If you work in presales, systems engineering, or solution architecture, you’ve probably asked yourself this already: Is a niche Cisco certification like the 700-905 CHXSE still worth pursuing in 2026? Cisco’s portfolio keeps evolving, cloud vendors keep pushing their own platforms, and many engineers feel certification fatigue setting in.
The Cisco 700-905 CHXSE exam focuses on HyperFlex fundamentals, positioning it squarely in the hyperconverged infrastructure space. It’s a short, 60-minute exam aimed primarily at presales and partner-facing engineers rather than deep implementers. That alone makes some people pause—short exam, narrow scope, specialized product.
This article gives you the unfiltered answer. We’ll break down what the CHXSE certification actually validates, where it fits in today’s infrastructure landscape, and whether it still delivers real career value in 2026. No vendor cheerleading—just practical insight from the field and a clear prep roadmap if you decide it’sright for you.