Server+ seems...easy?

coralreefguy

I have just taken A+, Net+, and Sec+ in the last two months and passed them all with amazing scores. I work in IT as a senior helpdesk rep everyday so I see pretty much every concept. For each exam I read and highlighted large books (Mike Myers for the A+/Net+, Darrell Gibson for the Sec+) as well as watched Professor Messer videos. Took some basic practice exams but nothing too hardcore.


I'm going through some of the books for Server+ and the concepts aren't hard...at all. In fact, I feel like 75% of this exam is review of the last three I took. Raid configurations, port numbers, firewalls, patch management, baselines...etc - stuff that I have all done before. It's like the first three CompTIA exams I already took bundled into one with some enterprise-level issues added on.


Maybe I'm just numb to it after studying like a madman for the last two/three months. I was hoping to take Server+ before moving into MCSA:Windows 2012 R2 to prepare me. Now I feel like the Server+ exam is unnecessary and I should be jumping right into Microsoft's exam topics. I will probably do a week of studying and then just take the test for an easy certification, then move onto Microsoft as planned.

Anyone else feel this way as well? Anyone take the Server+ exam and can help me out or identify if my analysis is fairly accurate?

BGraves

Personal feelings on Server+ is it's a waste of money. Never see any jobs requiring the cert and the last time I looked at it, it was out of date with no study material. I passed and moved on to other things, though I imagine others may have a different opinion.

SuperISSO

I took the Server+ test back in 2006. It's hard for me to measure the ROI on the Server+ because I had the A+, I-Net+, Net+, and Security+ prior to taking the Server+.

Shortly after taking the Server+, I landing a job with an increase of about $8,000 (I believe). I do feel that the Server+ gave me the edge that I needed to get the job because it was a Tier 3 System Administrator Position. I had to maintain 200+ Servers in an Enterprise Environment. This was a DOD Position. However, times have changed now and the DOD is really enforcing the 8507 or something similar to this. I'm unfamilar with the MCSA:Windows 2012 R2, but maybe you can do some research by critiquing the exam objectives to see if anything looks similar.

coralreefguy

Well, I've been reading several books and watching CBT Nuggets. There's a few acronyms here and their which I'm fuzzy on but for the most part the theory is pretty solid. I'll just brush up on the videos and take notes on SCSI speeds, RAM speeds, processors, etc.

Bought the voucher and scheduled the exam for Tuesday the 3rd. We'll see how it goes, that gives me more time to cram at least.

coralreefguy

Well I took it this morning and passed 800/900. It was a giant waste of time, IMO.

Lots of concepts I already knew. I'd say if you're getting 800+/900 on the CompTIA trio, and recently took them, you could probably study for and take this exam in less than 5 days. It's all rehash. At least 80% of my test was material I had already known or studied to some extent - or common sense material just applied to an enterprise environment.

The other 20% of the exam was material that would never be used in a live envirornment / is terribly outdated. Questions about DDR2 RAM, Dual Core vs Quad Core processors (because isn't everything quad core or better these days). Doing math applicable to raid configurations when the hard drives in question are 80gb drives. You get the picture.

Save your money and for the cost of this exam you can pretty much take two Microsoft Server exams or something. Still, another notch on my belt. I'm starting MCSA: Win 7 (70-680 and 70-685) then MCSA: Server 2012. After that maybe I'll go back and get Linux+. Until then, goodbye CompTIA!

Materials used:
CBT Nuggets Server+ 2009 series videos, watched more than half of them
Jonathan Lau's The Concise Server+ Study Guide SKO-003 (Amazon.com: The Concise Server+ Study Guide (SK0-003) eBook: Jonathan Lau: Kindle Store)
LearnSmart Exam Manual's CompTIA Server+ SKO-003 (Amazon.com: Server+ (SK0-003) eBook: LearnSmart: Kindle Store)
Knowledge from taking A+, Net+, and Sec+ within the last two and a half months

srabiee

The good thing about the Server+ cert is that it's not part of the CompTIA ce program, and therefore it never expires. You're certified for life.

thegreatbelow

srabiee wrote: »

The good thing about the Server+ cert is that it's not part of the CompTIA ce program, and therefore it never expires. You're certified for life.

Is this true? Can a few more people chime in and veriy this? I feel this alone would make this cert worth it.
(not that i don't believe srabiee just information changes frequently.)

Thanks in advance..
I'll check out comptia's website and see if i can find anything about this.

Theegg911

Yes, Server+ is good for life. It is not a cert that is in the CE program. CompTIA Continuing Education Program

lawrence_of_arabia

I disagree with Server+ beingawaste

lawrence_of_arabia

I disagree with Server+ being a waste of time. I think back to some of the basic concepts learned while studying for that exam every day.

coralreefguy

lawrence_of_arabia wrote: »

I disagree with Server+ being a waste of time. I think back to some of the basic concepts learned whilestudying for that exam every day.

It's a matter of opinion but if you've done the A+ / Net + / Sec+ then there is really no reason to spend a huge amount of cash. The lack of study materials is also quite disheartening.

For the price that I paid on this exam and books, I could have taken two Microsoft Server exams and gained a much more thorough understanding of server systems and infrastructure. Even the MTA exams would have been more applicable to today's job market and easier to find study guides / test prep material for.

A matter of opinion though. Glad I'm done with CompTIA for the time being. I've been studying Microsoft stuff for a few weeks now and will be doing 2 MS tests in the month of January.

Kurgan

From what I have heard (I have not taken it), it seems rather easy as well as the fact that they have not really altered the question pool. Also, in forethought, not a lot of businesses are looking towards Server+ much anymore. I have been working in the IT industry for fifteen years, mostly banks and hospitals, and have yet to see any type of job posting that looks for server+. Mostly A+, Net+ and Sec+

Just my two yen

epcg

I didnt find it hard but I did have experience and studied for a short time. I got my voucher cheap off ebay and its lifetime. Did it help me yes. I got interviews to jobs I wasnt getting. The Sec+ is huge in my area but for some reason most places liked the Server+. But I always believe you should get the certs you want not what everyone tells you to get.

antielvis

The thing with server hardware is that you can be a full fledged admin and you'll never see your hardware or have any imput into the decision making. You'll just know we run HP *** servers. Where it could be of value is if you want to get into a server gig where you work with HP Openview or the Dell equivalent & need to understand the hardware. I would say it's a cert you should take AFTER learning Windows server. You'll need to know how to use the software before you'll ever make hardware decisions (if you do at all).

srabiee

Server+ is more or less an "A+ Advanced" certification. It's not very difficult, it's vendor-neutral, and it doesn't go into much depth on any given topic. It's simply a natural progression after obtaining the A+ certification, and is still quite entry-level (on par with the A+). It took me about 1 to 2 weeks to study for, and I passed with around a 90% on the exam if I remember correctly.

If you're just starting out it's a great cert to study for. If you're already a sysadmin and you're working on intermediate certs such as the MCSA stuff, it's not going to benefit your career very much IMO.

But really, it's all relative to YOU: how knowledgeable you are, where you are in your career, what technologies and concepts you want to learn, etc.

wikiget

DoD 8570 requires technical personnel (IAT) to have an OS cert on top of security certs. Per the command I work for, Server+ counted as a general OS cert (Windows and Linux) and is a "for-life" cert. So, I meet the reqs for Windows and Linux, for life, and for $150.

It was a no brainer for a quick "check-down" cert.

The material is effectively A+ for datacenter management. So, if you took A+ and Net+ or have 2+ years working in an enterprise you should not have issues with this test.

I'm a very cautious studier and generally overkill before testing. This test I studied for 2 days and took the test on day three.

godofthunder9010

Looking for Server+ study materials. My boss is a bit old-school. He wants hard-copy text books and he wants them with CD's if possible.

I work at an enterprise datacenter. Boss wants everyone to get certified in something before the end of the year, so Server+ looks like a good fit. I was able to find this on a Google search. A three star rating? Not sure if I trust something rated that low. But in all my searching there doesn't seem to be anything better that is current for Server+ 2009. Can anyone help me out?

DoubleNNs

Why not go for something else? Maybe Storage+, Linux+, or even CCNA Security? (Just curious why Server+ since there's plenty of other certs you can accomplish before the year's end)

godofthunder9010

DoubleNNs wrote: »

Why not go for something else? Maybe Storage+, Linux+, or even CCNA Security? (Just curious why Server+ since there's plenty of other certs you can accomplish before the year's end)

Laziness I suppose. I need to knock out two certs, this one looks pretty easy and the HP Self Maintainer is next. Kinda builds on the foundation of the basics in Server+ from what I've been told. And to be honest, I'd like to brush up on my the fundamentals a tad. My work pays for the test as long as I pass. They also pay for the books. They just don't want to pay for a $1000+ class.

I've been eyeing Linux+. Seems like that's one of the most marketable CompTIA certs. But I'd rather take my time with that one.