CNPLE study plan

Draw a three-tier campus design from memory, labeling core, distribution, and access roles, and justify each layer's function in writing

Compare collapsed-core, spine-leaf, and routed-access topologies and state one failure scenario for each where the topology choice matters

Configure VLANs, 802.1Q trunks, and inter-VLAN routing on a three-switch lab and verify forwarding with show commands

Explain the spanning-tree root election and port-state progression, then predict the outcome of a given bridge-ID and cost scenario

Configure and verify single-area OSPFv2 in a four-router lab, including neighbor adjacency, DR/BDR election, and cost manipulation

Compute route selection outcomes for static, OSPF, and floating-static paths and document the tie-breaking order

Build an eBGP peering between two autonomous systems and demonstrate prefix advertisement with a route filter applied

Troubleshoot a deliberately broken adjacency by reading neighbor states and logs rather than guessing

Configure HSRP or VRRP between two distribution switches and test failover by shutting the active interface

Design and verify an EtherChannel bundle in LACP mode and explain the hashing behavior that determines which link a flow uses

Map a set of business requirements (redundancy, segmentation, growth) to specific design and switching features

Document a failure domain analysis for the lab topology, naming which single link or device loss breaks which service

Place stateful firewalls between zones in the lab and write rules that permit required traffic while denying everything else, then verify with logged test traffic

Configure site-to-site IPsec with IKEv2 and capture the phase 1 and phase 2 negotiation to confirm parameters match

Deploy 802.1X port authentication with a RADIUS server and demonstrate both an authorized and a rejected supplicant

Classify a list of given threats as reconnaissance, spoofing, or denial of service and select a control for each

Build a layered troubleshooting method and apply it to three injected faults, recording each hypothesis and the evidence that confirmed or rejected it

Configure SNMP polling and syslog collection to a local collector and confirm both event streams arrive

Use packet capture to isolate a name-resolution or DHCP failure and document the decisive packet

Harden device management access with AAA, SSH-only access, and an exec timeout, then verify the old access path is closed

Configure DHCP relay across a routed boundary and verify clients in a remote subnet receive leases

Set up an authoritative DNS zone with forward and reverse records and validate resolution with query tools

Design a QoS policy that classifies voice, business, and best-effort traffic and apply marking and queuing at an interface

Compare a centralized and a distributed application delivery model and recommend one for a stated latency requirement

Write a Python or Ansible script that pushes a VLAN and interface description change to at least three devices and is safe to re-run

Use a structured data model (YAML or JSON) as the single source of truth for device intent and render configs from it

Produce a change-management record for one lab change covering approval, rollback plan, and verification steps

Map two compliance obligations to concrete technical controls and state the evidence that would prove each control operates

Take two full timed practice exams and score each domain separately to identify remaining weak areas

Re-teach the two weakest domains by rebuilding the relevant lab from a blank configuration without notes

Review all previously written deliverables and correct any technical inaccuracies found

Build a one-page reference sheet of commands, port numbers, and design rules you must recall quickly