Cisco CCT Data Center (010-151 DCTECH)

For IT leaders: When a Nexus switch or UCS server arrives in a box, someone on the team has to rack it, apply an initial configuration, and know when to contact Cisco support. Without that baseline, routine data center service tasks can end up escalated to senior engineers or outside contractors.

This foundational course follows the 010-151 DCTECH objectives, the single exam the Cisco CCT Data Center certification required before Cisco retired it on 9 February 2025. It is built for staff with no required prior experience. It also works as a refresher for network administrators who know Catalyst and IOS but are new to Nexus and NX-OS.

• Role fit: Data center technicians, junior network administrators, and help desk staff moving into infrastructure roles.
• Time investment: About 8 hours across 8 skills. The course covers data center components, hypervisors, backup and DR tiers, transceiver selection, Nexus, UCS, and MDS hardware, NX-OS command modes, and service tasks for both NX-OS and UCS.
• Change management: The training calls out IOS habits that can cause problems on NX-OS. This helps experienced Catalyst admins adjust without disrupting production.
• Operational value: Learners practice following Cisco installation guidance, working through UCS service tasks, and recognizing when an issue should be escalated to Cisco support.

Team Leads can assign the course as a CCT Data Center Playlist. Built-in summary quizzes at the end of each skill help confirm readiness before learners sit the exam.

Data center teams lose time when field technicians treat Nexus like Catalyst, guess at hardware, or escalate issues before they’ve gathered the basics. This training gives your team a shared foundation for identifying, configuring, installing, and servicing Cisco data center gear so work gets done right the first time.

Scenarios drawn from the course include:

• Fewer CLI missteps on Nexus. Technicians with IOS habits learn where NX-OS behaves differently, including command modes, basic configuration tasks, and useful show commands. This reduces errors during change windows.
• Cleaner installs and repairs. Your team learns to find the correct Cisco hardware installation guide for a specific Nexus or UCS model, arrive with the right tools for Nexus installs and repairs, and follow the right process for the hardware in front of them.
• Faster, better-documented escalations. Practitioners learn to scope UCS issues before escalating, gather the right support information, and communicate clearly when contacting Cisco support. They also learn how warranty and RMA returns fit into service tasks.
• Smarter hardware and DR conversations. Staff can explain why B-Series blade servers save power and space when storage lives on an array. They can also describe how hot and cold DR tiers balance recovery speed against hardware and licensing requirements.

For Team Leads, the result is technicians who can support initial UCS Manager configuration and complete hands-on service tasks with less senior-engineer supervision.

Knowledge

• The core components of a data center (servers, hypervisors, storage arrays, and SANs) and how virtualization lets one physical server host multiple VMs
• Backup and disaster recovery tiers, including when hot replication or cold restore-from-backup fits a given application tier
• Where Nexus switches belong in the network, how they differ from Catalyst, and the Nexus hardware families
• Cisco UCS B-Series and C-Series servers, MDS hardware, and the power, space, and connectivity tradeoffs between blade and rack-mount servers
• How to choose the correct data center transceivers, including Fibre Channel and Ethernet optics
• How NX-OS command modes compare to IOS, and which IOS habits cause problems on Nexus

Ability

• Use and interpret basic and useful NX-OS commands, such as assigning an IP address to an interface and running show commands
• Find the correct Cisco hardware installation guide for a specific model, then rack-mount Nexus switches and UCS servers
• Prepare the tools needed for installs and repairs, and connect through the console or management port
• Apply an initial configuration in UCS Manager to prepare for full deployment
• Troubleshoot basic UCS service issues and collect the information needed for escalation
• Generate a tech support file and coordinate with Cisco support on warranty or escalation cases