Category: VMware

I took the Advanced Deploy VMware vSphere 7.0 Exam recently and these are my recommendations on preparing for this exam. This was a fun exam and it was great to see it has been updated to include the new features of vSphere 7. I also like the fact that it provides brief objectives in each question and you are responsible for making sure all of the prerequisite settings are met before you can complete the primary task. This truly validates your advanced level of skill with vSphere 7.

This is a configuration based exam which uses the VMware Learning Platform (VLP), which has a very similar feel to the VMware Hands-On Labs. Use VMware Hands On Lab 2211 VMware vSphere What’s New as a preparation tool to experience the user interface. Use the exam blueprint as a tracking tool for monitoring your readiness.

This exam has 17 Questions that need to be completed within 205 minutes. Which really is 195 minutes, because when you first connect to VLP, the environment takes 10 minutes to deploy and become available and the clock is running while you wait. However, you can use that time to browse through the questions in the lab and plan your strategy.

The console will freeze from time to time. Use the “Consoles” icon in the top left hand corner to unfreeze the screen by selecting the “Main Console” icon each time to reload the console. This is very frustrating, but you get used to it. If you have connection timeout problems to the VLP console, immediately alert your proctor to resolve. If the problem cannot be resolved, they will open a ticket and you will get a refund.

Copy and paste is disabled and using the right mouse button can be problematic. Try and get used to using the Actions button in the vSphere Client when you want to make a configuration change. If you need to copy text between web browser tabs in the console, put the windows side by side and retype the text.

You can grab text from the lab manual into the console, which helps you save a significant amount of time retyping IP addresses and object names. However, this does not work for all vSphere Client screens (drag action will select text on the entire vSphere Client screen, instead of pasting in the field you selected), you will have to manually type these problematic fields.

VMware vSphere documentation PDFs are provided on the desktop, but do not rely on them, they should only be used as reference material if you need to query a specific setting. You will not have time to read and learn to complete all of the questions.

Time management is important, if you are unsure on how to complete a task, move onto the next one. Many of the questions have unrelated multiple parts, so see if you can complete different parts of the question. Use a text file on the console to track your progress as you work through the exam. Once you reach question 17, check your notes and see which questions you can circle back to.

Multi-tasking is a must, many of the questions take significant time for vSphere to complete (VLP uses nested ESXi 7.0.0, which is slow). Have a few tabs open so that you can jump back and forth to check execution progress. You should never be sitting idle waiting for a task to finish.

When you end the exam, a message indicates it can take up to 48 hours to get your result. I had my Credly badge and results PDF issued the next day. If you do fail, your results PDF will have the blueprint areas you need to work on; this is a great way to diagnose your weaknesses and strengthen them.

VMexplorer also has a detailed write-up and video on this exam which you should check out if you want to deep-dive on the subject.