What ENCOR actually proves

The 350-401 ENCOR exam is the core exam for CCNP Enterprise and also a qualifying exam for Cisco Certified Specialist - Enterprise Core. It tests whether you can work across the enterprise stack, not just configure a switch or troubleshoot a single routing protocol in isolation.

Expect questions across six exam domains:

Architecture — 15%
Virtualization — 10%
Infrastructure — 30%
Network Assurance — 10%
Security — 20%
Automation — 15%

That weighting matters. If you spend most of your time memorizing controller names and neglecting routing, Layer 2 behavior, and first-hop redundancy, you will feel it.

This exam suits you if you already work with enterprise networks or are moving from CCNA-level administration into implementation and operations. It is broad. Broader than many candidates expect. The challenge is not extreme depth in one area; it is switching mental context quickly between OSPF, wireless design, REST APIs, device hardening, overlay architectures, and assurance tooling.

Cisco exams typically mix straightforward knowledge checks with scenario-based questions. You need to recognize the right technology, understand how it behaves, and eliminate plausible wrong answers. There is no room for vague familiarity.

The 30% domain you cannot afford to be weak in: enterprise infrastructure

Start here. Infrastructure is the largest domain and the one that exposes weak fundamentals immediately.

Routing you must know cold

Focus on operational behavior, not just definitions.

OSPFv2 and OSPFv3
- neighbor states
- DR/BDR election logic
- LSA basics
- area types: normal, stub, totally stubby, NSSA
- route summarization and filtering concepts
- passive interfaces and authentication
EIGRP
- DUAL concepts
- feasible successor and feasibility condition
- metrics and path selection
- named mode basics
- classic troubleshooting clues
BGP
- iBGP vs eBGP
- path attributes: weight, local preference, AS-path, origin, MED
- route advertisement behavior
- next-hop handling
- route reflectors and confederation concepts
- best-path logic at a practical level
Redistribution
- one-way vs mutual redistribution risks
- seed metrics
- loops and route feedback

If you have done only static routing and basic OSPF, BGP will feel abstract at first. Fix that early.

Layer 2 switching: where Cisco loves to test edge cases

You need to be comfortable with the mechanics of campus switching.

VLANs and trunks
802.1Q tagging
DTP behavior and why it is often disabled in secure environments
EtherChannel
- LACP vs PAgP
- consistency requirements
- why mismatches break forwarding in ugly ways
Spanning Tree Protocol
- RSTP, Rapid PVST+, MST
- root bridge election
- port roles and states
- convergence behavior
- edge/PortFast, BPDU Guard, Root Guard, Loop Guard

A common exam pattern is to describe a topology change or blocked port behavior and ask which STP feature explains it. Learn how these features act, not just what they stand for.

First Hop Redundancy Protocols

Know the differences and operational logic of:

HSRP
VRRP
GLBP

You should know election behavior, active/standby roles, load balancing differences, and what happens during failover.

QoS at the enterprise level

ENCOR does not expect service-provider-level QoS mastery, but you do need the model and common mechanisms.

classification and marking
trust boundaries
CoS, DSCP, and mapping
queuing, policing, shaping, congestion avoidance
end-to-end QoS design thinking

IP services and multicast basics

Also review:

NAT/PAT behavior
NTP
SNMP versions and secure use
syslog
DHCP relay
multicast fundamentals including PIM sparse mode, RP, and IGMP basics

Best way to study this domain

Do not read it passively. Build and break things.

A good lab sequence is:

Build a three-router OSPF topology.
Add EIGRP on one segment and redistribute.
Insert BGP between two edges.
Create VLANs, trunks, EtherChannels, and STP variants.
Add HSRP or VRRP gateways.
Verify everything with show commands.

Useful commands to know from muscle memory:

show ip route
show ip ospf neighbor
show ip eigrp neighbors
show ip bgp
show spanning-tree
show etherchannel summary
show standby brief
show vrrp brief
show glbp brief

If you cannot interpret these outputs quickly, keep labbing.

