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3 Entry Level Certifications to Help You Launch Your IT Career

Jason Zandri — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 17:26:45 +0000

So you want to showcase your knowledge and skills but you’re not quite sure which certification would serve you best.

Whether you’re looking to launch your career in the IT field, or perhaps get promoted at your current job — getting certified is a great way to market yourself.

This guide will introduce you to the top 3 entry level certification that you can earn quickly and that will remain valuable to you for a lifetime.

Top 3 Entry Level IT Certs

The 3 certifications that are listed below are all widely accepted in most organizations and are general and broad enough to be appealing to the majority of employers. So I won’t be focusing on any niche certifications or programs that are limited in scope.

Instead, these certifications are common, widely recognized and useful in many different IT positions. They’re not the be all or end all, and depending on your work environment, skills and needs they might not be right for you — so please keep this in mind.

1. CompTIA A+ Certification

Considered by some to be THE entry level exam to validate your IT skills, the CompTIA A+ Certification is a vendor neutral cert that authenticates the IT professional’s skills as being up to date and relevant for supporting base hardware and software computer needs for organizations.

Passing the A+ allows you to verify that you have the knowledge and skill level for:

system installation of both hardware components and supporting software
system configuration — again both on the hardware and software side
diagnosing and troubleshooting hardware performance issues
software installation and configuration
configuring systems for standalone use and in a basic networking configuration

There are two parts to the CompTIA A+ exam which include:

Exam 220-601 — CompTIA A+ Essentials (100 questions)
One of the following three exams:
- Exam 220-602 — IT Technician (90 questions)
- Exam 220-603 — Remote Support Technician (90 questions)
- Exam 220-604 — Depot Technician (90 questions)

Here are the minimum final scores you must have in order to pass a given exam:

220-601 — CompTIA A+ Essentials — 675
220-602 — IT Technician — 700
220-603 — Remote Support Technician — 700
220-604 — Depot Technician — 700

Other important things to keep in mind:

Once you’re A+ certified you’re A+ certified for life, you don’t need to retake the exam when a new version comes out, although you can do so if you want to.

Also you don’t have to take the exams in any particular order or within a certain time frame. Although it is recommended that you take the Essentials exam first and since there’s a lot of overlap, it only makes sense to take them back to back.

[NOTES FROM THE FIELD] – WAY back in the day the CompTIA +A certification was a single exam. You passed that one test and you were granted the A+ certification for life.

When I took the exams back in 1998 the exams were designated as the CompTIA Core / Hardware exam and the second exam was DOS/Windows; both were required to earn the certification.

If I remember correctly the numerical designations were 220-101 and 220-102. There were some minor changes made in the exams for releases 220-121 and 220-122 and larger certification objective changes were introduced in 2003 and again in 2006.

Despite the changes in the exams themselves and in hardware and software over the years, all technicians that passed these prior exams are still considered certified today.

CompTIA A+ Links

CompTIA A+ page — more details about the certification
CompTIA A+ Certification Overview — outlines the details with respect to the exam
CompTIA Exam Policies — conduct, retake policies and some additional information
CompTIA A+ General Info –background history on the certification and other info

2. CompTIA Network+ Certification

A natural progression from A+ is the Network+ certification. Part of the A+ exam’s domain of study includes an intro to networking, so it only makes sense that Net+ be a solid consideration for IT professionals with at least nine months of on the job/practical experience.

That is however only the suggested recommended experience level for the exam and not a requirement. And you don’t have to be A+ certified to be Network+ certified.

The Network+ exam was first offered in 1999 and since then more than 235,000 professionals have passed it according to CompTIA. And just as with A+, once you pass the exam you will have the Network+ credential for life.

Currently there are 2 Network+ exams available:

Network+ 2007 exam

exam code: N10-003
launched in 2005
actively offered until July 31, 2009 when it is officially retired
single exam
90 questions
graded on a scale of 100 – 900 with a minimum passing score of 554

Network+ 2009 exam

exam code: N10-004
launched January 9, 2009
expected to remain through 2012
single exam
100 questions
graded on a scale of 100 – 900 with a minimum passing score of 720

At present both exams are being offered so if you feel that past and present networking information is more of your strong suit and something you understand better, then you’d be more inclined to take N10-003 — Net+ 2007.

