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Multi-vendor troubleshooting practice labs

12 guided labs where Cisco, Juniper, Arista, Aruba, MikroTik and FortiGate share one network, and the faults live in the gaps between them: MTU, timers, capabilities and the defaults each vendor picks. OSPF, BGP, VRRP, LACP, spanning tree, IPsec, NAT, DHCP relay and IPv6 across vendors, then two sets of tickets and a ten-fault capstone.

Start this courseTry it free for 30 minutes

Standard for a month, £75.00, runs every lab here, with nothing extra to pay for the guided labs. 6 of the 12 labs also run in the free demo.

Guided labs
12
Follows
Troubleshooting topics of Cisco ENARSI 300-410 and ENCOR 350-401, Juniper JNCIS-ENT and CompTIA Network+
Runs every lab
Standard
Devices
Alpine Linux, IOSv, RouterOS, vEOS, vSRX NextGen template, IOSvL2, FortiGate and AOS-CX virtual switch

Who these labs are for

For working network engineers who look after a mixed network or have just inherited one after a merger, and anyone preparing for the troubleshooting parts of ENARSI, ENCOR, JNCIS-ENT or Network+. You should be comfortable on at least one vendor’s CLI; each lab gives you the commands you need on the others.

Every lab starts broken. Each planted fault is checked at the start and again after the fix, on the real images, and the panes show what each vendor actually printed.

The 12 labs

Every lab in the folder, as the workspace lists them, with what each runs and the smallest plan that fits. Read on 2 November 2026.

Multi-vendor troubleshooting course 12 labs

Shared folderMulti-vendor interoperability and troubleshooting guided labs

One protocol per lab across the vendors, then two ticket sets and a ten-fault capstone.

  1. 01OSPF between IOS Junos EOS and RouterOS

    Four vendors share one OSPF ring, and each link has a different problem: an MTU mismatch, a network-type mismatch, different timers and a mismatched authentication key ID. Read each vendor's symptoms, fix every link and normalise the costs that each vendor picks for itself.

    1× Alpine Linux, 1× IOSv, 1× RouterOS, 1× vEOS, 1× vSRX NextGen template

    6 vCPU, 7,424 MBFits LiteRuns in the free demo

  2. 02BGP between vendors with differing defaults

    Larkfield's four sites run eBGP in a ring, and every session hides a default that one vendor has and the others don't: address families that vanish when you configure one, routes that are never exported, communities that are stripped, and a policy chain that silently rejects the rest.

    1× Alpine Linux, 1× IOSv, 1× RouterOS, 1× vEOS, 1× vSRX NextGen template

    6 vCPU, 7,424 MBFits LiteRuns in the free demo

  3. 03VRRP across four vendors

    Four routers from four vendors share one office LAN and one virtual gateway, and all of them think they're the master. Match VRRP version, timers and authentication until exactly one router wins, then prove that the gateway really carries traffic.

    1× Alpine Linux, 1× IOSv, 1× RouterOS, 1× vEOS, 1× vSRX NextGen template

    6 vCPU, 7,424 MBFits LiteRuns in the free demo

  4. 04LACP between IOSvL2 EOS AOS-CX and RouterOS bonding

    A Cisco distribution switch has three two-link bundles: to Arista, to Aruba and to a MikroTik router. None of them forms, and each fails for a reason that belongs to the vendor at the far end. Read LACP from both sides, fix each bundle and then the trunk it carries.

    2× Alpine Linux, 1× AOS-CX virtual switch, 1× IOSvL2, 1× RouterOS, 1× vEOS

    7 vCPU, 7,168 MBFits Standard

  5. 05Spanning-tree interoperability with PVST MST and RSTP

    Larkfield's campus is half way through a move to one MST region: one Cisco switch still runs Rapid PVST+, Arista and Aruba have typed their region differently, and the MikroTik only speaks RSTP. Find the boundaries, join the region, and prove the same digest on three vendors.

