The Cisco 500-174 FPIMPADM or Implementing and Administering FlexPod Solution exam, was designed to measure the knowledge of field engineers working with FlexPod solutions. For that reason, it confirms an understanding of a wide range of FlexPod concepts using tasks that also cover the management and troubleshooting of its components. In that regard, this test will also verify the integration or alignment of FlexPod solutions with Data Center architectures. That being said, the 500-174 exam will be taken by students pursuing the Cisco and NetApp FlexPod Implementation and Administration Specialist certification.

Related Designation

The Cisco and NetApp FlexPod Implementation and Administration Specialist certificate is a specialist title that’s associated with the Data Center category. Ideally, this validation is well suited to data management and storage specialists such as field engineers, channel partners, professional consultants, and systems engineers whose roles are exclusively focused on enabling FlexPod solutions. IT experts see it as the first real program from a multi-vendor perspective that aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the standards and tools used to assess the requirements and performance features of the functional FlexPod solutions.

500-174 Facts

To begin with, this Cisco evaluation can be written in English and presents between 45-55 questions that you’ll have to complete in just 1 hour. Besides, it is administered on the Pearson VUE website and can be taken via the same platform either online or from designated testing centers.

Cisco 500-174 Tested Topics

In a nutshell, the actual 500-174 exam will cover a total of 5 knowledge areas including the following:

1. Information Gathering for FlexPod Solutions (10%)

This topic covers two major tasks including describing the key components of FlexPod as well as those of the Cisco UCS. In this section, the main technologies to master include storage, network, compute, servers, and fabric interconnects.

2. FlexPod Design (10%)

Here, the learners will be expected to show their adeptness at describing the storage components applicable to FlexPod, and the network switches as well as the servers for the Cisco UCS used in FlexPod. So, to excel in such a tested part, it will be important to master the relevant technologies such as E-Series, FAS/AFF, the chassis of B-Series, blades, Nexus 3000/Nexus 9000, the servers for C-Series, and OSs.

3. FlexPod Configuration (34%)

FlexPod Configuration, on the other hand, will evaluate the knowledge of installing and configuring the components of FlexPod like hypervisor, compute, network, and storage. After that, the focus will be on describing the initialization of the Fabric Interconnect, which implies dealing with various modes for UCS, internal wiring based on the Cisco UCS, and the criteria for policies. Then, candidates will accentuate configuring networks within a UCS solution. As a result, they’ll manage to work with QoS and know how to install the channels for ports as well as UCS pools. Also, within this topic, the emphasis will be on configuring SAN boot within a FlexPod solution so you’ll have to be aware of how to define the types of SAN boots that need to be set up and also need to know how to map a LUN to a particular host. Changing a service profile objective is also included in the exam content, and it scrutinizes the way to change UCS service templates as well as profiles. When it comes to setting up storage within a FlexPod solution, you’ll have to showcase your mastery of making a storage aggregate, storing a VM, knowing how the storage of NetApp executes RAID-TEC, how much the domain of broadcast in ONTAP is essential, and how to differentiate between NAS LIFs and SAN. Finally, such a domain will look into transforming Cisco Nexus switches. In more detail, the last portion will shed light on licenses, port-channel, VLANs for Nexus, NxOS configurations for switches, vPC, etc.

4. FlexPod Administration (26%)

This topic aligns its content with the skills required to administer FlexPod. In particular, this means students should be ready to demonstrate their knowledge of administering FlexPod solutions in line with the recognized best practices, describing the management applications related to FlexPod, and installing and upgrading the FlexPod solution. When it comes to the terms and technologies highlighted within the whole section, you’re for sure to encounter how to enable & disable the features for the UCS call home, NetApp AutoSupport, and how to add a block to an IP address for access to KVM by utilizing the UCS Manager. In addition, candidates will focus on the process of UCS management, storage systems monitoring, additional tools, the operating system for ONTAP, Nexus, and hypervisor.

5. FlexPod Troubleshooting (20%)

Finally, FlexPod Troubleshooting will help you complete your training by confirming if you can conduct basic troubleshooting tasks in FlexPod. This includes resolving a wide variety of network and boot problems, iSCSI IQN targets, and using the right WWPN when zoning FC SAN LIF.

Your Career Prospects

The Cisco 500-174 exam addresses the knowledge of data center technologies and will help you launch a successful career in one of the following roles:

• Field Engineer

  Field engineers are knowledgeable IT specialists with a wide array of responsibilities on-site and in specific settings. Thus, they inspect and install new technologies as well as equipment, direct crews, perform comprehensive research, and compile reports on project status. In many setups, these individuals will also be in charge of the critical processes to ensure everything works perfectly and the latest engineering designs align with the company goals. Besides, they may be involved in resolving issues onsite, overseeing technical repairs & possible improvements, ensuring equipment maintenance, and determining user needs. For all these, according to PayScale.com, a typical field engineer earns an average salary of $64,595 per year.

• Systems Engineer

  Usually, systems engineers have a wide-ranging job scope covering the management and monitoring of the functional systems and infrastructure as well as the installation, configuration, testing, and maintenance of software including system management tools alongside operating systems. Also, they ensure system availability, monitor applications to detect potential issues, recommend accurate solutions, write custom scripts, and contribute to the design of operational as well as information support systems. As for the data from PayScale.com, individuals with this title make an average income of $80,445 per annum.

Certification Path

Once you earn the Cisco and NetApp FlexPod Implementation and Administration Specialist designation, the next path should be focused on the professional- and expert-level certificates. Thus, viable options here are the CCNP Data Center and then the CCIE Data Center validations, which are more advanced certificates that will reflect your proficient mastery of data center technologies.