MCSA: Server 2008 ??

So is MCSA/E: Server 2008 still a thing? I've read conflicting information, some stating that the MCSA/E: 2008 certification retired in 2014. Yet on the MS site, I can still register for the exam 70-640, and the MCSA: 2008 is apparently still a thing:

https://www.microsoft.com/learning/en-us/mcsa-windows-server-2008-certification.aspx

Mainstream support ended in January, 2015. And extended support ends in 2020. I'm on a bit of a learning curve here with MS Server. I am a little familiar with Server 2008, but no experience with 2012. Is it worth pursuing the Server 2008 cert? Or should I just do the material to get better with it before attempting anything with Server 2012?

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Mike7

The 2003 to 2008 upgrade exams have retired, so have some of the Server 2008 exams. You can find retired exam list at https://www.microsoft.com/learning/en-us/retired-certifications.aspx

Microsoft usually gives 1 year's notice for exam retirement, so the 2008 exams may retire around 2017. Especially if they release server 2016 next year.

Server 2008 is stable and is used in many companies. Just as some companies plan to stay with Win 7 and skip Windows 8 until OS EOL in 2020, others may stay with 2008 R2, skip 2012 and migrate to 2016 R2. So yes MCSA 2008 is worth it if your work environment uses it and you can pass the exams before they retire. MCSA 2008 to 2012 is a single upgrade exam (70-417) away.

Mike7

To add to the above, exams scheduled to retire can be found at https://www.microsoft.com/learning/en-us/retired-certification-exams.aspx

iBrokeIT

There is no MCSE for 2008, the marketing geniuses at Microsoft decided to call it MCITP:EA

I believe the had drop the use of Engineer in the MCSE so they went to a new acronym and didn't take very well so they went back to MCSE and it is now Expert. They likely had to drop the Engineer part because it is not traditional engineering that requires a degree and passing of the fundamentals of engineering exam.

OctalDump

MCSA Server 2008 is still current. The exams are still running, and no retirement date for the exams has been announced yet.

When they originally released the certifications for Server 2008, they renamed them all entirely. So, the MCSA Server 2008 was originally MCITP: Server Administrator (Microsoft Certified IT Professional). The MCSE equivalent was MCITP: Enterprise Administrator. But no one told the hiring people, so everyone was still asking for MCSA/MCSE. So they changed back for 2012, and rebranded some of the Server 2008 certs. The rebrand didn't include MCITP: Enterprise Administrator.

The Enterprise Administrator specific exams (70-643 and 70-647) retired 31 July this year. But the certification is still current, so if you were in some weird situation where you had passed those two exams, but not yet done the other requirements (70-680, 70-640, 70-642 ie MCSA level), you could still get the certification once you pass those exams.

Anyway, there is some value in doing the MCSA Server 2008, since there are still a lot of places still running 2008. You can upgrade from MCSA 2008 to MCSA 2012 with one delta exam (70-417). A lot of the knowledge carries over from one version to the next, but they do expect you to know all the new stuff, things along the lines of "what forest functional level do you need to be running for feature x to work".

maelstrom3530

Yeah all of our servers run 2008, there might be one running as a pilot for 2012.

Alright, thank you for the replies. That's a huge help!

Slowhand

The difference between the tracks isn't huge. Three exams for MCSA: Windows Server 2008, three exams for MCSA: Windows Server 2012. What you can do, however, is go through the 2008 track, then take the single-exam upgrade to 2012, netting you both certs in four tests, as OctalDump alluded to.

techfiend

You'd learn a lot more pursuing 2012 and it'd be a much smaller step if you pursue a future MCSA/E. However you'll be learning many things, mainly hyper-v and powershell, that you probably wish you could make use of at work but can't on 2008. I've read 70-417 is a very difficult test and this is a tough decision. I'd still go with 2012 being in this position.