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 RED IRISH GLOBAL SERVICES

 Defense Information Capacity Development Program (DICDP)

 Communications and Information Systems (CIS) Track — Foundation Level

 Foundation Networking Course | Day 02 — Packet Tracer Exercise 1

 Document ID:        DICDP-CIS-FNC-D02-SUP1-EX1-v1

 Issued:             [date of determination]

 Controlled by:      Program Director, DICDP, Red Irish Global Services

 Redirect requests:  ops@redirish.global

 Distribution:       RESTRICTED — Program participants only

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Restricted Distribution Statement

This material is the intellectual property of Red Irish Global Services. Distribution is authorized only to participants enrolled in the Defense Information Capacity Development Program (DICDP). Reproduction, transmission, posting to public networks or social media, sharing with non-participants, or use as the basis for derivative training materials, in whole or in part, requires prior written authorization from Red Irish Global Services. Other requests shall be referred to: ops@redirish.global

Exercise 1 — Choose and Label Devices

Document ID: DICDP-CIS-FNC-D02-SUP1-EX1-v1 Version: v1.0 Estimated time: 25–35 minutes

Before You Start

This is your first time opening Packet Tracer. That is expected. This exercise will not ask you to configure anything or make anything work. It has one job: teach you how to find devices in Packet Tracer, place them on the workspace, and name them correctly.

By the end of this exercise you will have placed two devices, named them using the DoD naming convention, and understood why naming is not optional.

What you need:

• Cisco Packet Tracer installed and open

• This document

What your screen should look like right now: Packet Tracer is open. You see a large empty grey workspace in the center. At the bottom there is a row of category icons. Nothing has been placed yet.

If Packet Tracer is not open yet — open it now before reading further.

Part 1 — Walkthrough

Follow every step exactly as written. The walkthrough gives you the answers. Read each step fully before clicking.

Step 1 — Understand the Packet Tracer workspace

Before placing anything, look at the screen and identify these four areas:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐

│                  MENU BAR (top)                     │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│                                                     │

│                                                     │

│              WORKSPACE (centre)                     │

│         This is where you build networks            │

│                                                     │

│                                                     │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│   CATEGORY BAR       │  DEVICE PANEL                │

│   (bottom left)      │  (bottom right)              │

└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

• Workspace — the large empty area. You drag devices here.

• Category bar — the row of small icons at the very bottom left. Each icon is a category of devices (End Devices, Network Devices, Connections, etc.).

• Device panel — the row of icons immediately to the right of the category bar. When you click a category, the devices in that category appear here.

You will spend most of your time using the category bar and device panel to find the right device, then clicking in the workspace to place it.

Step 2 — Find and place a PC (a user workstation)

A PC in Packet Tracer represents a user workstation — the computer a person sits at and uses.

Do this:

1. Look at the category bar at the bottom left of the screen

2. Find the icon that looks like a monitor with a PC — this is End Devices. Click it.

What are End Devices? End devices are the computers, laptops, printers, and phones that users interact with. They are called "end" devices because they sit at the ends of the network — they generate traffic and receive traffic, but they do not forward it between other devices. In the OSI model, end devices operate at all seven layers — from the physical cable at Layer 1 all the way up to the application the user is running at Layer 7.

1. In the device panel (the row of icons to the right), find the icon labeled PC-PT — it looks like a desktop computer. Click it once to select it.

2. Move your mouse into the workspace — your cursor now carries the PC icon

3. Click anywhere in the upper-left area of the workspace to drop the device

You will see a PC icon appear with two lines of text below it:

• The top line shows the device type (PC-PT) — this is Packet Tracer's internal model name. You cannot change it and it does not matter.

• The bottom line shows the device name (PC0 or similar) — this is what you will rename.

Step 3 — Rename the device using the DoD naming convention

The default name PC0 is unacceptable in a DoD environment. A device name must tell anyone reading it exactly what the device is, what network it belongs to, and which device it is among similar ones.

Do this:

1. Click once on the name label below the PC icon (the text that says PC0)

2. The label becomes editable — a text cursor appears

3. Delete PC0 completely

4. Type: WS-NIPR-01

5. Press Enter to confirm

Your device is now named WS-NIPR-01.

Understanding the naming convention — every part has a meaning:

Why naming is not optional — Rule 3 (Documentation): In DoD, a device named PC0 is a documentation finding. During a Command Cyber Readiness Inspection (CCRI), an inspector who sees PC0 on a network diagram will flag it immediately. An asset name must tell you what the device is, what network it is on, what role it plays, and how to distinguish it from other devices. A name like WS-NIPR-01 passes all four tests. PC0 passes none of them. This is not a preference — it is a compliance requirement.

Step 4 — Place and name a second workstation

Do this:

1. In the device panel, click PC-PT again to select it

2. Click in the workspace to the right of WS-NIPR-01 — leave some space between them

3. Click once on the name label below the new PC

4. Delete the default name and type: WS-NIPR-02

5. Press Enter

What your workspace should look like now:

  [WS-NIPR-01]          [WS-NIPR-02]

Two named workstations. No cables yet. This is correct.

OSI check — Walkthrough

Before the assignment, connect what you just did to the OSI model from this morning's lecture.

