Boot Camps........??? 1

[Juandaman81]

HI,

Last week, Our Technical Manager decided to hand in his notice after 9 long years at our company (I know your watching pagy). I'm the next in line to take this job, but they want me to get to his level fast, he's currently an MCSE(2003). they suggested a "boot Camp".?????????

Has anyone used this method before, i passed the 70-270 exam before xmas, but haven't started 70-290 yet. They say they can get u an mcse in 14 days, i just can't beleive that is really the case.

any input would be very helpful

If you try to fail, and succeed, which have you done?

 

[Juandaman81]

Ah, Sec+ ..... what an exam that is... if my memory serves me right i was tested heavly on encryption types and MDAC,RBAC,DAC. And the security risk of having windows in my server room... lol


good luck with it!

I've re-booked to go back to training camp in November to finish off my MCSE, 293,294,298 left to do. I will get myself as prepared as possible before i go.... at least i know what to expect.!


If you try to fail, and succeed, which have you done?

MCSA 2003:Sec+

 

[PJamesD]

Thanks for the pointers! I feel like I need all the pointers I can get!

Because most of the work I do does not involve security, I'm finding this aspect the hardest part. At least with DNS, DHCP, IP etc, I can put it into context.

Its doubtful I'll ever use RRAS, - plus most of the stuff you have to know to pass Sec+ seems pretty pie in the sky

 

[ZacHastings]

I attended an 8 day Global Knowledge MCSA boot camp back in mid August and they really are a great benefit! The price is up there if you are going to try and pay for it on your own; hopefully you have a employer who will help fit the bill for it. I passed both the 270 and 290 on the first try but to my shock I failed the CompTia exam. Because it's the third in the series, as was mentioned, you have a decision to make, skip CompTia and pick it up later and move on to 291 or do you skip 291 and retake CompTia? You only have a limited number of days left so it's a different ball game if you fail one exam.

CompTia has two things going against it. First, you spend so much of your time dealing with Microsoft and their convoluted questions, that you get into a very narrow and focused mindset. That's the worst thing you can have for CompTia. I had trouble with the broad scope of it all. You go from various types of fire suppression, building security, ports, who invented Kerberos, trojan horses....it's overwhelming. And you think since it's basic security stuff, it's a piece of cake. I thought so and finished in 45 minutes. Maybe that's why I failed it; didn't take it too serious. So, retook CompTia, passed, and now am preparing for 291 on Thursday. With the tips provided by everyone here, I'm feeling somewhat more confident!

 

[NickFerrar]

Yeah CompTIA Sec+ is a weird one. It covers a pretty braod range of topics but I'd say 50% is common sense, 25% you will probably know from being a server admin and 25% you need to cram to remember for a couple of days (encryption algorithm bit lengths, lots of port numbers etc.), obviously the less real-world experience you have the more you'll need to cram. The other issue is it has quite a high pass mark, like 85% or something and 100 questions so you really need to keep focused and make sure you double check you've read the question properly as you can't afford to make silly mistakes.

 

[PJamesD]

I passed!!

Got 93% on the Sec+, and a 780 on the 291!

So i'm finally got the MCSA, and very pleased, - I studied hard for both exams, - passing makes it all worth while.

I was tempted to go for 70-299 to get the MCSA:Security but decided to come home for now and look forward to jetting off to Cyprus

 

[Juandaman81]

well done,


did you do it at the training camp?

If you try to fail, and succeed, which have you done?

MCSA 2003:Sec+

 

[PJamesD]

Yes, at trainingcamp, - although they're soon to change their name now they're no longer associated with the US to "Firebrand"

I was instructed by Graham

 

[ZacHastings]

Well, I took 291 yesterday, and, after a week of study, failed it, miserably. I went in feeling so good and then sit there and stare at that "You did not pass this exam. Your score was 497" was like a kick to the gut.

Any tips on regrouping after such a devastating blow?

 

[PJamesD]

How are you doing Zac? Regrouped yet???


Question:

I have 270, 290 & 291 on my transcript, - I have also recieved the Sec+ certification. Do I need to tell Comptia to tell Microsoft that I have the Sec+, - or will they do that automatically (seeing as i've already requested and recieved my certificate) ??

Thanks

 

[ZacHastings]

I'm doing better now. Enough time to allow the sting of it all to pass. After reading through several posts on several sites, I've resorted to just reading through the 291 Microsoft Training Kit, focusing on the areas I did poorly. I'm using the flash cards from Transcender and just taking it one section at a time. Hopefully this plan of attack works.

As far as your other question, check out this:

http://certification.comptia.org/mcsa/default.aspx

It's what I did. I'm assuming Microsoft got the information, I never heard any kind of confirmation.

 

[PJamesD]

Ah - that's perfect thanks for the link!

Good luck with 291, - let us know how you get on with it.

A know a few people who have scored under 500 on this one, - and I can only presume that they must have missed odds and ends on the simulations, seeing as how heavily they're scored.

I spent quite a bit of time on the sims, - it was my view that you have to "read between the lines" to decipher exactly what will be needed to satisfy the requirements.

I've found practice exams invaluable in passing on the exams i've passed so far, - as obviously they're exam focused, and get you used to the abundance of pit-falls buried inside Microsoft questions.

Cheers
P