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200-901 Practice Question: A team is building a CI/CD pipeline for network…
A team is building a CI/CD pipeline for network automation. They want to use Cisco Modeling Labs (CML) to validate configuration changes before production. What is the best approach to integrate CML into the pipeline?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the distinction between tools that manage device configuration (Ansible, pyATS) versus tools that manage the simulation environment itself (CML API), leading candidates to pick a tool they know well instead of the correct integration method.
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
✓
Use CML's REST API to start a simulation, apply changes, run tests, then tear down
D is correct because CML provides a REST API that allows programmatic lifecycle management of simulations. Integrating this API into a CI/CD pipeline enables the pipeline to dynamically create an isolated test environment, apply configuration changes, run validation tests, and then tear down the simulation to free resources. This approach ensures repeatability, isolation, and efficient resource usage, which are critical for automated network 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.
- ✗
Use the pyATS framework to connect to CML and run tests
Why it's wrong here
pyATS connects to CML and runs tests, but it does not create or tear down the virtual topology the tests require, leaving the pipeline without a lab. It is tempting because pyATS is the standard validation framework, and it would be correct for the test-execution stage once CML nodes exist.
- ✗
Create a permanent topology in CML for each branch
Why it's wrong here
A permanent per-branch topology consumes CML licences and compute indefinitely and leaves stale state between pipeline runs. It is tempting because persistent labs suit long-lived development environments, but CI validation needs ephemeral topologies created and torn down per run.
- ✗
Use Ansible to provision CML nodes directly
Why it's wrong here
Ansible provisions and configures CML nodes, but it does not execute the validation tests or return pass/fail results the pipeline gates on. It is tempting because Ansible is the standard tool for driving CML topology creation, and it would be correct for building the lab environment rather than validating configurations.
- ✓
Use CML's REST API to start a simulation, apply changes, run tests, then tear down
Why this is correct
CML exposes a REST API that the pipeline can call to spin up a topology, push configuration changes, execute automated validation tests, then tear the simulation down. This programmatic lifecycle gives repeatable pre-production validation without manual lab interaction.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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