Cisco Specialist Certifications: Cisco Unity Design Specialist

Building upon a strong foundational knowledge of Microsoft Exchange 2000 or 2003, the Cisco Unity Design Specialist can install, configure, operate, and maintain a Cisco Unity 4.0 system in both stand-alone voice mail and unified messaging environments, and possesses the knowledge and expertise necessary to create a variety of sustainable Cisco Unity design solutions tailored to specific customer requirements.

Cisco Unity Design Specialist Prerequisites

Valid CCDA certification or any CCIE Certification can act as a pre-requisite. 

Cisco Unity Design Specialist Exams :

642-072 CUDN

Cisco Unity Design Specialist Recertification

Complete one of the following recertification options every two years:

• Re-take and pass all exams for each Specialist certification indicated on the specific certification page. Please note: this includes ALL exams whether refreshed or not.
• Pass a current CCIE or CCDE written exam

Achieving or recertifying CCDE or any CCIE automatically extends your active Specialist certification(s) up to the point of expiration of the last certification achieved.

Cisco Specialist Certifications: Cisco Unified Presence Specialist

he Cisco Unified Presence Specialist certification was designed for those whose primary responsibility is to design, install and configure Cisco Unified Presence Release 6.0. They also possess a solid understanding of integration options with other Cisco Unified Communications products as well as third-party presence solutions, including Microsoft Live Communications Server, Microsoft Office Communications Server and IBM Lotus Sametime. The Cisco Unified Presence Specialist also has the ability to deploy and maintain Cisco Unified Presence Release 6.0. 

Cisco Unified Presence Specialist Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites for this certification 

Cisco Unified Presence Specialist Recommended Exam:

642-181 PRSDI

Cisco Unified Presence Specialist Recertification

Complete one of the following recertification options every two years:

• Re-take and pass all exams for each Specialist certification indicated on the specific certification page. Please note: this includes ALL exams whether refreshed or not.
• Pass a current CCIE or CCDE written exam

Achieving or recertifying CCDE or any CCIE automatically extends your active Specialist certification(s) up to the point of expiration of the last certification achieved.

Cisco Certified Technician: CCT Data Center Certification

The CCT Data Center certification focuses on the skills required for onsite support and maintenance of Cisco Unified Computing Systems and servers.  Technicians in this area must be able to identify Cisco Unified Computing System components and servers, accessories, cabling and interfaces; understand the Cisco UCS and NX-OS operating modes and identify commonly-found software; and be able to use the Cisco Graphical User Interface to connect and service product components.  Achieving CCT in Data Center requires achieving a CCT in Routing & Switching first.

CCT Data Center Prerequisites:
Candidates must achieve the CCT Routing & Switching certification before attaining CCT Data Center certification.

CCT Data Center Exams:

640-893 DCTECH 

CCT Data Center Recertification

CCT certifications are valid for three years. To recertify, pass ONE of the following exams before the certification expiration date:

• Pass the current CCT Data Center exam (DCTECH), or
• Pass the current ICND1 exam AND current ICND2 exam, or
• Pass the current CCNA Composite exam, or
• Pass the current CCDA exam, or
• Pass any current CCNA Concentration exam (Wireless, Security, Voice, or SP Ops), or
• Pass any current 642-XXX professional level exam, or
• Pass any current Cisco Specialist exam (excluding Sales Specialist exams or MeetingPlace Specialist exams or Implementing Cisco TelePresence Installations [ITI] exams), or
• Pass any current CCIE Written Exam, or
• Pass the current CCDE Written Exam, or current CCDE Practical Exam, or
• Pass the Cisco Certified Architect (CCAr) interview AND the CCAr board review to extend lower certifications

Cisco Certified Technician: CCT TelePresence Certification

Cisco CCT TelePresence certification focuses on the skills required for onsite support and maintenance of Cisco TelePresence Systems. Technicians in this area must be able to identify Cisco TelePresence models, accessories, cabling, and interfaces; understand the Cisco TelePresence operating modes and identify commonly found software; and be able to use the Cisco Command Line Interface (CLI) to connect and service products and make basic Cisco TelePresence system adjustments. Achieving CCT TelePresence certification requires a candidate to attain Cisco CCT Routing & Switching certification first.

