CCNP-R/S or VMware or Linux

in CCNP
Greetings,
I'm currently working as a Network/Virtualization Admin and need some insight on what I should specialize in, heading forward. Any help is greatly appreciated.
At this time, I have CCNA and VCP5-DCV certifications. I'm 43 years old and live/work in New York City.
I realize these are all completely different technologies, but I find them all interesting and having a hard time choosing. I feel it's important at this point in my career to pick something to specialize in as these are big big topics all on their own.
So, I thought I would reach out to the community and ask what you think is most lucrative, has more of a future at this point, and most exciting out of both these paths? Since I like them all, earning potential plays a big part here.
Here are a couple examples of the learning paths I had in mind:
Networking:
CCNP R/S, then Juniper JNCIA, as well as learning ASA and Checkpoint Firewalls, possibly the VCP6-NV as network virtualization sounds very interesting.
Virtualization:
VCP-NV, VCP-Cloud, possibly VCAP, learning Microsoft Hyper-V, and maybe Citrix. Possibly head toward AWS.
Linux:
RHCSA (Red Hat Certified System Administrator), RHCE (Red Hat Certified Engineer)
Someone from another thread said that the networking field is flooded with people and being a one-trick-pony is not going to get you far in that field any more.
While I have really enjoyed Cisco networking, I am seeing their focus starting to shift towards the Internet of Things (IoT) and Cloud. I'm also seeing that the salaries for CCNP are not as high as the VMware VCP-DCV. So, this all had me wondering if pursuing the CCNP was the way to go, or if I should fully embrace virtualization or even start learning Linux.
I posted a similar thread in the general certification section, and while I had responses that suggested VMware or Linux, not one person thought that I should pursue the CCNP, and I was really hoping to have some of those as well. So, I decided to head over to the Cisco CCNP area and see if that changed the results at all, so I could weigh all my options and make an informed decision on which direction to take my IT career.
Thanks very much for your feedback!
I'm currently working as a Network/Virtualization Admin and need some insight on what I should specialize in, heading forward. Any help is greatly appreciated.
At this time, I have CCNA and VCP5-DCV certifications. I'm 43 years old and live/work in New York City.
I realize these are all completely different technologies, but I find them all interesting and having a hard time choosing. I feel it's important at this point in my career to pick something to specialize in as these are big big topics all on their own.
So, I thought I would reach out to the community and ask what you think is most lucrative, has more of a future at this point, and most exciting out of both these paths? Since I like them all, earning potential plays a big part here.
- Do I continue to pursue a career in networking and go for the CCNP?
- Do I dive further into virtualization and go for more VMware's certs?
Here are a couple examples of the learning paths I had in mind:
Networking:
CCNP R/S, then Juniper JNCIA, as well as learning ASA and Checkpoint Firewalls, possibly the VCP6-NV as network virtualization sounds very interesting.
Virtualization:
VCP-NV, VCP-Cloud, possibly VCAP, learning Microsoft Hyper-V, and maybe Citrix. Possibly head toward AWS.
Linux:
RHCSA (Red Hat Certified System Administrator), RHCE (Red Hat Certified Engineer)
Someone from another thread said that the networking field is flooded with people and being a one-trick-pony is not going to get you far in that field any more.
While I have really enjoyed Cisco networking, I am seeing their focus starting to shift towards the Internet of Things (IoT) and Cloud. I'm also seeing that the salaries for CCNP are not as high as the VMware VCP-DCV. So, this all had me wondering if pursuing the CCNP was the way to go, or if I should fully embrace virtualization or even start learning Linux.
I posted a similar thread in the general certification section, and while I had responses that suggested VMware or Linux, not one person thought that I should pursue the CCNP, and I was really hoping to have some of those as well. So, I decided to head over to the Cisco CCNP area and see if that changed the results at all, so I could weigh all my options and make an informed decision on which direction to take my IT career.
Thanks very much for your feedback!
Comments
I am pretty much only focusing on cloud now, I think all the other area's including VMware are going to diminish as time goes on. VMware as an example, load of clients I've worked with in the last 18 months are migrating to Hyper-V due to the costs of VMware. I read an article today stating VMware have raised the price on vSphere by $1000 yet again.
I really enjoyed doing my CCNP DC. Although I wise I had done R&S now.
Thanks, Bettsy584.
I appreciate the insight. Well, my current job has Cisco, VMware, SANs (EMC, Netapp, HP), Servers (Mostly Microsoft 2008 R2 and some CentOS 7). I work with it all.
Can you please tell me why you wish you had done CCNP R/S instead of DC? Especially since you are only planning to focus on Cloud at this point.
