Path to F5 LTM Certification
March 07, 2017Getting there...
The path to becoming a F5 certified requires a number of prerequisites. At the most basic level you are required to create an account with the F5 Credential Management System (CMS) at https://certification.f5.com. Once registered and assigned a candidate ID, you login and are faced with a screen similar to the following (note: as I have already passed the 101 and 201 exams my status and homepage will look different to yours depending on which stage you are at):
A key point to note here is that you are also required to register with Pearson Vue for an F5-specific account. Even if you have an account with Pearson Vue for Cisco, as an example, you are still required to register for your F5 account.
With the exception of the Pearson Vue exam booking system, the F5 CMS is the place you manage all things related to your F5 certification. Here you are provided with a number of resources to help you through your studies to include the official study guides for the 101, 201, 301a, 301b, 302 and 303 certification, all written by Eric Mitchell.
One of the things I like about the F5 certification process is the controlled methodology by which you go through. F5 have a concept of being authorised to test. What this means is that you are initially authorised to take the first F5 exam on the curriculum - the 101 exam, and thus are provided materials to help you through this via the CMS, although the study guides can be downloaded directly from the F5 website.
With the right wind, and a sprinkle of dedication, once you pass your 101, the CMS unlocks the second exam and preparation materials for you - the 201 exam. This allows you to book the 201 exam via Pearson Vue. Once certified, the CMS offers a similar function to Cisco in that you can publish your credentials via email to a recipient as proof of your status.
As the following diagram illustrates, in successfully passing these exams you are now a Certified BIG-IP Administrator (F5-CA). A level I achieved in December 2016.
I won't go into the detail of each of the 101 or 201 exams on here as preparation materials have already been put together by others, which I actually used. My main source of training material, other than the official study guides for each of these exams, was via two blogs by Rich Hill:
So what next? Leaving the F5 certification at the F5-CA level may be OK for some, however, I feel if you've made it this far you might as well push it to the next level. And that is exactly what I am doing. The next logical progression in my view is to take the 301a and 301b exams as the LTM module is the core and flagship F5 product so it makes sense to do this one first.
Over the next few months and through a variety of blog posts I will be documenting my journey as I study and prepare for the 301x exams. I hope that they will serve as a good resource for others who will also embark on the same journey.
1 comments
Hey man, great stuff.
ReplyDeleteSomething I want to do on my blog and well but it seems you got there first!
I got my 301a on 1st August, you got any good tips for me as the day comes close?
Till then I'm reading everything here, thanks for the effort.