CiscoExpert
Implementing Cisco Application Centric Infrastructure — Advanced
DCACIA · 5 days
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CiscoProfessional5 daysUpdated: July 2026
DCACI Training for Your Team — Implementing Cisco Application Centric Infrastructure
Most ACI fabrics are installed by an integrator, signed off, and handed to a team whose muscle memory is NX-OS CLI. The result is a familiar pattern: routine changes go through the one person who attended the handover workshop, and everyone else clicks around the APIC carefully. DCACI (Implementing Cisco Application Centric Infrastructure) exists to fix exactly that — it teaches the policy model, tenants, endpoint groups and contracts as a coherent system, so the fabric stops being a black box with a GUI.
The course covers single-fabric implementation end to end: bring-up, segmentation policy, external L2 and L3 connectivity, hypervisor integration and the REST API underneath it all. It also prepares the 300-620 DCACI exam — a CCNP Data Center concentration and the standard proof of ACI competence Cisco partners look for.
As a training operator, we arrange DCACI delivery through authorized partners with instructors who run ACI fabrics in production — live online in your time zone, at your site, or as a private group weighted toward your migration or operations scenario.
Who this course is for
- Network engineers taking over an ACI fabric an integrator installed
- Data center teams migrating from traditional Nexus designs to a policy-driven fabric
- Engineers preparing the 300-620 concentration exam on the CCNP Data Center track
- Integrator staff who deploy and hand over ACI at customer sites
What your team will learn
Topic areas below are grouped in our own words. The full official agenda is available on request — it comes from the authorized partner as part of your quote.
- From box-by-box configs to policy: fabric bring-up and the ACI object model that replaces the CLI habit
- Tenants, EPGs and contracts — segmentation you can read as intent instead of a thousand ACL lines
- Connecting the fabric to everything else: L2 extensions and L3Outs that route predictably
- VMM integration — keeping the network in step with vCenter without ticket ping-pong
- Packet forwarding inside the fabric, and where to look first when traffic does not arrive
- The REST API behind every APIC click: managing ACI programmatically from day one
Key facts
| Duration | 5 days |
|---|---|
| Level | Professional |
| Prerequisites | Solid data center networking knowledge — Nexus switching, routing and VXLAN concepts at roughly DCCOR level |
| Certification | Prepares for exam 300-620 DCACI — a CCNP Data Center concentration |
| Formats | Live online (VILT), On-site at your location, Private group, Seats in scheduled groups |
| Languages | English + local-language instructors on request |
Formats and how we organize it
- Live online (VILT)
- On-site at your location
- Private group
- Seats in scheduled groups
One request → three options
Fill in the form below — it takes a couple of minutes. Within 5 business days you compare 2–3 concrete offers — provider, instructor, dates, price below the public list. We contract and administer the delivery end to end. Details:how we work and vendor training.
DCACI vs alternatives: which to choose
Factual criteria only — level, duration, audience and certification. The right choice depends on your team's starting point and stack.
Cisco DCCOR (Data Center Core)
The broad CCNP Data Center core: network, compute, storage and automation across the whole stack. Choose DCCOR for the core exam and overall breadth; DCACI when the immediate job is running an ACI fabric specifically.
Cisco DCACIA (ACI — Advanced)
The expert-level sequel: Multi-Pod, Multi-Site, service insertion and advanced routing at scale. Choose it after DCACI-level skills are in place; starting there without fabric fundamentals is a frustrating week.
A custom intensive
Migrating a specific brownfield estate into ACI? A custom 2–4 day program on our materials can rehearse your migration plan — tenancy model, L3Out cutover, VMM integration — instead of the generic curriculum.
Need only part of DCACI?
If your team needs a subset of this program — or a mix of topics from several courses — we build a custom 2–4 day intensive on our own materials, shaped by your infrastructure. One custom program typically replaces 2–3 catalog courses.
Explore custom coursesDCACI: frequently asked questions
Do we need DCCOR before DCACI?
No formal order is required. DCACI assumes solid data center networking — Nexus switching, routing, VXLAN concepts — but not the DCCOR course itself. Teams chasing full CCNP Data Center certification usually take DCCOR for the core exam and DCACI as the concentration, in either sequence.
Our fabric is already in production — is this course still useful?
That is the most common student profile: a fabric installed by an integrator, now operated by a team trained on CLI-driven switching. The course builds the ACI mental model — policy, tenants, contracts — that makes day-two changes safe instead of exploratory.
Does DCACI cover Multi-Pod and Multi-Site?
It introduces the architectures so you know what they are for, but deep design and implementation of Multi-Pod, Multi-Site and service insertion live in the advanced course, DCACIA. Single-fabric implementation is covered end to end here, including external connectivity and VMM integration.
What does the 300-620 exam count toward?
It is a CCNP Data Center concentration exam. Paired with the 350-601 core exam (the DCCOR course), it completes CCNP Data Center certification. Passing 300-620 alone also grants a Cisco Specialist credential for ACI implementation.
How do we organize DCACI training?
Fill in the request form on this page — team size, format, timing. Within 5 business days you receive 2–3 options from authorized partners with vetted instructors, dates and prices below public lists.
Request 2–3 DCACI training options — quotes within 5 business days
No commitment — describe the task and we come back with concrete options, dates and prices.
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