    2× Alpine Linux, 2× IOSvL2, 1× AOS-CX virtual switch, 1× RouterOS, 1× vEOS

    8 vCPU, 7,936 MBFits Standard

  6. 06IPsec quick fixes across vendors

    Larkfield's head office has three branch tunnels, on Juniper, FortiGate and MikroTik, and none of them passes traffic. Work through the faults engineers meet most often between vendors: selectors, host-inbound traffic, a tunnel with no policy, default proposals, and NAT getting there before IPsec does.

    4× Alpine Linux, 2× IOSv, 1× FortiGate, 1× RouterOS, 1× vSRX NextGen template

    10 vCPU, 9,472 MBFits Standard

  7. 07NAT and asymmetric routing in a mixed edge

    A depot adds a second internet line on a MikroTik beside its FortiGate, and three tickets follow: a published server that answers on one public address only, a partner site that can be pinged but not loaded, and an office whose traffic dies at the firewall. Trace each flow both ways and repair the return path.

    3× Alpine Linux, 1× FortiGate, 1× IOSv, 1× RouterOS

    6 vCPU, 4,352 MBFits LiteRuns in the free demo

  8. 08DHCP relay and options across vendors

    One Cisco DHCP server now serves three sites through Arista, MikroTik and FortiGate relays, and each site fails differently: a reply that can't get home, a relay that stamps the wrong address, and a firewall that still answers for itself. Fix all three and check the options that clients receive.

    1× Alpine Linux, 1× FortiGate, 1× IOSv, 1× RouterOS, 1× vEOS

    5 vCPU, 5,376 MBFits LiteRuns in the free demo

  9. 09IPv6 interoperability with RA flags DHCPv6 and OSPFv3

    Larkfield turns on IPv6 and two sites stay dark. OSPFv3 needs matching instance IDs and a firewall that lets it in, one LAN's router advertisements tell hosts to use a DHCPv6 service that can't be reached, and another advertises no prefix at all. Fix each one and read the flags from the host's side.

    1× Alpine Linux, 1× IOSv, 1× RouterOS, 1× vEOS, 1× vSRX NextGen template

    6 vCPU, 7,424 MBFits LiteRuns in the free demo

  10. 10Ticket set A with campus Layer 2 and Layer 3 faults

    Three support tickets land on a campus built from Cisco, Arista and Aruba switches. Six faults sit behind them, from a Cisco trunk that relied on a protocol its neighbour doesn't speak to a DHCP scope that hands out the wrong gateway. Work through them by layer, and write up each ticket.

    2× Alpine Linux, 1× AOS-CX virtual switch, 1× IOSv, 1× IOSvL2, 1× vEOS

    7 vCPU, 7,424 MBFits Standard

  11. 11Ticket set B with WAN BGP NAT and VPN faults

    Four tickets arrive from Larkfield's sites, and six faults sit behind them across Cisco, Juniper, MikroTik and FortiGate: a firewall that blocks its own BGP, an iBGP next hop nobody can reach, NAT that covers one subnet too few, a tunnel that passes traffic one way, a return route and a published server.

    5× Alpine Linux, 2× IOSv, 1× FortiGate, 1× RouterOS, 1× vSRX NextGen template

    11 vCPU, 9,984 MBFits Standard

  12. 12Capstone with a ten-fault multi-vendor network

    The merged Larkfield network has to pass acceptance on Monday. Six vendors stand between a PC and the internet, and ten faults are planted among them, from a bundle at the access layer to NAT at the edge. Find them all, and write up the method for each one.

    3× Alpine Linux, 1× AOS-CX virtual switch, 1× FortiGate, 1× IOSv, 1× IOSvL2, 1× RouterOS, 1× vEOS, 1× vSRX NextGen template

    12 vCPU, 14,336 MBFits Standard

Devices and images

The exact Add Node images the labs use, and the vCPU and RAM their nodes are set to. Your plan counts what each running node is set to.

