GCIA 503

bsjj27

Anyone that has taken the 503 test, was your head spinning leading up to it?  I am taking 503 on demand and my head is spinning when going through the labs.  When you starting specifying offset and zeroing out bits and finding specifics in packet captures via wireshark and tcpdump that aren't obvious.  Did anyone else have difficulty grasping this material?  I'm not new to this space and have taken plenty of other tests, I didn't expect to have such a hard time with this.  Also are they labs on the test does anyone know?  I have about 30 days before I have to test out.  I'm going through all the videos and exercises for the second time.  I will then index and attempt a practice test, something tells me the index may not be as valuable for this test as it was for others I've taken, (GCIH and GMON).  I appreciate any feedback.

markmorow

Take the practice test. On both my practice tests and the exam there are labs to complete. 

c5rookie

Of the 500 level courses that I've taken, 503 was the most difficult for me personally.  Work through the labs a couple more times.  Also, try experimenting with other command line switches/arguments that are not listed in the steps of the lab.  As far an index, everyone's is going to be different.  I split mine into 2 parts, one with key words/terms that I think GIAC would ask a question about.  The other part is a list of every command that was used in the books AND labs.  When you are taking the exam, do not get discouraged when you run into a string of questions that you can't answer.  I hit a wall of questions that shook my confidence early on.  I pressed on, and after reaching the last question I was glad the exam was over.  It was my lowest GIAC score, but I was glad that I passed.  Stay focused this month, build a solid index and you should do fine.

Randy_Randerson

Take it from a humble chap who struggled in this class/test -- know what you're doing in Books 1 and 2. I cannot stress enough how knowing everything that was in those books will come into play.