Architecture, overlays, and the controller-driven enterprise

This is where ENCOR separates older enterprise experience from current Cisco enterprise architecture.

Know the design intent behind each architecture

You need to understand the role and components of:

Traditional campus design
Cisco SD-Access
Cisco SD-WAN
Traditional WAN technologies and underlay/overlay relationships
Cloud integration concepts in enterprise designs

Do not memorize product names in a vacuum. Understand what problem each architecture solves.

Cisco SD-Access

For SD-Access, focus on the moving parts:

fabric underlay vs fabric overlay
LISP control-plane role
VXLAN data-plane role
Cisco DNA Center orchestration role
ISE for identity and policy integration
border nodes, control-plane nodes, edge nodes
virtual networks and scalable group concepts

You may not be asked to deploy SDA from scratch, but you should know what each component does and how traffic and policy are handled.

Cisco SD-WAN

For SD-WAN, know the control architecture and personalities:

vManage
vSmart
vBond
WAN Edge routers
control, management, and data plane separation
OMP basics
policy concepts at a high level
transport independence and secure overlays

Candidates often mix up controller roles. Be precise.

Wireless architecture

Wireless appears in multiple domains, and Cisco expects you to understand controller-based enterprise WLANs.

Study:

CAPWAP
centralized vs distributed data forwarding concepts
AP modes and controller roles
WLAN components and client onboarding flow
RF basics: channels, power, interference, roaming concepts
QoS in wireless environments

High availability and resiliency design

Architecture questions also touch resiliency concepts such as:

device redundancy
link redundancy
stateful failover concepts
SSO/NSF awareness
dual-homed and fault-tolerant campus or WAN design principles

A practical way to prepare is to draw the architecture from memory. If you cannot sketch SD-Access or SD-WAN and label the control components correctly, you do not own the topic yet.

Virtualization, wireless, and the services layer that people under-study

This part of ENCOR is smaller by percentage, but it is easy to lose points here because candidates treat it as miscellaneous. Don't.

Device and network virtualization

Be solid on these:

VRF and VRF-Lite
network segmentation concepts
virtualization at the control and forwarding plane level
hypervisor and virtual switching basics in enterprise environments
virtual routing instances and traffic separation

The exam objective is not deep data-center virtualization, but you need to understand how segmentation and isolated routing contexts are used in enterprise networks.

Layer 2 and Layer 3 virtualization features

Review:

switch stacking and chassis virtualization concepts
SVI behavior
inter-VLAN routing models
FHRP in segmented environments
GRE and tunneling basics where relevant to enterprise transport

Wireless specifics worth attention

Wireless questions are usually fair if you know the terminology. They become painful if you only know consumer Wi-Fi concepts.

Make sure you can explain:

802.11 standards at a practical level
2.4 GHz vs 5 GHz tradeoffs
channel overlap and non-overlapping channels
roaming basics
controller discovery/join process at a high level
SSIDs, WLAN profiles, and policy application
guest access and segmentation concepts

Why this domain trips people up

Because they postpone it. They spend weeks on routing and then try to absorb wireless, VRF, and overlays in a weekend. That is a mistake. Fold these topics into your weekly plan from the start.

Assurance and security: operations thinking, not just configuration syntax

The Network Assurance and Security domains reward candidates who think like operators.

Network Assurance

This domain is about visibility, telemetry, monitoring, and troubleshooting workflow.

Know the purpose and differences of:

SNMP
syslog
NetFlow and flow-based visibility
SPAN/RSPAN/ERSPAN concepts
IP SLA basics
model-driven telemetry at a conceptual level
device and network health monitoring approaches

Also understand troubleshooting methodology:

isolate Layer 1/2/3 issues systematically
validate control plane before blaming applications
compare expected vs actual forwarding behavior
use logs and counters, not guesses

For Cisco-specific assurance tooling, be familiar with what Cisco DNA Center Assurance is meant to do, even if you have not used it heavily in production.

