In case you might get 98%+ implementation and alter success 5x sooner, what number of modifications would you make to your community?
Cisco Companies as Code can assist you expedite community automation – and get you prepared for the AI period.
Right here’s what it’s essential to know – briefly.
*This weblog relies on a Cisco Stay session delivered by Jesse Reed, VP of Buyer Expertise Product Administration, and Michael Kaemper, CTO of Buyer Expertise EMEA. You possibly can watch the complete session right here.
#1
What’s the state of networks as we speak?
- Roughly 80% of community issues are because of improper configuration and points with change administration[1], which are sometimes a results of human error.
- IT leaders are shifting away from handbook automation to API-driven environments to arrange for AI.
- Infrastructure as Code is established because the de facto methodology with the worldwide market projected to develop at a CAGR of >24% from 2025 to 2027[2].
#2
What do it’s essential to change to get AI-ready?
The AI period requires sure modifications:
- Digitize change; Go from ClickOps to DevOps: Transfer from human workflow to digital workflow. As a repeatable methodology, you possibly can go from one structure to the subsequent utilizing the identical toolkit.
- Leverage digital intelligence and expertise inside DevOps: Guarantee greatest practices are utilized, validated designs are adopted, and all modifications are examined and documented with model management. Making use of open requirements like Terraform, OpenTofu, Ansible, and Relaxation-APIs allow you to handle your surroundings in a common and absolutely digital style.
Operating your infrastructure digitally is the important thing to harvesting AI capabilities – which has nonetheless to point out its full potential.
#3
What’s Cisco Companies as Code?
This can be a massive transformation in the best way you use your surroundings. Cisco can assist you with Cisco Companies as Code, enabling you with these three digital capabilities:
- Infrastructure as Code: All of Cisco’s greatest practices, data, and capabilities, so you possibly can keep away from errors when defining and executing configurations.
- Enterprise Course of and Analytics: We guarantee an built-in enterprise course of is included. We provide observability and analytics so you possibly can mirror on how your modifications have an effect on your person expertise or your utility efficiency.
- DevOps Toolchain: Cisco equips you with a toolchain or use yours the place out there. It’s all open supply to work in your heterogeneous environments, not simply Cisco applied sciences.
#4
How are you going to put together the workforce for change? (AI brokers)
Engineers can now have interaction with the Cisco Companies as code by an AI Assistant to get assist all through the complete course of:
- “Assist me perceive the configuration”: The engineer comes into an advanced topology and desires to know the configuration state.
- “Assist me change the configuration”: The engineer will get assist altering the configuration and creating documentation.
- “Assist me troubleshoot”: The engineer executes a pipeline with validation earlier than the change goes into manufacturing. If an error happens, the assistant creates another configuration and helps determine and perceive the basis explanation for that difficulty.
*Now out there for ACI. Quickly out there for SD-WAN and NDFC.
#5
How are you going to obtain cross-architecture automation?
Community as Code API lets you automate completely different architectures in the identical method in addition to combine your online business course of along with your ITSM, providers catalog, and so forth. Upon getting one structure carried out within the toolchain, you need to use the identical toolkit for different architectures.
Many architectures can be found as we speak, together with ACI, NDFC, SD-WAN, ISE, Firewall, Meraki, and Catalyst Middle.


#6
What do clients say?
“We’ve been speaking about community automation for 10 to fifteen years however hadn’t seen the increase we anticipated. For us, it was the adoption of the general public cloud that opened our eyes, and we actually noticed the chance. Infrastructure as Code can have a major impression on the best way we function and preserve the community.”
-Jose Manuel Postigo Aguilar, Lead Community Architect, BBVA


[1] Gartner, Hype Cycle for Enterprise Networking 2024, June 2024
[2] International Market Insights, Infrastructure as Code Market Dimension, December 2024
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