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Virtual Labs

How to access your labs

Kernessa Woodbury avatar
Written by Kernessa Woodbury
Updated over a week ago

Virtual Labs Overview:

Virtual labs are virtual machines designed to replicate an environment where students can access live IT systems in real time. Virtual labs provide students with hands-on, practical learning in safe environments without the need for extra equipment. These labs help reinforce technical concepts presented in class and allow students the opportunity to practice skills that will be required on the job.

Available Lab Options:

Most of the classes offered through ACI Learning have a virtual lab component as part of the supplemental learning resources. Below is a breakdown of our current available lab options, broken down by class offering:

Ascend Labs:

ACI Learning utilizes Ascend Labs for students enrolled in virtual offerings of CompTIA A+ Core 1. These labs are designed to help students excel in their careers and prepare for their certification exams.

These labs run on real hardware that enable students to develop the hands-on hardware and operating system skills required to work in the IT industry. Within the sandbox environment, students can make mistakes and see how their actions affect a real system.

Note: students enrolled in live offerings of CompTIA A+ Core 1 will participate in onsite computer builds and will not be enrolled into Ascend Labs.

Practice Labs:

ACI Learning utilizes Practice Labs for students enrolled in the following courses:

  • CompTIA A+ Core 2

  • CompTIA Network+

  • CompTIA Security+

  • EC-Council CND

  • EC-Council CEH

  • Cisco CCNA

Practice Labs, a part of ACI Learning, contain a comprehensive content library complete with exercises and tasks that contribute to exam prep. Practice Labs allow students to gain mastery through real-world scenarios, emulating those likely to be encountered in the workplace. These labs also embed existing knowledge and provide an outlet for students to prove their IT competence.

Technical Requirements:

For the best lab experience, it is recommended that all students ensure that they meet appropriate system technical requirements for the various lab platforms supported through ACI Learning. Below is a breakdown of the noted technical requirements based on our current available lab options:

Ascend Labs:

The minimum and recommended requirements for Ascend Labs are:

  • Screen Dimensions:

    • 1920px x 1080px or higher (full HD or higher) or

    • 1280px x 1024px

  • Processor speed:

    • 2Ghz / multi-core or

    • 1.5Ghz

  • Broadband / Internet Access Requirements:

    • 5Mb download, 1Mb upload or

    • 2Mb download, 256kpbs upload

  • Operating System:

    • Microsoft Windows XP with SP2/Vista/7/8/8.1/10

    • Microsoft Windows Server 2003/2008/2013

    • Linux Red Hat, Fedora, SUSE, Ubuntu

    • Apple Mac OS X

  • Networking

    • Internet connection minimum of 512Kbs

    • HTTPS Access (Port 443)

    • HTTP Access (Port 80)

  • Browser:

    • Microsoft Edge 13 or later

    • Microsoft Internet Explorer 10 or later

    • Chrome 29 or later

    • Firefox 45 or later

    • Apple Safari 9.1 or later

Practice Labs:

The minimum and recommended requirements for Practice Labs are:

  • Screen Dimensions:

    • 1920px x 1080px or higher (full HD or higher) or

    • 1280px x 1024px

  • Processor Speed:

    • 2Ghz / multi-core or

    • 1.5Ghz

  • Broadband / Internet Access Requirements:

    • 5Mb download, 1Mb upload or

    • 2Mb download, 256kpbs upload

  • Operating System:

    • Note: Please ensure that the native scaling of your operating system is set to 100% zoom.

    • Microsoft Windows 8.1/10/11

    • Linux Red Hat, Fedora, SUSE, Ubuntu

    • Apple Mac OS X 10.8+

  • Networking:

    • HTTPS Access (Port 443)

  • Browser:

    • Microsoft Edge 13 or later

    • Chrome 29 or later

    • Firefox 52 or later

    • Apple Safari 9.1 or later

Frequently Asked Questions:

Q: I do not see my lab tile(s). What should I do?

A: In instances where you do not see a tile for your lab(s), there could be a few reasons for this:

  • If attending on campus, students do not receive access to virtual labs for CompTIA A+ Core 1. The reason for this is that students on campus participate in a live computer build, which takes the place of the lab. This is the only virtual lab that will not be provisioned for your coursework; students should receive access to all other lab titles associated with their program.

  • If attending virtually, students should receive access to all lab tiles associated with their program.

If you do not see a lab tile for a course for which you are registered, this is an error. Please contact Support through the chat bubble to receive access to this material.

Q: How do I access my virtual labs?

A: Virtual labs are issued their own tile within the My Courses section of the Learning Portal. Please note that you will not be able to access your virtual labs through your class tile. You must navigate to the respective lab tile. Below is a screenshot of how these tiles may appear in your Learning Portal dashboard:

To launch the lab, select the respective tile and navigate to the content tab to proceed with lab modules.

Q: My lab environment is experiencing issues (latency, failure to load, etc.). What should I do?

A: As an initial troubleshooting step, we recommend that all students utilize Google Chrome. The browser type greatly impacts viewability and lab performance. Please also refer to the recommended and minimum technical requirements referenced in this article.

If you still experience issues after these troubleshooting steps have been taken, please contact Support through the chat bubble. Please describe the problem in detail, list what steps have been taken, and if possible, include a screenshot of the error.

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