Automating and Programming Cisco Collaboration… (300-835)

Vendor source — Automating and Programming Cisco Collaboration Solutions ↗

Exam facts

Official name: Automating and Programming Cisco Collaboration Solutions v1.2
Exam code: 300-835
Concentration track: CLAUTO (also acceptable for Cisco DevNet Professional certification)
Part of certification:
- CCNP Collaboration (concentration exam; must pair with 350-801 CLCOR core exam)
- Cisco DevNet Professional (alternative path)
Duration: 90 minutes
Question count: ~55–65 questions
Question formats: Multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank, simulations, testlets, drag-and-drop, simlets
Exam fee: $300 USD
Pass score: Approximately 70% (Cisco does not publicly disclose exact cut scores)
Delivery: Pearson VUE testing centers; online proctored exams available in some regions
⚠️ RETIREMENT DATE: February 2, 2026 (exam sunset; last test date February 2, 2026)
- Note (May 2026 status): Exam has passed end-of-life; no longer available for new attempts. Cisco is redirecting CLAUTO candidates to newer automation/DevNet pathways.

About

The 300-835 CLAUTO exam validates knowledge and skills required to implement applications that automate and extend Cisco Collaboration platforms using REST APIs, SDKs, and Python programming. Candidates demonstrate proficiency with:

Cisco Webex REST APIs (users, meetings, teams, recordings)
Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM) AXL SOAP API (provisioning, configuration)
Cisco collaboration endpoint xAPI (room systems, cameras, codecs)
Cisco Webex Meeting APIs and attendee management
Python programming fundamentals and SDK usage
Git version control and DevOps collaboration practices

This exam bridges UC operations and DevOps, targeting engineers who want to programmatically manage Cisco collaboration infrastructure, build automation workflows, or develop collaboration-aware applications. It was one of five concentration options for CCNP Collaboration (alongside CLICA, CLACCM, CLCEI/CLHCT, CLCNF) and also credited toward Cisco DevNet Professional.

Critical note: As of May 2026, this exam is no longer offered. Cisco has sunset CLAUTO and is directing candidates to the updated CCNP Collaboration roadmap (which emphasizes CLACAD and cloud-native automation) and Cisco DevNet Professional pathways.

Domain context

Collaboration automation trends (2026):

API-first architecture: Cisco Webex, CUCM, and room endpoints expose REST/SDK interfaces; manual provisioning is increasingly obsolete
Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC): Terraform and Ansible playbooks for Cisco collaboration deployments growing in enterprise adoption
Low-code/no-code platforms: Webex flows, IFTTT integrations reducing reliance on custom Python scripts
Cloud-first shift: Webex cloud APIs dominate; on-premises CUCM AXL is legacy but still critical for hybrid enterprises
AI/ML integration: Chatbots, meeting assistants, and Webex Bot APIs emerging as collaboration use cases
Security automation: API-driven compliance, permission auditing, and encrypted communication management
DevOps collaboration: Platforms like Cisco Catalyst Center unifying network and collaboration operations

CCNP Collaboration positioning (post-sunset):

Historical role: CLAUTO was entry point for engineers wanting to blend UC operations with programming/DevOps
Current alternative: Cisco is transitioning candidates to:
- CCNP Collaboration CLACAD (new 2026 exam) for cloud and automation focus
- Cisco DevNet Professional for broader API and automation skills (non-UC-specific)
- CCNP Collaboration core + CLHCT/CLCCE for hybrid/cloud-focused engineers

Topics covered

1. Programming Fundamentals (15% of exam)

Python scripting basics:
- Data types (strings, integers, lists, dictionaries, tuples)
- Control structures (if/else, for loops, while loops)
- Functions and scope
- Exception handling (try/except/finally)
- File I/O and JSON/XML parsing
- Regular expressions (regex) for text matching
Object-oriented programming (OOP):
- Classes, objects, inheritance, polymorphism
- Instantiation and method calls
- Using Python libraries (requests, json, xml.etree, etc.)
Git version control:
- Clone, commit, push, pull, branching, merging
- Merge conflict resolution
- Collaborative workflows (pull requests, code review)
API fundamentals:
- REST vs. RPC vs. SOAP architectural styles
- HTTP methods (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE, PATCH)
- Status codes and error handling
- Request/response structure (headers, body, parameters)
- Authentication (API keys, OAuth, Basic Auth)

