Just came back from the 71-680 Win 7 beta exam

[wagnerk]

Hi All,

Well, after driving to Luton & back (2 hour round trip), I'd just like to say that I've sat the beta 71-680 Windows 7 exam. For those that don't know, the 71-680 is the beta for the 70-680 exam.

The exam itself

I'm limited in what I can say, due to the NDA, but here are a couple of the key points:

1. Unlike the Vista exam, the Windows 7 exam concentrates more on... Windows 7. For example when I sat the Vista exam, when it first came out, I could say that 50% of the answers could be answered right with little real experience with Vista. With the Windows 7 beta exam, maybe 5-10% can be answered. Moral: Know and study all of Windows 7.

2. The exam format keeps in line with the MCTS format.

Study materials I used

Software

Windows 7 - build 7000 (beta) & build 7100 (RC) at home and in a live coporate domain

Websites

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/m.../dd451022.aspx

http://blogs.zdnet.com/Bott/?p=922

http://www.windowsvistaplace.com/win.../othersoftware

http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=4263

http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=4254

http://www.microsoft.com/learning/wi...ult.mspx#BOOKS

http://learning.microsoft.com/manage...7d&clang=en-US

http://learning.microsoft.com/manage...7d&clang=en-US

http://learning.microsoft.com/manage...7d&clang=en-US

http://www.microsoft.com/learning/sn...ault.mspx#WIN7

https://partner.microsoft.com/40091612

https://partner.microsoft.com/40084742?msp_id=Windows7

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/dd262126.aspx

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-gb/w...?ITPID=carepgm

http://blogs.technet.com/mslcommunit...s-7-snack.aspx

http://www.infoworld.com/d/windows/h...7-555?page=0,1

http://code.msdn.microsoft.com/win7m...ReleaseId=2530

http://www.msdev.com/Directory/Serie...x?CourseId=104

e-Clinics/CBT's

Clinic 10088: What's New in Windows 7 for Information Workers
Clinic 10077: What's New in Windows 7 for IT Professionals

Books

Sorry, didn't use any/could find any at the time...


My feelings

Well I have to say, that I'm in two minds on if I passed or not. There were a few questions were I had to ask myself, is this done like this in XP, Vista or 7. While I would love to pass, there were questions on certain technologies that I either didn't know or didn't have enough knowledge on, however I took the educated guess - lets hope that it's pays off.

-Ken

[dales]

Im sure you will have done fine. Do you know when you will find out?

[wagnerk]

In about 2 months time. The results will be sent out approx 8 weeks after the close of the beta program, which will be next week.

-Ken

[UKDarkstar]

Is the Xp mode examined or do they regard that as old hat ?

[onoski]

Someone's just asked you to break the NDA you signed, best wishes either way.

[UKDarkstar]

Originally Posted by onoski

Someone's just asked you to break the NDA you signed, best wishes either way.

Ok, let me rephrase that :

Does MS regard the Xp mode as part of the examinable syllabus for Win 7 or do they seem to be saying to exclude it as they have covered Xp in other certs ?

[greenbrucelee]

good luck Ken

[wagnerk]

I'll answer it this way...

See here first of all, especially this part:

Configure a VHD.
This objective may include but is not limited to: creating, deploying, booting, mounting, and updating VHDs; offline updates; offline servicing
...
Configure application compatibility.
This objective may include but is not limited to: setting compatibility mode; implementing shims; compatibility issues with Internet Explorer

While I can't confirm or deny it (and even if I could, because it a beta it can change), just remember that while XP is "old Hat". The virtualisation technology (the Windows 7 Virtual PC feature) is different from VPC 2007/VMWare workstation.

-Ken

[UKDarkstar]

Originally Posted by wagnerk

I'll answer it this way...

See here first of all, especially this part:



While I can't confirm or deny it (and even if I could, because it a beta it can change), just remember that while XP is "old Hat". The virtualisation technology (the Windows 7 Virtual PC feature) is different from VPC 2007/VMWare workstation.

-Ken

Thanks for the insight. It was just "of interest" as opposed to being a deadly serious topic of exam discussion

[Tinus1959]

Thanks for this vey usefull post. Thinking of taking windows 7 in a short time.

[neilmowforth]

Best be quick - you've only got until the 18th to take the beta exam.

[gomcse2002]

I just got back from my 71-680 exam and I think I might failed because I had bad head ache this morning and can’t concentrate at all. Anyway this exam is tougher than I thought.

This is truly an enterprise level exam. 75 question. Please focus on the following areas:

DISM
DirectAccess
BitLocker To Go
Bitlocker on Hard Drive
BranchCache
WAIK
Windows Updates
Internet Explorer Settings
VHD
USMT
Windows 7 System Requirements
Windows Easy Transfer
System Restore
IPv6
Deployment
Imaging