MCSE in a Nutshell: The Windows 2000 Exams [Paperback]

Michael G. Moncur (Author), Michael Moncur (Author)

Book Description

Series: In a Nutshell (O'Reilly) | Publication Date: February 15, 2001

Microsoft's MCSE (Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer) candidates in the Windows 2000 track are required to pass five core exams and two elective exams. These exams are designed to provide a valid and reliable measure of competency for experienced IT professionals working in the typically complex computing environment of medium to large organizations.

MCSE in a Nutshell: The Windows 2000 Exams is a comprehensive study guide and detailed quick reference that covers the following exams:

• Exam 70-210: Installing, Configuring, and Administering Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional
• Exam 70-215: Installing, Configuring, and Administering Microsoft Windows 2000 Server
• Exam 70-216: Implementing and Administering a Microsoft Windows 2000 Network Infrastructure
• Exam 70-217: Implementing and Administering a Microsoft Windows 2000 Directory Services Infrastructure
• Exam 70-219: Designing a Microsoft. Windows. 2000 Directory Services Infrastructure
• Exam 70-221: Designing a Microsoft. Windows. 2000 Network Infrastructure
• Exam 70-220: Designing Security for a Microsoft. Windows. 2000 Network

Each chapter covers one exam. It includes:

• A summary of the key areas covered by the exam
• A description of the format, difficulty of each exam and tips for passing it
• Definitions of key terms

Any administrator who is serious about acquiring MCSE certification will find this book indispensable. MCSE in a Nutshell: The Windows 2000 Exams is the best value on the market, combining a low price and fast pace that will appeal to sophisticated users who need a bridge between real-world experience and the MCSE Exam requirements.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

As certifications for computer and network professionals go, the Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) rating may be the most widely recognized. That means that if you're going to invest time, money, and effort in earning a certification, the MCSE may give you the most career yield. MCSE in a Nutshell: The Windows 2000 Exams is the latest version of O'Reilly & Associates' MCSE preparation guide, updated to reflect the new MCSE requirements that came with the release of the Windows 2000 family of operating systems. As always, this book represents excellent value. It covers everything Microsoft says you need to know to pass core and elective exams in the MCSE battery.

Michael Moncur and Paul Murphy succeed in making this book space-efficient by minimizing overlap of coverage among chapters, each of which addresses the contents of a single exam. This book also counts on its readers having either a lot of Windows NT/2000 experience, or access to a laboratory network (or, preferably, both). Though the book contains a fair bit of explanation of terms and concepts, this is more of a study guide to accompany experimentation than a tutorial on its own. The authors seem to believe that hands-on experience is the way to learn Windows 2000. You'll find sample tests to gauge your learning, with minimally annotated answers. --David Wall

Topics covered: The subjects on the Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) suite of exams, including those on Windows 2000 Professional (70-210), Windows 2000 Server (70-215), Network Infrastructure Implementation (70-216), Directory Services Infrastructure Implementation (70-217), Directory Services Infrastructure Design (70-219), Network Infrastructure Design (70-221), and Security Design (70-220).

About the Author

Michael Moncur is a freelance author and consultant in Salt Lake City, Utah. He is the owner of Starling Technologies, a small company specializing in network consulting and Web content development. Michael is certified as both a CNE and an MCSE, and is the author of several books on NetWare, NT, and the CNE and MCSE programs, including NT Network Security and CNE Study Guide for IntranetWare (Sybex/Network Press) and the upcoming MCSE: The Electives in a Nutshell (O'Reilly).

Paul Murphy is a freelance author and training manager for Dreamscape OnLine, a Syracuse, NY, Internet service provider. He has been teaching classes on the Internet, HTML, operating systems, and Microsoft Office since 1996. Certified as an MCSE, he has worked as a technical reviewer for O'Reilly's MCSE series.

Product Details

• Paperback: 500 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; 1st edition (February 15, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0596000308
• ISBN-13: 978-0596000301
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,997,493 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Wait for the 2nd printing unless you know your stuff., March 6, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: MCSE in a Nutshell: The Windows 2000 Exams (Paperback)

This book will be a great review book, when all the errors are corrected. I've submitted three errata's on the book and I'm only through the first chapter (2000 Pro). While two of the errors were minor, there was one major one. That one stated that RDISK was the way to make a recovery disk in Windows 2000, which it's not....

With the information that's correct, it's a very easy to read book with "In the real world" sections that describe how things really work, not how Microsoft thinks they should work. This books shouldn't be used as a main point of study (and they state that in the book). There are also "One the Exam" sections that explain little things that you need to be familiar with.

It should be used to test your knowledge and give you pointers to work on. It's more of a review book then a flat out study guide. The exercises at the end of the sections are also useful things to run through. And some good questions at the end of each section.

If you think you're ready for your test this book is good to review and find out, but make sure you have solid knowledge before picking it up, especially with the errors in it right now.

When the errors are fix, this book will be worth 4.5-5 stars.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Don't expect to take the exams from this book!, August 20, 2001

By 

Atlanta Network Guy (Atlanta, GA United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: MCSE in a Nutshell: The Windows 2000 Exams (Paperback)

This book hits on the concepts necessary for a 50,000 foot view of the MCSE but lacks anything like the detail necessary to actually sit at the exam terminal. I rate it as high as I do only because I had diminished expectations of it from the start - its only a tenth the size of any other MCSE study guide, so how could it possibly cover everything? The answer is that it doesn't come close. None the less, I found its high level coverage of the subject to be extremely useful when I was completely lost in the deep details of the full coverage texts and needed a guide to show me the big picture of what was to be accomplished by those details. I would recommend getting this and read each exam topic here first before digging into the serious books that are going to get you through the exams. Other reviewers here have detailed the technical errors in the books so I won't, but they were less encumbering to me in the manner that I used the book (as a general rather than a specific reference). But be aware that there are some serious errors and I wouldn't bet the rent based on anything from this manual.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars A huge disappointment, May 30, 2001

By 

Allan Bourdius "Allan Bourdius" (Pittsburgh, PA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: MCSE in a Nutshell: The Windows 2000 Exams (Paperback)

Compared to the two previous "MCSE in a Nutshell" (Core Exams & Elective Exams for NT 4.0), this book is a major disappointment! It's really valuable as a highlighter's index only - for that you're better off downloading the free stuff from Cramsession.com! The review questions are far too basic. When I did the review for 70-217 (Active Directory administration), I got all the ones in this book right, but only scored about 60% on the questions found in the readiness review from MS Press. Using the MS Press review, I wound up scoring 883/1000 on the actual exam. The Windows 2000 exams' difficulty was cranked up a notch and this book falls short.