Summer in Melbourne,there's nothing quite like it. The days are longer, andthere's a palpable happy vibe buzzing through the city. For me, the special draw is Cisco Live Melbourne 2022, and the opportunity to meet, learn and collaborate with industry experts across Data Center and Cloud Networking.

In just a week or so,Cisco Live 2022will be ready to sizzle at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. From a Cisco Cloud Networking standpoint, Cisco Nexus Dashboard, Cisco ACI, and Nexus 9000 Series switches are showing up in a big way.

Read on to learn what you can expect and experience at this buzzing event, and a tour of how Cisco Data Center and Cloud Networking is ready to engage and enrich you.

1. Can't-miss keynotes

At the outset, I would recommend that you attend all keynotes to understand Cisco's strategy for emerging technology trends and market transitions. Keynotes and Innovation Talks provide insight and strategic direction. With compelling innovation, the power of IT, and a focus on meaningful impact in our communities, businesses can drive change and leave a lasting impact for generations to come.

JoinCisco EVP Jeetu Pateland four other senior Cisco execs on Wednesday, Dec 7 at 10.30 AM, in the Plenary Hall 1-3, as they share Cisco's vision for the future and the innovations that will create hybrid, secure, and connected experiences for everyone.

For a ringside view of big news in Cloud Networking and hybrid cloud, I strongly recommend innovation session featuring Cisco Execs Jeremy Foster and Yousuf Khan on the topic "Unlocking the possibilities of Hybrid Cloud", at 2pm on Wednesday Dec 7, There you will learn how Cisco is building a cloud-delivered, cloud-managed hybrid cloud operations platform to deliver predictive performance monitoring, cloud-neutral automation and cloud native capabilities.

We also have innovation sessions featuring Security, IoT, Enterprise Networking and many other hot topics. Make sure to check out the innovation sessions in the Session Catalogue.

2. Take a DevNet deep dive

Get hands on with Cisco Data Center and Cloud Networking at this year's Cisco Live DevNet Zone. We're hosting multiple sessions, workshops, demos and learning labs featuring ACI, Infrastructure as Code, NX-OS, and Nexus Dashboard. Cisco DevNet Zone is a beehive of excitement at all Cisco Live events and many attendees find it very compelling given its appeal to everyone from beginners to API experts. Over the years, our DevNet community has grown to 500,000+ members and offers software certifications starting with this edition of Cisco Live. DevNet certifications are designed for both network engineers and software developers and provides Associate, Specialist, Professional and Expert level paths to specialize.

The top draw at the DevNet zone is the specialCloud Networking takeover sessionat 12 noon on Wednesday, Dec 7, local time. Cisco's Thomas Scheibe and Yousuf Khan will introduce an open API approach with Cloud Networking. It's broad presence in Cisco DevNet offers customers a fast-track to learn, test and deploy data center technologies across diverse use-cases and as a pre-integrated solution jointly with our technology ecosystem partners. As a new practice this year, pre-registered attendees are seated first, so register early to get a closer view.

In this session you will learn how Cisco is tackling the IT challenge of managing hyper-distributed workloads with illustrations on the new capabilities designed to bring simplicity to network operations, changing the way customers configure, operate, and analyze cloud networking. During the Takeover session, we will also feature a "Raffle quiz" fun event where you get to crack tech questions and get a chance at winning Bose Headsets as top winners' prizes. We also have a Demo Pod in DevNet zone where Cisco's latest Cloud Networking innovations will be featured during the entire course of the Cisco Live event. A full hour of giveaways, happy hour and fun awaits you. Be sure to reserve this takeover session slot in your calendar for Wednesday.

3. Get hands-on at the World of Solutions (WOS)

The World of Solutions is your opportunity to explore the broader Cisco Partner Ecosystem, find answers to your specific networking challenges, and hear the unique perspective of Cisco engineers and partners. Get into the center of the Cisco Live action! Here's what you'll find in the World of Solutions: Join us for our welcome reception on Tuesday, Dec 6 at 5.30 PM, and connect with fellow attendees and Cisco partners to help us celebrate the opening day of the World of Solutions with music, food, and drinks. We hope to see you there!

The World of Solutions (WOS) enables you to immerse yourself in the Cisco Showcase where hybrid work takes center stage through more than 100+ demos. Our goal is to let you discover the latest Cisco software solutions that provide the visibility and management that IT managers need to transform business. Dive deeper and learn even more about specific products, industry solutions, services, and hardware. Explore the Cisco Stand for specifics.

We have stacked a rich technology demo solutions menu featuring Full-Stack Observability, Hybrid Cloud, IoT, Cloud Networking, Software Services, Security, among major ones. Specifically, on the Cloud Networking front, we have demos on "automating and simplifying hybrid clouds" theme (featuring ACI, Nexus Dashboard, Nexus Cloud, and Infrastructure-as-Code). In addition, hardware pedestals will showcase our Nexus portfolio evolution and latest Cisco Nexus 9000 Series switches. The list of Data Center Networking demos is vast and the best way for you to experience them all is to stop by at our demo booths in WOS.

4. Choose your own adventure with breakout sessions

To your heart's delight...is how I will describe Cisco technical breakout sessions. Yes, we have close to 350+ breakouts from industry recognized experts at the show. Cisco ACI, Nexus Dashboard, Nexus Cloud and other Cloud Networking breakouts feature prominently. Carlos Campos Torres's session, "An interactive conversation on Nexus Cloud" (BRKDCN-2103) is a must-attend for those looking for a detailed roadmap and nuances of Nexus Dashboard and Nexus Cloud. Lukas Krattiger, a distinguished technical marketing engineer, is ready to dazzle you with a couple of sessions that I would recommend as well:BRKDCN-2267and BRKDCN-2913.

With the growing emphasis on DevOps and Infrastructure as Code (IaC), automation toolchains like Terraform and Ansible, we offer more sessions this year, and mark Richard Watson's IaC focused sessionBRKDCN-1810, and Quinn Snyder'sDEVWKS-3360on your calendar. DevNet czar Quinn Snyder is also presenting a host of other IaC focused sessions, notable among them beingDEVWKS-1235, DEVNET-2252. Visit the sessions catalog to choose from a variety of topics on Cloud Networking.

5. Connect with your peers

As a Cisco Live attendee, you benefit from the opportunity to interact with your peers, Cisco staff and partner technical experts in both structured and informal settings. Our Welcome Reception and Customer Appreciation Event are the highlights of the week's social calendar. Get ready to be entertained Wednesday evening at our annual celebration event!

Read more on the Social Events & Networking Onsite section. Tuesday's welcome reception at the World of Solutions, Thursday's customer appreciation event are the highlights. Hot Dub Time Machine will be headlining the celebration this year.

I can go on and on, but I would never be able to cover all the excitement in store. There is so much more you can explore on your own, and our Meet and Greet ambassadors will be happy to assist you at the show. As for me, if time permits, I plan to visit some of Melbourne's iconic locations. Safe travels and a happy Cisco Live!

Resources

Cisco Live Melbourne, 2022

Keynotes and Innovation Showcases

Innovation Sessions Catalog

DevNet Zone

DevNet certifications

Cloud Networking takeover session

World of Solutions (WOS)

Cisco Stand

Social Events & Networking Onsite