PASSED 70-410 First attempt! Here's What I Did
Hello everyone, I've been following these forums for quite some time now while I've been preparing for my exams and the advice and tips I've gotten have helped me to prepare immensely. I've never posted before but wanted to do something to give back to the community that's helped me so much in my preparations. I've seen so many people struggling with the 70-410 exam that I thought by sharing my experience hopefully it would help others to prepare and be able to pass as well. I will NOT be breaking any Microsoft Nondisclosure Agreements so if you're looking for brain **** or specifics on test questions you'll not find it in this post.
Anyhow, I took the 70-410 exam a few days ago and passed on my FIRST attempt. Score was 791 which is a little lower than what I was hoping for but I'll take it!
I studied for 11 weeks before sitting for the exam.
My work experience:
I have 8 years working in the IT field, a little over 3 of which are specific to managing Windows Severs. Of those 3 years, I have a little over a year specifically managing Windows Server 2012. Having experience in the field definitely helped, but I wouldn't say it's an absolute necessity to pass the exam.
Previous certifications:
I currently hold the Comptia A+, Network+, and Security+ certifications along with a Windows XP MCP certification. I can't tell you how valuable these were to my studying. If you're new to taking certifications and just starting with the 70-410 and having trouble I HIGHLY recommend starting with the A+, Network+, and potentially Security+ before attempting the 70-410. Security+ maybe isn't as necessary but A+ and Network+ for sure. I learned so many of the basics and foundational concepts from studying for these certifications that weren't covered in any of the study materials I used for the 70-410. I have also taken the Cisco Networking Academy several years ago although I didn't get the certification. I also have an Associate's Degree in Computer and Network Administration.
Study materials:
Pluralsight Training Videos for Server 2012 R2 with Jason Helmick and Greg Shields
Infinite Skills Training Videos for Server 2012 R2 with John Savill
Microsoft Exam Ref for Server 2012 R2 by Craig Zacker
MCSA Server 2012 R2 Complete Study Guide (Sybex) by William Panek
Transcender 70-410 Practice Tests
In addition to the study materials mentioned above, I also researched a TON of extra stuff online. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY CRUCIAL TO PASSING THE EXAM as there was probably close to 1/3 of the content on the exams that wasn't covered in any of the study materials I used. Any time I would come across something that was just barely touched on in the videos or books I would look it up on Technet or just Google for more information about it. Any time there was something I didn't understand from one of the aforementioned materials I would do the same thing. I took someone else's advice and also studied a little bit from the 70-411 but in retrospect I would have done more because it seemed like there were a few more questions on the 710 that were covered on the 711 objectives than I had initially anticipated. So for what it's worth, definitely study at least a little bit of the 711 content before sitting for the exam.
Of all the materials I used, I'd say the Sybex book was the least helpful. But I'll still use it for the 411 since I've already got it although it looks like some of the chapters from the 410 are just copied verbatim to the 411 ones.
My study habits:
I studied for a minimum of 4-5 hours a day 5 days a week. These weren't always consecutive days, but I did always have 4-5 hours a day minimum that I studied. I started out watching all of the Pluralsight videos in order, then read the Sybex book starting at chapter 1 all the way through to the end of the 410 objectives, then watched the Infinite Skills videos, then read the Craig Zacker book from beginning to end. After I had done this I then would watch a Pluralsight video covering one objective, then afterwards read the content in the Sybex book covering the same objective, then watch a video for that objective in the Infinite Skills video, and then follow up by reading that objective in the Craig Zacker book. About a month before the test I bought the Transcender practice tests and started taking those. The important thing with them is to make sure you read the explanations regardless of if you got the question right or wrong. Most of the questions were nothing like what was on the actual exam (they were a lot longer and more drawn out) but they absolutely helped me prepare and I couldn't imagine not using them.
Lab EVERYTHING:
I also made sure to LAB LAB LAB EVERYTHING. Not only everything that is done in the videos and books, but I mean EVERYTHING that is covered by the objectives listed on Microsoft's website. If I didn't know how to do something I would look it up and figure it out for myself how to do it. Which brings me to another point - Powershell! I would first do every lab using the GUI method and then do it AGAIN but using the Powershell commands. Again, if I didn't know how to do it with Powershell I would look it up. I repeated the labs I did several times as well.
I took the test on a Monday morning and used the weekend before to study for 12 hours each day. I went through EVERY objective and then went back and went through the ones I had the most difficult time with again. I did a lot of labs, reading, and Google searching. In addition, I went through and read the explanations on every single Transcender question and made sure I had a thorough understanding of each topic. The night before the exam I went to bed early, got up and had a good breakfast and then went and took the exam. It had been a long time since I had taken a Microsoft exam so I wasn't too sure of what to expect.
It IS a difficult exam but with the right study habits and determination it IS possible to pass on your first attempt. I know this was rather long-winded but I hope by sharing my experience it will help someone else in their endeavors!
On to the 411 for me now. I'm hoping to have this one done within a couple of months and may even amp up my study habits a bit!
All the best,
Anderson