You placed two end devices — user workstations. Think about this:

• When a user opens a browser on WS-NIPR-01, the browser generates data at Layer 7 (Application)

• That data gets formatted at Layer 6 (Presentation), managed as a session at Layer 5 (Session), given a port number at Layer 4 (Transport), given an IP address at Layer 3 (Network), given a MAC address at Layer 2 (Data Link), and converted to electrical signals at Layer 1 (Physical)

End devices are the only devices in a network that use all seven OSI layers — because they are the source and destination of the actual data.

The network devices you will meet in later exercises (switches, routers) only go up to Layer 2 or Layer 3 — they never need to look at the application data inside. They just move the packet to the right place.

Part 2 — Assignment

You now do this yourself. No step-by-step instructions. Apply what you learned in Part 1.

Your task

The communications section of your unit needs to set up a small administrative area. You have been told:

"We need two computers for the administrative staff. Place them and label them correctly."

The administrative area is on NIPRNet. This will be the second administrative workstation cluster — so the numbering starts at 03, not 01 (those are already taken by the devices you placed in the walkthrough).

Do this without looking back at the walkthrough steps:

1. Place two PCs in the workspace — put them below and to the right of your walkthrough devices so the workspace stays organised

2. Name them correctly using the DoD naming convention

3. Do not cable anything yet

When you are done, your workspace should have four named devices:

  [WS-NIPR-01]    [WS-NIPR-02]       ← from the walkthrough



  [WS-NIPR-03]    [WS-NIPR-04]       ← your assignment devices

OSI question — Assignment

Answer this in writing before moving to the checkpoint:

"You placed four end devices. Each one operates at all seven OSI layers. Name the PDU at each layer from Layer 1 to Layer 4, using the correct PDU names from the Morning lecture."

Write your answer here:

Layer 1 — Physical:    PDU name = _______________

Layer 2 — Data Link:   PDU name = _______________

Layer 3 — Network:     PDU name = _______________

Layer 4 — Transport:   PDU name = _______________

Checkpoint — End of Exercise 1

╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗

║  STOP — END OF EXERCISE 1                                    ║

║                                                              ║

║  Before moving to Exercise 2, verify:                        ║

║                                                              ║

║  ✓ You have exactly FOUR devices on the workspace            ║

║  ✓ All four are PCs (workstations)                           ║

║  ✓ They are named WS-NIPR-01, WS-NIPR-02,                    ║

║    WS-NIPR-03, WS-NIPR-04                                    ║

║  ✓ No cables have been placed                                ║

║  ✓ You have written your OSI answer above                    ║

║                                                              ║

║  If anything is missing — fix it before continuing.          ║

║  Raise your hand if you are not sure.                        ║

╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

Save your file now:

File → Save

Name it: Day02_Ex1_YourName.pkt

Trainer Answer Key

╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗

║  🔑 TRAINER ANSWER KEY — Exercise 1                          ║

╠══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣

║                                                              ║

║  ASSIGNMENT — Expected device names:                         ║

║  • WS-NIPR-03                                                ║

║  • WS-NIPR-04                                                ║

║                                                              ║

║  OSI QUESTION — Expected answers:                            ║

║  • Layer 1 — Physical:   Bit                                 ║

║  • Layer 2 — Data Link:  Frame                               ║

║  • Layer 3 — Network:    Packet                              ║

║  • Layer 4 — Transport:  Segment (TCP) / Datagram (UDP)      ║

║                                                              ║

║  COMMON MISTAKES TO WATCH FOR:                               ║

║                                                              ║

║  1. Student uses default name (PC2, PC3) and does not        ║

║     rename. Ask: "What would an inspector see if they        ║

║     looked at your network diagram? Would PC2 tell them      ║

║     anything useful?" This connects naming directly to       ║

║     Rule 3 (Documentation).                                  ║

║                                                              ║

║  2. Student names the assignment devices WS-NIPR-01 and      ║

║     WS-NIPR-02 (collision with walkthrough devices). Ask:    ║

║     "If those names are already taken, what comes next?"     ║

║     Students should reason: 01 and 02 are taken → 03, 04.    ║

║                                                              ║

║  3. Student places assignment devices on top of walkthrough  ║

║     devices — workspace is cluttered. Encourage spatial      ║

║     organisation: "Think of the workspace like a building    ║

║     floor plan — give each area room."                       ║

║                                                              ║

║  4. Student writes "data" for all four OSI layers. Correct   ║

║     gently: "Data is the PDU name for Layers 5, 6, and 7.    ║

║     Layers 1 through 4 each have their own specific name."   ║

║                                                              ║

║  WHAT TO CHECK WHEN WALKING THE ROOM:                        ║

║  • Glance at device labels — all four should have            ║

║    WS-NIPR-0X format, nothing else                           ║

║  • Check that no cables have been placed                     ║

║  • Check that the OSI answer box has been filled in          ║

║                                                              ║

║  ONE CONCEPT THAT MUST LAND BEFORE EXERCISE 2:               ║

║  End devices use all 7 OSI layers. Network devices           ║

║  (switch, router) only go up to Layer 2 or Layer 3.         ║

║  This distinction will be the foundation of every            ║

║  exercise that follows.                                      ║

╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

Coming up in Exercise 2: You will connect two of your workstations with a cable and make them talk to each other for the first time. You will see what happens when two devices share a cable — and what Layer 1 and Layer 2 actually look like in practice.

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ Red Irish Global Services | DICDP | CIS Track | FNC DICDP-CIS-FNC-D02-SUP1-EX1-v1 | Issued: [date] ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

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