Lukas Beeler’s IT Blog

A few days after i did 70-647, i attended 70-646.

My biggest worry was if Microsoft was able to really create distinguishing exams between the Enterprise Administrator and the Server Administrator part - and i think it worked out really well.

I attended this exam at BCD Sintrag, which isn’t my usual testing location either. Service was okay, no free drinks though.

The shift in focus on the Server Administrator exam is quite visible:

• There was a lot regarding to storage design and configuration - RAID levels, iSCSI, VDS, IO MultiPathing, iSCSI, FibreChannel
• Permissions, permissions, more permissions - Active Directory delegation and delegation of administrative privileges on servers
• The usual Terminal Server questions, and also several RAS questions (VPN, PPTP, SSTP, L2TP, TS Gateway, etc.)
• PKI questions till you puke - make sure to know about the PKI changes in Vista SP1 and how to administrate bigger PKI environments
• No design questions!
• A few firewall / IP configuration questions
• DHCP and a few basic subnetting questions

With this, i’ve got the two new MCITP exams done. Yay.

I’ll see the results in three months. If you want to do the beta exams too, check this posting on Trika’s most excellent certification blog.

A few days ago i posted that I will attend the 70-647 and 70-646 betas.

But luckily i was able to shuffle the 70-647 date back into this year - so i attended the 70-647 (Windows Server 2008, Enterprise Administrator) this morning.

I’m currently not in Horgen, so i attended the exam at a different Prometric testing center - this time at Alpha Solutions - the room was well lit, an older 15″ TFT at 1024×768, and a PC with acceptable performance. I was even provided a free drink.

So, what was in the exam?

This was an exam in the Pro-Series, so there were very few directly technical questions which required a direct answers - almost all questions focused on design or which tool to use.

• I’ve had many questions related to the usage of RODC, on their placement and which “parent” domain controllers they need, etc.
• A lot of question centered around applications and how they can be deployed - the answers usually involved GPO deployment, Softgrid Application Virtualization and of course Terminal Servers
• NAP was of course extensively covered, plus placement of remote access servers and NAP servers in a network
• Remote access and all of its possibilities (L2TP, PPTP, SSTP, TS Gateway, RPC over HTTP)
• The usual Active Directory design questions, which have gotten a bit more complex (Three functional levels: 2000, 2003, 2008)

There were no simulations, but i encountered a single Drag&Drop question. There were a lot more exhibits than in the TS exams, a few questions were worded awkwardly, but I didn’t find a question which I thought i answered wrong. I’m a lot more confident that I passed this exam than 70-649.

I’ll see the results in three months. If you want to do the beta exams too, check this posting on Trika’s most excellent certification blog.

Last week i took exam 70-431, the SQL Server 2005 TS Exam. I had a few vouchers left that had to be used anyway, and i wanted to try taking an exam about a topic which don’t know much about (just to see whether i’d pass).

As my preparation was nonexistent, and i didn’t eve give a close look to the preparation guide, i expected to fail - in the end, i never did much with SQL Server 2005, just the usual stuff with the Express versions used with SPS, WSUS, et. al.

When i started the exam, i was greeted with around 40 multiple choice questions, and about an hours of time. There were no questions related to hardware design/sizing, and nothing to feature licensing by edition - lots of Transact SQL questions though. After i was through with the 40 questions, i thought i was damned lucky for not having to deal with a single simulation - even though i thought i was only able to around 50% of the questions without guessing.

Turns out i was wrong - after closing the first part, a second part with 12 simulations opened. I solved them by first clicking on any element visible and looking at which ones where working. That way, i thought to be able to solve every one of them.

In the end i passed - with just 735 points. The result sheet listed the achieved score on both the multiple choice questions and the simulations seperately - 90% of the simulations were correct, but only 60% of the multiple choice questions.

For me, this was an interesting lesson - the Microsoft exams really *are* that easy.

On Trika’s Blog you can find the Promo Codes to register for the beta exams (free! double the questions! no broken simulations!) of the two newest Windows 2008 exams.

I was lucky enough to register for both exams, and i was also crazy enough to do both at the same day:

A few months ago, i did beta exam 71-649.