On the other hand, if present and emerging networking technologies are more your style then N10-004 — Net+ 2009 may be the best fit for you.

[NOTES FROM THE FIELD] – Keep in mind that passing either N10-003 or N10-004 will earn you the Network+ certification. Passing N10-004 doesn’t give you anything over a N10-003 certification holder.

That being said, sometimes it’s the presentation to a prospective employer and their understanding of the certification (or lack thereof) that makes a difference.

A hiring manager’s line of thinking may be “this candidate is certified on the most recent revision of the exam and it must mean they have a firmer grasp on up and coming technologies” (or something to that effect).

This might very well be far from the truth however; the end result is that many things are how they are presented rather than the fact of what they are.

As is this because passing N10-003 or N10-004 both grant the Network+ certification at an equal level.

CompTIA Network+ Links

CompTIA Network+ page — more details about the certification
CompTIA exam objectives — detailed exam objectives that can be downloaded
CompTIA Exam Policies — conduct, retake policies and some additional information
Network+ Certification Preparation page — study and practice test options and CAQC training materials

Just so you’re aware, the CompTIA Approved Quality Curriculum (CAQC) training materials go through a validation process verifying that all exam objectives are included. Train Signal’s very own CompTIA Network+ 2007 Training Package has received the CAQC approval and the updated training for Network+ 2009 will be released in May.

You can also sample a few videos from the training and learn about network components.

3. CompTIA Security+ Certification

Another valuable certification that will help you launch your IT career is the CompTIA Security+ Certification.

It was a tossup for me to decide this over the Server+ Certification as both are nearly equal in starting value to the training candidate in terms of immediate and short term impact on their careers. The deciding factor for me was which one offered the larger leap point going forward (more miles to the gallon if you will) and Security+ won.

My comments are not to diminish Server+ at all and if there was room for an honorable mention Server+ would win it hands down. So feel free to review the details of the Server+ Certification if you’re interested.

The Security+ exam was developed in 2002 to address the rise of security issues and validate the foundational knowledge of security professionals.

As with Net+, there are 2 Security+ exams currently being offered:

Security+ SY0-101

exam code: SY0-101
set to retire July 31, 2009
single exam
100 questions
90 minutes total for the exam
graded on a scale of 100 – 900 with a minimum passing score of 764

Security+ SY0-201

exam code: SY0-201
single exam
100 questions
90 minutes total for the exam
graded on a scale of 100 – 900 with a minimum passing score of 750

CompTIA Security+ Bridge Exam

There is also a CompTIA Security+ Bridge Exam that is available to examinees who want to remain current on their Security+ certification with respect to the assessment of their skills. The SY0-101 certification itself is not be retired, only the exam is.

Professionals who are already CompTIA Security+ certified are eligible to become certified on the updated track by taking the CompTIA Security+ bridge exam.

The Security+ bridge exam (BR0-001) only measures the differences between the 2002 exam objectives and the 2008 exam objectives.

[NOTES FROM THE FIELD] – If you become Security+ certified under SY0-101 you will not be de-certified when the exam retires.

It is optional for candidates who hold the SY0-101 certification to take the bridge exam (BR0-001) or the new exam (SY0-201) to get certified on 2008 skills — it is not a requirement.

CompTIA Security+ Links

CompTIA Security+ page — more details about the certification
Security+ Certification Overview — details about the 2 exams

I hope you’ve enjoyed this article and I am looking forward to any feedback you have on it. Additionally, I would welcome any topics of interest that you would like to see and based on demand and column space I’ll do what I can to deliver them to you.

Best of luck in your studies.

Announcing: Active Directory Training for Windows Server 2008

Kasia Grabowska — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 17:30:41 +0000

As you might have already heard, we’ve recently revamped and enhanced our training products to include more learning options and a few extras.

If you haven’t seen our new website yet, take a look at it now and let us know what you think: www.trainsignal.com.

We’ve been hard at work making lots of improvements and we hope you like what we’ve done!

Now Available: Server 2008 Active Directory Training

Today we are releasing our long awaited Active Directory Training for Server 2008 by our experienced and certified instructor, Ben "Coach" Culbertson.

