Free resources for network engineers.
A curated list of the certifications, courses, standards, communities, books, and career data we point listeners to most often. Every link here is free or freely accessible. Vendor neutral by default. Last reviewed June 2026.
Learning paths and certifications
The certifications that move resumes and pay bands. Mix vendor and vendor-neutral. Pick one track, finish it, then expand.
- Cisco Learning Network (CCNA → CCIE)
Official Cisco study community, exam guides, and certification roadmaps.
- Juniper Open Learning
Free associate-level training and certifications (JNCIA tracks).
- Arista Training & Services
Training and certification paths for Arista EOS, CloudVision, and the ACE program.
- Nokia Service Routing Certification
Tracks for IP/MPLS service provider and data center networking.
- CompTIA Network+
Vendor-neutral entry-level certification, widely accepted as a foundation.
- AWS Certified Advanced Networking
Advanced cert for designing AWS networks and hybrid architectures.
- Azure Network Engineer Associate
Microsoft's networking-focused Azure credential.
- Google Cloud Network Engineer
GCP networking certification focused on VPCs, hybrid connectivity, and security.
Free courses and labs
Practical, hands-on, free. Start with Kirk Byers if you've never written a line of Python.
- Kirk Byers — Python for Network Engineers
Free 8-week email course. The single most recommended Python on-ramp for network engineers.
- Cisco DevNet Sandbox
Free always-on labs for IOS XE, Nexus, Meraki, Webex, and more.
- Juniper vLabs
Free reservation-based virtual labs for hands-on Junos practice.
- David Bombal (YouTube)
Deep technical videos on networking, certifications, and network automation.
- Free CCNA — Jeremy's IT Lab
A full free CCNA course on YouTube with practice questions.
Foundational RFCs and standards
The Request for Comments (RFC) series is how the internet is specified. Every major protocol you touch has an RFC behind it. These are the ones every network engineer should be able to point to.
- RFC 791 — Internet Protocol (IPv4)
The original IP specification, 1981.
- RFC 8200 — Internet Protocol, Version 6 (IPv6)
Current IPv6 specification.
- RFC 9293 — Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)
Modern consolidated TCP specification, supersedes RFC 793.
- RFC 768 — User Datagram Protocol (UDP)
UDP, three pages, still in force after 45 years.
- RFC 4271 — Border Gateway Protocol 4 (BGP-4)
The protocol that holds the internet together.
- RFC 2328 — OSPF Version 2
OSPFv2, the most common interior gateway protocol in enterprise networks.
- RFC 1918 — Address Allocation for Private Internets
Where 10/8, 172.16/12, and 192.168/16 come from.
- RFC 5424 — The Syslog Protocol
Standard for transmitting log messages across networks.
- RFC 1034 / 1035 — Domain Names
Foundational DNS specification.
Where network engineers hang out
Network engineering is a small world. The people in these communities are how most working engineers stay current and how most opportunities surface.
- AONE Discord
3,500+ network engineers, infrastructure pros, and career-switchers. Active daily.
- USNUA — US Networking User Association
Community-run networking association for practitioners across the US.
- r/networking
The largest general networking subreddit. Career questions, troubleshooting, vendor discussion.
- r/ccna
Study group, exam tips, and lab questions for Cisco's flagship certification.
- r/Cisco
Cisco-specific technical discussions, IOS questions, and product news.
- Tech Field Day
Independent IT influencer events. The Networking Field Day series features deep technical briefings from vendors.
- NANOG — North American Network Operators Group
The professional association for ISP and large-scale network operators.
- AutoCon (Network Automation Forum)
The premier conference for network automation practitioners.
AI and LLMs for network engineers
Knowing how to use LLMs effectively is now a baseline skill for network engineers. Not because AI replaces you, but because AI-augmented engineers are dramatically faster at automation, troubleshooting, documentation, and learning new technologies. Start with the basics, then bring them to your daily work.
- Anthropic Academy
Free guides on Claude, prompt engineering, and building AI workflows.
- Model Context Protocol (MCP)
Open standard that lets LLMs connect to real systems (networks, databases, APIs). The path from chat to action.
- Cisco AI Solutions
Vendor view on AI in networking infrastructure and operations.
Industry and career data
Salary and employment data from authoritative sources. Useful for negotiating, planning a career move, or just understanding where the field is going.
- BLS Occupational Outlook — Computer Network Architects
Federal employment data, salary medians, and job outlook for network architects.
- BLS — Network & Computer Systems Administrators
BLS data for the adjacent admin/operations track.
- Levels.fyi
Crowdsourced compensation data, useful for benchmarking offers at large tech employers.
- Cisco Learning Network — Salary Survey
Annual survey of certified Cisco professional compensation.
Books that hold up
The handful of network engineering books that are still worth your time after years of cloud, automation, and AI reshaping the field.
- Network Warrior, 2nd ed — Gary A. Donahue
The book most senior network engineers wish they'd read on day one.
- Routing TCP/IP, Volume I — Jeff Doyle & Jennifer Carroll
The canonical reference for IP routing protocols. Volume II covers BGP and multicast in depth.
- TCP/IP Illustrated, Volume 1 — Kevin R. Fall & W. Richard Stevens
Bottom-up protocol-by-protocol walkthrough. Dense, definitive.
- The Phoenix Project — Gene Kim et al.
A novel about an IT department under fire. Required reading for anyone working at the application/infra boundary.
Cognitive biases and decision-making
Most engineering mistakes are not technical, they are cognitive. The traps that derail design reviews, troubleshooting calls, and career decisions are the same traps psychologists have been documenting for decades. Reading on this stuff is one of the highest-leverage habits a working engineer can build.
- List of cognitive biases (Wikipedia)
The canonical reference. Browse the list once, and you'll start spotting them in design reviews and postmortems.
- The Decision Lab — biases reference
Plain-English entries for each bias with concrete examples. Better starting point than Wikipedia if the academic tone is rough.
- Thinking, Fast and Slow — Daniel Kahneman
The foundational book on System 1 / System 2 thinking. Heavy but worth it. Most other books in this category reference it.
- The Art of Thinking Clearly — Rolf Dobelli
99 short chapters, one bias per chapter. The least intimidating on-ramp.
- Predictably Irrational — Dan Ariely
Behavioral economics through the lens of everyday decisions. Highly readable.
- Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion — Robert Cialdini
Six principles of persuasion. Reads as much like a defensive playbook (against vendor pitches and bad architecture decisions) as a sales manual.
- Decisive — Chip & Dan Heath
A practical four-step framework for making better decisions under uncertainty. Useful for technical and career calls alike.
Spotted a broken link, or know a resource we should add? Email andy@artofnetworkengineering.com.