Security

This is 20% of the exam. It is not optional reading.

Infrastructure protection

Know how enterprise devices are protected:

AAA with RADIUS and TACACS+
local vs centralized authentication and authorization
802.1X basics
device access hardening
role-based access concepts
management plane protection
control plane protection concepts

Layer 2 and campus security features

Study these carefully:

DHCP snooping
Dynamic ARP Inspection
IP Source Guard
port security
private VLAN concepts
storm control
BPDU Guard and Root Guard from a security perspective

These are classic Cisco exam topics because they are concrete and easy to test with scenarios.

Secure management and segmentation

You should know:

SSH over Telnet
secure SNMP usage
VPN concepts and secure transport basics
ACL design and placement logic
segmentation with VLANs and VRFs
trust boundaries and policy enforcement

Wireless security

Review:

WPA2/WPA3 basics
802.1X in wireless access control
PSK vs enterprise authentication models
guest access handling

Exam reality on security

You do not need to be a firewall specialist. You do need to understand how Cisco enterprise networks are hardened and how identity and access control interact with switching, wireless, and policy.

Automation: the part that feels new until it clicks

Many network engineers still approach this domain defensively. You should not. ENCOR automation is practical and scoped.

What you need to know

Focus on these areas:

how REST APIs work
JSON, basic data structures, and payload reading
YANG models at a conceptual level
configuration management concepts
controller-based programmability
interpreting API calls and responses
tools like Ansible, Python, and Cisco APIs in context

You are not being tested as a software engineer. You are being tested on whether you understand modern network programmability enough to use it.

Cisco-specific automation topics

Know the APIs and platforms commonly associated with enterprise automation:

Cisco DNA Center APIs
Cisco Meraki dashboard/API awareness
device programmability concepts on IOS XE
model-driven telemetry concepts
NETCONF/RESTCONF basics

Python level expected

You should be able to read simple Python and understand what it is doing.

Typical concepts:

variables
loops
conditionals
basic requests to an API
parsing JSON output

Example style of code you should be comfortable reading:

import requests

url = "https://dnac.example/api/v1/network-device"
headers = {"X-Auth-Token": token}
response = requests.get(url, headers=headers, verify=False)
print(response.json())

You do not need to write large scripts from memory. You do need to know what this code is doing, what the API returns, and why authentication headers matter.

Best study method for automation

Spend one evening with Postman or Python requests against a lab API or sample documentation. That single hands-on session will teach more than hours of passive reading.

A preparation plan that matches your background

How long ENCOR takes depends heavily on your current job.

If you already work on enterprise Cisco networks: 6 to 8 weeks

This fits you if you regularly touch routing, switching, WLANs, and device operations.

Suggested plan:

Week 1: Review exam blueprint. Identify weak areas. Start Infrastructure.
Week 2-3: OSPF, EIGRP, BGP, STP, EtherChannel, FHRP, QoS.
Week 4: Architecture, SD-Access, SD-WAN, wireless architecture.
Week 5: Security and assurance.
Week 6: Automation and virtualization.
Week 7-8: Mixed review, labs, timed practice questions, weak-area repair.

If you are coming from CCNA-level knowledge: 10 to 14 weeks

This is the most common path.

Suggested plan:

Weeks 1-2: Routing refresh: OSPF and EIGRP.
Weeks 3-4: BGP, redistribution, route manipulation basics.
Weeks 5-6: STP, EtherChannel, VLANs, FHRP, multicast, QoS.
Week 7: Architecture and virtualization.
Week 8: Wireless.
Week 9: Security.
Week 10: Assurance.
Week 11: Automation.
Weeks 12-14: Full review, labs, and exam-style practice.

