Prepare for ENCOR 350-401 using the current v1.2 objectives, including the changed wireless scope. Cover all six domains, match practice to the objective verbs and work through the routing example below. Passing the core exam earns a Specialist credential; CCNP Enterprise also requires a concentration exam.
What the ENCOR exam certifies
350-401 ENCOR is the core exam for the CCNP Enterprise certification and also satisfies the core requirement for CCIE Enterprise Infrastructure. Passing it alone earns the Cisco Certified Specialist – Enterprise Core, not the full CCNP.
ENCOR covers core enterprise networking across the six domains below. For CCNP Enterprise, combine a valid core pass with one concentration exam from Cisco’s current list. ENCOR also serves as the qualifying core for CCIE Enterprise Infrastructure, whose separate lab has its own requirements.
Official sources: Implementing Cisco Enterprise Network Core Technologies v1.2 (350-401) Exam Topics (Cisco) — v1.2 exam topics PDF, 2025 Cisco Systems; CCNP Enterprise certification page (Cisco) — Core exam 350-401 ENCOR and concentration exam listings; Implementing and Operating Cisco Enterprise Network Core Technologies (ENCOR) training page (Cisco) — Course objectives, prerequisites, lab outline, v1.2 note
Which version applies and what changed
ENCOR v1.2 took effect on March 19, 2026. It removes the previous wireless objectives and updates product names.
Check old notes for current names such as Catalyst SD-WAN and Catalyst Center. Follow Cisco’s release notes when mapping older controller terminology to the current objectives.
Cisco’s ENCOR training page says it still includes wireless material from v1.1 that can be skipped for v1.2 exam preparation. Use the current objective list to identify those sections; a resource can contain useful background beyond what this exam requires.
Official sources: CCNP Enterprise v1.1 and v1.2 Release Notes (Cisco) — Minor update effective March 19, 2026; Implementing and Operating Cisco Enterprise Network Core Technologies (ENCOR) training page (Cisco) — Course objectives, prerequisites, lab outline, v1.2 note
Format, cost, and scheduling
Cisco lists a 120-minute exam at US$400, offered in English and Japanese. Confirm the final booking price and appointment details.
No formal prerequisite certification is required. Cisco recommends CCNA-level networking knowledge and basic Python for its training. Certification validity is three years; check the current qualification and recertification rules for your pathway.
Official sources: CCNP Enterprise certification page (Cisco) — Core exam 350-401 ENCOR and concentration exam listings
The six topic areas and their weights
Cisco weights the exam across six areas: Architecture 15%, Virtualization 10%, Infrastructure 30%, Network Assurance 10%, Security 20%, and Automation and Artificial Intelligence 15%.
Infrastructure has the largest domain weight, at 30%. Allocate study time using both the weights and your gaps; the other five domains still account for 70%.
Match the verb to your practice. Explain describe objectives clearly, build configure-and-verify objectives in a lab, and diagnose troubleshoot objectives from evidence. The full topic document supplies the task-level checklist.
| Domain | Weight | Representative content |
|---|---|---|
| 1.0 Architecture | 15% | Enterprise design models (2-tier, 3-tier, fabric, cloud), high availability with redundancy, FHRP and SSO, Catalyst SD-WAN and SD-Access principles, interpreting QoS configurations |
| 2.0 Virtualization | 10% | Hypervisors, VMs, virtual switching; configuring VRF, GRE and IPsec tunneling; describing LISP and VXLAN |
| 3.0 Infrastructure | 30% | Trunking, EtherChannel, RSTP/MST and STP guards; EIGRP versus OSPF, OSPFv2/v3, eBGP, policy-based routing; NTP and PTP, NAT/PAT, HSRP and VRRP, multicast protocols |
| 4.0 Network Assurance | 10% | Debugs, ping, traceroute, SNMP, syslog; Flexible NetFlow; SPAN/RSPAN/ERSPAN; IP SLA; Catalyst Center workflows; NETCONF and RESTCONF |
| 5.0 Security | 20% | Lines and local users, AAA, ACLs, control plane policing, REST API security, security design including threat defense, endpoint security, next-generation firewall, TrustSec and MACsec |
| 6.0 Automation and AI | 15% | Python basics, JSON, YANG principles, Catalyst Center and SD-WAN Manager APIs, REST response codes, EEM applets, agent versus agentless orchestration |
Official sources: Implementing Cisco Enterprise Network Core Technologies v1.2 (350-401) Exam Topics (Cisco) — v1.2 exam topics PDF, 2025 Cisco Systems
Worked example: route installation versus packet forwarding
Routing-table installation and packet forwarding are separate decisions. Compare eligible routing sources for an identical prefix; use the longest installed match for normal forwarding.
