Layer 2 Switching

• Troubleshoot static and dynamic 802.1Q trunking

• Troubleshoot static and dynamic EtherChannel / Port-Channel

• Configure and verify Spanning Tree Protocols (RSTP, MST)

• Implement STP enhancements (Root Guard, BPDU Guard)

Dynamic Routing (EIGRP / OSPF / BGP)

EIGRP

• Configure and troubleshoot EIGRP (classic and named mode) in global and VRF environments

• Address families (IPv4 / IPv6)

• Neighbor relationships and authentication

• Loop-free path selection (RD, FD, FC, successor / feasible successor / SIA)

• EIGRP stubs

• Load balancing (equal / unequal)

• Metrics and path control

OSPF (v2 / v3)

• Address families (IPv4 / IPv6)

• Neighbor adjacency and authentication

• Network types (point-to-point, multipoint, broadcast, NBMA)

• Area types (Backbone, Normal, Stub, NSSA, Totally Stub)

• Router roles (Internal, Backbone, ABR, ASBR)

• Virtual links

• Path selection and route preference

BGP

• Configure and troubleshoot iBGP and eBGP (Unicast, VRF-Lite)

• Address families (IPv4 / IPv6)

• Neighbor adjacency and authentication (multihop, private AS, 4-byte AS, route refresh)

• Best-path selection and BGP attributes

• Route Reflectors (single RR architecture)

• Policy application (inbound/outbound filtering, path manipulation)

Network Address Translation & High Availability

• Configure NAT and PAT

• Configure and troubleshoot First-Hop Redundancy Protocols (HSRP, VRRP)

Tunneling & VPN Technologies

• DMVPN (single hub topology)

• GRE / mGRE

• NHRP

• IPsec integration

• Dynamic spoke-to-spoke tunnels

Multicast

• Reverse Path Forwarding (RPF) behavior

• PIM Sparse Mode

• IGMP v2 / v3

• Source-Specific Multicast (SSM)

• Bi-directional PIM

• MSDP overview

MPLS Technologies

• MPLS label switching and LDP operations

• MPLS Layer 3 VPN concepts and forwarding

Network Security Fundamentals

• IOS AAA security (TACACS+, RADIUS, local authentication)

• Router security features

• IPv4 ACLs (standard, extended, time-based)

Network Automation & Programmability

• Interpret basic Python structures and scripts

• Construct JSON data models

• High-level understanding of data modeling (YANG)

• APIs and programmability in Cisco Catalyst Center & SD-WAN Manager

• Interpret RESTCONF / REST API outputs and response codes

• Create EEM applets for automation and event handling

• Compare agent-based vs. agentless orchestration tools

Next-Generation Networking Concepts

• SDN-based solutions 

• Segment Routing Introduction

• Overlay networking concepts

• AI-driven networking trends and use cases

Cisco Hardware Awareness

• Introduction to Cisco Catalyst 9000 Series switching platforms

• Introduction to Cisco Catalyst 8000 Series routing platforms