2. Cisco Webex REST APIs (25% of exam)

Webex organization and licensing APIs:
- List, create, update, delete organizations
- User lifecycle management (add, modify, delete, license assignment)
- License tracking and allocation
- Organization settings and compliance configurations
Webex users and spaces APIs:
- Create and manage user accounts programmatically
- Assign licenses, roles, and permissions
- Bulk user import and provisioning
- Space creation and membership management
- Room resource provisioning
Webex meetings APIs:
- Create, list, update, delete meetings
- Schedule recurring and one-time meetings
- Participant management and invite automation
- Meeting settings (encryption, waiting room, attendee authentication)
- Meeting room reservation (meeting room management)
- Attendee tracking and analytics
Webex recordings and compliance APIs:
- Retrieve and manage recorded meetings
- Download recording metadata and playback URLs
- Compliance recording configuration
- Retention policies and deletion workflows
Webex messaging and team collaboration:
- Team and space creation/management
- Message posting and retrieval
- File uploads to spaces
- Webhooks for event-driven automation (message creation, membership changes)
Webex API authentication:
- OAuth 2.0 flows (authorization code, client credentials)
- Personal access tokens
- Token refresh and expiration handling
- Scopes and permission boundaries
API rate limiting and best practices:
- Rate limit headers and backoff strategies
- Pagination for large result sets
- Batch operations vs. individual requests
- Error handling and retry logic

3. Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM) AXL API (20% of exam)

AXL (Administrator XML) API overview:
- SOAP-based XML interface for CUCM provisioning
- Endpoint access (port 8443) and authentication (TLS certificate or Basic Auth)
User and device provisioning:
- Add, update, delete users (endusers, bulk users)
- Associate users with phones (device ownership)
- Provision phone lines and directory numbers
- Set up feature codes (call forwarding, do-not-disturb)
Phone and endpoint management:
- Query available phone models and device profiles
- Configure phone settings (template deployment, personalization)
- Bulk device provisioning for large deployments
- Remove/deactivate devices
Dialplan configuration:
- Create, modify, delete route patterns
- Translation patterns and digit manipulation
- Calling search spaces and partitions (dial-plan security)
- Hunting lists and distribution algorithms
Feature provisioning:
- Call forwarding (all calls, busy, no answer)
- Voicemail pilot and unified messaging integration
- Conference bridges and transcoding resources
- Media resources (codecs, transcoders, DSP resources)
AXL error handling and transactions:
- Understanding AXL error codes and messages
- SOAP faults and exception propagation
- Rollback and transaction semantics
- Logging and audit trails
Integration patterns:
- Synchronous vs. asynchronous AXL calls
- Throttling and connection pooling
- Handling CUCM cluster topology (subscriber/publisher interaction)

4. Cisco Collaboration Endpoint xAPI (15% of exam)

Endpoint architecture:
- Cisco Webex Room Systems (Codecs, Room Kits, Boards)
- xAPI interfaces (SSH, HTTP/REST)
- Device roles (codec, camera, microphone, speaker)
xAPI SSH interface:
- SSH command-line access to endpoints
- Configuration commands (set, get, list)
- Event subscription and status polling
- Script execution (built-in endpoint scripting)
xAPI HTTP/REST interface:
- HTTP POST for configuration (JSON payloads)
- HTTP GET for status and statistics
- WebSocket connections for real-time events
Configuration and customization:
- Call settings (dial plans, speed dials, call queuing)
- Camera and audio settings (pan-tilt-zoom, microphone gain)
- Branding and user interface customization
- Network configuration (IP, DNS, NTP)
Real-time event monitoring:
- Call state events (connected, disconnected, ringing)
- Participant join/leave events in group video calls
- Device status changes (standby, active, in-call)
- User interaction events (button press, menu selection)
Event subscription framework:
- Subscribe to event categories (call, video, audio, presence)
- Webhook delivery and notification filtering
- Event acknowledgment and delivery guarantees
Endpoint automation examples:
- Auto-answer and call routing scripts
- Post-call surveys and feedback collection
- Meeting room occupancy detection
- Automated troubleshooting and health checks
xAPI Python SDK:
- jsxapi library for Pythonic interface to endpoints
- Connection pooling and session management
- Error handling and reconnection strategies