This new training is better than anything we’ve released before — it’s:

Comprehensive — at over 20 hours of instruction with in depth coverage of Active Directory for beginners to experienced network admins

Convenient — with multiple file formats including iPod video, Mp3 audio, .WMV and high quality .AVI video — that will allow you to learn on the go

Complete — full coverage of the 70-640 Configuring Windows Server 2008 Active Directory exam and a bonus FREE full version of Transcender’s practice exam

And this is just the beginning!

Check out what our new enhanced training includes and everything it has to offer — take a look at our brand new Active Directory Training for Windows Server 2008!

Virtual Computing: Prepare for Your Exams with Virtualization

R. Louis Costley III — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 15:09:21 +0000

We’ve been discussing the use of Microsoft Virtualization applications to assist us in preparing for our certification exams.

Specifically, these applications are Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 and Microsoft Virtual Server 2005.

We explored the use of Virtual PC 2007 in my last article, and will be putting the emphasis on Virtual Server 2005 in this article.

I feel it’s important to state, once again, the focus of these articles. The objective here is to raise awareness that these applications exist, and can be used as effective and resourceful tools to prepare us for certification exams.

I am going to be staying strictly within the boundaries of that scope. As I was preparing this article, I had to be diligent in this, because it was too easy for me to wonder down a path of detail that lost the focus. Believe me … that was a challenge.

My inclination is to teach as much as I can, and often I digress to the point of over-saturation. Therefore, I want to strongly recommend the video training by Train Signal on Microsoft Virtualization.

This CBT is very thorough and complete in its detail and training. If I were to attempt to cover all the important points that are taught in that training, it would take, probably, 25 different articles.

My focus is, specifically, how to use these applications in a practical manner to assist in preparation for your certification exams. Therefore, it’s likely that you may have questions that won’t be answered. I‘ve used the Train Signal virtualization training
on this subject, and assure you that any of those unanswered questions are most likely dealt with in the CBT. I continue to use it today.

If you haven’t already read the previous two articles that focused on an introduction to Virtualization and Microsoft Virtual PC 2007, please select the following links to read them first:

Virtually a Reality — Virtualization in the IT World

Virtual Computing: Best Tools for Certification Preparation

Microsoft Virtual Server 2005

For those of you that have read the first two parts, let’s move onto the next phase of this discussion — Microsoft Virtual Server 2005.

If you’re ready and comfortable, then you can download a free version of this application from the Microsoft TechNet site: Microsoft Virtual Server 2005.

The perspective that we’re looking at this application from is how to set up a closed, isolated Virtual Network, complete with its own Domain Controller, DHCP Server and DNS Server, as well as any number of workstations.

As discussed in the last article, always remember that the resources available to these Virtual Machines (VMs) are entirely dependent upon the resources that are on your Host PC. This was discussed in more detail in the last article, so I won’t repeat myself here.

Suffice it to say, if you only have 2GB of RAM on your host PC, then you’re probably limited to 2 VMs running simultaneously on your host PC. But, in addition to the guidelines that were used for Virtual PC 2007, we also need to be aware of the demands on the host PC’s CPU while running Virtual Server 2005. If you have a Virtual Network (VN) running on your host PC, with 5 different VM’s … you need to take steps to ensure your host PC doesn’t crash because the CPU is over-burdened.

In my own experience with this process, that was probably the trickiest point to get my hands around. Again, this subject is covered in more detail in the video training I’ve already referenced above, so I won’t get bogged down on this point. Please, just be aware of it.

Utilizing Virtual Server 2005 in the Real World

While our attention is toward certification, let me give you a real-world scenario that may find it practical to use Virtual Server 2005.

Suppose you are a business owner, with 8 employees on staff. Your company is into internet marketing. Rather than paying a monthly fee to a web hosting company, and relying on their servers, you want to make an investment into maintaining more control over your own web site. Unfortunately, your current budget only allows you to buy one server, while maintaining a dedicated T1 line into your building.

A practical application of Virtual Server 2005 would be to install it on a buffed-out workstation that has multiple processors running a 64-bit Operating System (thus allowing for the utilization of more than 4GB of RAM on that machine). You could then install a dedicated Web Server within your Virtual Server 2005, isolating your website from the rest of your network, and protecting the rest of your resources from potential hacking.

