CCT is an entry-level certification that Cisco has had out for a while actually, And the cool thing about it is if you’re just getting into networking, like, I mean, just getting into networking, you don’t know what an IP address is or what a switch is for instance, the CCT is a great certification to help break down the fundamentals.

If you feel like that is you, this is great, because the CCT starts off at the base foundations and then it grows from there. So you’re like, Rob, what about the CCNA? Good point! CCNA is essentially the next certification in the Cisco line-up that you would take after passing your CCT. You should have a base level of understanding when you get into CCNA already kind of know some things that’s kind of the expectation of CCNA.

CCT is a more fundamentals based certification from Cisco, it gets your feet wet in the world of Cisco.  So, if you don’t really know what an IP address is, or what a switch is or you’re asking yourself what’s layer two. So these are things that you’re going to want to ask yourself.

But if you’re in a situation where you’re like, I don’t know anything about networking, Hey, I was there once too. Yeah, I’ve got a CCIE, but you know what? There was a point in time where I thought I was never going to pass my CCNA. It took me three times to pass. So it’s a no joke certification.

With that being said, this is where CCT comes into play. We need to understand what it covers. The focus of CCT is to focus on the basics, right?  You’re going to be going to a site where Cisco equipment routers, switches, firewalls are going to be deployed.  So your goal and your job would be to physically go to somewhere and be able to identify a router, identify a switch. Maybe you’ve got somebody on the phone, that’s in the engineering team and they’re saying, Hey, we need you to take and unbox this switch and you put it in the rack, cable it up, you power it on, but maybe there’s no config on it. Well, how do, what do you do then? Well, guess what?

Because the CCT covers these types of things. You can actually look at the config that’s on the existing device. Copy it off. Maybe you’ve already got a copy from the engineering team that they sent you in a text file. You copy and paste that into the CLI you saved the config, then boom! You’re alive. How cool is that, Right? 

These are the things that the CCT is going to help you understand and be able to work with. This is why it’s so powerful. The thing that a lot of the server, upper level certifications, miss, and this is critical for anyone that’s going to be doing technician level stuff. Even architects, the guys that have been doing networking and whatever else for 10 years or more, myself included, what is the number one thing that you have to do as an entry level person?

You gotta put your hands on the gear, putting your hands on the gear can be intimidating. Well, you know what? We don’t want to make it intimidating. We want it to be like, Oh yeah, no big deal. Pick up a laptop, pick up a PC. Same concept applies. 

Did you know a router and switch is actually a computer with no GUI(Graphical User Interface) that you would click around inside of.

It’s still a computer, still CPU, still Ram, still an operating system. It does something right? And that’s something that you definitely want to pay attention to when you’re trying to understand what it is that equipment does.  CCT focuses heavily on those details.

When it comes to focusing on the CCT routing and switching, which for those of you that are following the new Cisco paradigm shift and their certification program, the new CCNA(200-301) has replaced all the pre-existing certifications.  So they’re all gone, The CCNA Security, CCNA Routing and Switching, and the CCNA Service Provider have all been retired. So now the CCT route switch is going to provide that base level foundation. Do you remember the CCENT the Cisco Certified Entry-Level Network Technician certification?  Guess what this is basically that certification.

So if you want something to start off with that is Cisco focused. It’s not network plus, but isn’t quite as intimidating or that big beast that CCNA is, CCT is the way to go. It’s a much smaller certification, 55 questions. It’s about $120(USD) to register on Pearson Vue in order to take the exam. 

So what does CCT cover?  CCT covers four different areas: You’ve got the general networking knowledge, which is about 25% of the certification. 

You have Cisco equipment and related hardware, which is about 20%, these two alone are huge, Being able to identify a router, identify a switch and being able to tell the difference between the two that’s a big deal. 

Cisco iOS software operation which is 29% of the exam, How does iOS actually work? That’s important to understand as well. 

And then Service Related Knowledge. That’s about 26%. So when you tally them all up, you get a 100%.

And that’s what you want to pay attention to, make sure you understand each bullet item and the blueprint as you are looking at what it is is you’re going to be having to learn in order for you to successfully pass the exam. 

Now, a 90 minute exam, 55 to 65 questions, $125 USD in order to take the exam is not too bad, right

It’s a third of the price of CCNA. So, what do you do now? Like for example, let’s say you’ve already knocked out CCT and you’re like, Hey Rob, I’m already there. Well, I want to, I need to do more. What’s my next step? That’s my question. Whenever I pass the certification, what’s the next step? Follow me over to NexGenT.com where we have a number of really awesome trainers and career success coaches to help you LEVEL UP your career. What we do is we help you through a process of both project based learning and certification courses. So we help you understand how technologies work and then we have projects to help you actually implement them to see how they actually would work out there in the real world!

We hope you found this article useful.  Please share and leave your comments below!

TLDR: CCT Routing & Switching 100-490

Cisco Certified Technician Routing and Switching certification focuses on the skills required for onsite support and maintenance of Cisco routers, switches, and operating environments. Technicians in this area must be able to identify Cisco router and switch models, accessories, cabling, and interfaces; understand the Cisco IOS software operating modes and identify commonly found software; and be able to use the Cisco Command Line Interface (CLI) to connect and service products.  Achieving Cisco Certified Technician Routing and Switching certification is considered the best foundation for supporting other Cisco devices and systems.

1. Details: https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/training-events/training-certifications/exams/current-list/100-490-rstech.html 
2. 90 Minute Exam
3. 55-65 Questions
4. Price: $125.00(USD)
5. Domains: https://learningnetwork.cisco.com/s/cct-routing-switching-exam-topics 
   1. 1.0 – General Networking Knowledge – 25%
   2. 2.0 – Cisco Equipment and Related Hardware – 20%
   3. 3.0 – Cisco IOS Software Operation – 29%
   4. 4.0 – Service-related Knowledge – 26%

Share on Facebook

Tweet

Follow us