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200-901 Practice Question: A large enterprise is migrating to a DevOps model…
A large enterprise is migrating to a DevOps model and needs to automate the provisioning of network devices. The team has chosen Ansible for configuration management and is using a Git repository for version control. The network includes Cisco IOS routers, Catalyst switches running IOS-XE, and ASA firewalls. The team has written Ansible playbooks for each device type. The goal is to have a CI/CD pipeline that automatically deploys configuration changes to the production network after the changes are merged into the main branch. However, during a recent deployment, a misconfiguration was pushed to a core router, causing a 10-minute outage. The root cause was that the playbook that was executed was not the correct one for that device model. The team wants to implement a mechanism to prevent similar incidents. Which approach should the team adopt?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the distinction between static validation (syntax checks, peer review) and dynamic validation (staging environment testing), and the trap here is assuming that code review or pre-commit hooks alone can prevent runtime device-model mismatches.
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
✓
Implement a CI/CD pipeline that runs playbooks against a staging environment with similar devices, and only deploy to production after successful validation
A staging environment with similar devices allows the team to validate playbooks against representative hardware before production deployment. This catches model-specific incompatibilities (e.g., a playbook written for IOS-XE being applied to a classic IOS router) without risking production outages. The CI/CD pipeline can run the same playbooks in staging, verify the resulting device state, and only promote changes to production after successful validation.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Implement a CI/CD pipeline that runs playbooks against a staging environment with similar devices, and only deploy to production after successful validation
Why this is correct
Correct: Automated testing in staging catches misconfigurations.
- ✗
Require all changes to be approved by a change advisory board before merging
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: Manual approval does not prevent execution of wrong playbook.
- ✗
Require two-person peer review for all playbook changes
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: Peer review may not catch all errors.
- ✗
Use a pre-commit hook that checks the playbook syntax and device compatibility
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: Pre-commit hooks cannot test actual device behavior.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 200-901 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 200-901 exam.