This is a very simplified description, but it gives you an idea of the potential of this application.

Virtual Server 2005 is just that … an application designed for the purpose of running Virtual Servers on a machine. The merits of making such a decision are best discussed elsewhere, but I just wanted to give you an idea, or reference point to think about this from.

The Virtual Server in Action

Let’s take a look at what the application looks like once it is installed on your PC. Below is a picture of the Virtual Server 2005 Console as it will appear when you open the application.

By default, it will open up to the Master Status, as listed under the Navigation heading on the left side of the console.

You can see the additional subheadings of Virtual Machines, Virtual Disks, Virtual Networks and Virtual Server.

The right side of the console is similar to the Virtual PC 2007 Console, as depicted in the last article, and lists the various VM’s that have been created within Virtual Server.

You can see if they’re running, how long they’ve been running, as well as the CPU Usage of each respective VM. Also, the right side of the console will change as you select one of the respective options on the left side.

These VM’s and Virtual Hard Disks (VHDs) are created in pretty much the same manner as in Virtual PC 2007.

As first discussed in the article on Virtual PC 2007, this process creates two separate files with the same name base name, which you define at the time of creation. The VM file has an extension of .vmc, and the VHD has an extension of .vhd.

A major difference is the listing of the CPU Usage. This can be important if you find your Virtual Network (VN) bogging down, or more significantly, if you find your host PC getting bogged down.

Creating a Virtual Network

In order to use this application in preparation for some of the certifications like MCSA and MCSE, you’ll want to create a VN.

This is done by selecting the Create option under Virtual Networks, as depicted in the picture below.

When you select the Create option, the "New Virtual Network" Network Properties box appears to the right.

Here, you’ll assign the Virtual Network Name at the top. Just below that is an important designation I want to spend a few minutes on … Network adapter on physical computer.

By default, the "None (Guests Only)" option fills the selection box. For our purposes in setting up a VN to use in preparation for certification, this is exactly what we want.

But, considering that scenario described earlier, if you were actually setting up a Web Server in a Virtual Server environment, you would want to associate the Network Adapter to your actual physical adapter installed on your host PC. This will allow contact with the outside world.

As the "None (Guests Only)" implies, it is a closed, isolated network that is accessible by only the Guest systems, or the VM’s within Virtual Server.

Also, note the Disconnected Virtual Network Adapters. Any VM’s that have been created, but not yet joined to a VN, you can check the "connected" hot box and essentially join them all to that VN at the time you create it.

I would like to point out another important factor as it applies to your closed, isolated VN. When you roll your mouse over the Configure option, under Virtual Networks, you’ll see a listing of all the networks within Virtual Servers, as shown in the screenshot below.

In this picture, you can see two External Networks, one Internal Network (created by Virtual Server 2005) and another called Trip Enterprises (which I created for my own studies and preparation).

It’s the last two I want to take a look at. The following two screenshots are of the Internal Network, and Trip Enterprises, respectively.

The point I want to highlight will be defined by the settings listed at the bottom right side of each network, designated by DHCP Server.

Please note that Internal Network in the above image indicates, to the right of DHCP Server, that "the virtual DHCP server is enabled."

This is because Virtual Server 2005 installs a Virtual DHCP server by default, associated with this internal network. This allows you to set up a network without actually having to install a DHCP server in a VM.

Now if you look at the DHCP Server description for Trip Enterprises above, it shows that "the virtual DHCP server is disabled."

I’m including this picture to demonstrate that you have the ability to turn off the Virtual DHCP server that is installed with Virtual Server 2005, which is what I did.

Because if you go back up to the first picture I included, which shows the Master Status of the Virtual Server Console, you’ll see that one of the VMs in my network is specifically a DHCP server. I did this explicitly for the purpose of learning how to set up a DHCP Server.

Keeping in mind that we are focusing on preparing for certifications, part of the objectives for MCSE is the set up and management of DHCP servers. Therefore, I used this application to do just that.

Practical Application for Certification

Let us now explore the more practical application to our studies and preparations for MCSA and MCSE certifications, as well as gaining excellent real-time and real world practice and experience in a network environment.

