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A Cisco certification can take a professional in the networking industry a long way. There are numerous benefits that these certifications offer to both the company and the individual. If you want to improve your resume or are looking for a way to boost your career in the industry, you should complete at least one certification offered by Cisco. A novice or an expert can complete these certifications to improve their standing in the industry. There are different types of examinations provided by Cisco, and we will discuss them in detail in this chapter. It is always essential that you understand in what order you should complete those examinations.

Every CCNA examination that you appear for will boost your IT career. This section will shed some light on the different examinations that you can appear for, and also help you understand how you can prepare for the examination.

There are different types of certifications that CCNA offers within the routing and switching domain, and you will need to pass the associate level examination before you appear for the CCIP or CCIE certifications. The exams listed below form the foundation of networking and security. We will look at the different examinations that you will need to appear for to obtain these certifications.

Every organization is welcoming new changes in technology, and they have accepted the cloud services with open arms. These services allow them to work progressively. They can share their data across the Cloud with different teams sitting in different parts of the globe. At present, most organizations are using the SaaS model. As of 2018, over 78% of all the work was being handled on the Cloud. The CCNA Cloud certification is training programs that will help cloud administrators, cloud engineers, and network engineers develop their cloud skill set. It will also enable them to meet the changes in business and technology. With this certification, you will not only learn the basics of how to support and facilitate cloud solutions but will also learn how to troubleshoot any issues. You can learn all this from the only organization that provides the complete Cloud and Intercloud story. To obtain this certification, you must clear the following examinations:

This examination will test your understanding of Cloud Networks. You will be tested for your understanding of DC essentials, basics of UF, UC, Storage, Network Services and Virtualization, Windows Server, Hypervisors, Linux OS, remote connectivity/VPN solutions, and documentation of design, the framework fabrications, setups, and support strategies.

This examination will test your knowledge regarding the basics of the Cisco Cloud organization along with Cloud provisioning, remediation, monitoring, reporting, the charge-back formats, and the management.

The CCNA Collaboration examination is designed for IP network engineers, network engineers, IP telephony engineers, and collaboration engineers. The course material is intended for those professionals who want to learn and improve their skills of video engineering and collaboration on voice, data, and other versatile applications. This is also a job-oriented training that will help to improve your knowledge and also increase your value as a professional. It will provide you with the right attitude and skills to enable companies to perform better. To obtain this certification, you should complete the following examinations.

In this examination, you will learn more about Cisco Unified Communications. You will be tested on your knowledge of final-user and management interfaces, features of telephony and mobility along with the maintenance of UC solutions.

In this examination, you will be tested for your skills and knowledge essential to implement different Cisco Video endpoints present in the United Cisco video frameworks. The examination will also check your aptitude to execute and resolve Cisco Unified Communication and Collaboration, Digital Media Player, and Telepresence in various Cisco business solution models.

Most organizations are now challenged with identifying or detecting breaches in security quickly. They also need to know how to react and remove these threats. They must have the right framework in place to achieve this. All the employees working in Security Operations Centers (SOC's) in the organization must monitor the security frameworks and protect the organizations by swiftly spotting and responding to any cybersecurity threats or potential breaches. This certification will help you understand how you can do this and also help you establish yourself in this field. Since July 2018, the United States Department of Defense (DoD) has affirmed the Cisco CCNA Cyber Ops Certification for the DoD 8570.01-M for the CSSP Analyst and CCSP Incident Responder groups. To obtain this certification, you must clear the following examinations:

This test is one of the two prerequisite exams that are required for attaining the CCNA Cyber Ops certification and is necessary to secure the job of an entry-level Security Operations Center (SOC) Security Analyst. The SECFND exam tests your understanding of cyber security's primary principles and the fundamental skills essential to understanding the more progressive associate-level course materials required for the second prerequisite exam, 'Implementing Cisco Cyber Security Operations (SECOPS).'

This is the second exam that is essential for achieving the associate-level CCNA Cyber Ops certification, and it will prepare you for the role of an associate-level Security Operations Center (SOC) Security Analyst. This exam tests the knowledge and aptitude required for efficiently handling the different duties and obligations of an associate-level Security Analyst working in a Security Operations Center (SOC).

Every data center is competent if it is maintained well by the employees in the company. The data center is the primary focus of every organization in today's digitized world since it is designed for quick execution of applications and reinforced by an exceptionally versatile framework. This certification will give you the required knowledge for installing, configuring, and maintaining the technology of a data center. You will also gain some footing in the concepts of infrastructure, data center, data center technologies, storage networking and unified computing, network virtualization, data center automation and orchestration, and Cisco Application Centric Infrastructure (ACI). To obtain this certification, you must complete the following examinations:

In this exam, you will learn more about the physical infrastructure, networking, and storage networking concepts of the data center.

This exam will test your fundamental knowledge about the physical infrastructure, networking concepts, automation, and storage networking concepts related to a data center.

The Cisco Certified Network Associate Industrial (CCNA Industrial) certification is designed for plant administrators, traditional network engineers, and control system engineers dealing with process control, assembling, and oil/gas ventures, who will be working along with industrial and IT networks. When you clear this certification, you will learn the different skills that are necessary for you to know to design, implement, and troubleshoot any issues that arise within a network. It will also provide information on how you can do this while using the best practices necessary for the connected networks present today.