CCT TelePresence Prerequisites

Candidates must achieve a CCT Routing & Switching certification prior to attaining a CCT TelePresence certification.

CCT TelePresence Exams

640-792 TPTECH

CCT TelePresence Recertification

CCT certifications are valid for three years. To recertify, pass ONE of the following exams before the certification expiration date:

• Pass the current CCT TelePresence exam (TPTECH), or
• Pass the current ICND1 exam AND current ICND2 exam, or
• Pass the current CCNA Composite exam, or
• Pass the current CCDA exam, or
• Pass any current CCNA Concentration exam (Wireless, Security, Voice, or SP Ops), or
• Pass any current 642-XXX professional level exam, or
• Pass any current Cisco Specialist exam (excluding Sales Specialist exams or MeetingPlace Specialist exams or Implementing Cisco TelePresence Installations [ITI] exams), or
• Pass any current CCIE Written Exam, or
• Pass the current CCDE Written  Exam, or current CCDE Practical Exam, or
• Pass the Cisco Certified Architect (CCAr) interview AND the CCAr board review to extend lower certifications

Cisco Certified Technician: CCT Routing & Switching Certification

Cisco CCT Routing & Switching certification focuses on the skills required for onsite support and maintenance of Cisco routers, switches, and operating environments. Technicians in this area must be able to identify Cisco router and switch models, accessories, cabling, and interfaces; understand the Cisco IOS Software operating modes and identify commonly found software; and be able to use the Cisco Command Line Interface (CLI) to connect and service products. Achieving CCT Routing & Switching certification is considered the best foundation for supporting other Cisco devices and systems.

CCT Routing & Switching Prerequisites
No prerequisites

CCT Routing & Switching Exams:

640-692 RSTECH 

CCT Routing & Switching Recertification:

CCT certifications are valid for three years. To recertify, pass ONE of the following exams before the certification expiration date:

•     Pass any current CCT exam (RSTECH, DCTECH or TPTECH), or
•     Pass the current ICND1 exam AND current ICND2 exam, or
•     Pass the current CCNA Composite exam, or
•     Pass the current CCDA exam, or
•     Pass any current CCNA Concentration exam (Wireless, Security, Voice, or SP Ops), or
•     Pass any current 642-XXX professional level exam, or
•     Pass any current Cisco Specialist exam (excluding Sales Specialist exams or MeetingPlace Specialist exams or Implementing Cisco TelePresence Installations [ITI] exams), or
•     Pass any current CCIE Written Exam, or
•     Pass the current CCDE Written  Exam, or current CCDE Practical Exam, or
•     Pass the Cisco Certified Architect (CCAr) interview AND the CCAr board review to extend lower certifications.

Cisco Certifications: CCIE Service Provider Operations

Expert Level Knowledge and Experience

Certifies expert-level knowledge and skills associated with the operation and maintenance of complex service provider IP NGN networks in both IOS and IOS-XR operating environments. 

Requirements for Certification

Strong technical skills are assumed at the expert level, and CCIE candidates are encouraged to use Cisco authorized training to fill any gaps, before attempting certification. CCNA and CCNP focus on developing a solid foundation and are strongly recommended as a path to CCIE, but are not mandatory prerequisites. You are expected to have an in-depth understanding of the topics in the exam topics and are strongly encouraged to have three to five years of job experience before attempting certification. You can review the exam preparation materials included on this page for more information.

Step One: CCIE Service Provider Operations Written Exam

You must pass the two-hour, written qualification exam covering concepts and equipment commands related to packet-based networking infrastructure, before you are eligible to schedule the lab exam.

350-060  CCIE SP Operations Written Exam v1.0

Associated Certifications: CCIE SP Operations
Duration: 120 minutes (90-110 questions)

Exam Description

The CCIE written exam is a two-hour qualification exam, taken at a Cisco authorized Pearson VUE testing center.

The exam uses a combination of question types used to assess the skills listed in the Exam Topics.  Exams are closed book and no reference materials are allowed.

