The 60-Day Private Cloud Certification Challenge…

Greetings True Believers and new visitors,

For those of you new to my blogging, a short introduction is probably in order.  My name is Michael Bender.  I am an MCT based out of Madison, WI.  I teach Microsoft Server classes and Virtualization classes at Madison College full time as well as doing some SMB consulting during my “free” time.  While not well maintained, until recently, I do write a blog based around technology and general stuff I find interesting at www.itsallgeek2mike.com.  You can also find me on Twitter via @MichaelBender.  Oh…I can’t forget about The Krewe.  You may have heard of them on twitter or facebook.  We think we are a big deal…and so should you   

So what are we up to here?  Well two things:  First, I was intrigued by the new Private Cloud certification from Microsoft and was planning to take the exams at Microsoft TechEd.  Second, I wanted to get back to blogging on a regular basis.  So I came about the idea to blog about my journey to become a Microsoft Certified Solution Engineer : Private Cloud.  I ran the idea past Veronica Sopher at Microsoft Learning, and here we are.  The “60 Days to Microsoft Private Cloud Certification” was born.

The plan is for a 5-6 post blog series every week or two starting with today’s post.  In general, the topic of each post looks to be like this:

1. Part 1 – Introduction to the 60 day Challenge
2. Part 2 – The Plan (AKA Passing multiple exams in 60 days without going Nuts!)
3. Part 3 – Building a Lab Environment and Current Study Progress
4. Part 4 – Preparing for the Exam and Current Status
5. Part 5 – Microsoft TechEd Arrival and Day of Exam 1
6. Part 6 – Day of Exam 2 and Result

Along the way, I’ll be providing insight into the knowledge needed for the Private Cloud certification as well as passing my insight as a veteran of Microsoft certifications and exams.  Where applicable, I’ll be asking for insight from the audience as well as pinging Industry experts for their two cents.  The last part is necessary since I have a substantial background in Windows Server and virtualization, but I have little practical experience in the world of System Center.  So I’ll be trying to learn a brand new technology area along the way.  The hope is to provide you a framework for studying for not just the Private Cloud certification, but any certification exam for that matter.

So a lot of new information has come out in the last few days about Microsoft certifications that I’m still trying to digest, but hopefully we can make some sense of it  here.  I’m not going to go into great detail about what the new certifications mean, etc.  Some very smart people I know here , here, and  here have already done that.  What we will talk about is what is required for the Private Cloud certification, and what we need to tackle in the next 60 days.

So let’s break down the certification.  The certification is made up two parts.  The first part is the MCSA as a base level of knowledge.  Since my focus (due to existing passed exams) will be on the Private Cloud exams below, I am not going to go into depth on the MCSA requirements. Those can be found here.  Just a quick note:  If you currently possess the MCITP: SA or MCITP:EA, you will be awarded the MCSA at the end of April.  Then you stack on two additional exams to achieve the MCSE: Private Cloud. Those exams are as follows:

Exam 70-247 - Configuring and Deploying a Private Cloud with System Center 2012.

• This exam is required, but you may take another exam, 70-659, in its place until January 31st, 2013. After that time, 70-247 will be the only exam to satisfy the requirement
• Audience Profile:  “Candidates for this exam use System Center 2012 products to install and configure a private cloud solution. They design, configure, and deploy the underlying infrastructure fabric of networking, storage, and compute resources. They standardize and automate configuration and deployment of applications. Candidates for this exam have Windows Server, Active Directory, System Center 2012, security, high availability, fault tolerance, and networking experience in an enterprise environment, basic Microsoft SQL Server and Windows PowerShell knowledge, and application configuration experience. Candidates are also familiar with ITIL and MOF concepts.” Exam 70-247 Overview, Microsoft

Exam 70-246:  Monitoring and Operating a Private Cloud with System Center 2012

• This exam is a required component of the certification.
• Audience Profile:  “Candidates for this exam have Windows Server, System Center 2012, security, high-availability, fault tolerance, and networking experience in an enterprise environment, candidates should also have basic Microsoft SQL Server and Windows PowerShell knowledge, and application configuration experience. Candidates are also familiar with ITIL and MOF concepts. These candidates might be the Active Directory Administrator, Virtualization Administrator, Enterprise Administrator, or System Center Administrator for their organizations.” Exam 70-246 Overview, Microsoft

Exam 70-659:  TS:  Windows Server 2008 R2, Server Virtualization 

• This exam can be taken in place of 70-247 until January 31st, 2013. After that time, 70-247 will be the only exam to satisfy the requirement.
• Audience Profile: ”Candidates for this exam should have more than one and a half years of experience working with Windows Server 2008, including Windows Server 2008 R2 environments, Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008, and Hyper-V Server 2008 R2 as virtualization administrators. Additionally, candidates have experience with server virtualization products and technologies, including Hyper-V, System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008, Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2, System Center Operations Manager 2007 R2, Windows PowerShell 2.0, and System Center Data Protection Manager (DPM) 2007.”  Exam 70-659 Overview, Microsoft

So depending on where you are at with your certification track, it is a total of five exams revolving around Server 2008 R2, Windows Virtualization, and System Center 2012.  All exams will be available at Microsoft TechEd for 30% off.  Given this promotion, it’s best to get your exams scheduled soon.  Exam registration goes live soon so click here for more information.

So what do you think?  Are you up for the Challenge?  Do you have what it takes to take your career to the next level? 

If you answered yes to any of these, join us for the next 60 days as we work towards becoming MCSE: Private Cloud certified.  We are currently working on a place to collaborate on the Born to Learn website.  You can also join the conversation on twitter by following @michaelbender as well as adding our hashtag, #60days2MCSE, onto your tweets.  Feel free to ask questions, make comments, or share information via twitter or the blog comments below. 

To see what people are saying about the challenge now, click here.

Join us next week as we lay out Part 2, and build a plan for you to utilize for studying.

As always…Thanks for listening!

Mike