Devices and images in the Multi-vendor troubleshooting practice labs, as read on 2 November 2026
DeviceImage in Add NodeSet toLabsNodes
Alpine Linuxclbalpinebase-alpine-base-3-20-31 vCPU, 512 MB1226
Cisco IOSvvios-adventerprisek9-m.spa.159-3.m91 vCPU, 512 MB1012
MikroTik RouterOSmikrotik-7.14.21 vCPU, 256 MB1111
Arista vEOSveos-4.33.1.1F1 vCPU, 2,048 MB99
Juniper vSRX NextGen templatevsrxng-23.4R2-S3.92 vCPU, 4,096 MB77
Cisco IOSvL2viosl2-adventerprisek9-m.ssa.high_iron_202009291 vCPU, 768 MB45
Fortinet FortiGatefortinet-FGT-v7.0.17.M-build06821 vCPU, 2,048 MB55
Aruba AOS-CX virtual switcharubacx-10.142 vCPU, 3,072 MB44

Browse every image in the Add Node list

How to open the labs

  1. Sign in to your workspace at lab.cloudlabbox.com.

  2. In File Manager, open Shared, then the folder Multi-vendor interoperability and troubleshooting guided labs.

  3. Open a lab and start its nodes, then open Lab Tasks for the steps.

The labs are read-only. You can start the nodes and configure the devices, but changes to the topology can’t be saved. To change a lab, rebuild it in your own folder.

The Shared folder in the EVE-NG File Manager, recorded on 2 November 2026 with a test account.
The EVE-NG File Manager open on the read-only Shared folder: one folder per guided course, including Arista EOS, BGP in depth, CCIE Enterprise Infrastructure, CCNA, CCNP ENARSI and ENCOR, Check Point, Cisco ASA, Cisco Nexus NX-OS, CompTIA Network Plus and FortiGate
A guided CCNA lab with its Lab Tasks pane, recorded on 1 November 2026 with a test account.
A guided CCNA lab open in EVE-NG with its nodes running: four routers and two PCs on the canvas, and the Lab Tasks pane beside them with the scenario, the addressing plan and the first task

Questions about the Multi-vendor troubleshooting labs

Are these Multi-vendor troubleshooting labs free?

They’re included with every lab plan, with nothing extra to pay, rather than free. Plans start at £3 a day or £0.50 an hour. To try one first, the free demo gives you 30 minutes with 6 vCPU and 8 GB, enough to run 6 of these labs.

Which plan do I need for these labs?

Standard, with 12 vCPU and 16 GB, runs every lab here. Lite runs 6 of the 12. EVE-NG admits a node by the vCPU and RAM configured on it, so a lab needs the total its running nodes are set to. The biggest here, “Capstone with a ten-fault multi-vendor network”, needs 12 vCPU and 14,336 MB. Each lab’s Lab Tasks pane names the plan it needs.

Can I change these labs?

You can start the nodes and configure the devices, but the labs are read-only: changes to the topology can’t be saved. To change one, rebuild it in your own folder.

Are these labs from the vendors or exam bodies?

No. CloudLabBox wrote them to follow the topics of Cisco’s ENARSI 300-410 and ENCOR 350-401, Juniper’s JNCIS-ENT (JN0-352) and CompTIA’s Network+ (N10-009), where they cover troubleshooting. They aren’t training material from the vendors or exam bodies, and CloudLabBox is independent of Arista Networks, Cisco, CompTIA, Fortinet, HPE, Juniper Networks and MikroTik.

Do I need vendor licences for these labs?

No. The FortiGates run on their evaluation licence, the vSRX nodes use the image’s built-in 60-day trial, and the other images need none for these labs. CloudLabBox doesn’t provide vendor licences or subscriptions.

Which plan do I need?

Six of the 12 labs fit Lite. Labs 04, 05, 06, 10, 11 and 12 need Standard, because they run more or larger devices at once.

How long do the devices take to start?

A vSRX took about 5 to 14 minutes to boot in our tests, depending on load. Each lab’s pane says what to wait for, and the Alpine hosts need a short paste, which Task 0 gives you.

Try a lab before you choose

The free demo is a real workspace for 30 minutes, with 6 vCPU and 8 GB: enough to run 6 of these labs. No card and no email.

Try it free for 30 minutesStart this course

Plans from £3 a day or £0.50 an hour, each with every guided lab.

More practice labs

CloudLabBox is independent of Arista Networks, Cisco, CompTIA, Fortinet, HPE, Juniper Networks and MikroTik. The labs follow exam topics and aren’t vendor training material; vendor names identify the exams and the images in the workspace.