Step Two: CCIE Service Provider Operations Practical Exam

The eight-hour practical exam tests your ability to configure actual equipment and get a service provider network running in a timed test situation. You must make an initial attempt of the CCIE lab exam within 18 months of passing the CCIE written exam. If you do not pass the lab exam within three years of passing the written exam, you must retake the written exam before being allowed to attempt the lab exam again.

CCIE SP Operations Practical Exam Overview

The CCIE SP Operations practical exam is an eight-hour performance-based exam that will assess the candidate’s skill in the operation and maintenance of service provider networks.  Troubleshooting is an important skill and candidates are expected to diagnose and resolve issues as part of the CCIE practical exam.  More detailed expectations are found in the documents listed below.

Practical Exam Environment

Cisco documentation is available on-line during the exam, however knowledge of the more common protocols and technologies is assumed. The documentation can only be navigated using the index, as the search function has been disabled. No outside reference materials are permitted in the lab room. You must report any suspected equipment issues to the proctor during the exam; adjustments cannot be made once the exam is over.

Practical Exam Grading

Each question on the Troubleshooting section of the Practical exam has specific criterion, and are graded by proctors who ensure all  the criterion are met and points are awarded accordingly. The proctors use automatic tools to gather information from the routers to perform some preliminary evaluations, but the final determination of a correct or incorrect configuration is done by a trained  proctor. Each Scenario-based question is self-scored based on predefined scoring rules.

Practical Exam Format

Scenario Section: The Practical Exam begins with a three-hour section of scenario-based questions on topics related to operations processes, network management, and relevant aspects of the ITIL® v3 framework covering service operations and transitions, and to a lesser extent service design and continual improvements.  Once candidates have completed the scenario section and moved on to the next section, they may not return to the scenario questions.

Troubleshooting Section: The Practical Exam continues with a five-hour troubleshooting section, in which candidates must diagnose and resolve a series of incidents for a preconfigured network featuring Cisco IOS and IOS-XR-based network devices.  Troubleshooting will be performed using the Command Line Interface, without the help of network management system tools.  The network must be up and running ,and the faults resolved, to receive credit.

Results

You can review your lab exam results online (login required), usually within 48 hours. Results are Pass/Fail and failing score reports indicate major topic areas where additional study and preparation may be useful.

Reevaluation of Practical Exam Results

Requesting a reevaluation of exam results is not possible for the SP Operations practical exam due to the type of exam system utilized.

Cisco Certifications: CCNP Service Provider Operations

The Cisco Certified Network Professional in Service Provider Operations (CCNP SP Operations) validates knowledge and skills required (of a Tier II or Tier III support engineer) to troubleshoot and maintain service provider IP NGN core (PE-PE and PE-CE) network infrastructures. With a CCNP SP Operations certification, a network professional demonstrates knowledge and skills required to isolate network performance problems, implement proactive fault measures using operations management processes, frameworks, and network management systems. The CCNP SP Operations curriculum includes maintaining carrier class routing protocol environments, MPLS VPN and TE deployments, and QoS mechanisms using Cisco IOS and IOS XR.

CCNP Service Provider Operations Prerequisites:
Valid CCNA Service Provider Operations, or any CCIE Certification, can act as a prerequisite. 

CCNP Service Provider Operations Exams:

• 642-770 OFCN
• 642-775 MSPRP
• 642-780 MSPVM
• 642-785 MSPQS

CCNP Service Provider Operations Recertification: 

Cisco professional level certifications (CCNP, CCNP Service Provider Operations, CCNP Wireless, CCDP, CCSP, CCNP Voice, and CCIP) are valid for three years. To recertify, pass ONE of the following exams before the certification expiration date:

• Pass any current 642-XXX professional level exam, or
• Pass any current CCIE Written Exam,
• Pass the current CCDE Written  Exam OR current CCDE Practical Exam, or
• Pass the Cisco Certified Architect (CCAr) interview AND the CCAr board review to extend lower certifications

Cisco Certifications: CCNA Service Provider Operations Certification

Cisco Certified Network Associate in Service Provider Operations (CCNA SP Operations) validates basic knowledge and skills (of a Tier I support engineer) in a prescriptive troubleshooting environment within carrier class IP NGN core network infrastructure. CCNA SP Operations curriculum includes incident (event), fault, configuration, change, and performance management procedures, along with NMS tools and protocols.

