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We be taught from an early age that change is the one fixed in life. Typically we view change as one thing to be apprehensive about, one thing we should shift and modify for, and that the unknown might convey us…properly, something. On the flip aspect, some change is sweet, even wanted and refreshing (as anybody who places a brand new coat of paint on a home will attest). I assume you can say that even your views on change can change. Particularly when you’ve somebody so as to add context that explains how a specific change advantages you.
It’s my hope that this weblog collection will enable you just do that, as we face main adjustments centered on a subject close to and pricey to my coronary heart: the up to date Cisco Automation Certifications and their related examination subjects.
In case you missed the announcement in Might 2025, we’re renaming Cisco DevNet Certifications to Cisco Automation Certifications. On February 3, 2026, every certification degree (Affiliate, Skilled, and Skilled) will transition to the CCNA/CCNP/CCIE taxonomy that’s so acquainted to our studying group, companions, and employers. Learn the announcement.
As of February 3, 2026, the Cisco Licensed DevNet Affiliate and the Cisco Licensed DevNet Skilled will turn into often known as the CCNA Automation and CCIE Automation certifications, respectively. Identical check, new names. It’s that simple.
Nevertheless, after a lot thought and consideration, it was determined that the Cisco Licensed DevNet Skilled certification wanted greater than a reputation change. It wanted to align with right now’s job market.
CCNP Automation: Reimagining the DevNet Skilled Certification
We wanted to align the CCNP Automation certification to check the abilities and necessities being seen available in the market right now from our clients who’re using community automation engineers. A lot work was put into job position and activity evaluation, in addition to figuring out the {qualifications} of a professional candidate.
In spite of everything that work was accomplished, it was time to lock a bunch of material consultants from numerous backgrounds and focus areas in a room to work out the examination subjects listing, the three of which have been launched on the finish of July.
A brand new strategy to testing
All Cisco certification exams endure an replace and alter course of annually. We modify solely as much as 10% of the examination subjects, and generally not even that a lot. However within the case of the CCNP Automation, we simply couldn’t make that quantity match with how the exams wanted to be reshaped.
When first launched, the Skilled-level DevNet exams have been targeted very a lot on remodeling community engineers into people who have been comfy with writing purposes for community automation. These “community automation builders” wanted to be acquainted not solely with Cisco APIs and their capabilities but in addition with the software program improvement lifecycle, utility deployment, and platforms, and the way to verify these purposes have been safe, accessible, resilient, and scalable.
What automation abilities do right now’s engineers want?
These abilities are nice to have in your base of data, however the market wanted one thing completely different. Engineers who’re comfy with automation frameworks and instruments and may:
- Create digital twins for pre- and post-change validations
- Leverage programmability ideas for operations and monitoring
- Snug navigating the brand new world of AI
We wanted to check a skillset that wasn’t “utility developer who understands a little bit of networking,” however “community engineer with expertise in network-specific automation frameworks to implement an end-to-end resolution.”
Lofty targets, however I really feel that our new examination subjects hit all these areas (I could also be just a bit biased, since I used to be a type of people locked in that room for hours).
Cisco Automation Certification examination subjects are actually out there!
Obtain examination subjects
So, what did we alter within the AUTOCOR?
In-Scope Platforms
On the prime of the Examination Subjects PDFparticular in-scope platforms are known as out.
- This reduces repetition within the examination subjects.
- Focuses on the platforms it is best to research for.
- Offers boundaries for the scope, so that you don’t want to check each single Cisco product.
Maintain these platforms in thoughts as you progress by every of the domains.
Area Modifications
- The examination moved from 5 domains of research to 4.
- This will increase the examination weight on the primary two domains: Community Automation and Infrastructure as Code.
- These sections shall be acquainted to community automation professionals, however with a modified focus.
- Slightly than testing on single-platform APIs, every activity within the Community Automation part is concentrated on a resolution that entails an automation instrument, similar to Ansible, Terraform, or Python.
In some situations, not all platforms could be configured for every activity (like utilizing NETCONF for ACI). This wasn’t an oversight; as a community automation skilled, you can be checked out as somebody to assist information an enterprise in direction of a correct resolution and toolset, so you will need to know and perceive limitations and capabilities in addition to easy methods to accomplish a objective utilizing automation.