I'm wondering if anyone else can share some insight. I invested so much time and money into learning Cisco routing and switching, and now it seems like I need to head in another direction if I want to keep up and have a promising career ahead of me.
I was hoping to hear from both sides of the fence. Cisco and VMware both. When I Google this subject, all I see are articles about NSX and how to get a vcp-nv without training. I already have a VCP-DCV, as well as a CCNA.
Thanks.
So once you change the thinking from "networking" to "infrastructure", what does that look like for your location/industry? What is that complete data-path? Where are the bottle-necks? What types of traffic needs prioritization and on what VLANs? If you can't answer those questions then I'd suggest you might have areas to consider learning more about.
I would go for the CCNP then CCIE or other CCNP's(especially CCNP DC in your case). I would also probably skip the Juniper, unless your job demands it.
If you have the drive to study do you ccnp r&s as having a solid foundation of the fundamentals is a excellent, plus so many server guys I worked with have ccna but would never put them in front of a switch or router😊
2015 Start WGU (Feb) Net+ (Feb) Sec+ (Mar) Project+ (Apr) Other WGU (Jun) CCENT (Jul) CCNA (Aug) CCNA Security (Aug) MCP 2012 (Sep) MCSA 2012 (Oct) Linux+ (Nov) Capstone/BS (Nov) VCP6-DCV (Dec) ITILF (Dec)
Thanks, techfiend. The restructuring at Cisco is precisely why I've been looking into this; wondering if my original plan to go for the CCNP:RS is the way to go, or if I'd be better off building on my other Associate level cert (VCP-DCV). Beyond that, I have always been interested in learning more about Linux and wondered if that would be a good thing to get into right now as well. I miss the days when it was clear what direction I was heading!
You're saying VMware might get a stranglehold on AWS? What do you mean? ...and what recent announcement are you referring to?
Thanks.
Can you expand with regard this point? Pretty curious.
That is interesting, OctalDump.
Given that you have the CCNP:R+S, RHCSA, and VCP-DCV, maybe you can give me some advice on which way I should go, given that I'm interested in all of these. While I could certainly do all three, I think I should focus on specializing in just one of these areas and mastering it best I can.
Which of these would you feel would be the most rewarding, financially, career-wise moving forward?
Do you feel that Cisco networking will one day soon be fading out, especially for those of us that invested so much time and money to learning the CLI?
I am personally completing the CCNP RS. I can say that the time spent it's not dedicated to learning the CLI. It's about learning the standards that make Internet running.
I completely understand. My questions weren't really all about the CLI. It was just an example of all the other stuff I was asking. I've been networking for several years now and have been CCNA certified for most of that. So, I realize that half the material, if not more, is in regards to the concepts, and not just the commands.
But I'd really like to get your point of view on the rest of what I was asking, seeing as you have certs/experience in all three of the areas I'm asking about.
Thanks a lot.
Now whether you chase the CCIE and how you market it is another story. If there's a project you want to work on and you think you might get pigeon-holed from having a CCIE, if you have a CCNP, claim it and neglect-to-mention the CCIE. There are industries (gov't) where people hear CCIE and bow and pray... and then pigeon-hole you. You don't have to advertise a CCIE to exhibit CCIE knowledge.
3 months ago at the local VMUG SDN dominated the Cisco booth, same at VMworld last month. As vendors move towards SDN the demand for pure network pros is going to reduce significantly. I think VMware NSX and AWS are already making an impact. I agree network knowledge is stable but that's because it's not progressing quickly. Those very knowledgeable in networking should be fine but I think it's going to get more and more difficult to get in and climb the networking ladder.
VMware is getting into everything infrastructure in a pretty sensible manner. While the certs are all over the place I think the core datacenter certs are sufficient to obtain new positions.
2015 Start WGU (Feb) Net+ (Feb) Sec+ (Mar) Project+ (Apr) Other WGU (Jun) CCENT (Jul) CCNA (Aug) CCNA Security (Aug) MCP 2012 (Sep) MCSA 2012 (Oct) Linux+ (Nov) Capstone/BS (Nov) VCP6-DCV (Dec) ITILF (Dec)
I am questioning myself about the next step, which is not only related to what I like, but it's also a question of what problems I need to be able to solve out there. In simple words, what's in demand in 2016. Network Engineers keep reminding me that without a CCIE RS equivalent knowledge, tackles Data Center (in case you want to understand the cloud from the SP' side) it's very difficult. If you want to focus just on the application, I guess we're talking about working on hypervisors and cloud platforms. And if that's the case, I see a lot of demand for AWS, Vmware, and both Linux/Microsoft.