Finally, Microsoft posted the results - and i passed. This is great :)

Recently, Microsoft released exam 70-638 (no official info page yet, but it’s all in Trika’s Blog).

As you might know, i’ve played with OCS 2007 in the past few days, and i’ve got a few leftover exam vouchers anyway. So yesterday, i decided to sign up for 70-638, and do the test this Saturday morning. This was possible because my favorite testing center (Digicomp in Zurich) is now offering Saturday testing.

I didn’t really expect to pass this exam, but i did (with more than 800 points). Okay, so what did happen at this exam?

First, the hard facts:

• 1.5 hours of time (didn’t even need half of that)
• 40 questions
• Only multiple choice questions, no PBT, no drag and drop, no nothing

What did i do to prepare myself for this exam? Not much, really. I’ve deployed OCS 2007 internally in the past few days, and crossread a few deployment guides.

First off, the exam was structured completely different than what i expected after taking the 70-236 Exchange 2007 MCTS. The exam varied widely from installing, to configuring and design. As such, it was a more classical approach, covering all topics of OCS 2007 use.

The questions were well written, and a few of them were more or less exact duplication of content from the available deployment guides, with even the same names and everything.

There also were several design questions, for which you need to understand the general architecture behind OCS 2007 - that isn’t as difficult as it might sound, because OCS 2007 is rather well structured, and the infrastructure design is easy to learn.

No talk about hardware requirements, some questions about upgrading from LCS 2005, etc.

This exam is easy - not as easy as 70-620, but also less difficult than the Exchange 2007 MCTS/MCITP exams.

IBM Exam 000-074 is part of IBM’s Certified Systems Expert certification program. As with the similar HP0-055, the focus was a bit different than your usual Microsoft exams.

When first looking at the specs for this exams, i found the required passing score to be very low: 59%. HP’s exam had a passing score of 71%. As such, i expected a very difficult the exam, but that wasn’t the case.

This exam focused on three points:

• Normal, hardware neutral Windows/Networking Knowledge
• IBM Director Knowledge
• IBM System x hardware knowledge (especially of bigger products like the System x3850)

I’ve passed this exam with an okay score, but was guessing at almost all the IBM Director and the System x hardware knowledge. The problem here is that neither IBM Director nor 4 socket machines are being used in the small businesses i work for. The fact that i still passed shows that good guessing can give you lots of points, because the answers are sometimes rather obvious.

There was also a good deal of normal Windows Knowledge required, and several very very basic Networking questions, which could probably be answered by your average gamer kid. If you already hold an MCSE/MCSA on Windows Server 2003, you might be able to pass this exam without having touched an IBM server before.

Even though this may sound bad, i though the exam in it’s whole made a lot of sense. Most questions where detailed, and the answers where short an concise. Again, for several questions you had to know what the limitiations of a given IBM hardware platforms are. I still don’t really like this, because i don’t deal with every piece of System x hardware IBM has to offer (even though i’d like to know, that’s currently not the case).

As expected, there were many performance tuning questions which were usually answerable with general IT knowledge. You’ll just need to know which system performance values indicate what kind of performance bottleneck.

HP0-055 is the basic exam needed for the HP AIS certification. Together with some vendor exams (Like Microsoft’s 70-290, 70-291) you can already earn this basic HP Systems Integration certification.

HP0-055 is a normal test center exam. Priced at 163 CHF, it’s about a quarter cheaper than Microsoft’s exams (priced at 215 CHF).

If you’ve only done Microsoft exams before (like me), prepare yourself for a massive change of pace and question style. I had 88 questions and 2 hours to finish my exam. Less time and more questions than Microsoft. The question however are in a completely different format: There are usually only one or two lines of text, and the answers are even simpler. It’s quite possible to answer a question within less than 30 seconds.

HP offers Official Study Guide and Desk Reference, which i found utterly worthless, mostly because it reiterated facts i’ve known since several years (but might appeal to newcomers, like detailed explanations of raid levels, etc.).

The problem was that much of the exam didn’t really focus on the server itself, but instead on available service packages from HP, and the tools that HP offers for it’s customers. The latter aren’t covered in the before mentioned book, and i didn’t want to deal with most of them on productive servers after my experiences with IBM’s and DELL’s vendor tools.

