mediumMultiple Choice
200-901 Practice Question: A university IT department manages a Cisco Meraki…
A university IT department manages a Cisco Meraki network with 200 MR access points and 50 MS switches. They use the Meraki dashboard API to automate network provisioning. A new student dormitory was added, and the team needs to create a new network and claim devices. They have a Python script that uses the Meraki API to create the network and then claim devices by serial numbers. The script successfully creates the network but fails when claiming devices with a 400 error: 'Device serial number is not valid or already claimed'. The serial numbers are correct and unused. The API key has full organization access. The script uses the endpoint 'POST /networks/{networkId}/devices/claim' with the correct body. What is the most likely cause of the failure?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the distinction between organization-level inventory and network-level claiming, trapping candidates who assume that claiming a device automatically adds it to the organization's inventory or that a valid serial number is sufficient without prior inventory registration.
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
✓
The devices have not been added to the organization's inventory first.
In the Meraki API workflow, devices must first be added to the organization's inventory via the 'POST /organizations/{organizationId}/inventory/devices' endpoint before they can be claimed into a specific network. The 400 error 'Device serial number is not valid or already claimed' occurs when the serial numbers are not present in the organization's inventory, even if they are correct and unused. The script successfully creates the network but fails at the claim step because the devices have not been inventoried at the organization level.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The API key does not have permission to claim devices.
Why it's wrong here
The stem states the API key has full organisation access, so a permission gap contradicts the given facts. Insufficient API key scope is a common cause of Meraki claim failures, and would be correct if the key were restricted to read-only or a single network.
- ✗
The serial numbers contain a typo.
Why it's wrong here
The stem states the serial numbers are correct and unused, so a typo contradicts the given facts. Checking serial transcription is a sensible first step when claims fail, and would be the cause if the values had been mistyped during data entry.
- ✓
The devices have not been added to the organization's inventory first.
Why this is correct
Claiming into a network requires the serials to exist in the organisation's inventory; the dashboard rejects unknown serials with that 400 error. Meraki devices must first be added to inventory (via order, licence claim, or manual add) before `POST /networks/{networkId}/devices/claim` can bind them, so the script must add inventory first.
- ✗
The devices are not Meraki MR or MS models.
Why it's wrong here
The error text names serial validity or prior claim, and the stem confirms the devices are MR access points and MS switches. Verifying model compatibility is worthwhile when claiming mixed hardware, and would be the cause if unsupported device types were submitted.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
Courseiva writes every 200-901 question from scratch — 975 in total, each with an explanation and a wrong-answer breakdown. None are copied from real exams or dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
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.