To demonstrate that, let’s look a little deeper at what I did myself. Looking back at the Virtual Server Console picture below, you see that I have a network that includes two servers, and 4 workstations.

One workstation is Vista Ultimate and the others are Windows XP Pro. In reality, I seldom run them all simultaneously. This is because the demand on my RAM and CPU resources actually does bog down my host PC as well as the guest VMs.

I do run both the servers, because one is a Domain Controller and DNS Server, while the other is my DHCP server. When I was setting up the DHCP server, I had to designate the scope of internal IP address that it assigns to the respective workstations as they authenticate and log onto the domain that I created.

Now … here is my point.

Just reading through the description above … you can see how "real world" this gets.

Although the network is closed and isolated, it is a real, living, dynamic Domain. I had to set up Active Directory on the Domain Controller, and in a real-time network experience I manage User and Computer accounts, Group Policy Objects which I apply at the Domain and Group levels.

With some users that I created, I was able to push out a controlled, mandatory profile. With others, I am able to log onto the different workstations with their Roaming profiles, and get the changes to the desktop made on a different machine … just like in a real world environment.

And when I forgot a password, and locked one of the users out of the Domain, I used Active Directory to reset the password. These are just some of the experiences I’ve had in this Virtual Network.

As I went through the Test Preparation software and CBT’s that I’ve used, I was able to isolate the test objectives for the respective exams, and focus on the areas that I needed better understanding of.

This Virtual Computing is truly amazing, especially when we apply the technology to our studies toward certification.

I honestly don’t know what I would have done without it.

Virtual Computing: Best Tools for Certification Preparation

R. Louis Costley III — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 14:30:34 +0000

To install, or not to install? That is the question!

We need to get that all important experience playing with the ins-and-outs of some OS, such as Linux or Windows Server 2003, but all we have available to us is our own single PC.

No Way! I’m not about to attempt a dual-boot scenario, and put my own system at risk.

Back in the day, as they say, that would have been our only option. Or, we could buy another PC, and install the OS on that system. Better yet, we could do a complete back-up of our system and data, then wipe out our Hard Drive, reformat, and reinstall the new OS.

When we’re done, we just restore the image of our original system, and we’re good to go. Seems like a lot of work, eh?

Welcome to the Virtualized Future

Well, those days are long gone, believe me.

As a matter of fact, you can run a single PC with just 1GB of RAM, and using the various options available to us in the Virtual Computing world of software, install almost every conceivable OS on your computer in its own Virtual PC.

That’s right. One virtual PC for every — and all — versions of Windows, multiple different versions of Linux, Beta versions of any application you would like … the list goes on and on.

You want to try IE8 Beta2? Put it on a Virtual PC. To be even more efficient, create a base-line "template" Virtual Hard Drive, copy it, and go nuts pushing the limits of any application, knowing that, if it crashes your "Virtual Computer," all you have to do is hit the delete button and that computer no longer exists.

Then, copy your template hard drive, and start all over. And NONE of that will ever impact your "Host," or main, computer what-so-ever.

Microsoft Virtual Computing

As I discussed in my last article, today we’ll be focusing on two specific offerings from Microsoft as we explore this virtual horizon — Virtual PC 2007 and Virtual Server 2005 – and how to apply them to our studies and preparations for our certification exams.

And, because this is our focus on the two applications, I won’t be spending time on the details of how to install or configure them. The installation of each program is actually simple and straightforward, and each application has a thorough and in-depth help file included.

I want to encourage you, though, to Train Signal’s CBT on Microsoft Virtualization. I’ve gone through the training, and it’s an excellent step-by-step on the theory, installation and use of both applications.

The product is a great learning tool. The section dealing with Virtual PC 2007 is actually at the end, so you’ll want to go through that first.

It should be understood that while these applications are free to download and use, the actual installation of any OS or application in a Virtual PC is still subject to the laws of copyright, and we should always have the proper licensing rights for each respective "Virtual Computer" that is installed.

This is particularly important if we intend to apply the most current security patches or updates. We also must ensure that our computer, itself, meets all the respective hardware compatibility requirements for each respective OS or application.

