** Official IT Thread ** - Come in for some tech!

[wontonnpho]

Hey guys, I've been a longtime desktop tech and looking to get into AWS with the AWS Solutions Architect Associate cert. I know it was a hot cert the past few years but is it still worth getting now?

[SynapticCleft]

Hey guys, I've been a longtime desktop tech and looking to get into AWS with the AWS Solutions Architect Associate cert. I know it was a hot cert the past few years but is it still worth getting now?

Still a hot cert and worth it if you want to get a cloud role.

[wontonnpho]

Still a hot cert and worth it if you want to get a cloud role.

Just what I wanted to hear! I am badly needing to expand my skillset so the cloud field will be good for me =)

[Cheap5.0]

Thanks guys. So far my starting date has been delayed twice. The last reason was they were "changing the scope of the project". Having corporate jargon thrown at me so early is worrying. I really hope they don't get rid of the technical part and just have me moving workstations the whole time instead. That would mean no IT experience. I'm sure I'm just overthinking it all. Just happy to be working again.

I appreciate the advice.

If your touching a computer that is IT experience in my book. Don't exaggerate it (in future interviews), but honestly 99% of the people that do the interviewing can't hook the cables successfully on a computer...if you end up only moving workstations, I imagine you will be doing a hell of a lot more than just picking them up and carrying them around.

What are you guys studying over the next few weeks? I'm diving into this Ansible Master course and the Azure 101 exam.

Figuring out how to approach the CISSP, then startying to study for it. Go Ansible, its broadly used for so many things...

Anyone do the Masters IT (cybersec one) at WGU? I'm strongly considering pursuing it and I think I could knock 9 classes out in a 6 month term if I set my mind to it.

Its on my to-do list. Its regionally accredited, well received and inexpensive. I am hoping I can start it after the CISSP, but it depends on my employer's needs....if they have me do more CIPP/US stuff that comes first.

[jerzyfit]

If your touching a computer that is IT experience in my book. Don't exaggerate it (in future interviews), but honestly 99% of the people that do the interviewing can't hook the cables successfully on a computer...if you end up only moving workstations, I imagine you will be doing a hell of a lot more than just picking them up and carrying them around.



Figuring out how to approach the CISSP, then startying to study for it. Go Ansible, its broadly used for so many things...



Its on my to-do list. Its regionally accredited, well received and inexpensive. I am hoping I can start it after the CISSP, but it depends on my employer's needs....if they have me do more CIPP/US stuff that comes first.

I use Ansible at work often, but don't go to in-depth. Primarily for kicking off my Python code, doing some replace tasks, or some basic commands. It's definitely pretty sweet man.

[devilbones]

Anyone do the Masters IT (cybersec one) at WGU? I'm strongly considering pursuing it and I think I could knock 9 classes out in a 6 month term if I set my mind to it.

I did it. I finished in 5 months but already had the CEH.

[Cheap5.0]

I did it. I finished in 5 months but already had the CEH.

Good point, this was the reason I got the CEH as well. If you knock out both CEH and CHFA that eliminates two of the eleven classes from the degree. Of course, if you have to pay out of pocket for them...I would wait and do them when you enroll in the Masters program since they are both very expensive. If your employer pays for certs though....I would do it before enrolling.

[Gt3x24x7]

Sup brahs checking in after a few weeks since last post. Got my A+ at last. Also hired for two full time help desk jobs. Gonna hustle and work 80-100 hours a week. To reach my goals of becoming a billionaire or multi-millionaire. I really want to start my own software development and IT company while in college. Work for myself and have fun working a lot of hours. Comp sci and electrical engineering major. By end of this year or next year. Thoughts on starting an IT/software company at 24-25, while in school, goal of being a successful business owner, and lack of experience/certifications starting out? Really appreciate all the input I can get. Cheers.

[SynapticCleft]

Sup brahs checking in after a few weeks since last post. Got my A+ at last. Also hired for two full time help desk jobs. Gonna hustle and work 80-100 hours a week. To reach my goals of becoming a billionaire or multi-millionaire. I really want to start my own software development and IT company while in college. Work for myself and have fun working a lot of hours. Comp sci and electrical engineering major. By end of this year or next year. Thoughts on starting an IT/software company at 24-25, while in school, goal of being a successful business owner, and lack of experience/certifications starting out? Really appreciate all the input I can get. Cheers.