That's only my view.
Well, I don't hold CCNP yet, but I am a fair way down that path. If you look at the certifications in isolation, then CCNP is the clear winner. It's the most asked for in job listings. I wouldn't get too hung up on CLI, I think the really important thing at CCNP level is that you have a deeper understanding of the underlying protocols, so that you can make intelligent decisions about implementation and troubleshooting. A lot of that remains the same even in SDN and virtualisation, and across vendors. Once you know what should be possible, you know what to look for to make it possible.
As others have alluded to, a 'paper' CCNP isn't worth as much as a CCNP backed by experience. Typically, CCNP is mentioned in connection to Senior Engineering roles (or higher), so you'd need to dress up your other experience to highlight your networking experience. A typical listing will mention Cisco certification, some specific technologies (eg BGP, Nexus) , and usually throw in another vendor or two (eg HP, Juniper), and another speciality (eg wireless, security, voice, datacenter).
VMware tends to be lumped in with Infrastructure and Systems, so that it isn't that common that a listing will mention only VMware certification. It's nearly always mentioned along with Windows and/or Linux plus a whole bunch of other things. Which is good if you have a systems type background, since you can bring a lot of that to the table already. But as a stand alone certification, it's not great (yet).
Linux is much more nebulous. They don't tend to ask for certifications much, and when they do it is usually RHCE or RHCA. The RHCSA isn't worth that much. What they do ask for is experience with lots (and lots) of technologies, zabbix, apache, mysql, nagios, puppet, ansible, etc etc etc ad nauseum. Again, that is usually quite achievable if you have that background. Otherwise you are looking at junior roles, and even those can be quite intimidating.
So, CCNP is a safe bet. VMware is still in a great position to get into "early". Although lots of companies have implemented virtualisation, most aren't yet taking full advantage of all its features - due to lack of staff skilled enough to implement them. So there is lots of room to add value. Knowing some Linux is never going to hurt you, but to get into a linux specific role, you'll need more than just RHCSA or even RHCE, and need to play with whatever techs are flavour of the month.
2015 Start WGU (Feb) Net+ (Feb) Sec+ (Mar) Project+ (Apr) Other WGU (Jun) CCENT (Jul) CCNA (Aug) CCNA Security (Aug) MCP 2012 (Sep) MCSA 2012 (Oct) Linux+ (Nov) Capstone/BS (Nov) VCP6-DCV (Dec) ITILF (Dec)
Having both networking and VMware knowledge is a plus (at least for me). With VMware, the VCP is good enough for most jobs. Having the knowledge to properly virtualize/troubleshoot Tier 1 applications is what's most important. Unless you're going to work for a VAR, in my opinion, the higher level VMware certs aren't going to make much of a difference
Since you like VMware and networking, maybe take a look at CCNA Data Center.
I'd have to disagree. Under 200k
With 2 years experience I make close to the equivalent of 200k in NYC. I know a local VCIX with 3 years of experience making twice as much.
2015 Start WGU (Feb) Net+ (Feb) Sec+ (Mar) Project+ (Apr) Other WGU (Jun) CCENT (Jul) CCNA (Aug) CCNA Security (Aug) MCP 2012 (Sep) MCSA 2012 (Oct) Linux+ (Nov) Capstone/BS (Nov) VCP6-DCV (Dec) ITILF (Dec)
I'd even say a network architect is somewhere around 170k.
VCIX works in the financial industry which is a big factor. He's making 160k with 2 years of help desk and 3 years of systems admin, engineer and recently architect. He's in his low 30's and the only certs he's ever held are A+ and 3 VMware certs. I'm a little envious but I also don't want to have my life revolve around IT like his does.
That said VCAP6 is probably next in line for me but I heard it's really difficult. VMware certs except VCP aren't mentioned often on job listings but they carry a lot of weight in tech-minded companies.
2015 Start WGU (Feb) Net+ (Feb) Sec+ (Mar) Project+ (Apr) Other WGU (Jun) CCENT (Jul) CCNA (Aug) CCNA Security (Aug) MCP 2012 (Sep) MCSA 2012 (Oct) Linux+ (Nov) Capstone/BS (Nov) VCP6-DCV (Dec) ITILF (Dec)
I'd say don't move to NY
Financial companies always pay more, so I can see that. In NYC, you'll see very high salaries for Hedge Funds and startups.
Personally, I prefer to stay in NJ. The commute to NYC daily gives me a headache haha
VCAP are very difficult exams, I have nothing against them. I'd start with the Deploy exam, if you're going to do both of them