Cisco
 Home | Free Cisco Articles | Cisco Blog | Cisco Chat Room | Links | | Contact | Privacy Policy
Cisco articles
Cisco Offers A Certification Program That Ensures Their Customers Can Always Receive Help From Technicians Who Have Proven Themselves To Be Competent In Cisco Networking Products. These Programs Are Administered Throughout The World At Authorized Cisco Centers. We're Here To Help You Prepare To Become Cisco Certified. As You Explore This Site, You'll Discover...
What You Can Expect At The Cisco Testing Center   Insider Secrets: 3 Myths About Cisco Exams   Hot: How To Earn Cisco's CCNP Certification   Here's Your Survival Guide To The Cisco Cable Jungle  

Remember... If You Are Looking For Quality Information Related To Cisco, Add This Site To Your Favorites Right Now, As We Update It Daily With The Latest News And Information Related To Cisco And Similar Topics. Enjoy The Site.

Everything You Must Know About Cisco Routers, Used Cisco Routers, Used Cisco, Cisco Training, And Cisco Certification.

Everything You Must Know About Cisco Certification!
Press  For A Message
Latest Related Articles About Cisco
Cisco Certification: Selecting Cisco Products
You must understand the business requirements of the network before buying a product. Based on the requirements, you can select the appropriate...
Continue Reading

Cisco Certification: Recertifying Your CCNA and CCNP
Once you get your CCNA and CCNP, you can't just rest on your accomplishment. You've got to continue to study and add to your skill set - and then...
Continue Reading

Cisco CCNA/CCNP Home Lab Tutorial: Using 2520 Routers
I know from experience that part of the excitement and anxiety of putting together your own CCNA / CCNP home lab is deciding what to buy! While you...
Continue Reading

Looking For More Articles Related To Cisco?



Pix Firewall Keys
Cisco
Learn How To Master The Cisco Pix Firewall And Earn Big Bucks As A Security Expert.

Exam Sheets
Cisco
Get Leading Cert Packs That Includes Microsoft, Cisco, Oracle, Comptia , Checkpoint & Citrix.

Cisco Simulator
Cisco
Cisco Online Practice Simulator.




Cisco CCNA Exam Tutorial: Password Recovery Procedures

Author: Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933


It might happen on your CCNA exam, it might happen on your production network - but sooner or later, you're going to have to perform password recovery on a Cisco router or switch. This involves manipulating the router's configuration register, and that is enough to make some CCNA candidates and network administrators really nervous!

It's true that setting the configuration register to the wrong value can damage the router, but if you do the proper research before starting the password recovery process, you'll be fine.

Despite what some books say, there is no "one size fits all" approach to Cisco password recovery. What works on a 2500 router may not work on other routers and switches. There is a great master Cisco document out on the Web that you should bookmark today. Just put "cisco password recovery" in your favorite search engine and you should find it quickly.

The following procedure describes the process in recovering from a lost password on a Cisco 2500 router. As always, don't practice this at home. It is a good idea to get some practice with this technique in your CCNA / CCNP home lab, though!

The password recovery method examined here is for 2500 routers.

An engineer who finds themselves locked out of a router can view and change the password by changing the configuration register.

The router must first be rebooted and a “break” performed within the first 60 seconds of the boot process. This break sequence can also vary depending on what program is used to access the router, but is the usual key combination.

The router will now be in ROM Monitor mode. From the rom monitor prompt, change the default configuration register of 0x2102 to 0x2142 with the o/r 0x2142 command. Reload the router with the letter i. (As you can see, ROM Monitor mode is a lot different than working with the IOS!)

This particular config register setting will cause the router to ignore the contents of NVRAM. Your startup configuration is still there, but it will be ignored on reload.

When the router reloads, you’ll be prompted to enter Setup mode. Answer “N”, and type enable at the router> prompt.

Be careful here. Type configure memory or copy start run. Do NOT type write memory or copy run start!

Enter the command show running-config. You’ll see the passwords in either their encrypted or unencrypted format.

Type config t, then use the appropriate command to set a new enable secret or enable password.

Don’t forget to change the configuration register setting back to the original value! The command config-register 0x2102 will do the job. Save this change with write memory or copy run start, and then run reload one more time to restart the router.

This process sounds hard, but it's really not. You just have to be careful, particularly when you're copying the startup config over the running config. You don't want to get that backwards! So take your time, check the online Cisco documentation before starting, get some practice with this procedure with lab equipment, and you'll be ready for success on the CCNA exam and in your production network!

About The Author

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage (www.thebryantadvantage.com), home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials! For my FREE "How To Pass The CCNA" or "CCNP" ebook, visit the website and download your copies. Pass your CCNA exam with The Bryant Advantage!

chris@thebryantadvantage.com



Google






A Quick Note From The Publisher...

If you like the article above, you may be interested in the following article which is also related to Cisco...

Taking A Look At Cisco's CCVP Certification
I hardly have to tell you how important voice technologies are in today's networks; what we all need to keep in mind to maximize our career potential is how important knowing voice is going to be tomorrow. We've always got to look forward in IT, both in our work and out studies. Cisco, always the pioneer in technical certifications, now offers a Cisco Certified Voice Professional certification that is gaining a lot of attention from IT professionals looking to add to their skills and their resume. Cisco's CCVP track is a rigorous five-exam track that requires you to earn your CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate) certification before getting started. The five exams cover a myriad of topics - they're not giving this one away! Here are the exam numbers and codes you'll need to know to register for the exams: 642-642 Quality Of Service (QOS) 642-432 Cisco Voice Over IP (CVOICE) 642-425 IP Telephony Troubleshooting (IPTT) 642-444 Cisco IP Telephony (CIPT) 642-452 Cisco...
Continue Reading

 

RoutersGuide.com - All Rights Reserved. Legal Information
Featuring Information About Cisco Routers, Used Cisco Routers, Used Cisco, Cisco Training, And Cisco Certification.