Congrats brah, go and crush it!

Make sure you carve out some time to do your own studying, helpdesk roles can only teach you so much. The more interesting aspects of this field will have to be learned on your own.

I highly advise you learn business skills, tech is easy but running a business requires a very different skill set and is much harder to practice.

[dcbone30]

I did it. I finished in 5 months but already had the CEH.

Good point, this was the reason I got the CEH as well. If you knock out both CEH and CHFA that eliminates two of the eleven classes from the degree. Of course, if you have to pay out of pocket for them...I would wait and do them when you enroll in the Masters program since they are both very expensive. If your employer pays for certs though....I would do it before enrolling.

According to https://www.wgu.edu/online-it-degree...s-program.html this program is only 9 classes. So I'd just have 7 left if I came in with those certs. The only thing about my work is they would be hesitant to pay for CEH/CHFA without justification as I don't currently work in the SOC - they'd fail to see the value for a virtualization admin. I didn't realize they were so expensive, so I'd probably just have to take it with the program, but maybe study before actually enrolling.

[Cheap5.0]

According to https://www.wgu.edu/online-it-degree...s-program.html this program is only 9 classes. So I'd just have 7 left if I came in with those certs. The only thing about my work is they would be hesitant to pay for CEH/CHFA without justification as I don't currently work in the SOC - they'd fail to see the value for a virtualization admin. I didn't realize they were so expensive, so I'd probably just have to take it with the program, but maybe study before actually enrolling.

BINGO! Studyin' for them is pretty cheap (book costs), also you can use skillset.com to prepare for free. Because CEH and CHFA are heavy on the terms and understanding what the tools are used for (but not necessarily your use of the tools, except for nmap) you can do practice tests till the cows come home and it will be a big help. I took about 3500 practice questions and was scoring in the mid 80's when I took and passed it two years ago.

The only hands on portion I did was the nmap stuff, because they do ask questions about the different flags and when to use them/why use them/what is the result.

[jerzyfit]

Congrats brah, go and crush it!

Make sure you carve out some time to do your own studying, helpdesk roles can only teach you so much. The more interesting aspects of this field will have to be learned on your own.

I highly advise you learn business skills, tech is easy but running a business requires a very different skill set and is much harder to practice.

This. The tech skills will only get you so far in running a business. Learning entrepreneurship, marketing, and sales is what you'll need. When you're running the business, you won't be the one writing the code for much longer.

[devilbones]

According to https://www.wgu.edu/online-it-degree...s-program.html this program is only 9 classes. So I'd just have 7 left if I came in with those certs. The only thing about my work is they would be hesitant to pay for CEH/CHFA without justification as I don't currently work in the SOC - they'd fail to see the value for a virtualization admin. I didn't realize they were so expensive, so I'd probably just have to take it with the program, but maybe study before actually enrolling.

I would just wait. The material that WGU has for the CHFI is the official curriculum, you could probably knock it out in a few weeks. I assume they provide the same for the CEH. I did the actual CEH class where we actually used all of the tools. There are a few exams but mostly papers. I spent most of my free time typing papers. Overall it was a pretty good experience.

[sloop]

Welp, months of preparation and hundreds of hours of studying and isolating myself from my family came to an end tonight and I failed the CISSP.

I am absolutely gutted. I am emotionally and mentally drained and I feel completely numb. I dont even know where to go from here.

My training was:
- From mid-August to mid-December I completed the SANS MGT414 online course twice during my 4-month window to their portal.
- Downloaded the audio and listened to it back in my car driving to/from work twice from December to today.
- Read the official Syngress study guide, cover to cover, all 500+ pages.
- Approximately 30-40 practice exams through Syngress, Eric Conrad's site, the official CISSP app, and Shon Harris book.
- More than 400 multi-point flash cards down pat. I knew them forwards, backwards, sideways.
- Read the CISSP 11th hour study guide this past week.
- Revisited all my failed exam questions to learn from them every week, every test.

I have a fukkin Masters degree in network security and more than 8 years experience in infrastructure & engineering, with 4-5 in security specifically. Work paid the $6400 for the course work and I paid the $700 for the exam out of pocket. I am devastated.

