Garth Jones : 70-624

SMSUG.ca Forums

Garth — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 13:44:41 GMT

I have decided that the forums on www.SMSUG.ca are not being used and due to some SPAMMER populating the membership list, I have closed them down. This is a good thing as it means I will arrange for the site to be convert to a blog only site. With the new site will come a new look a feel. (wait for it)

If you are looking for ConfigMgr , SCCM , SMS, v.Next Forums then I suggest:

www.faqshop.com/forums/

www.myitforum.com/forums

social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/category/configurationmanager

2010 myITforum Donation

Garth — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 18:39:34 GMT

With the start of a new year, it is that time again to support the System Management Community, with that in mind I have made my yearly donation of $250 USD to MyITForum (MIF).

Why do I do it? Well as a past User Group leader for www.OWSUG.ca, I know how much it cost to host a small user group community. OWSUG is small in comparison to MIF! Our network traffic is nothing compared to what the MIF site gets. I’m will to bet that the network traffic to the MIF site in less than 12 hours, is the equivalent of what the www.OWSUG.ca gets in one year! I will also tell you that it cost more that $350 as year (USD) to host the www.OWSUG.ca site. Yes that is about $1 a day for a small user group site! I hate to see what MIF spends each month!

So, have you made a donation to your community yet? http://www.myitforum.com/donations/myITpaypal.asp

$300,000 worth of training

Garth — Tue, 12 May 2009 20:36:24 GMT

CTE Solutions, (Yes, the same training center that helps out with both the User & Study Groups) will donate $300,000 worth of training to recently laid off tech workers in Ottawa, equating to around 150 participants to be instructed over the coming summer months.

CTE Solutions was founded seven years ago during the depths of the last tech wreck, after its founders (yes, Kim was one of them! and so was Mia & Gerry, et al) were themselves laid off from a bankrupt firm – said late Monday that it will offer courses in various Microsoft and Java applications, among other areas, meant to increase the marketability of tech workers affected by the economic downturn.

Each class will hold up to 14 participants and will be held weekly throughout the summer, CTE said. Potential participants will need to show proof of previous full-time tech employment and are asked to apply online at http://www.makememarketable.ca/.

Examples of some of the course they are donating are:

Microsoft SharePoint Services 3.0 and SharePoint Server 2007 (5 days)
Configuring, Managing, and Maintaining Windows Server 2008 (5 days)
Microsoft Visual Basic .NET Programming (5 days)
Maintaining a Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Database (5 days)
Business Analysis Boot Camp (4 days)
ITIL V3 Foundation Training and Certification (3.5 days)
Java Programming Language (5 days)

And don’t forget to join the user group too!

Drinking Game?

Garth — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 23:22:38 GMT

This week I was introduced to a new drinking game.

In this game you take a drink each time you see Susan Ibach (from our friend at CTE Solutions) within this Video.

I Love Learning

Ok it is not really a drink game but it is a cool video. If you ever meet Susan ask her to tell you the story behind this video and how her boss (Mia) first saw it!

BTW I counted 9 times! How many times did you see her?

myITForum Donation

Garth — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 14:23:24 GMT

With the start of a new year, it is that time again to support the System Management Community, with that in mind I have made my yearly donation to MyITForum (MIF).

Why do I do it? Well as a User Group leader for www.OWSUG.ca, I know how much it cost to host a small user group community. OWSUG is extremely small compared to MIF! Our network traffic is nothing compared to what the MIF site gets. I’m will to bet that the network traffic to the MIF site in less than 12 hours, is the equivalent of what the www.OWSUG.ca gets in one year! I will also tell you that it cost more that $100 as year (USD) to host the www.OWSUG.ca site.

So, have you made a donation to your community yet? http://www.myitforum.com/donations/myITpaypal.asp

System Center Configuration Manager Administrator

Garth — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 17:52:03 GMT

I was talking to another senior ConfigMgr guy today, who is thinking of updating his certification. We talked about what certification he should get to meet his goals. Anyway after reviewing my blog post about System Center Configuration Manager Enterprise Administrator, he said “Wow that is a lot of certs!”. I thought about and following the idea of MCSE and MCSA. Here is was I think that you need for a MCSA version and I think it should be called System Center Configuration Manager Administrator.

Workstation

If a ConfigMgr Admin does not know about workstations then what are they doing working with ConfigMgr.

70-620 or CHAMP

OS Deployment

In this day and age, OS Deployment is an important part of ConfigMgr as an Administrator you must know this.

70-635, 70-624 or 70-622

Server

Just like workstations, ConfigMgr administrator must know about IIS, PKI, Networks, DHPC, DNS, etc.

one of 70-640, 70-642, 70-643

ConfigMgr exam of course

70-401

These gives a good base for a ConfigMgr administrator and will give you a good start on becoming an ConfigMgr Enterprise Administrator. So for this I would middle level certification, I have passed all of the requirements for this already.