Another part i found really annoying was that you were offered a problem, and then products to solve them. The products weren’t described, just their model. This can get quite annoying because i frankly don’t know every storage array, raid controller, server that HP has to offer without glancing at a web site.

I passed the exam barely, but i’m still disappointed with it’s quality. I think HP should put more emphasis on the hardware, and move away from questions that honor memorizing product names.

IT certifications usually serve two purposes: A point on your resume or partner programs. HP has a partner program, so they have certifications.

As such, it didn’t take to long until i had to deal with HP certifications. While there are many useful resources on the web regarding Microsoft’s certifications, this isn’t really true for HP certifications.

HP’s certification program offers much more sales certifications than Microsoft - IBM does this too. It’s important to know that the steps to your first exams are radically different from Microsoft’s approach.

The first step is to register for your own HP Student ID. You will need this to register with Prometric.

Now, HP offers two types of exams: Web based (Prefix HP2-) and normal test center based ones (Prefix HP0-). Web based exams are only available for unimportant err sales certifications and some device service certifications.

The list of available certifications is long, and in my opinion pretty irritating. There’s a “HP Certified Systems Engineer”, which is a HP-UX certification, and “HP Accredited Systems Engineer” which is a Systems Integration (read: Windows and Red Hat Linux) certification.

It’s important to know that if you want to go down the Systems Integration path, most of your already earned Microsoft credentials can apply to your HP certification path. This PDF contains all the information you need. The HP AIS certification requires a single HP exam (HP0-055, about which i’ll write tomorrow). HP’s exams are a bit less expensive than Microsoft’s exams, but they usually contain far more questions than Microsoft’s (HP: ~80, Microsoft: ~50).

Another important thing are web based exams. These are very inexpensive (25 US$), and can be done 24/7. They’re usually for sales and service certifications, contain about 50 questions and you have around 1.5 hours of time. The sales certification questions are unbelievably stupid, but not necessarely easy. You can of course use the internet to answer to questions (yes, that’s allowed). But it’s much funnier trying to get such an exam done in less than 20 minutes (which is easily possible).

In general, HP’s certifications aren’t bad - i like that most of your Microsoft certificates already apply, that the sales certifications can be done online (IBM does not offer that and Microsoft doesn’t offer sales certifications), but their web interface is awfully slow. I didn’t like their exams as much as Microsoft’s, but more about that tomorrow.

I’ve written about IT Certifications before. There are several reasons why you want/need to get certified. Your company might want to present more certified people to their customers, there are internal audit requirements that depend on certifications, or you’re looking for a new job and want to differentiate yourself from other candidates.

The first thing you’ll need to make sure before getting certified is that certification is really the thing you want. Certification is not education, it is not learning. Certification is about showing what you already know, and what you already can do. Certification is not an entry point into the IT market. Only certify in areas you already have expertise and experience in. With that said, it is not wrong to learn for certificate exams - exams usually cover the whole product, and chances are you haven’t used every product to the fullest in your company. That’s what you’ll need to learn, and not the product in itself.

Especially if you’re the one paying for the certification, cost is an issue. For example, an MCSE Bootcamp from Digicomp costs 15′000 CHF. This it not much money for a company where the CEO drives a new 150′000 CHF car every year, but it is much for someone who just has a regular job. So if you want to get certified on your own, these Bootcamps might not be your best choice. There are also other things to consider when thinking about taking bootcamps. You can get an MCSE Certification for 1505 CHF (in Exam fees - you’ll still have to travel to a test center).

Words

Test centers are locations where you can pass Microsoft exams. They’re usually maintained by a company which franchises their Testing stuff from Microsofts testing providers Prometric (earlier there also was Pearson Vue, but that runs out on 31.08.2007). You book appointments through the Prometric website, pay with your credit card, and then go to the testing center.

Exams are fully computer based, you’ll answer multiple choice, drag and drop and simulation questions, and get your result immediately after clicking “Finish”. This is instant gratification at it’s best. Usually you’ll need multiple exams to obtain a credential, and there are often multiple paths to a single credential. Think of it as a role playing game, it’s pretty much the same.

Credentials consist of multiple passed exams, and usually give you a fancy logo and text like “Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer”. These are your real goal.

