Best Microsoft certification to complement CCNA/CCNP

egrizzlyegrizzly Member Posts: 533 ■■■■■□□□□□
Does anybody know which operating system, or Microsoft certification complements a CCNA/CCNP? I've always thought that Network Engineers have an operating system, or other systems that they will constantly come in contact with. I hope to get some more insight so any thoughts, ideas will go a long way. Thanks
B.Sc (Info. Systems), CISSP, CCNA, CCNP, Security+

Comments

  • awitt11awitt11 Member Posts: 50 ■□□□□□□□□□
    Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure, Configuring (70-642) comes to mind. I have not taken any of the MS tests, so I can't give a full comparison.
  • ZartanasaurusZartanasaurus Member Posts: 2,008 ■■■■■■■■■□
    I'm biased, but I would complement it with Virtualization.
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  • rwmidlrwmidl Member Posts: 807 ■■■■■■□□□□
    I would go with an OS (server or desktop) and then an AD Infrastructure. From a CCN* point of view, don't even waste your time with the Network Infrastructure portion of the Microsoft exams unless you are going for your MCSE/MCSA.
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  • egrizzlyegrizzly Member Posts: 533 ■■■■■□□□□□
    rwmidl wrote: »
    I would go with an OS (server or desktop) and then an AD Infrastructure. From a CCN* point of view, don't even waste your time with the Network Infrastructure portion of the Microsoft exams unless you are going for your MCSE/MCSA.

    thanks dude. that''ll work for perspective.
    B.Sc (Info. Systems), CISSP, CCNA, CCNP, Security+
  • SlowhandSlowhand Mod Posts: 5,161 Mod
    Speaking as someone who's been neck-deep in both the CCNP and MCSA/MCITP study material for a lot longer than I care to admit, I think you should perhaps think about looking at the MCSA 2008/MCITP: Server Administrator certification. For one thing, you're probably going to be able to knock the network infrastructure exam (70-642) out of the park in a very short amount of time, considering you would have plenty of experience with a good 40% of the material covered already. And you'll probably find that covering new ground, in the form of Active Directory on the 70-640 exam, will give a whole new, and useful, skillset to use even if you end up focusing primarily on routing & switching.

    In the same spirit that I tend to tell just about all server admins, be they Microsoft or *NIX specialists, to at least go for the CCNA to get some networking skills under their belt, I think it's a great idea for someone with CCNP-level networking knowledge to delve into the server-end. Getting a thorough understanding of AD, though, is definitely well-worth the frustrations of learning "the Microsoft way" of network infrastructure topics when you already spent lots of time getting Cisco's methods beaten into your head. icon_lol.gif

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  • netsysllcnetsysllc Member Posts: 479 ■■■■□□□□□□
    Don't be fooled by the 70-640 exam, the focus is not networking but Microsoft network related services. Backups, monitoring logs over the network, AD related DNS and DHCP and so on. there is a few sections on ipv4 and ipv6 but small parts of the test.
  • ptilsenptilsen Member Posts: 2,835 ■■■■■■■■■■
    Not being a CCNA, I still feel the standard MCSA/MCITP:SA track makes sense. Virtualization makes a lot of sense to -- Cisco or Hyper V. On the other hand, even the higher-level MS stuff (ie 70-643) makes a lot sense, because it gives you a deeper perspective of what kind of traffic will likely go over the network you're implementing. Really, in some positions I see a lot of value in having deep knowledge in both areas. It gives you a better position from which to analyze the types and speeds of circuits and the placement of servers.
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  • TackleTackle Member Posts: 534
    I might be biased as I've only taken the one but I'm familiar with some topics covered in the ccna and I think that the 70-642 would be a good Microsoft cert to compliment it.
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