New book: Exam Ref 70-744 Securing Windows Server 2016

We’re pleased to announce the availability of Exam Ref 70-744 Securing Windows Server 2016 (ISBN 9781509304264), by Timothy Warner and Craig Zacker.

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Overview

Prepare for Microsoft Exam 70-744—and help demonstrate your real-world mastery of securing Windows Server 2016 environments. Designed for experienced IT professionals ready to advance their status, Exam Ref focuses on the critical-thinking and decision-making acumen needed for success at the MCSE level.

Focus on the expertise measured by these objectives:

  • Implement server hardening solutions
  • Secure a virtualization infrastructure
  • Secure a network infrastructure
  • Manage privileged identities
  • Implement threat detection solutions
  • Implement workload-specific security

This Microsoft Exam Ref:

  • Organizes its coverage by exam objectives
  • Features strategic, what-if scenarios to challenge you
  • Assumes you have experience as a Windows Server administrator and an understanding of basic networking and Hyper-V virtualization fundamentals, Active Directory Domain Services principles, and Windows Server security principles

Introduction

Many Windows Server books take the approach of teaching you every detail about the product. Such books end up being huge and tough to read. Not to mention that remembering everything you read is incredibly challenging. That’s why those books aren’t the best choice for preparing for a certification exam such as the Microsoft Exam 70-744, “Securing Windows Server 2016.” For this book, we focus on your review of the Windows Server skills that you need to maximize your chances of passing the exam. Our goal is to cover all of the skills measured on the exam, while bringing a real-world focus to the information.

This book shouldn’t be your only resource for exam preparation, but it can be your primary resource. We recommend combining the information in this book with some hands-on work in a lab environment (or as part of your job in a real-world environment). The 70-744 exam is geared toward IT professionals who have a minimum of three years of experience working with Windows Server. That doesn’t mean you can’t take and pass the exam with less experience, but it probably means that it will be harder. Of course, everyone is different. It is possible to get the knowledge and skills required to pass the 70-744 exam in fewer than three years. But whether you are a senior-level Windows Server administrator or just a couple of years into your Windows Server journey, we think you’ll find the information in this book valuable as your primary exam prep resource.

This book covers every major topic area found on the exam, but it does not cover every exam question. Only the Microsoft exam team has access to the exam questions, 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 that you do not feel completely comfortable with, use the “Need more review?” 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.

About the authors

TIMOTHY WARNER is an IT professional and technical trainer based in Nashville, TN. A computer enthusiast who authored his first BASIC program in 1981, Tim has worked in nearly every facet of IT, from systems administration and software architecture to technical writing and training. He can be reached via Twitter at @TechTrainerTim.

CRAIG ZACKER is the author or co-author of dozens of books, manuals, articles, and web sites on computer and networking topics. He has also been an English professor, an editor, a network administrator, a webmaster, a corporate trainer, a technical support engineer, a minicomputer operator, a literature and philosophy student, a library clerk, a photographic darkroom technician, a shipping clerk, and a newspaper boy. He lives in a little house with his beautiful wife and a neurotic cat.