Cisco Certified Network Professional Data Center — Application Centric Infrastructure

Cisco Certified Network Professional Data Center — Implementing Cisco Application Centric Infrastructure (DCACI)

300-620 DCACI · ● Active · Professional · Cisco

Exam facts

Vendor source — Cisco Learning Network ↗
Official exam guide — 300-620 DCACI Exam Topics ↗
Exam objectives — DCACI Exam Blueprint ↗

About

The CCNP Data Center — Implementing Cisco Application Centric Infrastructure (DCACI, 300-620) is a concentration exam for the CCNP Data Center certification. It validates expertise in designing, deploying, and troubleshooting Cisco ACI (Application Centric Infrastructure) — an intent-based, policy-driven networking platform that automates data center network provisioning. Released in 2020, DCACI requires prior passage of the 350-601 DCCOR core exam. Target audience: network engineers transitioning to ACI shops, data center architects specializing in intent-based networking, and infrastructure engineers automating DC operations in Cisco-heavy enterprises.

Domain context — Networking / Data Center

Enterprise data center networking with intent-based policy automation. ACI represents a paradigm shift from traditional device-centric management to application and tenant-centric policy. This exam is critical for modern Cisco DC shops modernizing network operations through software-defined fabrics, microsegmentation, and intent-based provisioning.

Read full deep dive — Cisco Ecosystem →

Topics covered

Core domains (from official blueprint):

• ACI Fundamentals (15%) — Fabric architecture, spine/leaf topology, APIC, ACI policy model, object types
• ACI Fabric Bring-Up & Discovery (10%) — Fabric setup, switch configuration, port connectivity, fabric discovery, troubleshooting initial deployment
• Tenant Policy Configuration (25%) — VRF, bridge domains, EPGs (End Point Groups), contracts, filters, logical operators, microsegmentation, QoS
• Application Profiles & Endpoints (15%) — Application profile design, EPG association, endpoint mobility, VLAN/VXLAN mapping, static endpoint binding
• External Connectivity (15%) — L2 Out, L3 Out, external EPGs, dynamic routing (BGP/OSPF), import/export routes, redirect policies
• VMware Integration (10%) — VMM domain (vCenter), Virtual Machine Manager configuration, DVS integration, port groups, static/dynamic EPG binding
• Fabric Access Policies (5%) — Interface policies, switch profiles, access port configuration, VLAN pools, domains (physical/virtual)
• Multi-Pod & Multi-Site Architectures (5%) — Multi-pod fabrics, MP-BGP, Multi-Site ACI, stretch fabrics, remote leaf deployment

Source: Cisco DCACI 300-620 Exam Topics ↗

Common skills at Networking · Professional

Shared competencies for the Networking domain at Professional level — not specific to this cert.

• Enterprise switching design and configuration (VLAN, spanning-tree, redundancy)
• BGP and OSPF routing protocols (multi-area, policy-based, convergence)
• Network monitoring, troubleshooting, and analysis (NetFlow, syslog, SNMP)
• QoS and traffic engineering (marking, queuing, policing)
• Security filtering and access control (ACLs, firewall policies, device hardening)
• Network automation and IaC (Ansible, Python, API integration)

Recommended courses at Networking · Professional

Course note: ACI requires hands-on lab experience with APIC simulator or Cisco Modeling Labs. INE's bundle is highly recommended for comprehensive coverage. CBT Nuggets offers structured video learning with ACI emulation support.

Practice exams

Practice exam rule: Boson and Pearson are the gold standards. Aim for 80%+ on both before test day. ACI exams heavily test policy construction and endpoint deployment — practice exams must cover these depth topics thoroughly.

Books

Book note: The Pearson official cert guide is essential and covers the 300-620 DCACI exam directly. Packt books provide operational depth beyond the exam scope — useful for on-the-job readiness.

Typical job titles at Networking · Professional

Data Center Network Engineer · ACI Network Engineer · Data Center Architect · Network Infrastructure Engineer · Cloud Infrastructure Engineer · Senior Network Operations Engineer (ACI-focused) · Intent-Based Networking Specialist

(Job titles drawn from Cisco job-board postings and enterprise hiring that list DCACI or ACI expertise as required or strongly preferred.)

Salary

Salary note: ACI-specialized engineers command premium pay relative to general CCNP DC roles. Ranges reflect strong demand in large enterprises modernizing data centers (financial services, telecom, government). ZAR reflects enterprise DC market in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Pretoria. Regional variation reflects local Cisco adoption rates.