OpsMgr Enterprise Admin

I still need 70-400. I am slowly working on it but holidays and work are getting in the way of me completing this exam. It is not going to help that I have just booked myself into a personal interest course for the next 7 weeks either! So I’m not sure when I will get this done.

ConfigMgr Enterprise Admin

I still need the Packaging exam and the Licensing exam to complete this high level title.

Does OpsMgr Enterprise Administrator also require an MCSA equivalent? If so what should the requirements be?

Do you meet the requirements for any of these certifications as I have laid them out? If so send me an email with your transcript sharing information.

1st Anniversary

Garth — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 15:30:37 GMT

Well today is 1^st anniversary of me taking steps to upgrade my certifications to Windows 2003 / Windows 2008. As many of you know I have blog about my experiences with all the exams. So this blog post is designed to talk about a few things.

Which exam I write and pass?
Which certifications did I achieve?
What exam tips can I give you?

Which exams did I write.

With the exception of one exam, I have passed all the exams below. The only one I have not passed yet is the 70-403 exam which is still in Beta and the results have not been released yet. (crossing finger)

70-647 MCITP: Windows Server 2008, Enterprise Administrator 07-Nov-08
70-403 MCTS: MS System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008, Configuring 21-Oct-08
70-646 MCITP: Windows Server 2008, Server Administrator 10-Oct-08
70-652 MCTS: Windows Server Virtualization, Configuring 24-Sep-08
70-649 MCTS: Upgrading MCSE on Windows Server 2003 to Windows Server 2008 24-Sep-08

70-640 MCTS: Windows Server 2008 Active Directory, Configuring
70-642 MCTS: Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure, Configuring
70-643 TS: Windows Server 2008 Applications Infrastructure, Configuring

70-298 Designing Security for a Windows Server 2003 Network 01-Aug-08
70-624 MCTS: Deploying & Maintaining Vista & Client Office System 07 Desktop 06-Jun-08
70-294 Planning, Implementing, and Maintaining a Windows Server 2003 Active Directory Infrastructure 30-May-08
70-293 Planning and Maintaining a Windows Server 2003 Network Infrastructure 30-May-08
70-291 Implementing, Managing, and Maintaining a Windows Server 2003 Network Infrastructure 04-Apr-08
70-290 Managing and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Environment 08-Feb-08
70-431 SQL Server 2005 Implementation & Maintenance 22-Jan-08
70-622 Supporting and Troubleshooting Applications on a Windows Vista Client for Enterprise Support Technicians 03-Jan-08
70-620 Configuring Windows Vista Client 17-Dec-07
70-401 Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007, Configuring 11-Dec-07

Yes that is 14 exams and one upgrade exam which counts are 3 exams. (17 exams)

Which certifications did I achieve?

Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator Microsoft Windows Server 2003
Microsoft Certified IT Professional Enterprise Administrator
Microsoft Certified IT Server Administrator
Microsoft Certified IT Enterprise Support Technician
Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist Windows Server Virtualization, Configuration
Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist Windows Server 2008 Active Directory: Configuration
Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist Windows Server 2008 Applications Infrastructure: Configuration
Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure: Configuration
Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist Business Desktop Deployment
Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist SQL Server 2005
Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist Microsoft Windows Vista: Configuration
Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager, Configuration
Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer Microsoft Windows Server 2003
Microsoft Certified Trainer

Yes that is 14 different certifications!

What exam tips can I give you?

Find a local User Group
Find a Study Group or create one
Buy your books online vs at a book store
Book the exam in advance, this is a great motivator!
There are NO trick questions on the exams! I could write entire blog post on this subject!
Write a review of the exam. Like I did for 70-298
Be proud of the exams you passed!
Don’t use brain dumps, this only hurt you!

The last question that might be asked is what is next for me.

Well, I still plan to finish the exams outlined in my blog posts System Center Configuration Manager Enterprise Administrator and System Center Operation Manager Enterprise Administrator. Which are 70-400, 70-122 and a packaging exam. I’m starting to regret adding that one to the list, mostly because it is hard to find CBTs for that one. On top of those, I might pick up 70-432 (SQL 2008) and 70-635 (MDT). Yes, it is a never ending battle.

Why did I do this? The biggest reason was to put my money where my mouth was! I was preaching to other User Group members about you should get certified but I was not doing it myself! Plus I always feel that I learn something new while studying for each exam!

So what are you doing about becoming certified?

Job posting

Garth — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 20:47:26 GMT

Make sure that you stop by the OWSUG Job forums. There have been 10 new posting within the last month with more that half of them for Microsoft!

