CCNP Automation Practice Question
A network engineer is new to automation and wants to use a simple, agentless tool to push configuration changes to a group of Cisco IOS XE switches. The engineer prefers to write playbooks in YAML and use SSH for connectivity. Which tool should the engineer choose?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming that any configuration management tool can use YAML and SSH, when only Ansible natively combines both for agentless network automation.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Ansible
Ansible is an agentless automation tool that uses SSH for connectivity and YAML for playbooks. It provides dedicated modules for Cisco IOS XE, such as ios_config and ios_command, enabling straightforward configuration pushes. The engineer's requirements for agentless operation, YAML playbooks, and SSH align perfectly with Ansible's design, making it the correct choice among the options.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Ansible
Why this is correct
Ansible is an agentless automation tool that uses SSH to connect to managed devices. It uses YAML-based playbooks, which match the engineer's preference. For Cisco IOS XE, Ansible provides modules like ios_config and ios_command that run over SSH. This makes Ansible the ideal choice for simple, agentless configuration management with YAML playbooks.
- ✗
Puppet
Why it's wrong here
Puppet typically requires an agent installed on managed nodes, although it can operate in agentless mode via SSH for some modules. However, Puppet uses a declarative DSL that is not YAML-based, and its network automation support is less straightforward for Cisco IOS XE compared to Ansible. The engineer's preference for YAML playbooks and agentless SSH points away from Puppet's typical model.
- ✗
SaltStack
Why it's wrong here
SaltStack can operate agentless via SSH, but its configuration files are YAML-based while its execution modules and states often use Jinja2 and Python. It is less commonly used for Cisco IOS XE automation than Ansible. While SaltStack supports agentless SSH, the engineer's preference for writing YAML playbooks is more directly satisfied by Ansible, which is purpose-built for such workflows.
- ✗
Chef
Why it's wrong here
Chef uses Ruby-based recipes and typically requires an agent on managed nodes, although chef-solo can run locally. It does not use YAML playbooks, and its network automation modules for Cisco IOS XE are less common. The engineer's requirement for YAML and agentless SSH does not align with Chef's standard architecture, making it a poor fit for this scenario.
About these practice questions
This 350-401 question is part of Courseiva's 1,923-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Cisco exam blueprint
This 350-401 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Cisco certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the 350-401 exam.