Cisco’s route-selection document explains why entries for different destination prefixes can coexist. Administrative distance is not a forwarding priority that overrides a more specific installed route.
This original example uses private IPv4 addresses and explicitly supplies valid installed entries. It is a paper exercise, with no live router changes.
Worked example
Use ordinary IPv4 destination-based forwarding in one routing table, with no policy-based routing. These are the only installed destination entries relevant to the packets; all next hops and forwarding adjacencies are already reachable and resolved. A: internal EIGRP 172.16.8.0/22 via 10.0.0.1. B: OSPF 172.16.0.0/16 via 10.0.0.2. C: RIP 172.16.8.64/26 via 10.0.0.3. D: default 0.0.0.0/0 via 10.0.0.4. (a) Which next hop is selected for 172.16.8.70? (b) Which is selected for 172.16.60.1? (c) Does RIP’s higher default administrative distance disqualify its more specific installed route?
Show answer
(a) 10.0.0.3 through the /26. (b) 10.0.0.2 through the /16. (c) No. The entries represent different prefixes; forwarding selects the most specific installed match.
The /26 spans 172.16.8.64–172.16.8.127, and the /22 spans 172.16.8.0–172.16.11.255. The first address matches both, the /16 and the default; /26 is longest. The second address matches the /16 and the default, so /16 wins. It is not the only match. Administrative-distance comparison concerns eligible sources for the identical destination prefix, including both network address and prefix length. Equal prefix length alone does not make two different networks compete for installation.
Official sources: Configure Route Selection for Routers (Cisco support document, updated January 17, 2024) — Administrative distance, metrics, prefix lengths, forwarding decisions
Build a study plan across the six domains
Use the topic table as a coverage map and adjust practice after reviewing your errors.
For each objective, record whether you can explain it, configure and verify it where required, or diagnose a fault. Review missing capabilities before buying another general resource.
For Automation and AI, follow the listed tasks: Python, JSON, YANG, controller APIs, REST responses, EEM and orchestration. Check the Network Assurance tasks for traditional and AI-assisted Catalyst Center workflows as well. The domain title alone does not define an advanced machine-learning syllabus.
Official sources: Implementing Cisco Enterprise Network Core Technologies v1.2 (350-401) Exam Topics (Cisco) — v1.2 exam topics PDF, 2025 Cisco Systems; Implementing and Operating Cisco Enterprise Network Core Technologies (ENCOR) training page (Cisco) — Course objectives, prerequisites, lab outline, v1.2 note
Hands-on practice in an isolated lab
Use your own isolated lab to compare expected behavior with observed output.
Start from one working topology, save its configuration and record expected results. Change one relevant condition, inspect the output and explain the cause before correcting it.
Extend the topology across objectives such as OSPF, eBGP, VRF, tunnels, access controls and assurance tools. Verify what your simulator or software supports; a resource’s title does not prove it covers every current objective.
Official sources: Implementing and Operating Cisco Enterprise Network Core Technologies (ENCOR) training page (Cisco) — Course objectives, prerequisites, lab outline, v1.2 note
Your preparation checklist
Check the version, cover the objectives and confirm the certification pathway.
- Compare study materials with the v1.2 objective list and release notes.
- Practise the required explain, configure, verify and troubleshoot tasks.
- Keep route installation and forwarding decisions separate.
- Review all six domains through mixed practice.
- Confirm your appointment and the separate concentration requirement for CCNP Enterprise.
Official sources: Implementing Cisco Enterprise Network Core Technologies v1.2 (350-401) Exam Topics (Cisco) — v1.2 exam topics PDF, 2025 Cisco Systems; CCNP Enterprise certification page (Cisco) — Core exam 350-401 ENCOR and concentration exam listings
Official sources
Facts checked against official sources:
- Implementing Cisco Enterprise Network Core Technologies v1.2 (350-401) Exam Topics (Cisco)
- CCNP Enterprise certification page (Cisco)
- CCNP Enterprise v1.1 and v1.2 Release Notes (Cisco)
- Implementing and Operating Cisco Enterprise Network Core Technologies (ENCOR) training page (Cisco)
- Configure Route Selection for Routers (Cisco support document, updated January 17, 2024)