Preparing to study for the beast.

nazzeem

I passed 70-290 last week Monday. I am busy now preparing for to study for this exam. Currently I have 1 physical 2003 server (P4 3Ghz, 2GB Ram, about 750GB HD Space) running 3 virtual 2003 servers & 1 XP PC in MS Virtual Server. They all in 1 domain.

Is this ok for a Test LAB?

Also I have some Training videos from Train Signal, Specialised Solutions and Testout.

Would all of the above be adequite to prepare for the beast?

dynamik

You might to add one or two more VMs to test out more complex RRAS and DNS scenarios, but you can get by with what you have. You seem to have the system resources to add more, so add them when/if you need them.

Are you using any written sources? You should pick up the MS Press book if you don't.

royal

I'm not one that usually says doing more is bad, but setting up RRAS for complex scenarios is a waste of time. I did complex RRAS stuff when I did 70-291, and I feel like I completely wasted time doing it.

Do people even use RRAS anymore? Just about all networks have edge devices that can do point-to-point VPN if needed and most networks have private WAN links to connect their offices together. And if they don't, then they'll just use that site to site VPN functionality with their edge devices. And the majority of people use things like ASA's for VPN.

It's amazing that Microsoft is testing on demand on dial, VPN functionality with RRAS, using it as a router, etc... Seriously, they need to be testing on stuff that's actually commonly used.

RRAS in Server 2008 is a different story since it has SSL VPN. I'm sure a lot of people will be using that. But that's the only thing I can really think of.

All I'm saying is, learn as little about RRAS as you need to pass the exam. Spend the rest of the time focusing on stuff you'll need in the real world like DNS, DHCP, etc...

Just my 2 cents.

dynamik

I just had fun playing around with static routes and filters. Maybe I should start working on that CCNA

nazzeem

dynamik wrote:

You might to add one or two more VMs to test out more complex RRAS and DNS scenarios, but you can get by with what you have. You seem to have the system resources to add more, so add them when/if you need them.

Are you using any written sources? You should pick up the MS Press book if you don't.

The MS Press Book. Is it this one? --> MS Press - MCSA/MCSE Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-291), 2nd Edition

dynamik

Looks like it. Here it is on Amazon.

APA

nazzeem wrote:

dynamik wrote:

You might to add one or two more VMs to test out more complex RRAS and DNS scenarios, but you can get by with what you have. You seem to have the system resources to add more, so add them when/if you need them.

Are you using any written sources? You should pick up the MS Press book if you don't.

The MS Press Book. Is it this one? --> MS Press - MCSA/MCSE Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-291), 2nd Edition

That is indeed the one

Good Luck on your 291 quest... It isn't as bad as everyone make it out to be.... Just make sure you really know DNS, DHCP like the back of your hand!!!


.... and you'll be fine!

nazzeem

Thanks a lot guys. I have all the ammunition now. Will hopefully start studying tomorrow.