If you are strong in networking but weak in Cisco enterprise products: 8 to 10 weeks

You may know routing and switching well but lack SDA, SD-WAN, DNA Center, and Cisco wireless specifics.

Weight your time like this:

40% infrastructure
25% architecture and wireless
15% security
10% automation
10% assurance and virtualization

Weekly rhythm that works

Use a repeatable cycle:

2 nights reading/video study
2 nights hands-on labs
1 night notes and flash review
Weekend 50-100 practice questions plus targeted review

Do not wait until the end for practice questions. Start them after the first two weeks so you learn Cisco's phrasing early.

Resources worth your time for cisco-350-401

Use fewer resources, better.

Official Cisco material

Start with the source documents:

Cisco 350-401 ENCOR exam topics on Cisco's certification site
Cisco Press CCNP and CCIE Enterprise Core ENCOR 350-401 Official Cert Guide by Brad Edgeworth, Jason Gooley, and Ramiro Garza Rios
Cisco U. ENCOR-related learning paths and labs if you have access
Cisco product documentation for:
- OSPF, EIGRP, BGP on IOS XE
- Catalyst switching and STP features
- Cisco DNA Center
- Cisco SD-WAN
- Cisco Catalyst 9800 wireless controllers
- ISE concepts where referenced

Video courses that map well

Well-known options:

INE CCNP Enterprise ENCOR course
CBT Nuggets ENCOR (350-401)
Kevin Wallace ENCOR content where available

Pick one primary video course. Do not bounce between three instructors for the same domain unless you are stuck.

Labs and practice environments

You need hands-on work, even if virtual.

Good options:

Cisco Modeling Labs (CML) for routing and switching
EVE-NG or GNS3 if you already use them
physical Catalyst gear if you have it, but it is not mandatory
DevNet Sandbox for API and automation exposure
wireless controller demos or documentation walkthroughs if full WLAN labs are not available

Practice questions

Use them to identify patterns, not to memorize answers. Since Truekia has 1000 practice questions for this exam, use that volume deliberately:

first pass: learn domain coverage
second pass: tag weak objectives
third pass: do timed mixed sets of 50-75

If a question exposes a gap, go back to the blueprint and lab or read that topic the same day.

Note-taking strategy

For ENCOR, your notes should be compact and operational:

protocol comparison tables
controller/component role summaries
common show commands
security feature purpose and limitation
API/protocol cheat sheet: REST, JSON, NETCONF, RESTCONF, YANG

If your notes turn into a rewritten textbook, you are wasting time.

How to sit the Cisco exam without giving away easy points

On exam day, manage breadth first.

Before the exam

Review your own summary sheets, not full chapters.
Refresh protocol comparisons: OSPF vs EIGRP, HSRP vs VRRP vs GLBP, RSTP vs MST, RADIUS vs TACACS+, NETCONF vs RESTCONF.
Do a light set of mixed questions, not a four-hour cram session.

While answering

Read the question stem first, then the options.
Watch for Cisco-specific wording around controller roles, overlay/underlay, and security feature purpose.
Eliminate answers that are technically valid in general but wrong for the Cisco enterprise context described.
On scenario questions, identify the layer first: architecture, routing, switching, security, wireless, or automation.

Common traps

confusing vBond, vSmart, and vManage
mixing LISP and VXLAN roles in SD-Access
forgetting BGP path attribute order
missing the operational difference between HSRP, VRRP, and GLBP
choosing a security feature that sounds right but protects against a different threat
overthinking automation questions that are really testing API basics

Time management

Do not get trapped proving to yourself that you know one difficult question. If a question is taking too long, make the best choice and move on. ENCOR rewards broad competence.

Final advice

If you can:

explain the enterprise architectures clearly,
troubleshoot core routing and switching from show output,
identify the right campus security controls,
understand controller-based wireless,
and read basic API/JSON examples,

then you are in range for cisco-350-401. If one of those areas is still fuzzy, that is where your next study session belongs.