[faxanadu]

According to https://www.wgu.edu/online-it-degree...s-program.html this program is only 9 classes. So I'd just have 7 left if I came in with those certs. The only thing about my work is they would be hesitant to pay for CEH/CHFA without justification as I don't currently work in the SOC - they'd fail to see the value for a virtualization admin. I didn't realize they were so expensive, so I'd probably just have to take it with the program, but maybe study before actually enrolling.

I'm currently 6 classes from finishing my Bachelors of Science IT Security at WGU and all of the certs I've taken have been covered via voucher by WGU. Which amounts to about $2100. That just about covers the 6 month tuition they charge. It appears they do the same with the masters program you linked. So $3500 - $1100 = $2400 for the two certs you listed + masters degree ... assuming you finish in 6 months (doable). It's my understanding that they will without question pay for 2 attempts per certification and a 3rd under certain situations.


Side note:

I just passed the CompTIA Project+ (one of my least favorite classes & exams) to finish up all the CompTIA certs/classes. Next up is the CCENT, CCNA, IINS and I'm home free. Haven't failed any cert exam yet ... knock on wood.

[faxanadu]

Welp, months of preparation and hundreds of hours of studying and isolating myself from my family came to an end tonight and I failed the CISSP.

I am absolutely gutted. I am emotionally and mentally drained and I feel completely numb. I dont even know where to go from here.

My training was:
- From mid-August to mid-December I completed the SANS MGT414 online course twice during my 4-month window to their portal.
- Downloaded the audio and listened to it back in my car driving to/from work twice from December to today.
- Read the official Syngress study guide, cover to cover, all 500+ pages.
- Approximately 30-40 practice exams through Syngress, Eric Conrad's site, the official CISSP app, and Shon Harris book.
- More than 400 multi-point flash cards down pat. I knew them forwards, backwards, sideways.
- Read the CISSP 11th hour study guide this past week.
- Revisited all my failed exam questions to learn from them every week, every test.

I have a fukkin Masters degree in network security and more than 8 years experience in infrastructure & engineering, with 4-5 in security specifically. Work paid the $6400 for the course work and I paid the $700 for the exam out of pocket. I am devastated.

What I've found frustrating about most of the certification exams that I've taken so far is that none of the practice material seems to align well with the real exam. It seems to me that about 10-20% of questions are close to matching the practice material, but the other 80-90% doesn't. Tons of strangely worded questions or just straight up trick questions. The most irksome part being the time allotted is often only enough to barely finish all the questions... leaving little time to go back and review questions you find hard.

What worries me is that it seems like you're possibly describing similar issues above?

[devilbones]

Welp, months of preparation and hundreds of hours of studying and isolating myself from my family came to an end tonight and I failed the CISSP.

I am absolutely gutted. I am emotionally and mentally drained and I feel completely numb. I dont even know where to go from here.

My training was:
- From mid-August to mid-December I completed the SANS MGT414 online course twice during my 4-month window to their portal.
- Downloaded the audio and listened to it back in my car driving to/from work twice from December to today.
- Read the official Syngress study guide, cover to cover, all 500+ pages.
- Approximately 30-40 practice exams through Syngress, Eric Conrad's site, the official CISSP app, and Shon Harris book.
- More than 400 multi-point flash cards down pat. I knew them forwards, backwards, sideways.
- Read the CISSP 11th hour study guide this past week.
- Revisited all my failed exam questions to learn from them every week, every test.

I have a fukkin Masters degree in network security and more than 8 years experience in infrastructure & engineering, with 4-5 in security specifically. Work paid the $6400 for the course work and I paid the $700 for the exam out of pocket. I am devastated.

Its a pretty tough exam. The questions shouldn't be ambiguous, it is not meant to trick you. I would suggest that you retest as soon as you can while the material is fresh. The best way to bounce back from an L is a W. You got this. I have failed the PMP twice.

[SynapticCleft]

Welp, months of preparation and hundreds of hours of studying and isolating myself from my family came to an end tonight and I failed the CISSP.

I am absolutely gutted. I am emotionally and mentally drained and I feel completely numb. I dont even know where to go from here.

