Recommend: Win7 Certification Resources

citizen059

So with my workplace transitioning to Win7 in the near future, my supervisor has informed me that if I want to pick up a Windows 7 MCITP that the company will pay for study materials and the test.

So, does anyone have a recommendation on solid study materials?

As background, I've been doing desktop support-ish work for 10+ years, and have an A+ and an old MCP with WinXP already.

(I figured this would be better in the tech forum but if it's more of an H&A thread feel free to move it, with my apologies)

bigwah

With your experience I would just go in and take it. The desktop certs should be extremely easy for anyone that browses these forums.

Hell the only part my wife (not techy at all) would of had a problem with is RSS feeds.

Djeet

I wouldn't just take it. The Windows 7 exam covers a lot of things that most users would never have any experience with, such as using deployment tools (imageX, WAIK, ACT) and setting up BranchCache and DirectAccess.

With your experience you'll probably nail the general networking stuff (e.g. what does APIPA stand for, how many bits are IPv6 addresses, Use CIDR notation to specify a subnet of 4096 hosts), which is about 15% of the exam. If you're well-versed in Windows 7 from a user perspective, then you're probably good for another 10-20% (e.g. how do you get to "Backup and Restore", what tool lets you make an emergency repair disk, what new devices are supported by bitlocker in win7 over Vista) . The meat of the exam are questions about deployment, maintenance, and services that span multiple sites.

You can score discounts on test voucher packs if you register your company as a registered partner.

There's only 1 real Windows 7 exam. If your boss wants you to have a MCITP you'll have to decide if you want to go Server Admin or Enterprise Admin (which adds a bunch of application hosting\virutalization stuff). If you want to go self-study I'd pick out a book that seems challenging and that includes transcenders or some other good practice exams. Use these materials to isolate your weaknesses and then go direct to Microsoft online documentation or Technet and Microsoft forums to further educate yourself.

Edit: I'm using this and this for study aids.

Djeet

Doublepost on edit.

bigwah

They must of changed it considerably from the Vista one, as that was easy peasy.

Also, make sure to get the second shot from Prometric. 2 chances are always better than one.

Djeet

I think any individual test is just 50-60 questions drawn from a test bank, so maybe you got one that was a bit "softball?" I never did the Vista exam.

I expected to breeze through this one since I've been administering Windows7 since it was in RC and had no problems with MSCE 2K back in the day, but besides general networking stuff and admin stuff (troubleshooting drivers, permissions, IE settings, backup and restore / system restore / Windows Startup Recovery) there's a lot of stuff coverred I've not played much with: prepping images for deployment, bitlocker vs EFS, migration using WET/USMT, BrancheCache/DirectAccess, and whatnot. At least that's what I'm getting from the practice test questions I'm getting, and I'm hoping it's not just a bunch of extraneous stuff that won't be tested.

Haven't taken the test yet though, maybe in a week.

Tofystedeth

I took my A+ test a few weeks ago so I could finally say I did it and for a little extra padding on my resume. It was easy, except for some of the questions that weren't so much hard as awfully written. There was one question which was a pick 2 of 5, asking for best practices, but of the 3 answers having anything to do with the subject, they are all pretty much considered to be worst practices. O_o
It was pretty tough to answer.

martyllian

The 70-680 and 70-686 are not easy peasy exams. There was a ton of stuff tested on in the exam that I didnt even know Windows 7 did. :P

I did pass.

Some tips:

Go through the transcenders and bone up on the stuff you dont recognize. Make sure to learn WHY you do something, not just that you do it.

See if you can find the CBT nuggets videos somewhere online :whistle: and watch them. It is like being in a classroom and the dude is not boring.

Tips on taking the actual exam:

When you see the word "ensure"
Look for an answer that guarantees a result. Even if other methods will work, or work better make sure to pick the method that will work no matter what.

When you see the words "least administrative effort" pick the answer that will get the job done quickly and with the least amount of effort. Even if another answer is a better way, pick the easiest.

bigwah

Just took the Windows 7, Configuring 680. Was pretty easy. Hardest part for me was the upgrade paths/features (since I've only worked with Enterprise/Ultimate).