Microsoft Virtual PC 2007

To begin with, we’ll be discussing Virtual PC 2007, and move onto Virtual Server 2005 in the next article. You’ll want to download the free version of Virtual PC 2007 here.

Below is a picture of the Virtual PC Console, which is what you see once it is installed on your computer, and you’re running the program …

As you can see, I have personally installed 6 different Virtual PC’s (or Virtual Machines – VM, for this article – as they are referred to in the application) listed in the large box to the left, under the Menu Bar.

Initially, this space is blank, and as you select the New button and create a new VM, they’ll be listed like they are in the screenshot above.

The grayed-out thumbnails indicate that the VM isn’t running. When a machine is running, you’ll see a thumbnail of the actual desktop as it is configured on the VM itself. Once installed, all you have to do is double click the respective thumbnail, and the VM starts up like any normal cold boot.

To summarize the process, when you create a VM, you’re actually creating two files. Both have the same name that you designate, but one has an extension of .vmc (for Virtual Machine Console), and the other is .vhd (for Virtual Hard Drive).

Once again, I’m not going to focus on the details of the setup here, but wanted to give you a reference point to work from.

Please keep in mind that the extent to which you can use these VMs depends entirely upon your own PC’s hardware configuration. When you create these VMs and their associated virtual hard drives (VHD), you’ll need to assign how much RAM will be dedicated to that VM, as well as the amount of space you want to assign to the VHD.

Whatever RAM you allocate to the VM is effectively NOT available to your own host PC. Personally, I have 4GB of RAM on my PC, which means that I have 3.5GB available to my OS while my computer is running.

I’ve assigned 5 of the VMs 384MB RAM, and the one Vista Ultimate VM 512 MB. What this means is that if I’m running the two VMs as shown in the picture, with a total of 896MB RAM allocated to the two combined, my own host computer now only has approximately 2.5 GB RAM available for its own processes.

As you use this application to install VMs, you’ll need to keep that in mind, to ensure you don’t cause your own PC to become overburdened by lack of available resources.

Again, for purposes of a reference point, I am including a picture of the Settings dialogue below …

As you can see, the settings I selected were for my Vista Ultimate VM. As you look down the left side at the various settings, you’ll note the amount of the Memory I allocated, and the name of Hard Disk 1 has the .vhd extension I discussed above.

I want to reference a couple of other settings here, because they’re important to keep in mind.

The CD/DVD Drive is usually associated with your first physical Optical Drive on your own machine, by default. You also have the ability to "capture" an image file (such as .ISO files). Either way, you’ll need to install the OS, or respective application, onto the VM just as you normally would on any stand-alone PC.

In order to be able to connect to the outside world, you’ll want to associate the Networking with NAT (Network Address Translation). Again, this is better explained in a more thorough and detailed training product.

Lastly, the Shared Folders is also important. If you want to have access to files on your host PC, then you’ll need to configure a shared folder for each respective VM. In my case, I just made my own My Documents folder a shared folder, and you do this from within this Settings dialogue. You’re not actually making that folder a shared folder on your host PC.

The next picture is of my own host PC’s desktop. You can see the two VMs I initialized running in their own console window …

There are a couple of things to note on this picture. First, you’ll see that my host PC desktop is in the background, and each VM is in its own window.

Each respective window has icons showing … a hard drive, a CD/DVD, a floppy disk, a folder, and a network icon. If you right click on any of these, you’re presented with options that typically open the Settings Dialogue for that respective VM.

Right clicking on the CD/DVD gives you an option to capture an image or use the physical optical drive on your host PC. This will allow you to install the OS at first, and then any applications into the VM environment.

If you look closely at the lower right Task Bar of the Vista Ultimate window, the icon to the right of the "Desktop" toolbar shows an arrow in a half-circle. While I took the screenshot, this VM was actually updating the McAfee signature files in real time. I point this out to emphasize that these VMs function exactly like our own PC’s.

From this last picture, you can see I am running two separate VMs concurrently, all within the boundaries of my host PC. I’ve chosen to allow them to have a connection to the outside world, and anytime they run they’ll download and install updates as normal.

We can choose to keep them specifically isolated and closed, as well, with no contact to the outside. This allows for a completely controlled environment.

