RTM’d today: Exam Ref 70-417: Upgrading Your Skills to MCSA Windows Server 2012

We’re pleased to announce that Exam Ref 70-417: Upgrading Your Skills to MCSA Windows Server 2012, by JC Mackin, has shipped to the printer.

Prepare for Exam 70-417—and help demonstrate your real-world mastery of Windows Server 2012 core infrastructure services. Microsoft Exam 70-417 is an upgrade exam that is a composite of three standalone exams: 70-410, 70-411, and 70-412. Exam 70-417 validates skills related to the core technology features and functionality of Windows Server 2012, from the existing knowledge base of a Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator (MCSA) on Windows Server 2008.

The Exam Ref is organized by exam objectives and features challenging, what-if scenarios that focus on the critical skills and knowledge measured by the certification exam.

Take a look at the book’s Contents at at glance and Introduction.

Contents at a Glance

CHAPTER 1 Install and configure servers
CHAPTER 2 Configure server roles and features
CHAPTER 3 Configure Hyper-V
CHAPTER 4 Install and administer Active Directory
CHAPTER 5 Deploy, manage, and maintain servers
CHAPTER 6 Configure network services and access
CHAPTER 7 Configure a network policy server infrastructure
CHAPTER 8 Configure and manage Active Directory
CHAPTER 9 Configure and manage Group Policy
CHAPTER 10 Configure and manage high availability
CHAPTER 11 File and storage solutions
CHAPTER 12 Implement business continuity and disaster recovery
CHAPTER 13 Configure network services
CHAPTER 14 Configure identity and access solutions

Introduction

This book is written for IT professionals who want to earn the MCSA: Windows Server 2012
certification by passing the Microsoft exam “Exam 70-417: Upgrading Your Skills to MCSA
Windows Server 2012.” Exam 70-417 serves as a path to the Windows Server 2012 MCSA for
those who have already earned the Windows Server 2008 certification that is named alternately
“MCITP: Server Administrator” and “MCSA: Windows Server 2008.” The book is therefore
written specifically for IT professionals who have already earned this Windows Server
2008 certification and maintain the associated level of expertise in Windows Server 2008 or
Windows Server 2008 R2.

Exam 70-417 also serves as an upgrade path to the Windows Server 2012 MCSA from
certifications other than the Windows Server 2008 MCSA. These other certifications
include MCITP: Virtualization Administrator, MCITP: Enterprise Messaging Administrator,
MCITP: Lync Server Administrator, MCITP: SharePoint Administrator, and MCITP: Enterprise
Desktop Administrator certifications. However, the assumed knowledge for this book is only
MCSA-level expertise in Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2008 R2.

One of the first things you need to understand about Exam 70-417 is that it is a condensed
version of three others: Exam 70-410, Exam 70-411, and Exam 70-412. This set of three exams
allows you to earn the Windows Server 2012 MCSA from scratch, without any prior certification.

Together, these three exams include 18 domains of broader skills and 62 more specific
objectives. Because the exams are intended for people who haven’t yet earned Windows
Server certification, they test both new features in Windows Server 2012 and features that
haven’t changed since Windows Server 2008 or even earlier.

On the 70-417 exam, just 14 of the original 18 domains and 22 of the original 62 objectives
have been taken from these three source exams. This smaller subset of material corresponds
generally to the features that are new in Windows Server 2012. Approximately 80 percent of
the questions you will encounter on the 70-417 exam in fact will involve new Windows Server
2012 features in some way. The remaining 20 percent will be “review”-type questions about
features that have not changed since Windows Server 2008, questions you could have seen
when you earned your existing certification. This 20 percent can be taken from any of the
62 original objectives on Exams 70-410, 70-411, or 70-412.

To keep this book brief, we’ve focused on the 80 percent of material that is new to
Windows Server 2012 and that forms the core of Exam 70-417. After all, the remaining
20 percent draws on knowledge in which you have already demonstrated expertise by earning
your Windows Server 2008 certification. However, it’s possible you will need to brush up
on some of these older topics, and when appropriate we’ve provided guidance throughout
the book about which of these older features might require special review.

This book covers every exam objective, but it does not cover every exam question. Only
the Microsoft exam team has access to the exam questions themselves and Microsoft regularly
adds new questions to the exam, making it impossible to cover specific questions. You
should consider this book a supplement to your relevant real-world experience and other
study materials. If you encounter a topic in this book with which you do not feel completely
comfortable, use the links you’ll find in the text to find more information and take the time to
research and study the topic. Great information is available on MSDN, TechNet, and in blogs
and forums.

Microsoft certifications

Microsoft certifications distinguish you by proving your command of a broad set of skills and
experience with current Microsoft products and technologies. The exams and corresponding
certifications are developed to validate your mastery of critical competencies as you design
and develop, or implement and support, solutions with Microsoft products and technologies
both on-premise and in the cloud. Certification brings a variety of benefits to the individual
and to employers and organizations.

Preparing for the Exam

Microsoft certification exams are a great way to build your resume and let the world know
about your level of expertise. Certification exams validate your on-the-job experience and
product knowledge. While there is no substitution for on-the-job experience, preparation
through study and hands-on practice can help you prepare for the exam. We recommend
that you round out your exam preparation plan by using a combination of available study
materials and courses. For example, you might use the Training Kit and another study guide
for your "at home" preparation, and take a Microsoft Official Curriculum course for the classroom
experience. Choose the combination that you think works best for you.