Skills validated

• ACI fabric architecture (spine/leaf topology, APIC cluster, fabric underlay/overlay)
• Fabric discovery and initialization (in-band/out-of-band management, fabric credentials, switch onboarding)
• Tenant and VRF management (multi-tenant isolation, VRF import/export, per-tenant firewalling)
• Bridge domain design (L2 control, ARP flooding, BD subnets, inter-BD routing)
• End Point Group (EPG) configuration (static/dynamic binding, port/vLAN/VXLAN mapping, EPG relationships)
• Contract and filter design (whitelist security model, protocol operators, ARP/IPv4/IPv6 filters)
• Application profile organization (multi-tenant applications, EPG nesting, logical grouping)
• Microsegmentation policies (enforce encryption, encryption domains, security groups)
• External connectivity (L2 Out for legacy networks, L3 Out for dynamic routing, redistribute routes)
• VMware integration (VMM domain, vCenter provisioning, DVS port-group mapping)
• Monitoring and troubleshooting (APIC GUI, CLI, health score, fault events, endpoint location)
• ACI REST API (JSON/XML, Postman, Ansible ACI modules, Python libraries)
• Multi-pod architectures (MP-BGP, pod peering, inter-pod routing)
• Upgrade procedures (APIC and switch firmware, minimal-impact upgrades, rollback)

Related certifications

• Prerequisite: 350-601 DCCOR (CCNP DC Core) ↗ — must pass first

• Stacks with (other CCNP DC concentrations):

  • 300-610 DCID (Data Center Design) ↗ (file not yet created)
  • 300-615 DCIT (Troubleshooting) ↗ (file not yet created)
  • 300-625 DCSAN (Storage Networking) ↗ (file not yet created)
  • 300-635 DCAUTO (Automation) ↗ (file not yet created)

• Prerequisite for: CCIE Data Center (written + lab exam; requires 350-601 DCCOR + one concentration + lab proficiency)

• Complements: Cisco DevNet Specialist — Data Center Automation (300-635 DCAUTO) ↗ — automation and API skills overlap with ACI REST/Ansible

• Vendor overview: Cisco Ecosystem Overview →

Study strategy recommendations

Prerequisite check: Must hold current 350-601 DCCOR before attempting DCACI. If you have not passed DCCOR, pursue that first.

1. Foundation (weeks 1–2): Review Cisco ACI fundamentals — fabric architecture, policy model, and APIC structure. Review DCCOR concepts (underlay networking, QoS, security).

2. Core topics (weeks 3–8): Work through the Pearson official cert guide chapter-by-chapter (VRF, BD, EPG, contracts, external connectivity, VMware). Build familiarity with APIC GUI and CLI. Lab heavily.

3. Hands-on labs (weeks 3–10, parallel):

   • APIC Simulator / Cisco Modeling Labs — Build multi-tenant fabrics, configure EPGs, create contracts
   • VMM domain configuration — Integrate vCenter, deploy DVS, bind VMs to EPGs
   • API labs — Use Postman or curl to call ACI REST API, write Python scripts for APIC queries
   • Ansible playbooks — Practice deploying ACI configurations via ansible-aci module
   • Labs are essential; expect 50%+ of study time in hands-on environment

4. External connectivity (weeks 7–9): Lab L2 Out and L3 Out scenarios. Practice route import/export, contract enforcement across fabric boundaries, multi-pod fabric communication.

5. Practice exams (weeks 10–12): Take Boson and Pearson under timed conditions. Aim for 80%+ before registering. ACI policy construction (contracts, EPG relationships, filter design) is frequently tested.

Typical study timeline: 150–250 hours (concentration exam only; assumes DCCOR already completed). ACI is hands-on intensive; expect 50% labs, 50% theory and practice exams.

Exam deep-dive by domain

ACI Fundamentals & Fabric Architecture (15%)

• Know: Spine/leaf topology, APIC functions (policy manager, certificate provider, event bus), ACI object hierarchy (Tenant → Application Profile → EPG → Endpoint)
• Understand: In-band vs. out-of-band management, fabric underlay (IS-IS), overlay (VXLAN-based)
• Hands-on: Initialize a small ACI fabric, discover switches, verify fabric health in APIC

Tenant Policy (25% — heaviest weighted domain)

• Know cold: VRF isolation, bridge domain subnets, EPG static/dynamic binding
• Master: Contract and filter design — protocols, operators (tcp/udp/icmp), rule direction
• Practice: Configure contracts between EPGs, enforce microsegmentation, troubleshoot policy failures
• Common exam question patterns: "Which filter rule allows UDP 53 (DNS) from EPG-A to EPG-B?" → Requires detailed filter syntax knowledge

External Connectivity (15%)

• Know: L2 Out (bridge external networks), L3 Out (dynamic/static routing to non-ACI domains)
• Understand: Redirect policies, static routes within ACI, route import/export at fabric boundary
• Practice: Lab connecting legacy VLAN networks via L2 Out, configure OSPF/BGP on L3 Out routers, verify reachability across fabric