My training was:
- From mid-August to mid-December I completed the SANS MGT414 online course twice during my 4-month window to their portal.
- Downloaded the audio and listened to it back in my car driving to/from work twice from December to today.
- Read the official Syngress study guide, cover to cover, all 500+ pages.
- Approximately 30-40 practice exams through Syngress, Eric Conrad's site, the official CISSP app, and Shon Harris book.
- More than 400 multi-point flash cards down pat. I knew them forwards, backwards, sideways.
- Read the CISSP 11th hour study guide this past week.
- Revisited all my failed exam questions to learn from them every week, every test.

I have a fukkin Masters degree in network security and more than 8 years experience in infrastructure & engineering, with 4-5 in security specifically. Work paid the $6400 for the course work and I paid the $700 for the exam out of pocket. I am devastated.

Aww no man, im sorry to hear that. It sucks to invest all of that time and effort and nothing comes out of it. Are you still planning to do a retake?

[sloop]

What I've found frustrating about most of the certification exams that I've taken so far is that none of the practice material seems to align well with the real exam. It seems to me that about 10-20% of questions are close to matching the practice material, but the other 80-90% doesn't. Tons of strangely worded questions or just straight up trick questions. The most irksome part being the time allotted is often only enough to barely finish all the questions... leaving little time to go back and review questions you find hard.

What worries me is that it seems like you're possibly describing similar issues above?

Yep. None of the practice exams were even close to the exam questions. Not that they had to be word-for-word the same but they weren't even close.

Its a pretty tough exam. The questions shouldn't be ambiguous, it is not meant to trick you. I would suggest that you retest as soon as you can while the material is fresh. The best way to bounce back from an L is a W. You got this. I have failed the PMP twice.

I disagree. A lot of the questions gave you a 2 paragraph scenario with 4 right answers. Not even a 50/50 guess - four legitimate right answers and you have to pick the most right.

Or questions like this:

Q: Robert the system administrator notices Karl the janitor unplug a server to plug in his vacuum in the server room. The next day there is a lock on the door. Is this lock an example of:

- Preventative access control
- Deterrent access control
- Physical access control
- Logical access control

Well, it could be any 3 of those. Is it physical? Yes. Is it deterrent? Yes. Is it preventative? Yes. My exam cut off at question 127 and there were only 10-12 where I had absolutely no f'kn idea what the answer was. The rest I had a good understanding of what they were asking and why each answer was correct or incorrect. The sucky thing is I have no way to disprove the answers. I dont think ISC2 is a money-grab scheme, I still trust the process and believe in the accreditation - but I have no way to disprove their results because I cant even see the answers. I got a break down of "below deficiency" in certain areas, that was it.

I really dont want to think about plunking down another $700 for a re-do at this point, I still feel demolished.

Aww no man, im sorry to hear that. It sucks to invest all of that time and effort and nothing comes out of it. Are you still planning to do a retake?

I dont know man, at $700 per attempt it's hard to think about it now. Im so fried at this point I want to take 2 weeks off before I think about this material again.

[Criollo]

Welp, months of preparation and hundreds of hours of studying and isolating myself from my family came to an end tonight and I failed the CISSP.

I am absolutely gutted. I am emotionally and mentally drained and I feel completely numb. I dont even know where to go from here.

My training was:
- From mid-August to mid-December I completed the SANS MGT414 online course twice during my 4-month window to their portal.
- Downloaded the audio and listened to it back in my car driving to/from work twice from December to today.
- Read the official Syngress study guide, cover to cover, all 500+ pages.
- Approximately 30-40 practice exams through Syngress, Eric Conrad's site, the official CISSP app, and Shon Harris book.
- More than 400 multi-point flash cards down pat. I knew them forwards, backwards, sideways.
- Read the CISSP 11th hour study guide this past week.
- Revisited all my failed exam questions to learn from them every week, every test.

I have a fukkin Masters degree in network security and more than 8 years experience in infrastructure & engineering, with 4-5 in security specifically. Work paid the $6400 for the course work and I paid the $700 for the exam out of pocket. I am devastated.

fuk man im sorry to hear that. $700 is a lot of money to spend on a test but as mentioned above i agree with taking it as soon as you realistically can while everything is fresh. good luck man

[faxanadu]

I disagree. A lot of the questions gave you a 2 paragraph scenario with 4 right answers. Not even a 50/50 guess - four legitimate right answers and you have to pick the most right.

