200-901 Infrastructure and Automation Practice Question
Which tool is specifically designed for model-driven programmability using YANG data models?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the distinction between a protocol that natively uses YANG (NETCONF) versus tools that can work with YANG but are not designed specifically for it (like Ansible), so the trap here is assuming any automation tool that supports YANG qualifies as 'specifically designed' for model-driven programmability.
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
✓
NETCONF
NETCONF is the correct answer because it is a network management protocol specifically designed to operate with YANG data models, using XML or JSON encoding to transport configuration and state data. YANG defines the structure of the data, and NETCONF provides the operations (get, edit-config, etc.) to manipulate that data in a model-driven, programmatic way. This makes NETCONF the standard tool for model-driven programmability in modern network automation.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
NETCONF
Why this is correct
NETCONF uses YANG-modelled datastores and RPC operations to configure and retrieve device state, satisfying the stem's requirement for model-driven programmability. Unlike SNMP's MIBs or CLI scraping, NETCONF's protocol operations map directly onto YANG schema nodes, giving structured, transactional configuration rather than imperative command sequences.
- ✗
SNMP
Why it's wrong here
SNMP uses MIBs for monitoring and polling, not YANG models for configuration; it cannot render or validate YANG-modelled data. It is tempting because SNMP is a long-standing management protocol, but model-driven programmability is delivered by NETCONF or RESTCONF, which natively encode YANG.
- ✗
CLI
Why it's wrong here
CLI is imperative, human-typed configuration, not model-driven; it does not consume YANG models to generate or validate configuration. It is tempting because engineers use CLI daily for device changes, but YANG-driven programmability requires NETCONF or RESTCONF, which encode YANG-modelled data.
- ✗
Ansible
Why it's wrong here
Ansible is a general automation framework using modules and playbooks; it does not natively parse YANG models as its data structure. It is tempting because Ansible can push network configuration, but model-driven programmability specifically requires NETCONF or RESTCONF, which transport YANG-encoded payloads.
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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.