CCNA Automation exam guide: 200-901 topics and preparation
Understand the 200-901 exam, the DevNet Associate rename, practice options, and the coverage limits of RouteSwitchU exam prep.
Cisco® CCNA® Automation (200-901, formerly DevNet Associate) is an associate certification focused on software and APIs applied to networks. Cisco lists a 120-minute exam and a US$300 exam fee. This guide uses the published v1.1 topic list, checked September 28, 2026. Confirm the current details before you book. Cisco exam information; exam topics.
Start with the exam number and version
The certification name changed in February 2026. You will still find books, videos, and lab instructions under DevNet Associate or DEVASC. Use the exam number and topic version to compare those resources with your study plan; the name on the cover does not establish whether the material is current. Cisco’s announcement.
The separate CCNA certification uses exam 200-301. Confirm the exam number when comparing resources with a similar title.
How the exam divides the material
The percentages below come from Cisco’s v1.1 topic list. The descriptions are summaries, not a reproduction of the individual objectives.
| Area | Weight | Study focus |
|---|---|---|
| Software design and development | 15% | Code organization, formats, development methods, and Git |
| API use | 20% | Requests, responses, authentication, and troubleshooting |
| Platform programmability | 15% | Platform capabilities, SDKs, and scripted tasks |
| Deployment and application security | 15% | Packaging, pipelines, tests, and application protection |
| Infrastructure automation | 20% | Management approaches, models, and workflow interpretation |
| Networking foundations | 15% | Network behavior and application connectivity |
Source: Cisco’s published topic list.
Read the action in each objective before choosing an exercise. When a topic asks you to interpret output, explain unfamiliar output. When it asks you to build something, start with an incomplete request or function and finish it. Recognizing an example after a video is useful preparation, but it does not show that you can complete the task yourself.
Build a study plan around work you can check
Start with a short diagnostic. Read a Python function that processes a list of device records. Explain its result, change one condition, and predict the new output. Then read an API response and identify which part tells you whether the request succeeded. If the Python syntax is unfamiliar, spend time on functions, dictionaries, lists, and exceptions before adding API behavior.
Use a simple record for each study session: the task, what went wrong, what you changed, and the result when you tried it again. Keep conceptual questions separate from coding mistakes. Confusing a platform’s purpose needs a different kind of practice from returning the wrong field from a dictionary.
Use the free CCNA Automation Knowledge Matrix to compare 61 parent objectives with course lessons, record your confidence, and export a study plan. Filter for topics that need practice and check the course coverage notes separately. Your ratings are self-assessment, not an exam-readiness score. Export the matrix before leaving the page if you want to reload your ratings later.
Choose practice for the task
Cisco publishes developer learning resources and sandbox environments. Review the requirements of the particular exercise you select. A local coding exercise, a guided browser exercise, and a live platform environment give you different kinds of practice.
For repeated request construction and response handling, fixed example data lets you work on the same failure until you understand it. A live environment adds connection setup, platform state, and permissions. Our practice-options article explains how to use both.
What RouteSwitchU covers and what still needs additional study
200-901 Automation Exam Prep contains lessons, graded browser exercises, three capstones, and five drill decks. The required exercises use fixed example data. Basic Python is a prerequisite; installing Python or reserving a Cisco environment is not required for the course work.
The course has known gaps. These include merge-conflict resolution, a Webex membership task, host-service playbooks, an ACI workflow example, stored-data encryption, Bash navigation, and NAT/VPN fault diagnosis. Version-control advantages have no dedicated teaching-page mapping, and network-service assessment has limited depth. The matrix also identifies limits in SDK and local Docker practice. Use the CCNA Automation Knowledge Matrix to identify the additional study you need. It distinguishes a lesson reference from a claim that an entire objective has been taught and assessed.
Exam administration and renewal
Cisco’s exam page lists English and Japanese and links to scheduling. The fee is for the exam, separate from any preparation course. Check the booking flow for your available delivery options and final payment details. Cisco exam information.
Cisco lists a three-year certification period. Renewal depends on completing qualifying requirements while the certification is active; use the current policy to choose an eligible exam or continuing-education route. Taking an independent preparation course does not by itself renew the certification. Cisco recertification policy.
Try the free graded exercise on the 200-901 Automation Exam Prep page to see how the course asks you to diagnose and correct a failed call.
RouteSwitchU is an independent training publisher and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Cisco Systems, Inc. Cisco and CCNA are trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc.