70-432 Pass

staggerlee

skimmed passed with a 760.. have to admit i wasn't really expecting to pass on this attempt but happy i did.. had dire scores on performance and maintenance.

Big thank you to RobertKaucher for all your help it was appreciated !

Back now to finish my Windows Server 2008 exams with 70-647 shame really enjoying SQL side. Hoping to go for the 450 next year!

Resources used

Books

Administration in Action (amazing actually enjoyable to read)
Real world skills (Again good stuff not a joy like AiA but excellent info)
MS 70-432 book (Used as a final study guide for things i was missing and to get a more clear idea of what the exam wanted since its the only book i had which was for this exam only)

CBT Training

Train Signal - Normal Train signal videos, great walk though of how to do the basics for each break down of the exam but weak for getting you really ready for an exam. Excellent for the new comer and for starting your studies as its a nice foundation to build on.

CBT Nuggets - couldnt watch the whole series as the instructor was driving me insane, covered things in more depth than Train Signal (But ive found that to be true in all exams that ive watched both of them) He did a lot more work though than normal in CBT Nuggets which i found helpful as its the main reason i watch the Train Signals.

Online

BoL
http://www.brentozar.com/
http://www.sqlservercentral.com/
http://blog.sqlauthority.com
http://sqlblog.com/

another really great thing about the SQL side is how many of you all blog and help out so there's just so many resources to get your hands on when your learning. the blogs/sites above are where i got most of the more in-depth knowledge.


S

RobertKaucher

Good work and glad that I could be of a little help to you!

Grynder

Congratulations.

r0ark

staggerlee wrote: »

skimmed passed with a 760.. have to admit i wasn't really expecting to pass on this attempt but happy i did.. had dire scores on performance and maintenance.

Big thank you to RobertKaucher for all your help it was appreciated !

Back now to finish my Windows Server 2008 exams with 70-647 shame really enjoying SQL side. Hoping to go for the 450 next year!

Resources used

Books

Administration in Action (amazing actually enjoyable to read)
Real world skills (Again good stuff not a joy like AiA but excellent info)
MS 70-432 book (Used as a final study guide for things i was missing and to get a more clear idea of what the exam wanted since its the only book i had which was for this exam only)

CBT Training

Train Signal - Normal Train signal videos, great walk though of how to do the basics for each break down of the exam but weak for getting you really ready for an exam. Excellent for the new comer and for starting your studies as its a nice foundation to build on.

CBT Nuggets - couldnt watch the whole series as the instructor was driving me insane, covered things in more depth than Train Signal (But ive found that to be true in all exams that ive watched both of them) He did a lot more work though than normal in CBT Nuggets which i found helpful as its the main reason i watch the Train Signals.

Online

BoL
Brent Ozar - Too Much Information
SQL Server Central. Microsoft SQL Server tutorials, training & forum.
Journey to SQL Authority with Pinal Dave
SQLblog.com - The SQL Server blog spot on the web

another really great thing about the SQL side is how many of you all blog and help out so there's just so many resources to get your hands on when your learning. the blogs/sites above are where i got most of the more in-depth knowledge.


S

Congrat!

I have been a lurker for a while and decided that it's time to jump in.

I would like to thank TechExams.net and the people in this forum for being very helpful to each other. Great community!

I am a complete MS SQL noobie. I've worked a bit with IBM DB2 admin and have been a sys admin for more than a decade. I was just not interested in SQL, so I never bothered learning it. But now I am. As of right now, I am only interested in the general administration side of MS SQL, not development, yet.

Now, I have a few questions with regards to getting my foot wet in the SQL world and studying for the 70-432. BTW, I had recently passed the 70-640 (Active Directory Config). So, I've been trying to figure out the most efficient and effective way to study for these exams. The way I studied for the 70-640 was not efficient at all because I found myself FORGETTING the important terminology and a few concepts at the beginning of the study.

@staggerlee, thanks for outlining the materials you used. Can you please share how you went about with each book and video? Did you just read/practice/lab one after another? Or did you focus on each topic, using all the resources at the same time? Also, were those books listed in the order that you went through them?

RobertKaucher, thanks so much for your input in other threads. I read one of your posts about going through each chapter ( http://www.techexams.net/forums/sql-server-exams/58445-mcts-70-432-questions.html#post454373 ), doing the lab, etc and then take the practice exam, skipping questions you don't know. It sounds like a great method. Do you have anything else to add since you made that comment? Have you found a more effective and efficient way to study for cert?

From reading the posts on this forum, it seems that one should do the following in order (sort of).

1) Go through Trainsignal videos from beginning to end to grab the general concepts.

2) Go through the "SQL Server 2008 Administration in Action" for more concepts. Although, I am kind of excite to read this book first since I heard rave reviews about it and that it reads like a novel.

3) Dig into the "MCTS Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-432)", doing the practice questions and lab at the end of each chapter. Use the "SQL Server 2008 Administration: Real World Skills for MCITP Certification and Beyond (Exams 70-432 and 40-450)" for reference.

4) Take practice exam on the MS Self-Pace CD after finishing each chapter, answering only questions you know, and skipping the others. Then go back and take the exams again after studying some more.

Basically, it sounds kind of crazy to read all of those books (3) from cover to cover. Maybe when I studied for the 70-640 (AD stuff), I already had many years of experience and thought that the MS Self-Pace was enough to PASS. I used other resources for reference but did not read them from cover to cover.

Any input? It would be of great help to everyone who is studying to know the most effective and efficient (time saving) method to study for cert. For me the biggest issue I have, in principle, was having to memorize stuff. I have no problem with understanding and retaining concepts, but recalling terminologies, some commands, etc is something I detest. Why would I have to remember stuff when I can look it up in seconds.

Thank you everyone!

RobertKaucher

r0ark wrote: »

RobertKaucher, thanks so much for your input in other threads. I read one of your posts about going through each chapter ( http://www.techexams.net/forums/sql-server-exams/58445-mcts-70-432-questions.html#post454373 ), doing the lab, etc and then take the practice exam, skipping questions you don't know. It sounds like a great method. Do you have anything else to add since you made that comment? Have you found a more effective and efficient way to study for cert?

From reading the posts on this forum, it seems that one should do the following in order (sort of).

1) Go through Trainsignal videos from beginning to end to grab the general concepts.

2) Go through the "SQL Server 2008 Administration in Action" for more concepts. Although, I am kind of excite to read this book first since I heard rave reviews about it and that it reads like a novel.

3) Dig into the "MCTS Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-432)", doing the practice questions and lab at the end of each chapter. Use the "SQL Server 2008 Administration: Real World Skills for MCITP Certification and Beyond (Exams 70-432 and 40-450)" for reference.

4) Take practice exam on the MS Self-Pace CD after finishing each chapter, answering only questions you know, and skipping the others. Then go back and take the exams again after studying some more.

Basically, it sounds kind of crazy to read all of those books (3) from cover to cover. Maybe when I studied for the 70-640 (AD stuff), I already had many years of experience and thought that the MS Self-Pace was enough to PASS. I used other resources for reference but did not read them from cover to cover.

I wish I had the discipline to do this type of study for every cert. It is hard and takes a lot of focus. I had to do it like that back in the days of the MCSE/MCITP EA studies because I was burning through the tests so quickly. Now I can take my time, so I get lazy.

I agreee witht he statement you made, which I have emboldened. SQL Server requires more study because the concepts require a greater mastery of the specifics and less experience means greater time in study and lab is required. But your previous studies that provide the foundation of the "Server Admin" skills (MCSE/MCITP) are really foundational to success in teh MCITPs for SQL Server - could not have passed the MCITP on SQL Server 2005 had I not really studied Server+/MCSE objectives. There was a ton of overlap, but in a SQL Server specific way.

I'm glad I have been of help to people on the forum. Good luck!

staggerlee

r0ark wrote: »

Congrat!

@staggerlee, thanks for outlining the materials you used. Can you please share how you went about with each book and video? Did you just read/practice/lab one after another? Or did you focus on each topic, using all the resources at the same time? Also, were those books listed in the order that you went through them?

Hi Roark,

I got both the Administration in Action and the Real World Skills at the same, The Administration in Action is the perfect start i would say (Its pretty awesome at taking you from looking at the hardware you need to installing to configuring, to monitoring and on, its easy to read and has a great depth)

For my exam prep i: I read though most of the administration in action, then went to the Real World skills and vids to go over the tasks again and do the labs.. Anything that i wanted to know more about hit the google or web sites i mentioned and did searches there, plus the MS book. I think you could easy drop the MS book, I used it to get a clear idea of what the exam expected, the administration in action is amazing but its not been made for 432, which got me paranoid, after taking the exam i would say there's no need to be.

I also have to say, it was the first time i really labbed anything for exam prep and it is really worth it! The learning processes was a lot clearer and ive remembered it where as there's times when i wonder what the hell i learnt passing some of the MCITP EA stuff

r0ark

Thank you both for your input. It's assuring to hear that I can drop the MS Self Pace and focus on the other two books. I can't stand the MS Self-Pace as it's so dry. I'll use it to get an outline of what on the exam though. Time to hit the books!

If anyone else has anything to add, please chime in.