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Cisco CCNA 200-301 Exam Guide

Everything you need to know about the cisco-ccna certification exam, from preparation strategies to exam day tips.

Exam Information

120 minutes

Duration

100-120 questions

Questions

825/1000

Passing Score

$330 USD

Exam Cost

Recommended Study Plan

Week 1

Network Fundamentals

Network Fundamentals (20%)

14-16 hours

OSI and TCP/IP models, encapsulation
IPv4 addressing, CIDR, subnetting
IPv6 addressing and configuration
Common network devices and topologies

Recommended Resources:

Cisco CCNA OCG (Wendell Odom)

Packet Tracer Labs

Week 2

Network Access

Network Access (20%)

14-16 hours

VLANs: creation, access/trunk ports, 802.1Q
Spanning Tree Protocol (STP, RSTP, PVST+)
EtherChannel: LACP and PAgP
Wireless LAN fundamentals and LWAP/WLC

Recommended Resources:

Packet Tracer switching labs

Cisco documentation

Week 3

IP Connectivity

IP Connectivity (25%)

16-18 hours

Router operations, static routing, floating static
OSPF single-area and multi-area
Route selection: AD, metric, and LPM
First-hop redundancy (HSRP)

Recommended Resources:

OSPF labs in Packet Tracer

Cisco Networking Academy

Week 4

IP Services

IP Services (10%)

10-12 hours

DHCP: DORA, relay agent, snooping
NAT: static, dynamic, PAT/overload
NTP: stratum levels, client/server config
SNMP, syslog, and QoS (DSCP/CoS)

Recommended Resources:

NAT/DHCP Packet Tracer labs

Study notes

Week 5

Security Fundamentals

Security Fundamentals (15%)

12-14 hours

ACLs: standard and extended, wildcard masks
Network security: DHCP snooping, DAI, port security
AAA: RADIUS vs TACACS+, 802.1X
VPN fundamentals: site-to-site and remote access

Recommended Resources:

ACL labs

Security configuration guide

Week 6

Automation & Review

Automation and Programmability (10%)

14-16 hours

SDN: control/data/management planes
REST APIs, NETCONF, RESTCONF, YANG
Automation tools: Ansible, Puppet, Chef
Practice exams and weak-area review

Recommended Resources:

CertStud practice exams

Cisco DevNet learning

Exam Tips & Strategies

Time Management

120 minutes for 100-120 questions — about 60-72 seconds per question. Flag uncertain questions and return to them. Budget 3-5 minutes for simulation questions.

Focus on IP Connectivity

IP Connectivity is 25% of the exam — know OSPF thoroughly. Subnetting is tested heavily — practice until it's automatic. Know VLANs, trunking, and STP for Network Access.

Avoid Common Pitfalls

LPM (longest prefix match) wins over AD. OSPF cost = 100 Mbps / link bandwidth. NAT: ip nat inside on LAN, ip nat outside on WAN. STP root = lowest BID, not just lowest MAC.

Exam Day Tips

Bring two valid IDs to the Prometric testing center. Arrive 30 minutes early. No personal items at workstation. Score report appears immediately after completion.

Back to CCNA

Cisco CCNA 200-301 Exam Guide

Everything you need to know about the cisco-ccna certification exam, from preparation strategies to exam day tips.

Exam Information

120 minutes

Duration

100-120 questions

Questions

825/1000

Passing Score

$330 USD

Exam Cost

Recommended Study Plan

Week 1

Network Fundamentals

Network Fundamentals (20%)

14-16 hours

OSI and TCP/IP models, encapsulation
IPv4 addressing, CIDR, subnetting
IPv6 addressing and configuration
Common network devices and topologies

Recommended Resources:

Cisco CCNA OCG (Wendell Odom)

Packet Tracer Labs

Week 2

Network Access

Network Access (20%)

14-16 hours

VLANs: creation, access/trunk ports, 802.1Q
Spanning Tree Protocol (STP, RSTP, PVST+)
EtherChannel: LACP and PAgP
Wireless LAN fundamentals and LWAP/WLC

Recommended Resources:

Packet Tracer switching labs

Cisco documentation

Week 3

IP Connectivity

IP Connectivity (25%)

16-18 hours

Router operations, static routing, floating static
OSPF single-area and multi-area
Route selection: AD, metric, and LPM
First-hop redundancy (HSRP)

Recommended Resources:

OSPF labs in Packet Tracer

Cisco Networking Academy

Week 4

IP Services

IP Services (10%)

10-12 hours

DHCP: DORA, relay agent, snooping
NAT: static, dynamic, PAT/overload
NTP: stratum levels, client/server config
SNMP, syslog, and QoS (DSCP/CoS)

Recommended Resources:

NAT/DHCP Packet Tracer labs

Study notes

Week 5

Security Fundamentals

Security Fundamentals (15%)

12-14 hours

ACLs: standard and extended, wildcard masks
Network security: DHCP snooping, DAI, port security
AAA: RADIUS vs TACACS+, 802.1X
VPN fundamentals: site-to-site and remote access

Recommended Resources:

ACL labs

Security configuration guide

Week 6

Automation & Review

Automation and Programmability (10%)

14-16 hours

SDN: control/data/management planes
REST APIs, NETCONF, RESTCONF, YANG
Automation tools: Ansible, Puppet, Chef
Practice exams and weak-area review

Recommended Resources:

CertStud practice exams

Cisco DevNet learning

Exam Tips & Strategies

Time Management

120 minutes for 100-120 questions — about 60-72 seconds per question. Flag uncertain questions and return to them. Budget 3-5 minutes for simulation questions.

Focus on IP Connectivity

IP Connectivity is 25% of the exam — know OSPF thoroughly. Subnetting is tested heavily — practice until it's automatic. Know VLANs, trunking, and STP for Network Access.

Avoid Common Pitfalls

LPM (longest prefix match) wins over AD. OSPF cost = 100 Mbps / link bandwidth. NAT: ip nat inside on LAN, ip nat outside on WAN. STP root = lowest BID, not just lowest MAC.

Exam Day Tips

Bring two valid IDs to the Prometric testing center. Arrive 30 minutes early. No personal items at workstation. Score report appears immediately after completion.