Microsoft Exam Questions

Garth — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 12:39:10 GMT

Another questions that comes up in every study group session is, “What type of question can I expect?” I never been able to true explain what type of questions someone should expect on the exam.

I finally found a way to explain what type of questions you can expect on the exam. Here is a simulation of all the exam question types.

Hot area questions - This kind of question asks you to indicate the correct answer by selecting one or more elements within a graphic.

Active screen questions - This kind of question asks you to configure a dialog box by changing one or more elements.

Drag-and-drop questions - This kind of question asks you to drag source objects to appropriate targets within a work area.

Build list and reorder questions - This kind of question asks you to indicate the correct answer by building an answer list. In a build list and reorder question, you need to build a list by dragging the appropriate source objects to the answer list and then placing them in the correct order based on criteria defined in the question.

Create a tree questions - This kind of question asks you to create a tree structure. You indicate the correct answer by dragging source nodes to the correct locations in the answer tree. Nodes consist of text and a small icon.

Testlet exam format - The MCP program has developed types of questions for Microsoft Certification exams that are very different from other exam formats currently being used. We strongly urge MCP candidates to download the demo and try the testlet exam format to become familiar with this new exam format.

Simulation questions - This kind of question asks you to indicate the correct answer by performing specific tasks such as configuring and installing network adapters or drivers, configuring and controlling access to files, and managing hardware devices. Many of the tasks that systems administrators and systems engineers perform can be presented more accurately in simulations than in most traditional exam question types.

To try them out for yourself, check out this demo!

http://www.microsoft.com/learning/mcpexams/policies/innovations.mspx

BTW This simulation seem to be missing one type of exam question, “Multiple select check boxes” however this is one of the easiest questions to handle mostly because as part of the question (on the exam) MS tells you how many answers to select.

How to book your Microsoft exam

Garth — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 12:16:51 GMT

This question is one that comes up from anyone who has never booked an exam before. So I will provide a step by step with screen shots on how to book your exam.

Note: In some cases I have removed personal details.

Go to http://www.prometric.com/microsoft/default.htm

Click the Schedule, Reschedule, Cancel, or Confirm an Exam link

Click Schedule an Appointment

Select your Country and Province then Click Next

Click Next

Read details and click Next

Select the exam you want to take, in my case the 70-649 exam

Select the Language and Currencies of how you are going to pay for this exam then click Next

Note Exam centres are filtered by Country and Province and then sorted by City name, after that they are randomly sorted.

Find the Exam centre that you plan on taking the exam at and then click Schedule Appointment.

If you are a new user click the appropriate link, else logon using your email address and password.

Select date and time for your exam, click Next

If you are using a voucher to pay or using the 2nd shot voucher code click the YES link

:-)

Click Validate

Pet Peeve: There is no message telling you that your voucher code is correct! This is particularly annoying when you are using the 2nd shot voucher codes as there will be NO indication that the code has been accepted! In my case I am using a fully paid for exam voucher.

Note: I’m only showing part of the screen, there is just to much info on this screen plus I am removing all the personal data too.

Make sure your email address is correct.

Read the data privacy notice and select I agree

Click Commit Registration

Review the final Confirmation screen. Feel free to print this page.

You will receive an email confirmation within the hour or so.

Ensure the following are correct. (They are marked with arrows above)

Address
Both Telephone numbers
Site Name and address
Date and Time

If any of these are incorrect call Prometric right away and get them correct it. If you don’t receive the email with a reasonable period of time you can confirm your registration via the web site or you can call Prometric and confirm the exam.

Congratulations on booking your first exam!

What is Microsoft doing to stop Certification Cheater!

Garth — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 16:35:04 GMT

In this Live Meeting event Peggy talked about what and how MS is trying to stop Exam cheaters and what YOU can do to help Microsoft with this problem. Thereby increase the value of your certifications that you hold.

https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/lmevents/view?id=msft062508PMlm&pw=ATT11808

Source:

http://blogs.msdn.com/trika/archive/2008/07/01/braindumps-and-whatnot.aspx

70-624

Garth — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 15:10:56 GMT

Thanks to Reed's advice I quickly studied for this exam and wrote and passed it this past Friday. I was going to book the 70-652 exam (70-653 beta #) on Friday but I just found out that the beta is full! This means that I will have to wait for the real exam! So that means I'm back to studying 70-298 now.

Just in case you care I now have these exam to write some time soon. 70-089, 298, 400, 402 (if released), 403 (when/if released), 640, 642, 643, 646, 647, 652 (when out of beta)

Exams, Are you planning on write any of the new exams (MCTS or MCITP) any time soon? If so make sure that you register as a MS partner (anyone can do that.) then check out their partner training for some special discounts. With any luck you will figure out what I mean. I have order my 10 codes :-)