Anyone About start MCSA,A+,N+?

[BaccyNet]

I ended up doing both my A+ exams in one go, was a long day but worth it:)

 

As for a target, my target was to be an MCSA by August but that hasnt happened (failed 70-291) so my new target is to be MCSA'd by Jan.

I found the A+ book I had was a bit in-depth regarding hardware compared to the exam, which was mainly troubleshooting questions (like user A wants to do something on computer B but it gives an error. What do you check? etc) They did change the exams after I've done it though.

[dezt]

I've found this on IT Idiots, they have a 5 part video series for the 070-290 exam. It may be a bit easyier to sit through than some monotone american on CBT Nuggets. I haven't watched it as I just can't motivate myself, anyone got any tips, i'm going for my MCSE as some of my 2000 MCSA exams count towards the 2003 MCSE,

 

itidiots.com - Episode 41: MCSE 070-290 Cramsession Managing and Maintaining Physical and Logical Devices 70-290

[Little-Miss]

Well, i've done the A+ essentials and Technician, plus i'm an MCDST. I plan on starting a 290 college course soon....will that make me anything? The Certificate path thing confuses me..

[sparkeh]

Well, i've done the A+ essentials and Technician

 

How were the exams? What kind of format were the questions?

[Little-Miss]

They're in the troubleshooting format. Multiple choice answers. I didnt mind them too much, prefer them to the long winded M$ questions.

 

Which is the recommend file format for W2K:

 

FAT32

FAT16

NTFS

CDFS

 

A customer complains that printout out are getting progressivly worse...whats the FIRST thing you do?

 

The ones i found the hardest are the "you need to change this, what path do you take to change it, is it :

x > y > z

z > y > x

y > z > x

 

In an exam i always blank when it comes to these.

 

There's a few client care ones....you are faced with an angry client! Some of those answers make me laugh.

Edited October 16, 2008 by Little-Miss

[sparkeh]

Thanks Little-Miss. Think I may be going over the top with my study, the type of person I am means I *have* to learn every detail of the course material. I could give you an interesting lecture on the history and development of the mouse connector

[Little-Miss]

Well fair play to you! I wish i could store information like that in my pea brain. Unless the exam has changed drastically since July i dont think you have to go that in depth.

[Kitkatninja]

Also check out Cert mag as well load of good resources about certs in general. Also have a help column (Certification Magazine - Dear Techie) by some guy supposedly knows what he going on about

 

Certification Magazine

 

Russ

 

Thanks mate, lol

 

-Ken

[russdev]

Wasn't sure if to start a new thread or not for so now will leave it in this thread but if people think we should start a new thread each week then will move it etc.

 

Week two Question of the Week: -

 

 

What one new thing did you learn this week?

 

For me and this may sound daft it was proper name for USB cable plugs

 

Russell

[russdev]

*bump*

[dezt]

seen as i'm at the start of my study material, the newest thing i've learnt this week is microsofts correct usage of groups, and the difference between the different sorts.

 

Pretty basic stuff at the moment, boring as well as i think to myself i already know that, but daren't skip anything in case i'm wrong.

[russdev]

This is me doing my school master routine now Mark, Jame, BaccyNet, little-miss, joanne and joe what did you learn this week

 

Well I said would try and keep you all on track

 

Russ

[Little-Miss]

Well i'm an MCDST and an A+ Professional IT Technician (or something along those lines).

I'm in the process of trying to enroll for the 290 (i think it is) so currently not studying. I'll be keeping an eye on this thread though

 

(remembering the proper name for a USB cable sucks)

Edited October 22, 2008 by Little-Miss
Over use of the word currently...lol

[russdev]

Well i'm an MCDST and an A+ Professional IT Technician (or something along those lines).

I'm in the process of trying to enroll for the 290 (i think it is) so currently not studying. I'll be keeping an eye on this thread though

 

(remembering the proper name for a USB cable sucks)

 

Show off ok will forgive you then if not started yet

[BaccyNet]

I'd love to say I learnt something new this week, but been trying to sort out what I'm going to do without an exam centre I can get to:confused:

 

(hopefully mr russdev will allow this excuse, its much better than the dog eating my homework:D)

[somabc]

OK In a sudden fit of motivation I have finally put together a (master) plan for the Certs that I want to achieve. I have attached a pdf if anyone could take look and check I'm not on the wrong track.

 

Basically I want to maximise the qualifications and minimise the cost / no of exams to sit.

 

My plan is to do the CompTIA A+ & Network+ first as they seem like a good place to start and give exemptions to some MS elective courses.

 

Then my plan is to achieve MCDST -> MCSA -> MCSE, next I can convert these to Server 2008's MCITP. I think the server 2003 track still has the best brand recognition, ie employers will take more notice of having an MCSE than MCITP Server Admin for just now.

 

My plan is to achieve MCSE by end of 2009 through self study, looking at roughly 3 months per block of courses. I will probably factor in a CCNA as well but it looks like it is better done on a course with the right CISCO kit.

 

I will be looking to get some guide books and possibly some software / videos but that will be sorted out nearer the time. I gather for my first 2 CompTIA courses some books and practice exams should be OK?

 

OK so I need a server to build my lab - At first Server 2003 with a few XP clients then later server 2008 with some Vista clients as well. I am looking at buying this Quad Core server and maxing out the RAM to 4GB?