CCNA Service Provider Operations Prerequisites

Valid Cisco CCENT, CCNA, or any CCIE certification can act as a prerequisite. 

CCNA Service Provider Operations Exams

640-760 SSPO

CCNA Service Provider Operations Recertification

CCNA SP Operations certifications are valid for three years. To recertify, pass ONE of the following exams before the certification expiration date:

• Pass any current CCNA Concentration exam (wireless, or security, or voice, or SP Ops), or 
• Pass any current 642-XXX professional level exam, or
• Pass the current CCDA DESGN exam, or
• Pass any current Cisco Specialist exam (excluding Sales Specialist exams or MeetingPlace Specialist exams, Implementing Cisco TelePresence Installations (ITI) exams, Cisco Leading Virtual Classroom Instruction exams, or any 650 online exams), or
• Pass any current CCIE Written Exam, or
• Pass the current CCDE Written  Exam OR current CCDE Practical Exam, or
• Pass the Cisco Certified Architect (CCAr) interview AND the CCAr board review to extend lower certifications

Cisco Certifications: CCIE Service Provider

Expert Level Knowledge and Experience

Certifies expert-level knowledge and skill for building an extensible Service Provider infrastructure to deliver rich managed services.

Requirements for Certification

There are no formal prerequisites for CCIE certification. Other professional certifications or training courses are not required. Instead, candidates must first pass a written qualification exam and then the corresponding hands-on lab exam. You are expected to have an in-depth understanding of the topics in the exam blueprints and strongly encouraged to have three to five years of job experience before attempting certification. You can review the exam preparation materials included on this page for more information.

Step One: CCIE Service Provider Written Exam

You must pass the two-hour, written qualification exam covering concepts and equipment commands related to packet-based networking infrastructure, before you are eligible to schedule the lab exam. 

350-029 CCIE SP Exam

Associated Certifications: CCIE SP
Duration: 120 minutes (90-110 questions)

Exam Description

Candidates preparing for the CCIE SP Written exam should possess expert level knowledge as a Service Provider network engineer to implement, troubleshoot, and optimize Service Provider features and technologies including Packet over SONET, IP over DWDM, GE/10GE, BGP, IGP Routing, LDP, MPLS and MPLS TE, Multicast, HA, QoS, and Layer 2 and 3 VPNs.

Exam Format

The written exam is a two-hour, multiple choice exam with 90-110 questions. The exam is closed book and no outside reference materials are allowed.  Candidates will be required to answer each question before moving on to the next question. In other words, candidates will not be allowed to skip a question and come back to it at a later time. The overall exam score and the exam passing score will be reported on a scale from 300-1000.

Step Two: CCIE Service Provider Lab Exam

The eight-hour lab exam tests your ability to configure actual equipment and get a service provider network running in a timed test situation. You must make an initial attempt of the CCIE lab exam within 18 months of passing the CCIE written exam. If you do not pass the lab exam within three years of passing the written exam, you must retake the written exam before being allowed to attempt the lab exam again.

Lab Exam

The CCIE Service Provider lab exam is an 8 hour  hands-on exam which requires you to build an extensible Service Provider infrastructure capable of delivering rich managed services to given specifications. Knowledge of troubleshooting is an important skill and candidates are expected to diagnose and solve issues. Candidates preparing for the CCIE SP Lab exam must demonstrate skills required of an expert level network engineer to configure, implement, troubleshoot, and optimize SP features and technologies including Carrier Ethernet, Packet over SONET, LDP, AToM, MPLS TE, enhanced Multicast VPN, and high availability (FRR) using IOS and IOS-XR operating environments.

Lab Exam Environment

Cisco documentation is available on-line during the exam, however knowledge of the more common protocols and technologies is assumed. The documentation can only be navigated using the index, as the search function has been disabled. No outside reference materials are permitted in the lab room. You must report any suspected equipment issues to the proctor during the exam; adjustments cannot be made once the exam is over.

Lab Exam Grading

Each question on the lab has specific criterion. The labs are graded by proctors who ensure all the criterion are met and points are awarded accordingly. The proctors use automatic tools to gather information from the routers to perform some preliminary evaluations, but the final determination of a correct or incorrect configuration is done by a trained proctor.

