70-642 Question and General Qualifications question

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Hi all! Only the second time I have posted but a big fan of the forum.

I've been working my way through the MCITP Server Administrator and MCITP Enterprise Administrator Tracks and managed to take down 70-647 today with 812/900! I've been putting off 70-642 until last because I think I will find it the hardest. I've got it booked for December.

Have others who have taken it found it to be the worst of the lot or am I worrying too much? Thinking I might wuss out and do 70-685 instead and leave 70-642 until next year!

Also, a general question, I work in the public sector in a large Enterprise and in an Enterprise Admin Role but my circumstances mean that I may have to move on and I may have the option to persue Exchange 2010, VMWare, and CCENT qualifications. I could also go backward and do some of the XP/2003 exams. Which one would you treat as the priority?

 

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Hey RoughNecktwoZer,

To give you my opinion about your choice in possible qualifications I would have to say VMware then followed by Exchange and then CCENT, the last one will be the hardest as it will be a whole lot of work on it's own. Why I say VMware first is that you have already done your MCITP so that gives you a good rounded knowledge of Servers now with VMware your are just virtualising those servers, Exchange is a very good one to have it complements your MCITP, everyone that does MCITP should do Exchange, that is on my radar too, followed by SQL. The CCENT is completely different subject, most sysadmins don't need to worry about networks because there is networks guy in house but if you can manage all the work it would be an invaluable skill.

Hope this help a bit. Any advice on study techniques for me? Been struggling to get down to it.

All the best,
J

 

I'm lucky enough to work with most of the material in a practical environment, a large AD forest spanning mulitiple countries/sites etc so I guess that practical experience helped the most.

Beyond that I have relied entirely on CBT Nuggets (and the practice tests that come with the MS training kits) I gave up on teh books as the labs in them are too basic and time consuming but might work better for some.

 

I'd recommend Exchange over VMware first but they're both fantastic skills/certs to have. The reason I push for Exchange is that it Is generally a large aspect of most businesses and is quicker to get out the way.

Once you've finished Exchange, move away from MS and then focus on VMware.

Anyway, good luck on the 70-642.

 

Cheers. I've just ordered the Exchange MS Press books and already have a CBT Nuggets Subscription.

Think I'm going to try and do 70-685, 70-686 and Exchange before June 2012

 

I have to ask, why? You need to decide on where you want your career to go, is it desktop or server orientated?

I would also question whether you want to do messaging or virtualisation, yes it's a good idea to have an understanding of both but I wouldn't waste your time on certifying on something you're not going to be using every day, getting certified in Exchange 'could' be a mistake in my opinion (you may find you're steered towards Exchange more than you want if you're known to be an expert).

I class myself as a system engineer, I am certified in a lot of technologies but where the big tech is concerned I made sure I know enough but actually concentrate on the technologies I want to concentrate on (so no Exchange or SharePoint for me).

 

Hi Simon

Do I? My current job title is Infrastructure Sys Admin and I put myself firmly in the Server bracket. That said, we have to deliver Desktop Infrastructure (OS Deployment etc) and help cover services. I don't nessecarily think one can know too much. Can they?

Anyway, so long as my emplyer is happy to pay for eveything I reckon its a good idea to do eveything I can!

My focus is on AD though I have a lot of Storage, TS and Print Infrastructure in my current role. I think that Exchange is so tied up with AD that its probbaly best to know about it. I sometimes feel like I have a big knowledge gap. That said, *eveything* is getting virtualised these days so I don't think anyone can afford not to know about that....

Don't you think that focusing only on one area is a luxury? From your qualifications it doesnt look like you have

PS. How would you describe the difference between a Systems Engineer and a Systems Administrator? Always been curious.