CiscoProfessionalOn requestUpdated: July 2026

SP8KE Training for Your Team — Cisco 8000 Series Routers Essentials

A new core platform arrives with a gap built in: the routers are racked months before the team that must run them feels at home on them, and every early incident is debugged against unfamiliar hardware. SP8KE (Cisco 8000 Series Routers Essentials) closes that gap for the Silicon One-based 8000 series — platform architecture, IOS XR operations on this hardware, bring-up and software lifecycle, telemetry and troubleshooting hooks, and the platform’s roles in core, peering and aggregation designs.

The course suits both sides of a deployment: engineers building the new core, and the NOC and operations staff who will hold the pager for it. For teams migrating from ASR 9000 or other XR platforms, it concentrates on what actually changed rather than re-teaching XR from scratch.

We organize delivery through authorized partners with instructors who deploy these platforms in production — live online in your time zone, on site, or as a private group timed to land just before your hardware does.

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Who this course is for

Engineers at providers deploying or inheriting Cisco 8000 routers
Operations and NOC teams taking a new 8000-based core into support
Enterprise backbone teams adopting the platform for high-capacity cores
Integrator engineers delivering 8000-based projects

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.

Cisco 8000 platform architecture: Silicon One, line cards and what the hardware design means for operations
IOS XR on the 8000 — installation, upgrade and the commit-based workflow in practice
Bringing a chassis into service: initial setup, interfaces and management access done right
Where the platform fits: core, peering and aggregation roles in a modern backbone
Health, telemetry and troubleshooting hooks — knowing the box is sick before customers do
Migration considerations when the 8000 replaces an older core platform

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Key facts

Duration	On request
Level	Professional
Prerequisites	Working knowledge of IP routing and some exposure to IOS XR or other Cisco router platforms
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.

SP8KE 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 ASR9KE (ASR 9000 Essentials)

The equivalent platform course for the ASR 9000 family, the long-standing edge and aggregation workhorse. Choose by the hardware you run: ASR9KE for ASR 9000 estates, SP8KE for the newer Silicon One-based 8000 series.

Cisco IOSXR100 (Introduction to IOS XR)

The operating system course: XR configuration model, commit workflow and management, independent of hardware. Take IOSXR100 first if the team is new to XR; SP8KE assumes those basics and concentrates on the 8000 platform itself.

A custom intensive

Rolling out the 8000 as part of a wider core refresh? A custom program can combine platform essentials with your migration plan — segment routing design, telemetry integration, cutover rehearsal — in one agenda.

Need only part of SP8KE?

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.

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SP8KE: frequently asked questions

Do we need IOS XR experience before SP8KE?

Some exposure helps: the course concentrates on the 8000 platform and assumes basic XR navigation. Teams coming from IOS or another vendor usually take an IOS XR introduction first — we can arrange the two courses as one sequence with the same provider.

Is this a hardware course or a configuration course?

Both, deliberately: platform architecture and Silicon One specifics on one side, practical bring-up, software lifecycle and operational verification on the other. The goal is a team that can install, configure and support the platform, not recite the datasheet.

We run ASR 9000 today and are evaluating the 8000 — which course first?

For engineers who already operate ASR 9000, SP8KE is the right course: XR knowledge transfers, and the course highlights what differs — hardware architecture, software lifecycle, platform roles. ASR9KE would largely repeat what your team knows.

Can the course cover our specific deployment design?

In a private group, yes within limits: instructors can weight modules toward your chassis models and intended roles, and discuss your migration scenario. A formal design review of your network is a consulting engagement, which we scope separately if needed.

How do we organize SP8KE 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 SP8KE training options — quotes within 5 business days

No commitment — describe the task and we come back with concrete options, dates and prices.

Cisco, SP8KE and course names are trademarks of their respective owners. Uptime Skills is an independent training operator and is not affiliated with or endorsed byCisco. Official courses are delivered by authorized training partners.