CCNA 200-301: Should You Take v1.1 or v2.0?
Cisco is replacing the current CCNA 200-301 exam (v1.1) with version 2.0. According to Cisco, you can test on v1.1 until 2 February 2027, and v2.0 goes live for testing on 3 February 2027. Dates can change, so confirm them on Cisco's CCNA pages before you book.
Which version should you study for?
- Booking before 3 February 2027: you will sit v1.1. Study the v1.1 exam topics.
- Booking on or after 3 February 2027: you will sit v2.0. Study the v2.0 exam topics.
- Not sure when you will be ready: pick the version that matches your realistic exam date, not the one with the most study material online. Much of the material you can find today still follows v1.1.
Both versions carry the same exam code, 200-301, so check the version number in the exam topics document you are using.
How the structure changes
v1.1 has six domains. v2.0 has five.
| v2.0 domain | Weight |
|---|---|
| Network Infrastructure and Connectivity | 25% |
| Switching and Network Access | 25% |
| IP Routing | 20% |
| Network Services and Security | 20% |
| AI, and Network Operations and Management | 10% |
The v1.1 domains were Network Fundamentals (20%), Network Access (20%), IP Connectivity (25%), IP Services (10%), Security Fundamentals (15%) and Automation and Programmability (10%).
What is new in v2.0
- A domain that names AI. It asks you to describe the role of agentic AI in network operations and to choose a prompt for a generative AI system, considering data classification, output format, persona and instructions.
- More troubleshooting wording. Several topics now start with "diagnose" or "troubleshoot": interface and cable faults, IPv4 and IPv6 addressing, DHCPv4, client connectivity and DNS records.
- Network operations topics. SNMP, syslog message content and severity levels, and configuration management with a tool such as Ansible sit together in the last domain.
What v1.1 topics have no v2.0 equivalent
These v1.1 objectives have no matching objective in the v2.0 outline, based on our own comparison (the mapping is ours, not Cisco's):
- Explaining network components and topology architectures, comparing TCP and UDP, and switching concepts
- Cisco wireless architectures and access point modes, and reading the wireless LAN GUI
- Configuring NTP, QoS per-hop behaviors, and TFTP and FTP
- Security fundamentals: key concepts, security program elements, and password policy elements
- Controller-based, software-defined architecture, REST API characteristics, and recognising JSON
If you sit v1.1 you still need all of these. If you sit v2.0 you can skip the ones that are not in the new outline, so check the official v2.0 document for the exact wording.
How the BoardITGuy CCNA board handles both
The Cisco CCNA study board follows the v2.0 outline. The v1.1 topics with no v2.0 equivalent sit on their own branch, marked as valid only until 2 February 2027, so a v1.1 candidate can study the whole exam and a v2.0 candidate can ignore that branch. The free preview shows how a board looks.
Official sources
- Cisco's v2.0 exam topics PDF and v1.1 exam topics PDF, linked from the CCNA pages on Cisco Learning Network
- Cisco's blog post on getting certified before the CCNA refresh
This guide is not affiliated with or endorsed by Cisco.