Vmware CBT

homerj742

I hear this guy: http://eliaskhnaser.com/ offers a really good Vmware CBT. From the looks of it, it's the older version of ESX (3.0).

I was wondering if anyone has used this to get a good grasp of Vmware? I'm looking to get some training. Infact, i would love to go for VCP, however my office will not cover the cost of the training course.

so until I raise enough money for the course on my own, I will do my best to learn as much as possible on my own time.

Any other suggestions as far as self training?

J0e

have you tried Trainsignal they have ESX 3.0.2 and 3.5 and only costs 200 bucks!

dynamik

It' not CBT, but this seems to be a good resource for 2.5 and 3.0: http://www.amazon.com/VMware-ESX-Server-Enterprise-Virtualization/dp/0132302071/ref=pd_bbs_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&sr=8-1

It just came the other day, but I haven't had a chance to go through it yet.

Thanks for the Trainsignal heads-up. I didn't realize they covered this.

homerj742

That book looks excellent, I will have to look into it once I'm done with my MCSE track.

Trainsignal looks good as well, (and updated).

HeroPsycho

I'm sure you're aware, but remember you cannot get VCP without going to the official training course.

dynamik

HeroPsycho wrote:

I'm sure you're aware, but remember you cannot get VCP without going to the official training course.

Just out curiosity, which course did you take? I'd like to take the fast track for completeness, but it's $5.5k, and I don't have the time to take both of the other two individually.

HeroPsycho

http://mylearn1.vmware.com/mgrreg/courses.cfm?ui=www&a=one&id_subject=3036

Let me know if you want info on some other study tools I used to prep for mine that helped. But they're of no use without going to the training.

FYI, my instructor said VMWare would be releasing more certs, expected them out this month. It would be an Architect titled cert, and there's supposed to be an advanced troubleshooting cert as well. The second course you're referring to is supposed to be required whenever those certs are released.

dynamik

Nice, thanks.

Were you able to make up for the Secure, Deploy and Analyze course with other resources?

I was thinking of maybe studying the Install and Configure material myself and then attending the Secure, Deploy, and Analyze course.

Did you have much experience working with this before you went for the certification? I'm familiar with Workstation/Server/Player, but I'm new to ESX.

HeroPsycho

The VCP exam doesn't require you to know the information contained in Secure, Deploy, and Analyze to be quite honest. You do need to read up a bit on some stuff outside of class, namely things on the exam that are non-technical, like licensing, that kind of thing.

I was in the same boat with experience with their products as you with some ESX administration but no deployment experience. But you will find the exam and the second class to be wastes of time/money if you don't have a very firm grasp of how ESX works. Understanding ESX is far more conceptual than it is memorization of facts.

If you want the certification, I highly recommend the first course. Secure, Deploy, and Analyze is honestly something you could pick up a lot of on your own by reading and through experience.

FYI, the study aid I have are perfectly legit. I just need to hunt the links down again. There's an excellent set of flashcards available online for free, and I added to those a bit if I remember correctly if you want my copy of them. I also sized them to make them easy to print and make actual printed flashcard "strips" you can fold in half to make them portable and shield the answers from the questions.

dynamik

That's good to know. I think several others, along with myself, thought both courses or the fast track was basically a necessity, even though they only require one course.

I have that book I posted earlier, and I just ordered the Trainsignal CBT. Between the class, and the documentation, I should be pretty well set. I'd definitely check out those resources of yours if you come across them. No rush though; I have enough to keep me busy for the time being.

Thanks again.

HeroPsycho

http://www.petri.co.il/forums/showthread.php?t=15947

dynamik

Very nice. Thank you.

HeroPsycho

After you take the class and study the book, those flashcards are by far the best study aid for the exam hands down. Use them!

astorrs

Getting back to the original question... Elias is a great guy and knows his stuff. If you're just interested in learning VMware and not worrying about certification up front, I think his course is an excellent step-by-step and covers the key content from the Install & Configuration course. The changes made to the core for 3.5 are minimal, most of the updates are in the form of new features (VUM, Storage VMotion, etc) and you will be able to work in 3.5 just fine while working on the 3.0 CBT course (VI3 v3.5 has a 60 day eval built into the download - much easier).

dynamik

If you check the site, he recently announced that his 3.5 CBT will be available at the end of May. You might as well hold out another few of weeks and get updated training.

astorrs

Thanks dynamik for catching that. I hadn't seen that he had fixed a date finally.