Results

You can review your lab exam results online (login required), usually within 48 hours. Results are Pass/Fail and failing score reports indicate major topic areas where additional study and preparation may be useful.

Reevaluation of Lab Results

You may request a reevaluation of results for Routing and Switching, Security and Service Provider labs for up to 14 days following your exam date. Use the link next to your lab record called "Request for Reread". Due to the equipment used, rereads are not available for the Voice and Storage Networking exams. Each reread costs US$250 plus any applicable local taxes. Payment is made online via credit card and your card will be charged upon receipt of the request. You may not cancel the reread request once the process has been initiated and refunds are only given when the results change from Fail to Pass.

A reread consists of a second proctor loading your configurations onto a rack to recreate the test and rescore the entire exam. This process may take up to three weeks after receipt of payment. Only one reread per lab attempt is permitted. The result of the reread is an updated score report with success rates for each major section. Be aware that scores may decrease. Exams receive a Pass mark only when the total exam score exceeds 80%. Before requesting a reread, consider that, historically, only 0.3% of exams have been changed from Fail to Pass.

Cisco Certifications: Cisco CCIE Data Center

Expert Level Knowledge and Experience

CCIE Data Center certifies the expert-level skills required to plan, prepare, operate, monitor, and troubleshoot complex data center networks. Professionals who achieve CCIE Data Center certification have demonstrated their technical skills at the highest level.

Requirements for Certification

Strong technical skills are assumed at the expert level, and CCIE candidates are encouraged to use Cisco authorized training to fill any gaps, before attempting certification. CCNA and CCNP focus on developing a solid foundation and are strongly recommended as a path to CCIE, but are not mandatory prerequisites. You are expected to have an in-depth understanding of the topics in the exam topics and are strongly encouraged to have three to five years of job experience before attempting certification. You can review the exam preparation materials included on this page for more information.

Step One: CCIE Data Center Written Exam

You must pass the two-hour, written qualification exam covering concepts and equipment commands related to packet-based networking infrastructure, before you are eligible to schedule the lab exam.

350-080 CCIE Data Center Written Exam

Associated Certifications: CCIE Data Center
Duration: 120 minutes (90-110 questions)

Exam Description

The CCIE Data Center written exam validates an engineer's ability to design scalable, reliable, and intelligent Data Center Virtualization solutions.

Exam Format

• The written exam is a 2-hour, multiple-choice exam with 90-110 questions.
• The exam is closed book and no outside reference materials are allowed.
• Candidates will be required to answer each question before moving on to the next question. In other words, candidates will not be allowed to skip a question and come back to it at a later time.
• The overall exam score and the exam passing score will be reported on a scale from 300-1000.

Step Two: CCIE Data Center Lab Exam

The eight-hour lab exam tests your ability to configure actual equipment and get a service provider network running in a timed test situation. You must make an initial attempt of the CCIE lab exam within 18 months of passing the CCIE written exam. If you do not pass the lab exam within three years of passing the written exam, you must retake the written exam before being allowed to attempt the lab exam again.

Lab Exam Overview

Configuring a network to given specifications
The lab exam is  an eight-hour, hands-on exam which requires you to configure and troubleshoot a series of complex networks to given specifications. Knowledge of troubleshooting is an important skill and candidates are expected to diagnose and solve issues as part of the CCIE Data Center lab exam.

Lab Environment

The Cisco documentation CD is available in the lab room, but the exam assumes knowledge of the more common protocols and technologies. The documentation can only be navigated using the index; the search function has been disabled. No outside reference materials are permitted in the lab room. You must report any suspected equipment issues to the proctor during the exam; adjustments cannot be made once the exam is over.

Lab Exam Grading

Each question on the lab has specific criterion. The labs are graded by proctors who ensure all the criterion are met and points are awarded accordingly. The proctors use automatic tools to gather information from the routers to perform some preliminary evaluations, but the final determination of a correct or incorrect configuration is done by a trained proctor.

Results

You can review your lab exam results online (login required), usually within 48 hours. Results are Pass/Fail and failing score reports indicate major topic areas where additional study and preparation may be useful.