Designing Cisco Security Infrastructure (300-745 SDSI) Practice Test
Prepare for the Cisco Designing Cisco Security Infrastructure exam with free practice tests focused on security architecture design. Each 20-question set uses a 30-minute planning timer based on the 90-minute professional exam window and a 60-question pacing baseline.
Mixed Set — 300-745 SDSI Practice Tests
Questions are distributed across all four Cisco SDSI objective areas. Higher-weighted design areas such as Secure Infrastructure and Risk, Events, and Requirements appear more frequently to match the official blueprint balance.
Domain Wise — 300-745 SDSI Mock Tests
Target a single SDSI objective area at a time. These focused 20-question mock tests help you strengthen specific design topics before moving back into mixed exam-style practice.
About the 300-745 SDSI Certification Exam
Everything you need to know about the Cisco Designing Cisco Security Infrastructure exam format, objectives, and career value.
What Is Cisco 300-745 SDSI?
Designing Cisco Security Infrastructure (300-745 SDSI) is a Cisco professional-level security concentration exam focused on architecture decisions rather than product-only configuration. It validates a candidate's ability to design secure infrastructure, protect applications, align security decisions with business and technical requirements, and understand the role of artificial intelligence, automation, and DevSecOps in modern security programs.
Passing 300-745 SDSI earns the Cisco Certified Specialist - Designing Cisco Security Infrastructure certification and satisfies one concentration exam requirement for CCNP Security when combined with the required core exam. It is especially relevant for security architects, network security engineers, solution designers, security consultants, SOC architects, and engineers moving from implementation into design responsibilities.
Security architecture skills continue to be valuable across enterprise, service provider, cloud, and consulting environments. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a 2024 median annual wage of $124,910 for information security analysts and projects 29% employment growth from 2024 to 2034, much faster than the average for all occupations.
Exam Format (2026)
Testing method: Proctored Cisco certification exam delivered through Pearson VUE testing options.
Exam code: 300-745 SDSI v1.0.
Duration: 90 minutes.
Language: English.
Question count: Cisco does not publish a fixed question count; many candidates plan around a 55-65 question professional-exam range.
Question types: Cisco professional exams may include multiple-choice, multiple-response, drag-and-drop, scenario, and design-analysis style items.
Passing score: Cisco does not publish passing scores because exam forms and scoring can change.
Exam fee: $300 USD, or Cisco Learning Credits where available.
Eligibility Requirements
Formal prerequisites: Cisco does not list a mandatory prerequisite for taking the 300-745 SDSI exam.
Recommended knowledge: Candidates should understand enterprise security architecture, segmentation, VPN and tunneling choices, firewall architecture, application protection, cloud-native design, SOC workflows, compliance, automation, and DevSecOps risk reduction.
Certification path: Passing SDSI earns a Cisco Certified Specialist credential and can be used as the CCNP Security concentration exam when paired with the required CCNP Security core exam.
Experience level: Best suited for professionals with hands-on network security experience who are ready to make design tradeoffs based on business and technical requirements.
Validity: Cisco Associate, Professional, Specialist, and Expert-level written exams are valid for three years.
300-745 SDSI Objective Weights — v1.0 Exam Outline
The Cisco 300-745 SDSI blueprint divides the exam into four objective areas covering security architecture design, application protection, risk-driven design changes, and automation-focused security operations.
| Objective | Topic | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Objective 1 | Secure Infrastructure | 30% |
| Objective 2 | Applications | 25% |
| Objective 3 | Risk, Events, and Requirements | 30% |
| Objective 4 | Artificial Intelligence, Automation, and DevSecOps | 15% |
How Our Practice Tests Are Designed
Blueprint-aligned coverage — Mixed sets are built around the official Cisco SDSI v1.0 objective weights. Secure Infrastructure and Risk, Events, and Requirements each receive 30% emphasis, Applications receives 25%, and Artificial Intelligence, Automation, and DevSecOps receives 15%.
Design-first question style — SDSI preparation is about choosing security architectures, controls, and workflows for a given requirement. These practice questions emphasize design tradeoffs, requirements analysis, risk mitigation, and technology selection rather than memorizing command syntax.
Proportional timer — Cisco lists the SDSI exam duration as 90 minutes but does not publish a fixed question count. A practical 60-question planning baseline gives about 1.5 minutes per question, so each 20-question practice set is timed at approximately 30 minutes.
Objective-wise deep dives — Use focused tests to isolate weak areas such as application protection, SOC-driven design changes, infrastructure security, or DevSecOps automation before returning to mixed sets for full-blueprint review.
300-745 SDSI Exam Preparation Tips
Study Strategy
Study like an architect: Focus on why a control or architecture is selected. The exam is about design decisions, requirements, and risk reduction, not only operating a single Cisco product.
Map each topic to scenarios: Connect endpoints, identity, email, SaaS, IoT, VPN, firewalls, application security, and SOC workflows to real business requirements. SDSI questions often test your ability to choose the best design for a situation.
Review frameworks and compliance: Be comfortable with how frameworks, regulatory requirements, and post-incident lessons influence a security architecture lifecycle.
Test-Taking Strategy
Read for constraints first: Identify business goals, technical limits, risk level, and compliance needs before selecting an answer. The best design is usually the one that satisfies the full scenario.
Watch overlapping options: Cisco design questions may include several technically valid answers. Choose the option that best fits the stated requirement, not simply the strongest or most expensive control.
Pace the exam: With a 90-minute window, avoid spending too long on one design scenario. Use timed 20-question practice sets to build a steady rhythm before exam day.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ready to Test Your Cisco SDSI Knowledge?
Start with a mixed set to measure your readiness, then use objective-wise mock tests to strengthen specific architecture design areas.
Start 300-745 SDSI Practice Test 1 →