5. Webex Meetings and Advanced Collaboration APIs (15% of exam)

Webex Meetings API (distinct from Core Meetings API):
- User provisioning in Webex Meetings (separate from Webex app)
- Meeting scheduling with Meetings-specific settings
- Attendee records and meeting analytics (CMR - Cloud Meeting Records)
- Billing and subscription management
Cisco Webex Contact Center (Webex CC) APIs (if included in v1.2):
- Agent and supervisor provisioning
- Routing and queue management
- Call recording and compliance
Collaboration device management (Cisco Catalyst Center integration):
- Device inventory and health monitoring
- Configuration deployment at scale
- Software updates and patch management
- Firmware rollback procedures
Hybrid and on-premises integration:
- Expressway connector APIs
- CUCM cluster discovery and provisioning
- Interoperability between cloud and on-premises resources
Advanced use cases:
- Bot frameworks (Webex SDK, Botkit for Webex)
- Meeting room booking integration (calendar APIs)
- Attendance tracking and reporting

Common job-ready skills

Core: Write Python scripts to automate Webex user/meeting provisioning; construct AXL SOAP calls to manage CUCM phones and users; use xAPI to configure and monitor Cisco collaboration endpoints
Advanced: Build REST API clients for multi-tenant Webex management; develop hybrid workflows (cloud + on-premises); implement event-driven automation with webhooks; create Webex bots and integrations
Operational: Use Git for infrastructure-as-code collaboration; troubleshoot API calls and SSL/TLS certificate issues; monitor API rate limits and performance; document automation runbooks
Soft skills: Gather automation requirements from teams; communicate API limitations and performance trade-offs; mentor junior engineers in API integration patterns; identify legacy systems needing modernization

Recommended courses

Cisco official (archived, may no longer be actively taught):
- CLAUTO: Automating and Programming Cisco Collaboration Solutions
- Prerequisites: Python basics, REST API concepts, CCNA networking knowledge
Third-party training providers (may still offer if exam deadline passed):
- Global Knowledge: CLAUTO course (check if still available post-sunset)
- VoiceBootcamp: Cisco Collaboration Automation training
- CBT Nuggets: CCNP Collaboration modules (may include CLAUTO legacy content)
- Linux Academy / A Cloud Guru: Cisco DevNet Professional (alternative path)
Self-study resources (post-sunset):
- Cisco DevNet Learning Labs (free, Webex and CUCM AXL labs)
- Cisco Learning Network documentation (white papers, architecture guides)
- Python documentation and jsxapi GitHub repository
- CUCM AXL schema and WSDL reference (Cisco documentation portal)
Hands-on labs:
- Cisco DevNet Sandbox (free Webex, CUCM, endpoint labs with browser access)
- Local Python environment + requests library + mock APIs
- Collaboration endpoint simulator (if available) or hardware lab access

Practice exams

Official (exam now retired; limited availability):
- Cisco Learning Network practice exams (may no longer be active as of May 2026)
Third-party (legacy; quality may vary):
- ExamTopics (user-contributed questions for 300-835)
- ExamCollection, CertLibrary, DumpsBase (may have archived 300-835 resources)
- Udemy: "300-835 CLAUTO Automating and Programming Cisco Collab. EXAM" (check if course still active)
Strategy (for those who took exam before sunset): Practice exams were crucial before Feb 2, 2026. Post-sunset candidates are redirected to DevNet Professional or updated CCNP Collaboration paths.

