Preface
| Welcome to MCSE Core Required Exams in a Nutshell. As the author, I designed this book for IT professionals looking to complete their Microsoft Certification. Microsoft offers multiple certification tracks and as an administrator or engineer, the tracks you'll be most interested in are:
Taken appropriately, the certification tracks can measure the progress of your IT career from beginner to pro. Or, for those already experienced, the certification tracks can be a measure of your progress through the process of getting your professional credentials. Regardless of your certification plans, the exam I recommend studying for and taking first is Exam 70-290: Managing and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Environment. When you pass this exam, you will get your MCP credentials. The next exam I recommend studying for and taking is Exam 70-291: Implementing, Managing, and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Network Infrastructure. When you pass this exam, you will have completed the two required networking systems exams for MCSA certification. To complete MCSA certification, you will need to complete a client operating system exam and an elective exam. Exams 70-290 and 70-291 are also two of the four required networking system exams for MCSE certification. The other two required networking system exams are Exam 70-293: Planning and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Network Infrastructure and Exam 70-294: Planning, Implementing, and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Active Directory Infrastructure. Exams 70-290, 70-291, 70-293, and 70-294 are covered in this book. This book also covers Exam 70-292: Managing and Maintaining a Microsoft Server 2003 Environment for an MCSA Certified on Windows 2000 and Exam 70-296: Planning, Implementing, and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Environment for an MCSE Certified on Windows 2000. If you are a current MCSA on Windows 2000, you need to pass Exam 70-292 to upgrade your certification to Windows Server 2003. If you are a current MCSE on Windows 2000, you need to pass Exam 70-292 and Exam 70-296 to upgrade your certification to Windows Server 2003. These exams are designed to cover the delta (changes) between Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003. As such, Exam 70-292 covers a subset of the objectives on Exam 70-290 and Exam 70-291. Exam 70-296 covers a subset of the objectives on Exam 70-293 and Exam 70-294. The focus of this book is on providing the core knowledge to prepare you for the current certification exams, which include performance-based testing through simulation. This book is meant to be used as part of your final preparationand not as your only preparationfor the exams. Think of this book as the notes you'd have written down if you were to highlight and then record every essential nugget of information related to the skills being measured in Exams 70-290, 70-291, 70-293, and 70-294 (and by association, Exams 70-292 and 70-296). Basically, what I've done is boil down the required knowledge to its finest core. So, rather than having 500700 pages covering each exam, there's approximately 150 pages for each. With this in mind, the best way to use this book is as part of your final review. So, after you've built sufficient hands-on expertise and studied all the relevant texts, grab this book and study it cover to cover as part of your final exam cram. Tip: Unless you have access to a very complete test environment, I recommend employing some type of virtual machine technology as part of your exam preparation. Microsoft offers Virtual PC and Virtual Server. Virtual PC lets you configure desktops and servers and run them in a virtual network environment. Virtual Server builds on Virtual PC and offers better resource use and extended APIs for automated deployment and management. Because Virtual Server 2005 supports two-node clustering between virtual machines on the same Virtual Server host computer and uses a virtual shared SCSI bus to implement the quorum device, you can implement and test software failover between clustered virtual machines. Clustering is a skill measured in Exam 70-293. Conventions Used in This BookEach part in this book corresponds to a single Microsoft exam and consists of the following sections:
The following font conventions are used in this book:
Tip: Notes are used to provide additional information or highlight a specific point. Warning: Warnings are used to provide details on potential problems. Other Study ResourcesThere is no single magic bullet for passing the Microsoft Certification exams. Your current knowledge will largely determine your success with this study guide and on the exams. If you encounter topics you haven't practiced and studied extensively prior to reading this text, you need further preparation. Get the practical hands-on know-how and knowledge before continuing. Throughout your preparations for certification, I recommend that you regularly visit the Microsoft Certifications page (http://www.microsoft.com/certification/). The related pages will help you keep up-to-date with the certification process and any changes that may occur. There are a wide variety of Microsoft Certification study guides, training classes, and learning resources available. Regardless of whether these materials say they are for MCPs, MCSAs, or MCSEs, the materials should relate to specific exams. The exams are the same regardless of the certification track. Also, a large number of practice tests and exam simulations are available for purchase and for free on the Web. These tests, like this book, are useful as part of your exam preparation. How to Contact UsThe good folks at O'Reilly and I tested and verified the information in this book to the best of our ability, but you may find that features have changed (or even that we have madegasp!mistakes). To make this book better, please let us know about any errors you find, as well as your suggestions for future editions, by writing to:
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Safari offers a solution that's better than e-books. It's a virtual library that lets you easily search thousands of top tech books, cut and paste code samples, download chapters, and find quick answers when you need the most accurate, current information. Try it for free at http://safari.oreilly.com. AcknowledgmentsIncreasingly, I find myself trying to do things in fundamentally different ways than they've been done before. For this book, I had this crazy idea that I could get every essential nugget of information necessary for Exams 70-290, 70-291, 70-293, and 70-294 (and by association Exams 70-292 and 70-296) into one book and do so in a way that would give you, the reader, maximum value and learning potential. With that in mind, I started from scratch and addressed the book in an entirely different way from its predecessors. I organized the book into 4 parts and 12 chapters, creating a new approach that divides each exam study guide into three major components: an overview and a study guide followed by "prep and practice." In the overview, I tied the exam objectives directly to the sections in which those objectives are discussed and added details on the upgrade certification path for those taking the upgrade exams. In the study guide, I delved as deep as possible into every exam objective. In the "prep and practice," I created a single chapter that contains everything you need for additional review, including notes on preparing for the exam, suggested exercises, highlights from the study guide, and practice questions. I hope the result of all the hard work is that the book you hold in your hands is something unique. This isn't a 400-page cram guide or a 600-page study guide for a single exam. This is a comprehensive 750-page guide to Exams 70-290, 70-291, 70-293, and 70-294 (and, by association, Exams 70-292 and 70-296) that contains the core knowledge to prepare you for certification. During the many longs months of writing this book, I've worked with many different people at O'Reilly. I've enjoyed getting to know Jeff Pepper, Mary Brady, and everyone else at O'Reilly. Jeff Pepper was instrumental throughout the writing process. He was supportive of my ideas. He believed in the book and my unique approach and was really great to work with. Mary Brady headed up the production process for O'Reilly. She is a terrific person to work with, conscientious and dedicated. Her attention to detail through every step of the editing is much appreciated. O'Reilly has an extensive editing and review process. Rodney Buike, Chris Buechler, and Pawan K. Bhardwaj were the technical reviewers of the book. Each reviewed the book from start to finish, and it was a great pleasure working with them. Of particular note is the effort Pawan put into the project to ensure the book was as accurate as it could be. In the final editing stages, the book was sent out for final comments to Ben Miller, Microsoft MVP Lead, Michael Dennis, Lead Program Manager for Group Policy at Microsoft, and others. Al Valvano, Rob Linsky, and Lucinda Rowley of Microsoft provided extremely helpful information and support for this project. Thank you for all your help! Thanks also to Studio B literary agency and my agents, David Rogelberg and Neil Salkind. David and Neil are great to work with. Hopefully, I haven't forgotten anyone but if I have, it was an oversight. Honest.;-) |
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EAN: 2147483647
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