This module consolidates both theoretical and practical knowledge through some practical lab work and exercises. This module will help you develop the skills necessary for working in the IT industry and also enhance your knowledge about the current infrastructures that different organizations incorporate in their functions. It will also provide information about the infrastructure that will support the future results of the business.

This examination will test your understanding and knowledge about the concepts and techniques that you can find in an automated manufacturing environment. This exam will cover the Common Industrial Protocol (CIP) and ProfiNET industrial conventions. It will also test you on the fundamental design of the support network infrastructure to optimize the effectiveness of the Industrial Ethernet.

The CCNA Security certification will help individuals garner the skills and knowledge that they will need to work as associate level representatives in the IT department of any organization. If you have this certification, you will be hired as a network professional since you will have the abilities required to develop a security infrastructure, perceive dangers and vulnerabilities to networks, and alleviate any security breaches. The CCNA Security educational program emphasizes primary security technologies. It also provides information about the establishment, investigation, and vigilance of network instruments for maintaining the virtues, discretion, and the accessibility of information and instruments, as well as their competency of all the innovations that use Cisco security structure.

The CCNA Security examination will test your knowledge about the different aspects of security including security network infrastructure, your understanding of the fundamental concepts of security, verification of secure access, VPN encryption, firewalls, prevention of any breach and the endpoint security while using SIEM technology, Cloud and Virtual Network topology, BYOD, Identity Service Engine (ISE), 801.1 x Authentication and a other cyber-security related concepts.

This examination will help you validate your skills of designing, installing, monitoring, and troubleshooting any secure network which will help the service provider secure the data and also allow the data to be accessible to the devices connected to the network.

The CCNA SP or the Cisco Certified Network, Associate Service Provider certification, is specifically designed for specialists, network engineers, and planners. The objective of this certification is to help these specialists learn more about the recent developments and trends in technology within the Service Provider industry. You must obtain the following certifications to obtain this certification.

This examination will test your basic knowledge and the basic skills needed to support the network of any service provider. To learn more about the exam, please refer to the following link: https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/training-events/training-certifications/exams/current-list/spngn1.html

This exam will test your aptitude and knowledge that is important for you to know if you are going to execute, maintain, and support the network of any service provider. An applicant must get ready for this examination by taking up the Building Cisco Service Provider Next-Generation Networks, Part 2 (SPNGN2) course.

Cisco has a wireless innovation department that has been placing a lot of demands on the network. These demands, in turn, affect the individuals working on networks. Every organization will require a set of professionals who can work on the network and ensure that the network has been configured properly. These individuals must also monitor the network and troubleshoot if necessary. You can improve your skills and enhance your knowledge of these networks when you prepare for the CCNA wireless certification.

Some prerequisites to apply for this certification are CCNA Routing and Switching certification, Cisco CCENT, and the CCIE certification. To obtain the CCNA Wireless certification, you must obtain the following certification.

This examination will test your knowledge about how to install, configure, and troubleshoot a small-sized network or a Wide Area Network.

Cisco is at the top when compared to different IT vendors. Cisco provides you with the required tools and material that will make it easy for you to earn your certification in the first attempt. Cisco constantly tries to improve the material that it creates for this certification to ensure that it provides readers with the latest information. From the Cisco Learning network to self-study materials as well as some exam dumps, you have different materials that you can use to clear your exam. This section lists some of the tools that you can use to prepare for the exam. These tools will help you strengthen your understanding of the numerous concepts you will be learning.

The Cisco Learning Network provides numerous self-study material that you can use to obtain your certification. You should always enroll for the different courses available on the learning network like the Interconnecting Cisco Network Devices (parts one and two). You should also look at the labs that are conducted for these courses. The subjects and topics covered in these courses will help you learn all the concepts that you will need to cover in the composite examination. Numerous practice exams are available on the learning network that will help you gauge your knowledge. More information about these courses has been provided later in the book.

You can always go through the different learning and training sessions that are provided on the Cisco learning web. These sessions will help you learn more in very little time. There are numerous resources available on the learning network that are covered in detail in this book.

It is always a good idea to join a study group when you decide to appear for the examination since you can ensure that you prepare well for the examination. You can always build your network. This group will also act as a support group since you will be studying with them to cover the different concepts in the syllabus.

An exam dump is as important, if not more important, as the study group you want to join or the study material that you want to read. These dumps will always contain all the questions that you can be asked in any certification examination, and it is for this reason that you should always go through the dump when you prepare for the exam. When you have understood the different topics covered in the syllabus, you can practice all the questions in the exam dump to strengthen your understanding. These dumps will also help you familiarize yourself with different questions.

The CCNA Routing and Switching Certification have a validity period of three years. That being said, you can always extend the validity by earning a certification that is at a professional or expert level. For instance, you can earn a CCIE certification that is valid for two years. You can easily extend the validity period of the routing and switching certification by obtaining the CCIE certification. You will learn more about how you can recertify yourself later in the book.

In simple words, it is important to remember that you can achieve a lot by earning any CCNA certification. Regardless of what experience you have, you can excel in your profession if you choose to earn different certifications that Cisco provides. You will always find a good job with a good salary if you obtain these certifications.