Infrastructure as Code part
Whereas instruments like Git are nonetheless vital, once more, the main focus has shifted in direction of utilizing a CI/CD pipeline and GitOps to deploy community automation options, both towards actual {hardware} or leveraging a digital twin simulation instrument.
Professionals want to grasp:
- CI/CD processes.
- Cisco Modeling Labs.
- Community sources of reality (for pulling knowledge into pipelines for variables, configuration, and so forth.).
The main target is on the answer relatively than particular person parts.
Operations part
The emphasis is on easy methods to hold an automation resolution useful previous preliminary testing and deployment. To do that, key areas embrace:
- Safety and secret administration (passwords, API keys).
- Making certain deployed automation options stay useful by network-centric testing.
- Utilizing model-driven telemetry on numerous platforms to enhance community observability.
Take note, although, that the safety/secret administration (like passwords and API keys), certificates administration, and logging solely pertain to the community units or the automation resolution being examined on, not on all the utility stack (which is one thing an utility developer would care about).
We’re trimming the subjects to residence in on that community automation engineer persona and testing it by actionable abilities.
The change all of us knew was coming: AI
No trendy engineer will be capable to perform with out some understanding of AI, its impression on our trade, and easy methods to safely and successfully use its capabilities. Community automation engineers gained’t be any exception to this, both. Nevertheless, we needed the examination subjects to be crafted in such a manner that introduced tangible, helpful abilities and AI purposes to the check, and I really feel like we hit the mark with these.
We needed the candidates to grasp the implications behind utilizing AI for his or her roles, together with:
- Ways in which AI might trigger hurt to a company, together with IP theft, knowledge sovereignty, and simply “code that doesn’t work.”
- Likewise, community automation engineers ought to be capable to work out when options will work and when they’re simply plain made up.
- This reinforces the usage of AI as a instrument and assistant, relatively than outsourcing every part to a mannequin; if one thing breaks at 3 a.m., “AI made it” gained’t be an appropriate excuse to your leaders.
- The sensible purposes of AI within the networks.
- With the fast rise of mannequin context protocol (MCP) servers getting used as conduits and extensions to LLMs for community automation, it was a no brainer to incorporate a Pythonic framework of MCP server improvement as a activity merchandise.
We additionally needed to make it possible for our engineers might assemble an AI agent that may enable them to naturally speak to an LLM and carry out some type of community automation, probably even utilizing a number of MCP servers.
Whereas we perceive the world of AI is quickly evolving, we felt that the abilities examined by these examination subjects shall be wanted and utilized by our clients and learners, and can turn into a part of the baseline data that any community automation engineer ought to know.
Does this alteration my DEVCOR research?
With such a serious rewrite of an examination, the reply to this query will all the time be “sure”. Whereas we all know that this might doubtlessly interrupt your research, hopefully, the extra context and reasoning why we made this alteration will enable you really feel extra assured and cozy with making that change. Additionally, keep in mind that you’ve got till February 2, 2026, to take and cross the current DEVCOR examinationso in the event you really feel that you just’re shut, proceed shifting on to get that cross earlier than then.
Should you do have to vary your research, although, all isn’t misplaced. Lots of the ideas that exist inside DEVCOR, like API utilization, git instructions, use of Python, Ansible, and Terraform, and understanding Cisco platforms, will all turn out to be useful in AUTOCOR. Your research shall be accelerated with these ideas, so you possibly can deal with making use of these ideas in a whole automation resolution.
Upleveling your automation considering
You’ll additionally be capable to uplevel your automation considering and conversations, not simply understanding the howhowever the whywhich can profit you in your skilled profession. Lastly, whilst you don’t need to overlook every part you realized about utility improvement and the related lifecycle, you gained’t be required to recollect it on the brand new examination.
This can be a change, however this can be a change for the higher. I’ll even be placing out an analogous breakdown of the ENAUTO 2.0, in addition to the brand new DCNAUTO (I contributed to all three exams), so to really feel comfy with these adjustments as properly.
Lastly, I promise that I’ll change one thing in regards to the following elements of this collection: I promise to not use the phrase “change” almost as a lot as I did right here. 😉
As all the time, you’ll find me on LinkedIn or X (previously Twitter) in case you have any questions relating to this or another examination. Blissful finding out!
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