Or questions like this:

Q: Robert the system administrator notices Karl the janitor unplug a server to plug in his vacuum in the server room. The next day there is a lock on the door. Is this lock an example of:

- Preventative access control
- Deterrent access control
- Physical access control
- Logical access control

Well, it could be any 3 of those. Is it physical? Yes. Is it deterrent? Yes. Is it preventative? Yes. My exam cut off at question 127 and there were only 10-12 where I had absolutely no f'kn idea what the answer was. The rest I had a good understanding of what they were asking and why each answer was correct or incorrect. The sucky thing is I have no way to disprove the answers. I dont think ISC2 is a money-grab scheme, I still trust the process and believe in the accreditation - but I have no way to disprove their results because I cant even see the answers. I got a break down of "below deficiency" in certain areas, that was it.

Yup, that is what i would consider a trick/BS question. You would hope that if they're going to pull stuff like that then the answers should be weighted to 100% for the most correct, 75% for the next best, and so on. I doubt it is though.

I don't know if this will help or not, but when I'm taking test and come across a question I'm not sure about I generally just pick the answer that initially stands out to me and flag it for review. I've found that slowing down and dwelling on a question I'm not 100% about does the following:

- Wastes time
- Increases my anxiety (especially if its two or more back-to-back)
- Causes me to overthink and second guess myself

For questions that cause me to draw a complete blank I:

- Look at the choices to see if one is obviously utter BS (usually there is at least one)
- Then I pick C or B (assuming C is the obvious BS one) from the remaining ones. I never leave anything blank due to the off chance that I completely run out of time and can't go back to at least mark an answer.
- Flag it for review
- Immediately move to the next question

The absolute worst thing is getting hit with anxiety, worrying that you're going to fail because you're uncertain of three questions in a row, and completely self-sabotaging when your brain goes to mush. I've had a few incidents in my life taking exams where I freaked out, mentally checked out of the exam, and failed. The stuff above seems to help me a lot.

[sloop]

Yup, that is what i would consider a trick/BS question. You would hope that if they're going to pull stuff like that then the answers should be weighted to 100% for the most correct, 75% for the next best, and so on. I doubt it is though.

I don't know if this will help or not, but when I'm taking test and come across a question I'm not sure about I generally just pick the answer that initially stands out to me and flag it for review. I've found that slowing down and dwelling on a question I'm not 100% about does the following:

You can't flag or go back to questions on the CISSP exam so I wasn't able to flag anything.

As far as time goes, I was right where I wanted to be. The exam is between 100-150 questions, adaptive. I hit question 100 right at the 120 minute mark so I had 60 minutes to take a maximum 50 more questions.

Im trying to find a loop hole in my employer's UET union funding for continued education. One of the managers said they recently relaxed their stance and think they included a test voucher in the costs. I see Global Knowledge has a CISSP prep course for $3495, I am allocated $3500 annually for continued education through my union. I just emailed GK to see if this price included a test voucher.

Fingers crossed.

[faxanadu]

You can't flag or go back to questions on the CISSP exam so I wasn't able to flag anything.

As far as time goes, I was right where I wanted to be. The exam is between 100-150 questions, adaptive. I hit question 100 right at the 120 minute mark so I had 60 minutes to take a maximum 50 more questions.

Im trying to find a loop hole in my employer's UET union funding for continued education. One of the managers said they recently relaxed their stance and think they included a test voucher in the costs. I see Global Knowledge has a CISSP prep course for $3495, I am allocated $3500 annually for continued education through my union. I just emailed GK to see if this price included a test voucher.

Fingers crossed.

Seriously... WTF. That alone would lead me to believe the exam is more of a money grab than anything else. That's ridiculous.

[devilbones]

Yep. None of the practice exams were even close to the exam questions. Not that they had to be word-for-word the same but they weren't even close.



I disagree. A lot of the questions gave you a 2 paragraph scenario with 4 right answers. Not even a 50/50 guess - four legitimate right answers and you have to pick the most right.

