Networking Certifications

Foundation networking certifications covering routing, switching, and network fundamentals.

Certification Status

Certification Exam Code Level Status Expires

CCNP Enterprise

350-401 ENCOR + 300-410 ENARSI

Professional

EARNED

10-Nov-2027

CCNA

200-301

Associate

EARNED

28-Feb-2029

Network+

N10-005 (originally)

Foundational

EARNED 2011-02-28

Nov 2029 (CE)

Cisco Enterprise Specialists (Auto-Earned)

Extended to 2029 via AIBIZ CEUs.

Specialist Source Exam Active Since Expires

Enterprise Core

350-401 ENCOR

2013-11-16

28-Feb-2029

Enterprise Advanced Infrastructure

300-410 ENARSI

2013-11-16

28-Feb-2029

Enterprise Design

CCDP (retired)

2018-06-20

28-Feb-2029

CCNP Enterprise

Exams

Exam Topics Duration Questions

350-401 ENCOR

Architecture, Virtualization, Infrastructure, Assurance, Security, Automation

120 min

90-110

300-410 ENARSI

L3 Technologies, VPN, Infrastructure Security, Services

90 min

55-65

Key Topics

  • Dual-stack (IPv4/IPv6) architecture

  • SD-Access, SD-WAN

  • OSPF, EIGRP, BGP

  • MPLS, VRF, GRE, IPsec

  • DNA Center, ISE integration

  • Automation with Python, Ansible, RESTCONF/NETCONF

Kernel Relevance

Your CCNP Enterprise knowledge maps directly to kernel networking:

CCNP Topic Kernel Location

Routing protocols

net/ipv4/route.c, net/ipv6/route.c

L3 forwarding

net/core/dev.c, FIB

VRF/namespaces

net/core/net_namespace.c

IPsec/VPN

net/xfrm/, net/ipv4/esp4.c

QoS/Traffic shaping

net/sched/

Study Resources

  • Official Cert Guide (OCG) - Wendell Odom

  • INE/CBT Nuggets video courses

  • Home enterprise: C9300, 3560CX, pfSense for lab practice

CCNA

Exam: 200-301

Duration

120 minutes

Questions

100-120

Passing

825/1000

Cost

$330

Topics

  • Network fundamentals (20%)

  • Network access (20%)

  • IP connectivity (25%)

  • IP services (10%)

  • Security fundamentals (15%)

  • Automation and programmability (10%)

Kernel Relevance

| CCNA Topic | Kernel Location | |------------|-----------------| | Ethernet/switching | net/ethernet/, net/bridge/ | | IP routing | net/ipv4/fib_*.c | | DHCP/DNS | Userspace, but kernel handles raw sockets | | ACLs | net/netfilter/, nftables |

Network+

Exam: N10-008

Duration

90 minutes

Questions

90

Passing

720/900

Cost

$358

Renewal

3 years (CE credits)

Topics

  • Networking concepts (23%)

  • Infrastructure (18%)

  • Network operations (17%)

  • Network security (20%)

  • Troubleshooting (22%)

Value

Vendor-neutral foundation. Validates OSI model, subnetting, and troubleshooting fundamentals that apply to kernel networking work.