VMware Integration (10%)

• Know: VMM domain creation, vCenter credentials, DVS port-group mapping
• Practice: Configure static EPG binding (explicit port + VLAN), dynamic EPG binding (DVS + port group), verify VM network connectivity in APIC
• Troubleshoot: Endpoint location mismatches, VLAN pool exhaustion

Fabric Bring-Up & Discovery (10%)

• Know: Fabric initialization process (APIC discovery, switch onboarding, fabric credential distribution)
• Practice: Troubleshoot fabric join failures, verify switch connectivity, diagnose port errors

API & Automation (implicit across all domains, ~5%)

• Know: ACI REST API basics (Postman, curl, JSON payloads)
• Practice: Query APIC for tenants/EPGs/contracts, deploy tenant configuration via API, use ansible-aci module
• Exam tip: Expect 1–2 questions on API call structure or Ansible playbook logic

Common failure patterns (what most candidates miss)

1. Contract filter syntax confusion — Mixing "intra-EPG" vs. "inter-EPG" rules, forgetting bidirectional contracts
2. EPG binding misunderstandings — Not distinguishing between static port/VLAN binding vs. dynamic DVS binding
3. L3 Out misconfiguration — Forgetting to create external EPG, missing route control import/export
4. Fabric health issues — Not understanding fabric underlay health checks, APIC-to-fabric communication failures
5. VMware integration gaps — Incorrect vCenter credential format, port-group VLAN mismatch with ACI VLAN pool
6. Upgrade procedures — Not knowing minimum fabric upgrade order (APIC first, then spine, then leaf)

Study tip: Use APIC CLI (show running-config, show startup-config, moquery) alongside GUI to understand policy internals.

Career trajectories post-CCNP DC with DCACI concentration

• Network Engineer (ACI-focused) → Senior ACI Network Engineer → Data Center Architect
• Infrastructure Engineer (modern DC) → Senior Infrastructure Engineer → Cloud/Hybrid Cloud Architect
• Network Operations + ACI expertise → Network Operations Center Lead → Infrastructure Operations Manager
• DevOps / Infrastructure-as-Code + DCAUTO concentration + ACI knowledge → Infrastructure Automation Architect
• Sales Engineering / Presales — ACI specialists are highly recruited for customer design roles in enterprise Cisco shops

ACI expertise is a credible stepping stone toward CCIE Data Center (lab exam requires deep hands-on ACI knowledge). In modern enterprise DC environments, DCACI is often the most practical concentration to pursue after DCCOR.

Industry context

ACI (launched 2013) has become the reference architecture for modern enterprise data center networking. Adoption is strongest in:

• Fortune 500 financial services (JPMorgan, Bank of America, etc.)
• Telecom operators (Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom, Verizon)
• Large government agencies (DCACI is preferred in federal IT modernization initiatives)
• Managed service providers (Accenture, Infosys, DXC offer ACI consulting)

The shift toward intent-based networking and zero-trust security is driving demand for DCACI-skilled engineers. Cloud-native shops (AWS, GCP) adopt less ACI; hybrid-cloud enterprises (Azure Stack, VMware on-prem) adopt heavily. Cisco's multi-pod and multi-site ACI capabilities are increasingly relevant as enterprises build resilient, geographically distributed data centers.

Renewal and continuing education

CCNP DC (achieved via 350-601 DCCOR + any one concentration, including DCACI) is valid for 3 years. Renewal options:

• CE credits: Accumulate 120 CE credits over the 3-year period (pursuing advanced Cisco courses, ACI-focused certifications, publishing ACI content, teaching, attending Cisco Live, or passing another Cisco professional-level exam).
• Retake: Simply retake the 350-601 core exam (no need to retake the concentration).

Most engineers find the CE credit route practical — pursuing DCAUTO or other concentrations, attending Cisco Live, or contributing to ACI community projects (Cisco DevNet) can satisfy credits without full retesting.

Sources

• Cisco Learning Network — CCNP Data Center
• Cisco 300-620 DCACI Exam Topics ↗
• Cisco ACI Administration Guide ↗
• Cisco Certified Associate & Professional Exam Policies
• Pearson VUE — Cisco Exam Delivery
• Boson ExSim Practice Exams
• INE CCNP Data Center Course Bundle
• CBT Nuggets CCNP Data Center
• Cisco Press — Official Cert Guides
• Glassdoor Salary Data
• Robert Half 2026 Salary Guide
• Cisco DevNet ACI Resources ↗

Last verified: 2026-05-02
Parent ecosystem: Cisco Ecosystem Overview
Parent domain: Networking / Data Center Domain
Vendor overview: Cisco Overview