 

PcBuyIt :

 

What do you recommend for virtualizing the lab? Specifically for networking the hosts / clients together with Server 2003 being the DHCP server but my own little broadband router still letting VMs access the internet?

 

Thanks for the Help / Advice.

certs.pdf

Edited October 29, 2008 by somabc

[BaccyNet]

@somabc - Not to sound too negative here but I think that your plan to achieve MCSE status in a year through self-study is a bit ambitious! I take it you will be working full-time during the year? When will you be studying?

 

On a positive note, doing the CompTIA stuff first is a good idea. They were the easiest certs to get for me and start to get your mind into the whole self-study thing if you havnt done it before.

 

As for the server, I'm currently using VMWare on my home PC with four virtual machines. I've then setup an internal network inside VMWare as well as allowing the server VM out onto the Internet. It does require a stack of memory though if you plan to run that many machines at one time!

 

Hope this helps

[somabc]

Thanks Baccynet,

 

Hey 'theres nowt wrong with ambition' as my fictitious Yorkshire grandfather used to say.

 

Its hard for me to say how long it will take in total as I have never sat any of these courses or similar before so I have no idea whatsoever of how long it actually takes.

 

Having worked in IT for several years doing the kind of stuff covered by MCSA/MCSE I guess I am assuming that it will be fairly straightforward to pass the exams but that could be completely misguided of course.

 

I wrote the whole plan of exams out as it helps to plan which courses are valid for several certificates and which qualify you for exemption.

 

I think breaking it down into stages is the way to go so a goal of A+ / Network+ before Christmas looks like a plan. If those exams go well, I may try the security+ and linux+ before moving to the Microsoft exams.

Edited October 29, 2008 by somabc

[russdev]

Biggest issue with ms exams is not so much if know it but getting into MS way of thinking...

 

Last week have been bad with half term and seriously being tired some study went out of the window.

 

Question of the week: -

 

What topic have you been studying this week remember I have a stick if you do not do your homework..

 

Myself it was CPU's

 

Russ

[dezt]

I've been going through my Testout videos, simulations and exam questions for Disk management this week, just finished Raid and volume sets. Moving onto backup now.

[dezt]

I've just realised i'm studying quite hard, i'm half way through my study material. when i finish the computer based training i'll move onto going through my book, then i'll do l a load of practice exams.

 

I'm in the zone......

[Jiser]

You all seem to be working hard! Its about time I get my ass in gear! I have a month left of part time working before I start new job. Time to get that N+ out the way.

 

I tend to find it such a bore, specially learning all the a-b's of cable names, what speed they run etc etc.

[somabc]

I wanted to recommend this book, its not for any particular certification but rather it is a good general non-technical book that should be useful to any NMs. It's an indepth introduction to best practices when it comes to systems admin. It doesn't tell you how to do Unix, Windows, or any given operating system. It covers principles, practices and processes at a theoretical level. Avoiding the technical configuration details, whilst indicating best practices in the field of IT.

 

It's an absolutely essential addition to any Systems Administrator's bookshelf.

 

The Practice of System and Network Administration

 

Whether you use Linux, Unix, or Windows, this newly revised edition describes the essential practices previously handed down only from mentor to protégé. This wonderfully lucid, often funny cornucopia of information introduces beginners to advanced frameworks valuable for their entire career, yet is structured to help even the most advanced experts through difficult projects.

 

The book's four major sections build your knowledge with the foundational elements of system administration. These sections guide you through better techniques for upgrades and change management, catalog best practices for IT services, and explore various management topics. Chapters are divided into The Basics and The Icing. When you get the Basics right it makes every other aspect of the job easier--such as automating the right things first. The Icing sections contain all the powerful things that can be done on top of the basics to wow customers and managers.

 

Inside, you'll find advice on topics such as

 

* The key elements your networks and systems need in order to make all other services run better

* Building and running reliable, scalable services, including web, storage, email, printing, and remote access

* Creating and enforcing security policies

* Upgrading multiple hosts at one time without creating havoc

* Planning for and performing flawless scheduled maintenance windows

* Managing superior helpdesks and customer care

* Avoiding the "temporary fix" trap

* Building data centers that improve server uptime

* Designing networks for speed and reliability

* Web scaling and security issues

* Why building a backup system isn't about backups

* Monitoring what you have and predicting what you will need

* How technically oriented workers can maintain their job's technical focus (and avoid an unwanted management role)

* Technical management issues, including morale, organization building, coaching, and maintaining positive visibility

* Personal skill techniques, including secrets for getting more done each day, ethical dilemmas, managing your boss, and loving your job

* System administration salary negotiation

 

Amazon.co.uk: The Practice of System and Network Administration: Thomas A. Limoncelli, Christina J. Hogan, Strata R. Chalup: Books

Edited November 11, 2008 by somabc

[russdev]

fyi

 

The above book is on Safari as well just added to my favs.

 

O'Reilly - Safari Books Online - 9780321545275 - The Practice of System and Network Administration, Second Edition

 

russ

[PEO]

A+ N+ and S+ self taught pluss MCSE 2003, now onto the new vista and 2008 server... well having a brain rest, but will be starting in the new year. Pleased to hear you are been supported