Category: Education

MCITP certification retirements

ms learningAs Windows 8 and Windows 2012 are available to us for a while now, it seems that Microsoft has released a timeframe for when the Windows 7 and Windows 2008(R2) exams and certifications wil retire.

Here’s an overview of the MCITP Server track:

These certifications will be retired on July 31, 2013. You must meet all of the requirements for these certifications prior to that date in order to earn the certification.

Certification title Required exam
MCITP: Enterprise Administrator on Windows Server 2008* 640

642

643**

647**

plus either

620**

or

624***

or

680

or

681**
MCITP: Server Administrator on Windows Server 2008* 640

642

646
MCITP: Virtualization Administrator on Windows Server 2008 R2 669**

693**

and either

659

or

652***

*By passing the exams for this certification, you’ll earn your MCSA: Windows Server 2008 certification.

**This exam will be retired on July 31, 2013.

***This exam has been retired.

For all other tracks please viti this link.

Overview of the new Microsoft certification tracks

Microsoft has released a nice overview of the new certification tracks and which exams to take to achieve this certification status.

They have described 5 major tracks on which you can certify yourself.

  • The Business track: Microsoft Office Specialist certification demonstrates that an individual is proficient in the Microsoft Office suite and has the most up-to-date skills. Becoming a Microsoft Office Specialist helps increase everyday productivity while providing the tools to succeed in a technology-driven world. Continue reading “Overview of the new Microsoft certification tracks”

Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert: Private cloud

Last Wednesday I took the 70-246 (monitoring and operating a Private cloud with System Center 2012) and passed. Today I saw on the MCP website that I could download my certificate and an updated version of my transcript.

So as off now I am officially a charter member of the admins which hold the MCSE Private Cloud certification. I didn’t think that I would be a charter member for this certifcation as so many other admins went before me with the beta exams and passing it (congrats to everyone who passed the exam and earned this status). But here I am. I’m also a charter member for the MCITP Enterprise Administrator so I’m honored to join this group of early adaptors.

Here’s the new logo they created for this.

Because I already passed the following exams I only needed to pass the 70-246 to become MCSE Private cloud.

MCSA: Windows Server 2008 (=Exam 70-640 + Exam 70-642 + Exam 70-643 + Exam 70-647 + Exam 70-680) and as a special bonus everyone who has passed the 70-659 (MCTS: Windows Server 2008 R2, Server Virtualization) exam doesn’t have to take  70-247 (Configuring and Deploying a Private Cloud with System Center 2012)

MCSA certification received

Today I was surprised by an email from MS Learning that I had achieved the MCSA status for Windows 7. Here’s a screenshot of the mail I received. I was not the only one because on twitter it was buzzing with the same kind of messages that people received this email.

When I checked the MS Learning website it stated that I am MCSA Windows 7 and  Server 2008 since April 14th of this year. Oh well, better late then never with the notifications .

I’ve dedicated another post to the different MCSA and MCSE certification tracks. But in short this is how you achieve the MCSA Server 2008 and Windows 7 status:

  • MCITP Server Administrator = MCSA Server 2008
  • MCITP Desktop Administrator = MCSA Windows 7

1Y0-A20 exam prep material

For my 1Y0-A20 XenApp 6.5 administration exam I’ve used a lot of knowledge base articles and other resources besides the self paced online course (courtesy of my employer).

This is a great document which shows all ports used by all Citrix products. Not only useful for an exam but also for troubleshooting purposes.

Go through the free XenApp 6.5 overview training from Citrix Education and read the 1Y0-A20 Preparation Guide from Citrix.

Here are the most useful kb articles and other free online resources I used to prepare for this exam. Continue reading “1Y0-A20 exam prep material”

Citrix CCEE track

After my Microsoft certification track (Multiple MCITP certs) I’ve now set my aims to the Citrix CCEE track. CCEE is short for Citrix Certified Enterprise Engineer. This is the next step after you receive the CCA and CCAA status. You can hold multiple CCA certifications for the different Citrix products. I have set no timeline for myself to get this status but I will do everything to get this done in a reasonable time frame.

I will try and collect as much as information possible to prep for the different exams and post this here. If anyone has some good tips and information which they are willing to share please leave a message on this post.

For everyone who doesn’t know what exams to pass I’ve taken a grab of the official Citrix education site with the information on this certification track. Continue reading “Citrix CCEE track”

MCSA/MCSE in a new version

Today (April 11th 2012) Microsoft has released a new and improved version of the old MCSA/MCSE certification.

I hear you thinking. Oh no, not again….

Well, MCSA and MCSE are NEW acronyms for Microsoft Certified (so far the same) Solutions Associate !!!! and Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert.

In stead of being associated with the OS certification this is now a sign of cloud skills.

MCSA is an entry level certification program for professionals who are looking for their first job in IT. So if you are a guru in the Microsoft field and have loads of certs, skip this status and go straight through to the MCSE version.

MCSE is the Expert level of the cloud certification. If you have years of experience and done lots of troubleshooting and maintaining servers with System Center and other MS products then you’d go for this.

Certification tracks: Continue reading “MCSA/MCSE in a new version”

Citrix CCEE certification track

Citrix has released an update for the CCEE vertification track. Here’s their statement about the update and the requirements to keep certified.

For the thousands of you who possess or are working toward the elite Citrix Certified Enterprise Engineer certification, you may be wondering how the recently announced updated track affects you. Well, you’re in luck – we are here to give you exactly those answers and guide you on the right path to ensure you stay up-to-date with your hard-earned CCEE designation.

If you have a legacy CCEA or CCIA for XenApp (Presentation Server 4) and want to update to the CCEE, you need to know that your certification will expire on July 31, 2012. The good news is that you are eligible to use the shortened update path to update your certification by that date. That gives you five months to prepare for and take just one exam to stay current. By doing this, you will not only have a current CCEE for a period of three years, but you’ll also be eligible to earn the latest Citrix Certified Integration Architect (CCIA) for Virtualization – the highest level of Citrix certification – by passing just one additional exam. Continue reading “Citrix CCEE certification track”