Finally, I am a VMware Certified Professional (VCP)…twice. The last week in January, I was able to pass the exams for my VCP3 and VCP4. On January 28, I passed my VCP 310 exam. That night, I decided to begin studying for my VCP410 exam. I only had 48 hours left to pass it without having to take a vSphere training course. I was fortunate to have some VCP4 friends that passed on some good notes (I will link to exam tips below). With a lot of cramming and a good amount of prayer, I passed the VCP410 on January 30.

Though I am proud of these accomplishments, I am disappointed that this kind of effort was required. I waited too long, let too many things get in the way and brought on the days of no sleep and hours of frantic studying that my last week of January became. I took my VMware 3 Deploy, Secure and Analyze course in the summer of 2007. In the summer of 2008, I quit using ESX 3 and moved my focus to beta testing ESX 4. Fast forward to Janaury 2010 and I am having to forget 18 months of ESX 4 data to pass the VCP 3 exam. Then, I had to switch gears and dump the ESX 3 settings and maximums so I could relearn the ESX 4 settings. I waited way too long to take the VCP 3, and did not give myself enough time to properly prepare for the VCP 4. I passed the VCP 4, but not with the score I would have liked. If I wanted to be an instructor, I would have to retake the VCP 4 for a higher score. I did it, but I cheated myself out of the more positive experience that it should have been. Moral of this story…when you take a qualifying VMware education course, spend a few weeks studying and take the VCP exam right away.

To see my collection of VCP410 exam tips, go to http://blog.mvaughn.us/2010/02/11/vcp-4-exam-tips/.