Realizing that current job is a stepping stone..

Knives Out

Over the past month or so, I've sort of come to the conclusion that network support is not what I want to do for the rest of my career and I like it to an extent, but not enough to pursue any specialized certification beyond CCNA.

The company I am contracted to has their network team so narrowed down, that is all they do is network support. Vpns, network design/support, voip (only creating phone account & unity vm), working with ISP vendors, and videoconferencing. I really miss the software side of things, such as Microsoft and Citrix.

With that I have decided to expand my skillset, I want to pursue my MCSA (and possibly, MCSE) and i will be starting the path to MCSA with exam 70-270, how long (recommended) should I study for 70-270?

I do have the ExamCram book version 2 for 70-270 and access to Skillport for additional resources for this exam. I also have my home computer with Virtual PC configured for an XP virtual machine to start off.

Also what is the exam path one should take while going after MCSE?

undomiel

Amount of time to study is the amount of time it takes to know all of the areas covered in the exam. Especially focus on things like remote and unattended installations, performance monitoring, security and back ups. You may also wish to consider the 70-620 instead of the 270 as it is a step on the upgrade path from MCSA/MCSE to MCITP:SA/EA. I haven't taken the 620 but the 270 was probably the most difficult Microsoft exam for me. It really prepares you well for the 290 though. Since you have a networking background you might not find the 291 as difficult as most people. I would recommend getting the Security+ for your elective, especially if you're going for the Security specialization.

The general path people take is 270/620->290->291->elective->293->294->297/298. If you do go for the Security specialization you'll have to do the 298 instead of the 297.

dynamik

I'd put the elective elsewhere. There's no reason not to plow right into 293 after 291.

If you're going to go down the Microsoft track, shoot for the MCSE. The MCSA really isn't well known by HR personnel. Also, consider taking 620 instead of 270 since you can apply it towards the MCSE as well as the MCITP:EA.

Mishra

Knives Out wrote:

The company I am contracted to has their network team so narrowed down, that is all they do is network support. Vpns, network design/support, voip (only creating phone account & unity vm), working with ISP vendors, and videoconferencing. I really miss the software side of things, such as Microsoft and Citrix.

Interesting. Can you go into more detail of why you feel this way?

Knives Out

Mishra wrote:

Knives Out wrote:

The company I am contracted to has their network team so narrowed down, that is all they do is network support. Vpns, network design/support, voip (only creating phone account & unity vm), working with ISP vendors, and videoconferencing. I really miss the software side of things, such as Microsoft and Citrix.

Interesting. Can you go into more detail of why you feel this way?

Prior to being hired off the service desk here, I was also doing basic Citrix troubleshooting and Microsoft support. I had always enjoyed Microsoft support, and it was the server courses in schooling I had the most success in. The reason I pursued CCNA, it was the certification I was closest to obtaining and was freshest in my memory - not to mention the fastest track off the service desk! I would now like to expand on that with my MCSE and have always had an interest in the server side, this seems to be the next logical step for me.

Knives Out

dynamik wrote:

Also, consider taking 620 instead of 270 since you can apply it towards the MCSE as well as the MCITP:EA.

Thanks, I never noticed that! I'll look into that as it seems to open up more options!