Or questions like this:

Q: Robert the system administrator notices Karl the janitor unplug a server to plug in his vacuum in the server room. The next day there is a lock on the door. Is this lock an example of:

- Preventative access control
- Deterrent access control
- Physical access control
- Logical access control

Well, it could be any 3 of those. Is it physical? Yes. Is it deterrent? Yes. Is it preventative? Yes. My exam cut off at question 127 and there were only 10-12 where I had absolutely no f'kn idea what the answer was. The rest I had a good understanding of what they were asking and why each answer was correct or incorrect. The sucky thing is I have no way to disprove the answers. I dont think ISC2 is a money-grab scheme, I still trust the process and believe in the accreditation - but I have no way to disprove their results because I cant even see the answers. I got a break down of "below deficiency" in certain areas, that was it.

I really dont want to think about plunking down another $700 for a re-do at this point, I still feel demolished.



I dont know man, at $700 per attempt it's hard to think about it now. Im so fried at this point I want to take 2 weeks off before I think about this material again.

That should have been an easy question. If you didnt get it you might need to study more. The job that I am in requires this cert, I got it a few years ago. Most people that I met that have failed the exam weren't prepared enough and they admit the exam is fair. It is one of, if not the most beneficial exam related to security in the industry. Honestly I think you probably were overthinking as demonstrated by the example you typed above. The lock is only a physical access control. Just read the question, its not meant to be tricky.

[Voidgaze]

Just finished my second day on the job. The other new hire bailed out so I'm alone until they find a new guy. The staff has been very welcoming. I could tell my boss didn't feel like babysitting me all day on my first day and I let him know that I know how that feels. I spent the whole day on a floor by myself taking apart workstations, but I found out that it was a "test" and they're not starting the project for real until the find a replacement. Again, I know they don't feel like babysitting me for a week so I wasn't mad. Work and staff aside, the food and building is fukn amazing. A shame this will be over in about 5-6 months.

[sloop]

That should have been an easy question. If you didnt get it you might need to study more. The job that I am in requires this cert, I got it a few years ago. Most people that I met that have failed the exam weren't prepared enough and they admit the exam is fair. It is one of, if not the most beneficial exam related to security in the industry. Honestly I think you probably were overthinking as demonstrated by the example you typed above. The lock is only a physical access control. Just read the question, its not meant to be tricky.

lol perhaps I phrased that wrong.

That's a slow-pitch softball question and I know that answer, I was using that scenario as an example for readers who perhaps aren't aware of how questions are worded. There are often 3 or 4 correct answers and you have to pick the mostestest correct one.

[omnip0tent]

Thinking about purchasing Sec+ course & practice exams on Udemy for $25 .

I'm trying to get another cert so I can have some more qualifications to leave the job I'm currently at as a "Jr. Sys Admin" since i've reached pay cap and no more room for growth. Do you guys think with the course/practice exams + a book I bought off Amazon i'd be prepared enough for the exam?

only cert I (had) was my now expired A+, which is what I used to "break into the field"

[dcbone30]

Thinking about purchasing Sec+ course & practice exams on Udemy for $25 .

I'm trying to get another cert so I can have some more qualifications to leave the job I'm currently at as a "Jr. Sys Admin" since i've reached pay cap and no more room for growth. Do you guys think with the course/practice exams + a book I bought off Amazon i'd be prepared enough for the exam?

only cert I (had) was my now expired A+, which is what I used to "break into the field"

Use Professor Messer videos and a book off Amazon. I used the book by Darril Gibson, but that was back in 401, I can't attest for the new exam but I'd imagine both Professor Messer videos and Darril Gibson books hold up for the new version.

[omnip0tent]

Use Professor Messer videos and a book off Amazon. I used the book by Darril Gibson, but that was back in 401, I can't attest for the new exam but I'd imagine both Professor Messer videos and Darril Gibson books hold up for the new version.

Thanks broski. I bought a book off Amazon a while ago for 501 and never started it, gonna pull it out of the shelf. And will def check out Messer, I used him or my A+.

I went ahead and bought the stuff on Udemy because why not for $25. The more content the better, also the practice exams is really what I wanted from them.

[dcbone30]

Thanks broski. I bought a book off Amazon a while ago for 501 and never started it, gonna pull it out of the shelf. And will def check out Messer, I used him or my A+.

I went ahead and bought the stuff on Udemy because why not for $25. The more content the better, also the practice exams is really what I wanted from them.

Fair enough. Prof Messer is really great for the big 3 CompTIA certs and I've had really good success with Udemy for AWS Certs, so I'd imagine if it's a well rated course it should be useful.