After completing the Exploring Networking with Cisco Packet Tracer course, I moved on to a new challenge: the Exploring IoT with Cisco Packet Tracer course.
This course is structured into two modules:
Module 1: Creating Your Own Smart Home Network
In this module, you’ll set up a home network with smart devices that gather and share data within your environment. To get started, you’ll need a home gateway (or registration server) to manage device connections. You can interact with devices directly or remotely using a PC, tablet, or smartphone. Acting as the central hub, the Home Gateway enables auto-discovery of devices on your network, allowing seamless local IoT connections. Some key features of the gateway include:
- Centralized device management
- Auto-discovery of network devices
- Support for remote and local connections
Module 2: Environmental Controls and IoT in Packet Tracer
Packet Tracer also offers simulated environments, such as cities, buildings, and wiring closets, each with unique environmental settings that follow a 24-hour cycle. Without configured devices, these environments reset daily. Environmental control involves transference values, which determine how containers adjust to changes in their parent environments.
The course also includes a section on coding IoT devices, where you adjust an IoT device’s settings through basic programming. This was an interesting exercise, though it had limited practical use, as it involved moving code from a motion detector to a camera to simulate the camera as a motion detector. While not realistic for actual IoT applications, this exercise offers a hands-on introduction.
I did not find the course great overall, but the course content is worth exploring as questions on these concepts do appear in the final exam for Introduction to Packet Tracer