a topic being covered, such as an alternative or more efficient way of performing a certain task.

Note - Notes are designed to alert you to a piece of information related to the topic being discussed.

• Cautions—The final element you might encounter in a chapter are Cautions, described as follows:

Caution - Cautions are alarms to you that something could go really wrong if you aren't careful. Pay close attention to these!

About Security+

The CompTIA Security+ certification tests an individual's basic skills and knowledge of general security concepts, communication security, infrastructure security, cryptography, and operational and organizational security. Candidates are recommended to possess two years of on-the-job networking experience, with knowledge of TCP/IP, an emphasis on security, and Network+ or equivalent knowledge.

System Requirements

The foll...