Defining your goal

At first you’ll need to know what credential you want to achieve. Microsoft is currently restructuring their certification program with the release of Windows Server 2008, so things can be a bit confusing at times. Though i’d argue that it’s currently an excellent time to get certifications on Windows Server 2003, because you’ll already have lots of experience with it and company will be using it for quite some time in the future. For admins, the interesting credentials on Windows 2003 are the MCSA and the MCSE.

I’d suggest you to read through but of these pages closely, and make sure you understand what they’re saying. The whole thing looks complicated at first, but you’ll understand the logic behind it soon. You might also notice that the MCSE and MCSA share quite a few exams - this means it’s possible to go for the MCSA first (4 exams), and then upgrade to the MCSE with 3 additional exams (total of 7). There are also specializations to both the MCSA and MCSE for Messaging and Security. The first might be very interesting for you if you use Exchange 2003 a lot, and the latter for you security specialists.

There are a few decisions you can/need to make. For example, you need a core client exam. I’ll leave Windows 2000 out of the game and concentrate on Windows XP and Windows Vista. You can take 70-270 (XP) as a core client exam, or 70-620 (Vista) as a core client OR elective exam. You could also do both exams and fulfill your core client and elective exam.

I would recommend to start out with one of these two client exams. They’re both pretty easy (with the 70-620 being a bit easier), and you don’t need to learn for either of them if you’re familiar with the OS.

Getting your first exam appointment

Go to this Prometric registration page, and choose “Microsoft” and your country from the drop down lists - Note that most modern browsers can do type ahead find in these drop down lists, that makes searching a bit easier. After that, you can already choose to “Schedule an Appointment” and select your exam and English as the language. If you don’t think you’re proficient enough for doing an IT exam in English, i’d suggest you to schedule an English course.

After clicking through some more disclaimers, you can select your test site. In Switzerland (Zurich), i can recommend only the Digicomp test site, as both the Comicro-Netsys and BCD Sintrag Testsites are in horrible shapes. Also, you get free drinks at the Digicomp testsites. Free parking is usually available a few metres from the testcenter, and paid parking for up to two hours is also available nearby.

After selecting your test site, you’ll be asked to create an account with Prometric. Do so. Then, choose a time for your exam. Please note that the given timeframe needed is usually not needed. You can do most exams in 60-90 Minutes.

After that, enter payment information and a valid email address. There’s also an MCP ID field which you should leave empty on your first exam.

Passing your first exam

After parking your car near the testing site, enter and figure out where you need to register yourself. You’ll usually need to leave your mobile phone and sign several ominous sheets. You’ll then be seated in front of a computer, where you can agree to some more disclaimers, NDAs and EULAs. After that, your exam starts. As said, there are mostly multiple choice questions, but also some drag & drop and even simulation questions (basically a flash version of a Windows machine, where only the stuff you need to do works).

After going through the questions, you can end the exam. You’ll then be on a screen where you can comment on most questions, i usually skip this part because i want to see whether i passed or not. Because right after the comment section, you’ll see your result and your score (The minimum score is 700 for a pass, the maximum score is not known).

After this, you can go back to pickup your mobile phone, get a detailed result sheet, and sign some more sheets.

Getting your MCP ID and access to the Microsoft MCP Site

Now you’ll need to wait for a mail from Microsoft, containing your new MCP ID and your access code. If your company is a member of the Microsoft Partner Program, ask the person in your company who deals with that to register you and your MCP ID in the partner program. This will provide your company with points and the ability to add new competencies.

You’ll then need your access code to register on the MCP member site. This will allow you to download logos, access and print your exam transcript.

If you do not receive your ID or access code within a two week period, you should contact your Microsoft Regional Service Center. Please keep your result sheet handy, it contains all the necessary information in order to create your MCP ID.

Moving on

Now that you have access to your transcript, your MCP ID you can move on, and complete the other exams necessary for your credential. There are many blogs with information about the exams you’re planning to take. If you think about upgrading to Windows Server 2008, ReSQueL has several posts about proper preparations. The German MCSEboard.de community also has many insightful posts. The Microsoft certification newsgroups are mostly useless, filled with trolls, and not recommended.

Have fun with your exams!