Networking Simulator Free Download

Whether you've been advised by a coworker, supervisor, or a thread on Reddit, everyone has their favorite simulator or emulator. Someone who primarily uses GNS3 will always claim that it's superior to VIRL, and vice-versa.

These are the most popular software for gaining hands-on Cisco lab experience for the routing and switching track certifications. Many of these tools can also be used to test networking technologies for deployment in the real world. However, we will focus as much as possible on the certification exam use case.

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A simulator is a piece of software that, as the name implies, simulates a network topology composed of one or more network devices. The network devices being simulated are not real network devices, and are not capable of passing live network traffic the same way that a real network device could. Instead, each network device is a piece of software pretending to be a real network device to the best of its ability.

As a result, network devices within a simulator are limited to the commands and features programmed into the simulation. For this reason, many advanced features (such as DMVPN, Policy Based Routing, and so on) that real network devices are capable of are not present in simulated counterparts.

The key benefit of simulators is that they tend to be extremely lightweight. Simulator software can run on just about any modern computer without worrying about processor, memory, or storage requirements.

Packet Tracer is Cisco's visual simulation tool that simulates network topologies comprised of Cisco routers, switches, firewalls, and more. Packet Tracer was originally designed as an educational aid for Cisco's Networking Academy (better known as NetAcad) but is an excellent simulator for anyone pursuing an entry-level Cisco certification, such as the CCENT or CCNA R&S.

Making a Realistic Lab. Packet Tracer offers different methods to connect and configure devices. Most of the time, you'll probably left-click on each device in the simulator and configure it through the CLI tab. However, you can also simulate how network engineers would provision devices in the real world. You can accomplish this by connecting a computer to each device via console cable and then configuring the network device through the PC's terminal. You can even use this to configure remote management of the network device through Telnet or SSH, then connect the PC to a management network and configure each device remotely.

This may seem like a minor feature, but it's extremely important. When you master keyboard shortcuts within Packet Tracer, you are simultaneously mastering keyboard shortcuts for the real Cisco IOS command line. Furthermore, many of these keyboard shortcuts are applicable to other CLI-based applications, including Linux devices. Because the keyboard shortcuts work in both environments, your transition from Packet Tracer to real networking devices will be seamless.

Bugs. All software has bugs, and Packet Tracer is no exception. Packet Tracer's bugs tend to be more prominent than other simulators or emulators, perhaps due to its popularity and widespread use through Cisco's NetAcad courses. A quick Google search shows users repeatedly report odd bugs where the configuration of a device is correct, but the behavior of the device is unexpected. These bugs are typically fixed by saving the simulation file, then reloading Packet Tracer, after which the device is behaving as expected. This is a problem because you may spend precious time troubleshooting rather than labbing.

Cisco's Packet Tracer remains the gold standard in virtual network simulators. For free software, it offers a feature-rich sandbox environment for experimenting with a large number of network device types, platforms, and connections. Furthermore, Packet Tracer's simulation of Cisco's IOS software exhibits the closest behavior to actual network devices, and its built-in terminal client is very similar to the real thing.

Lab Quality. While the number of labs you receive depends on the price, every Boson lab is high quality and tailored to a Cisco certification exam. Each lab comes with detailed instructions regarding what needs to be configured and verified within the related network topology. Furthermore, most labs ask insightful questions about the output of commands observed in the CLI of the networking device, which helps reinforce understanding about what is being configured and why it needs to be configured.

Lack of Topology Customization. Unlike most other network simulators and emulators, NetSim does not have a way to add colorized shapes to a network topology. Aside from network devices and connections, you can only add text-based notes and labels to the topology. This is a fairly minor point, but is important when rehearsing some exam topics, such as multiarea OSPF, where colored shapes illustrating the different areas comes in very useful.

Cannot Modify Active Topology. Once a network topology is running, you can't modify it until you stop the topology, which shuts down the simulated network devices. If you need to add a new network device or a new connection to your network topology, you must stop the entire topology, modify it as needed, then start the topology once more. This behavior is very similar to current versions of Cisco's VIRL. This is a minor point, as the topology itself starts and stops very quickly, but the less time you spend managing simulator, the better!

Boson NetSim's strongest feature is the built-in labs that directly map to the exam topics of specific Cisco certification exams. For existing patrons of Boson's courseware and practice exams, these labs are an excellent practical aid for reinforcing networking concepts. The fact that labs (whether they were built by Boson or built by the community) can be accessed directly through the NetSim application simplifies the labbing experience and lets you focus on learning instead of prerequisite tasks.

The software's weakness is in the creation, manipulation, and interaction of network topologies in the sandbox environment. It is more difficult to create aesthetically-pleasing network topologies in NetSim compared to other network simulators and emulators. An active network topology does not provide very much visual feedback regarding the status of devices, links, and transmission of data. NetSim's simulated Cisco IOS software has small quirks not exhibited by actual Cisco IOS software, particularly when using context-sensitive help or executing non-existent commands, which is a common mistake that many networking novices make.

An emulator is a piece of software that runs and connects virtual network devices together. Emulators virtualize real network devices, and virtual network devices tend to offer a more advanced feature set compared to network devices present in simulators. The behavior exhibited by virtual network devices is more representative of how real physical network devices would behave in the real world.

However, there are tradeoffs between simulators and emulators. Emulators tend to be limited in the types of virtual network devices that they support, as well as how those virtual devices can connect to each other. Furthermore, depending upon the specific software used, you will need to locate a binary image file of the virtual network device that you would like to emulate, as well as the appropriate licensing. These resources are typically acquired through a support contract with a networking vendor.

Finally, because emulators are virtualizing real network devices, their system requirements demand much more processing power, memory, and storage space compared to network simulators. In fact, some network emulators require a separate server (virtualized or otherwise) to be deployed in order to function!

If Cisco's Packet Tracer is the gold standard in virtual network simulators, then GNS3 is the gold standard in virtual network emulators. GNS3's mature, open-source community has created a feature-rich, well-documented piece of software that is completely free. Despite following a traditional server/client application model, the server component is easy to deploy, configure, and maintain.

EVE-NG (Emulated Virtual Environment Next Generation) is a multi-vendor virtual network simulator that, similar to VIRL Personal Edition, was developed for individuals and smaller businesses. They offer a free Community Edition as well as a Professional Edition for $110.75 per year.

The existing ecosystem of network simulation and emulation software can be difficult to navigate, especially for newcomers to the networking industry. Each piece of software discussed in this article may appeal to a specific type of learner. For this reason, our intent is not to recommend any specific software, but to educate you about the advantages and disadvantages of each option offered by the market. We hope that this knowledge will assist you in making an educated decision and pursuing your Cisco certification goals and learning about the modern beauty that is computer networking!

Once you finish the Getting Started course, jump in and explore how Packet Tracer can help you learn networking. Practice using Cisco Packet Tracer to set up, manage, and monitor a small office network in this interactive course.

Network simulation tools allow students (e.g people studying for Cisco Exams) to easily learn the core concepts of computer networking and TCP/IP in general. Even professionals could benefit from these tools by simulating network environments and get an idea of how a network will work before actual implementation.

Still, Cisco Packet Tracer is fairly intuitive and is a great tool for students and experienced network specialists alike. It lets you easily build super-complex network topologies to test out ideas or to allow you to better understand networking concepts.

The OPNET network simulator is an open-source piece of software with pre-built models of protocols and devices, allowing you to create a wide range of network topologies. Aside from that, it incorporates a large number of project scenarios. 17dc91bb1f