XK0-005 beta on the horizon?

FluffyBunny

I wonder, I wonder! 

I've seen a CompTIA roadmap graphic, for 2022, and it looks like Linux+' new version will go live around June/July. I'm curious if that means we can expect a new beta exam any time soon. 

JDMurray

Seem like if a new Linux+ exam release is 7-8 months away they would already have a beta exam out for it by now. Maybe the update is just incremental and not a major overhaul, so no beta required.

FluffyBunny

I'm asking on the CompTIA instrutor network as well, so we'll see. I hope there's gonna be one.

Let's see, I took the beta for Pentest+ in April with the results coming in about a week or two. So that's a six month lead. If there's gonna be a beta for Linux+ 5, they still have some time.

trojin

 
I did not pass previous Linux+ beta
so....
It's a reason to try again 

FluffyBunny

My contact at CompTIA confirms rumors of the Linux+ 005 beta happening per December.

JDMurray

It may be time for me to get the last CompTIA cert worth getting that I dont have!

FluffyBunny

JDMurray said:

It may be time for me to get the last CompTIA cert worth getting that I dont have!

I'm actually considering a shot at ITF+, simply because I want to know if it's good enough to recommend to my green-horn students, or even to include in our curriculum to replace MTA Net, Sec and DB.

FluffyBunny

It's up! Let's go, go go!

CompTIA is seeking beta testers for the newest version of the Linux+ exam XK1-005. For $50 you will get to take the exam and get fully certified if you pass.

Login at PearsonVue as if you'd normally schedule your exam. When searching for Linux+, you will also find the 005 beta.

113ish questions and the benefit of an extended timer - 165 minutes. Exam will be available until February 18, 2022

More details here -> https://www.comptia.org/certifications/linux

Objectives PDF hasn't been published yet can only be requested from that page I linked.  

I'm taking the exam tomorrow for fun and profit.

JDMurray

I just signed up for a 2/14/2022 exam date at my local testing center.

Thank you for the quick notice!!

FluffyBunny

Here's my first impressions. -> Took the CompTIA XK0-005 Linux+ beta

JDMurray

Nice write-up! It sounds like the objectives of XK0-005 will be a worthy syllabus for anyone interested in becoming deeply Linux-savvy.

Your comment "I feel that some of the questions were actually too hard for an entry-level exam" reflect that one purpose of beta exams is to weed out exam items that are too difficult or too easy. I'm sure many of the "crazy" items we see on betas are thrown in for pure experimentation and not even scored. It's also likely the beta exam item pool will undergo adjustments between the time you took the beta and I take the same beta ten weeks from now.

JDMurray

I just finished taking the CompTIA Linux+ beta exam at a local testing center. It's 113 items given in 165 minutes. There is the capability of flagging and reviewing items, moving forwards and backwards, and adding comments to items with which you found issues. Because of the CompTIA exam NDA, and my beta exam may not be an accurate representation of the released exam, I won't remark directly on the contents of my exam, but here are some thoughts and casual observations:

• This is not an exam for the casual Linux user like myself. It is a Linux administrator's exam for sure.
  
• There are performance items that require solving problems by entering commands, writing scripts, interpreting the output tools and logs files, etc.
• Per the exam objectives, you will need hands-on experience with git, containers (Docker, Kubernetes, etc.), PKI, Web servers, etc. all from a Linux context.
  
• Know network, storage, and file system tools and troubleshooting.
• Knowing file permissions, firewall ACLs, and program installation/maintenance tools on several flavors of Linux may come in handy too.
  
• I'm not sure what the actual exam number will be. The beta exam objectives PDF  lists XK0-005 and the beta exam itself shows XK1-005.
• The Linux+ -004 study materials will probably be a good baseline to study from, but they alone won't get you a passing score on -005.
  
• The "+" on all CompTIA exams no longer stands for "entry level" anything. They should rebrand their certs to "++".
  

Do I think I passed? Hell no! I probably guessed at half the answers, but it was still an interesting exam to take to find out just how far from being a Linux admin that I really am!

trojin

Thanks for review, Seems is not for me

FluffyBunny

Thanks for sharing your experiences JDM! Sounds spot on. 

FluffyBunny

Scores are out: I passed with 796 out of 900. Not too bad, not great. It was a nice enough excursion, to see what the exam is like. 

JDMurray

Congratz! I completely forgot about the beta! I wish I could SSO into my CompTIA dashboard to check for my results.

JDMurray

Well, I just received email from CompTIA congratzing me on achieving Linux+ and giving me a Credly badge to prove it! I am literally gobsmacked on how I passed the exam.

I look forward to one day being able to SSO into my CompTIA cert dashboard and seeing my score!

FluffyBunny

Congrats on your pass!

MentholMoose

I passed with a 791.