Books

Primary (CLAUTO-specific):
- Study Guide 300-835 CLAUTO Automating and Programming Cisco Collaboration Solutions Exam by Anand Vemula & Madison G Digital Voice (only dedicated CLAUTO study guide; limited availability post-sunset)
Supplementary (API and DevOps foundations):
- CCNP Collaboration Core CLCOR 350-801 Official Cert Guide by Jason Ball & Thomas Arneson (covers core infrastructure concepts)
- Learning REST APIs by Sam Ruby (REST fundamentals)
- Python for Network Engineers by Eric Chou (Python basics + network automation)
- Cisco documentation:
  - Webex APIs Developer Guide (official reference)
  - CUCM AXL API schema and examples
  - xAPI reference manuals (Cisco Webex Room Systems)
Online resources:
- Cisco Learning Network documentation portal (free white papers, guides)
- GitHub repositories (jsxapi, Webex SDK samples)
- DevNet.cisco.com (free labs and learning paths)

Job titles

Collaboration Engineer (with automation/scripting focus)
UC Automation Engineer
Collaboration DevOps Engineer
Cisco Collaboration Architect (with API integration specialization)
Webex Solutions Engineer (API/integration focus)
Unified Communications Systems Administrator (automation-focused)
Infrastructure as Code (IaC) Engineer (collaboration systems)
Collaboration Integration Specialist
Cisco DevNet Specialist (Collaboration track)

Salary (USD / ZAR×18 / GBP / EUR / AUD)

Based on CCNP Collaboration + automation/DevOps skills (May 2026 data):

USD (United States): $120,000 – $150,000+ annual average (higher than base CCNP Collaboration due to programming + DevOps premium); $58–$72/hour
- Webex/Cloud specialist premium: +5–10% over base CCNP Collaboration
- DevOps/automation premium: +8–12% over base networking engineer
ZAR (South Africa, ×18 multiplier): ~R2.16M – R2.70M annual (using $120k–$150k USD baseline)
GBP (United Kingdom): ~£96,000 – £120,000 annual (using 0.80 GBP/USD rate; actual UK rates may vary)
EUR (Eurozone): ~€110,000 – €138,000 annual (using 0.92 EUR/USD rate; varies significantly by country and cost of living)
AUD (Australia): ~A$185,000 – A$231,000 annual (using 1.54 AUD/USD rate; varies by state/city, Sydney/Melbourne premium)

Note: CLAUTO certification holders (pre-sunset) may command premium compared to base CCNP Collaboration if they have active portfolio of automation projects. Post-sunset, DevNet Professional becomes alternative credential path with similar or better market value for automation-focused roles.

Skills validated

✓ Python programming (data types, control flow, functions, exception handling)
✓ REST API design and consumption patterns
✓ Webex organization, user, space, and meeting management via APIs
✓ CUCM AXL SOAP API for provisioning phones, users, and dialplan
✓ Cisco collaboration endpoint xAPI (SSH, HTTP, WebSocket)
✓ Real-time event subscription and webhook-driven automation
✓ OAuth 2.0 authentication and token management
✓ API rate limiting, error handling, and resilience patterns
✓ Git version control and collaborative development
✓ Hybrid on-premises/cloud collaboration automation
✓ Troubleshooting API calls, SSL/TLS, and integration issues

Related certs

300-810 CLICA: Implementing Cisco Collaboration Applications (covers CUCM-based collaboration apps, messaging, presence)
300-815 CLACCM: Implementing Cisco Collaboration Call Control and Mobility
300-820 CLHCT: Implementing Cisco Collaboration Hybrid and Cloud Technologies (formerly CLCEI; cloud/hybrid focus)
300-825 CLCNF: Implementing Cisco Collaboration Conferencing (on-premises Meeting Server)
350-801 CLCOR / CLCORv2.0: Implementing and Operating Cisco Collaboration Core Technologies (core exam; required with any concentration)
Cisco DevNet Professional: Alternative professional-level certification for API and automation skills (not UC-specific; broader scope)
Cisco DevNet Associate: Entry-level DevOps/automation certification (lighter programming load than DevNet Professional)

Automating and Programming Cisco Collaboration Solutions