Practical Application for Certification Preparation

Now, with all of that said, how do we use this application to assist us in preparing for our certifications?

It’s actually a simple process. For example, suppose you were preparing to take your MCP exam for Windows XP or Vista. After installing Virtual PC 2007 on your host computer, you’ll create a new VM for the respective OS.

If you look back at the last picture, you’ll see that I name my VMs for the OS I’ve installed. If your only intention is to install the OS, without any other applications, my recommendation is to create the VHD to be 3x’s the requirements.

So, for Vista, I would create a .vhd of at least 45GB. Keep in mind that it won’t take up all that space, and you can later configure the drive to occupy only the space it actually needs. In reality, my .vhd for the Vista Ultimate VM occupies only 15GB of space on my physical hard drive.

While I designated 15GB for each of the three Windows XP Pro VMs, the actual size of the .vhd is a little over 3GB. To put it all in perspective, I installed McAfee, Spybot, Ad-Aware 2008 and a few other minor free utilities onto each VM.

This should give you a good idea of what kind of hard drive resources you need to have available.

You can also run each WinXP VM comfortably with 256MB RAM allocated to them. I’m running my Vista Ultimate VM with 512MB RAM. I also installed Office 2K7 on this VM, and wrote my last article on it. I noticed some sluggishness, but not much.

Always remember what I discussed above. You only have so much RAM available to your own PC, and each respective VM will reduce the available RAM to your own PC by the amount you’ve allocated to that VM.

So, once you’ve installed the OS onto the VM, you can then play with the OS without any risk to your own host PC. If you’re studying for the CompTIA Linux+ exam, install a free version of Fedora Linux from this link: http://fedoraproject.org/en/index.

You can also gain further insight into the Fedora project here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fedora_Core.

My personal approach is to create a blank VM and VHD that will meet the requirements of all respective Operating Systems, and save that as a template. Then, when you’re ready to install a new OS, copy the VHD and rename it for the respective OS, and you’re free to start all over (this is covered in good detail in the Virtualization video training that I referenced earlier).

You can get practice installing the different OS’s by repeating this process. Once installed, you can follow your training materials or Test Preparation questions (running on your host PC) to the exact points, and get valuable practical — and visual — experience, allowing you to focus on specific test objectives in a real-world and real-time environment.

As you can see, the practical applications of this software are boundless. If you want to see how beta versions of software function in the different environments — install them on a Virtual Machine.

When you’re satisfied, delete that VM and VHD. It’s as simple as that.

When we pick up next time, I’ll be focusing on how to use Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 to prepare for MCSA or MCSE. Don’t miss it!

Microsoft Certifications — Past and Future

Dave Lawlor — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 14:30:55 +0000

Hello, my name is Dave Lawlor and I am a certified geek!

Not the best introduction in the world, but after spending close to 12 years in the IT field with my very first certification coming in 1997 when I passed the fledgling A+ certification, I have learned to embrace my inner geek.

Certifications can certainly open up your career path, or give you a leg up to get an initial position, but are they everything they can be?

I remember when the first MCSEs came through. Back then Microsoft gave you a TechNet Subscription when you achieved an MCSE, but the practice was soon discontinued, I’m guessing because of the cost.

Very soon I started to feel that many certifications became watered down. Too many "Paper MCSEs" were running around causing real world problems when they got into a production environment.

They didn’t have the hands on experience to go with the certifications they earned. A few of these going through an IT Managers shop and soon they would sour on the Microsoft Certifications.

The Not-So-Distant Past of Microsoft Certifications

The first generations of tests were really ridiculously easy. I could pull my NT 4 transcript but I believe I missed only 1 or 2 points max. (They actually gave numerical scores back then unlike now.)

This was actually a great way to compete for some fun in-house as the techs would make side bets against who would get the highest score. Because of the simple text format and SAT style questions, memorization of the questions from any number of sources guaranteed you a pass.

The boot-camp style training became a rage and a quick ticket to a well paying job, until you actually got called in to fix a system in the middle of the night and didn’t have the hands on experience to troubleshoot. I think Microsoft really dropped the ball in that early stage by not setting the bar on their top certifications ridiculously high.

I do believe though that Microsoft realized their error as the certifications started to devalue in the workplace and they tried to make changes by adding the simulation and exhibit questions. While a success making the tests a little harder, it was for the wrong reasons.

