– NETWORK PRIMER · LEVEL 1 · STUDY LEARNING
Networking fundamentals for security integrators BETA
The foundations every security integrator and junior tech should have before touching a switch. Hosts, MAC addresses, the OSI model, IPv4 anatomy, subnetting, VLAN segmentation, DNS, and an end-to-end packet walkthrough. Vendor-neutral. Animated CLI throughout. Free.
What you will learn
This is the prerequisite course for everything else in the Study Learning suite. It assumes nothing. By the end you can read a network diagram, decode an IP address, explain what a VLAN is and why we use them, and follow a packet from a hostname someone typed in a browser through DNS, ARP, and the switch to the destination.
Every command in the animated CLI segments is real. The example IP and VLAN schemes shown in the lessons are illustrative — adapt them to whatever scheme the customer already runs. The principle, not the specific numbers, is what matters.
Course outline
What Is a Network
Hosts and MACs, frames, IPv4 anatomy, switches vs routers, the difference between L2 and L3 in practice.
The OSI Model
All seven layers in plain language, TCP vs UDP, common ports, where each layer earns its keep. Includes a checkpoint.
Subnetting Without the Pain
Binary the only way it actually clicks, CIDR notation, VLSM, and an example site IP scheme you can adapt to your own deployments.
VLANs and Segmentation
Physical vs logical separation, access vs trunk ports, and an example VLAN layout for security networks. Use whatever scheme your customer already runs. Includes a checkpoint.
Names, Not Numbers
MAC vs IP vs hostname, DNS anatomy, the full resolution path from typing a name to a packet on the wire.
Putting It Together
End-to-end packet flow, DHCP and ARP in motion, and an honest one-paragraph mention of IPv6.
Who this is for
- Junior techs who landed on a project where the network terminology is unfamiliar.
- New security integrators who need foundation networking before the vendor courses make sense.
- IT generalists coming from helpdesk or workstation work into networking-adjacent roles.
- Anyone who has heard "VLAN" used three different ways in three different meetings and wants the underlying thing.
What this is not
Not a switch configuration course. Not a hardening course. Vendor-specific syntax for Cisco, ALE, Aruba, and Juniper lives in the dedicated vendor courses. Hardening lives in the Network Hardening, Windows Hardening, and Security Integrator courses. This primer gives you the vocabulary and the mental model.
Course details
- Level, Level 1 (beginner)
- Length, ~75 minutes
- Lessons, 18 across 6 parts
- Knowledge checks, 8 total (2 per checkpoint, 4 in the final)
- Format, single-page interactive site, runs in any modern browser
- Cost, Free
- Author, Hans Study
- Status, BETA
Ready to start?
The course opens at lesson 01 and steps through all 18 lessons in order. Use the prev / next buttons or arrow keys to move between lessons. Score is tracked on the bottom bar and a completion certificate appears at the end.
Open the course →