DevNet Associate<\/a> became CCNA Automation. DevNet Professional became CCNP Automation with a refreshed professional-level structure. DevNet Expert became CCIE Automation.<\/p>\nFor professionals who already held an active DevNet credential at the transition, Cisco mapped the certification to the corresponding Automation name. For new candidates, the practical rule is simple: use the current Automation certification pages and exam blueprints, not an old DevNet roadmap.<\/p>\n
CCNA Automation is the current associate path<\/h2>\n CCNA Automation validates foundational software development and design, APIs, application deployment and security, scripting, workflow automation, infrastructure as code, and Cisco platform knowledge. The associated exam is Cisco 200-901 CCNAAUTO.<\/p>\n
The role is still recognizable to anyone who studied DevNet Associate. The important currentness point is naming and exam guidance: candidates should register and prepare for CCNA Automation using the current Cisco blueprint.<\/p>\n
CCNP Automation is more than a rename<\/h2>\n Cisco redesigned the professional path around a new core exam, 350-901 AUTOCOR, plus an automation concentration exam. The core covers the design and development of network automation systems, infrastructure as code, operations, and AI in automation. Concentrations let candidates demonstrate deeper capability in a specific automation domain.<\/p>\n
This is an important difference from treating the old DevNet Professional requirements as current. A candidate returning to study after 2025 needs to compare old knowledge against the new AUTOCOR blueprint rather than assuming the professional track changed only in branding.<\/p>\n
CCIE Automation carries the expert path forward<\/h2>\n CCIE Automation uses the 350-901 AUTOCOR core requirement and an eight-hour practical exam focused on planning, designing, developing, testing, deploying, and maintaining software solutions in complex automation-driven network environments.<\/p>\n
The expert level therefore expects both software and infrastructure judgment. Writing a script is not enough. Candidates need to think about architecture, testing, deployment safety, observability, security, failure handling, and maintainability across the automation lifecycle.<\/p>\n
APIs remain a foundational skill<\/h2>\n One of DevNet’s lasting contributions was making API literacy a normal expectation for network professionals. Current Automation candidates should be comfortable reading API documentation, handling authentication, sending requests, parsing structured data, managing pagination and errors, and understanding when an API operation is safe to automate.<\/p>\n
The deeper skill is recognizing that an API is a contract. Automation should validate assumptions, handle failures explicitly, and avoid turning a small mistake into a fleet-wide configuration problem.<\/p>\n
Python is useful, but automation is bigger than Python<\/h2>\n Python remains a practical language for network automation because of its ecosystem and readability, but certification readiness should not become a syntax contest. Candidates need to understand data structures, functions, exceptions, testing, package use, file and data formats, and how code interacts with external systems.<\/p>\n
At higher levels, design quality matters more than clever code. Can the automation be tested? Is state handled safely? Are credentials protected? Can changes be reviewed? Is there an audit trail? Can the workflow recover from a partial failure?<\/p>\n
Infrastructure as code moved toward the center<\/h2>\n Modern network automation increasingly treats configuration and infrastructure intent as versioned artifacts. Infrastructure-as-code practices improve repeatability, review, rollback, and collaboration when implemented well.<\/p>\n
Candidates should understand the difference between simply scripting CLI commands and building a controlled automation system. The latter includes source control, validation, idempotence, testing, secrets management, deployment workflow, and post-change verification.<\/p>\n
AI is now part of the automation conversation<\/h2>\n Cisco’s current Automation track explicitly reflects AI-era networking. That does not mean candidates should replace engineering judgment with generated code. It means automation professionals need to understand where AI can assist development and operations, how to validate outputs, and how to protect systems when an AI-driven workflow can trigger real infrastructure changes.<\/p>\n
The more powerful the automation, the stronger its safety controls need to be. Approval boundaries, limited privileges, testing, observability, and rollback become more important when changes can be produced or executed quickly.<\/p>\n
Network knowledge still matters<\/h2>\n Automation cannot compensate for a weak understanding of the system being automated. A script that changes routing, access policy, wireless configuration, or data-center infrastructure must be based on correct network intent. Otherwise automation simply makes the wrong decision faster and at larger scale.<\/p>\n
This is why the CCNA\/CCNP\/CCIE naming makes sense. Software and automation are increasingly part of normal network engineering rather than a separate niche. The strongest practitioners can reason about both the network state and the software workflow that changes it.<\/p>\n
How to transition from old DevNet study material<\/h2>\n Keep the durable material: APIs, Python, data formats, Git, application deployment, Cisco platforms, automation principles, testing, and secure development. Then compare it against the current certification level you want.<\/p>\n
For associate-level candidates, use the current Cisco 200-901 CCNAAUTO blueprint. For professional candidates, rebuild the plan around 350-901 AUTOCOR and the current concentration choices. For expert candidates, include practical system design and end-to-end automation operations.<\/p>\n
The DevNet name changed, but its central idea won<\/h2>\n DevNet’s original message was that infrastructure professionals needed software skills and software professionals needed infrastructure context. Six years later, Cisco has not backed away from that idea. It has moved it into a mainstream Automation certification family.<\/p>\n
That is the right way to understand DevNet in 2026. It is no longer the current certification name candidates should target, but it remains the foundation of Cisco’s CCNA Automation, CCNP Automation, and CCIE Automation paths. The technologies will keep changing; the durable skill is being able to automate real infrastructure safely, explainably, and at scale.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Cisco DevNet was one of the most important certification launches of 2020 because it formalized a career path for professionals who worked between software development and networking. The original DevNet Associate, Professional, and Expert credentials validated APIs, automation, application development, infrastructure as code, programmability, and the ability to build on Cisco platforms. The name has now changed. On February 3, 2026, Cisco replaced the DevNet certification track with CCNA Automation, CCNP Automation, and CCIE Automation. The transition did not erase the DevNet skill set; it moved those skills into Cisco’s…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":522,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[675],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-521","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cisco"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t