The famous phrase you started to hear from the trainers was "The Microsoft Way", which meant that even though you may do something completely different in the real world, you had to learn how Microsoft thought it should be done as an absolute, or risk failing your cert exam.

The same went with the simulation questions; there was only one path to get something done and if you did something different you were penalized.

They also started to play with some "specialization" MCSEs that had an emphasis on particular subjects at this time, and I believe it was the start of the current certification program trend.

Microsoft’s Performance Based Testing — Learning From Mistakes

The new certification program is all about job roles and specific technologies. Microsoft wants to assure hiring and IT Managers that if a candidate has a specific certification they are ready to perform that job role.

They have set the top level certifications to be ridiculously out of reach of most normal techs. The new Master program will cost in the range of $20,000 to attempt and is a 3 week affair currently only in Redmond, which will include hands on testing by experts in the field.

The new generation of tests will start to incorporate what is known as "performance" based scoring. I recently got to sit on one of the pilot exams for Server 2008: Configuring Active Directory, and let me tell you it was one of the best testing experiences I have ever had.

Never mind that I gave up 4 hours of my time to just get a first look with no hope of passing because they don’t give you a score for pilot tests; I got to see the future of testing and I can only hope that it is rolled out as quickly as possible, as I finish up my Server 2008 certifications.

With performance based testing, you are given a list of end results that have to happen that mimic objectives that need to be done in the real world. You are then attached to a virtual machine on which you can do almost everything — just like on a real server.

The best part — it doesn’t matter how you accomplish the task, as long as it gets done you are scored correctly. This is a major step forward for technical testing.

In all honesty I haven’t been as excited sitting for my certifications as I am now since I first started those long 12 years ago. I had no interest in upgrading my 2000 certifications to 2003, just not enough changed to justify expending the time or energy for almost no real value.

Join the New Generation of Microsoft Certifications

The new generation of certifications offers incredible value and more importantly to me, a new challenge.

Microsoft has reinvented their certification program and finally started to shed the "Paper MCSE" image that tarnished it for so many years. If you held that belief, and trust me I did also for a long time, it is worth another look at the new program.

The managers are responsive with both forums and blogs that not only give out information, but accept honest feedback that I believe is used to improve the program.

The Microsoft Certification Program has come a long way over the years and its current incarnation is the best it has ever been.

As I said at the beginning of this article, I have learned to embrace my inner geek and I am going to expand that by achieving my current goal of MCITP: Enterprise Administrator over the next few months. I will be writing about it here at Train Signal Training as I go, so I hope you will follow the journey.

For more information on Microsoft Certifications you can check out:

Trika’s Blog

Microsoft Learning — Certification Information

And if you have specific questions about certifications you can ask them at the TechNet forum which I help moderate:

Microsoft TechNet Forums

Get Your CCNA — On Your Own Time — At Your Own Pace

Kasia Grabowska — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 17:45:53 +0000

Are you looking for a boost in your career?
Would you like to make more money doing something you enjoy?
Are you ready to work hard and make a real change in your life?

If computer networking is what you’re interested in, then you should consider the CCNA — Cisco Certified Network Associate Certification.

CCNA is Cisco’s most popular certification, and according to a recent article in Certification Magazine, “having the CCNA signifies a technician is prepared for a wide range of job titles, including associate network technician, network specialist and associate network engineer.”

With Train Signal’s newly released Cisco CCNA Training you can prepare for your CCNA exam on your own time and at your own pace. It’s like having a real Cisco instructor in your house!

Train Signal’s CCNA Training offers complete coverage for the CCNA (640-802), ICND1 (640-822) and ICND2 (640-816) Exams.

Get nearly 29 hours of video instruction + a free practice exam
Learn from a CCIE certified instructor with over a decade of real-world experience.
Prepare for your CCNA no matter which certification path you choose!

Our new CCNA Training is broken up into two parts — the first one covers ICND1 (for the CCENT cert) and the second one focuses on the INCD2 exam. The two parts combined prepare you for the CCNA composite exam.

You can learn more about the CCNA certification paths in our CCNA 101: What You Need to Know About the New Exam.