Exam Profile: MCITP 70-686, Windows 7, Enterprise Desktop Administrator
Date: Oct 2, 2012
Microsoft’s Exam 70-686 (Pro: Windows 7, Enterprise Desktop Administrator) is one of six certification exams that are designed to test a candidate’s knowledge of Windows 7. This exam, the last in the series, tends to be theoretical in nature and places a heavy emphasis on planning and managing a desktop client lifecycle strategy.
The vast majority of the questions on Exam 70-686 are based around Windows 7 deployment in an enterprise environment. Candidates who are taking the exam are expected to know how to create and maintain deployment images as well as how to deploy those images using either a light touch or a zero touch installation.
In addition to deployment planning, candidates are also expected to know how to troubleshoot failed deployments related to things like group policy issues, network issues, and authentication or authorization issues.
Exam Details
- Number of Questions: Approximately 55 questions (Since Microsoft does not publish this information, the number of exam questions may change without notice.)
- Types of Questions: This test format is multiple choice, drag-and-drop, simlet, and simulation.
- Passing Score: 700
- Time Limit: 120 minutes
- How to Register: Prometric.com
This passing score does not mean that you must answer 70 percent of the items correctly in order to pass the exam. The actual percentage varies from exam to exam and may be more or less than 70 percent. There is no penalty for guessing. No points are deducted for incorrect answers. If a question specifies that you must choose multiple correct answers, you must choose the exact number of correct answers specified in the question in order to earn a point for that item. Some of the questions on the exam may not count toward the calculation of your score. Microsoft will often throw a question in that is meant to gather data that will help them improve the exam.
Trouble Spots
Like most other Microsoft certification exams, the 70-686 exam is divided into a series of objectives. In the past Microsoft has indicated how heavily each objective weighs into the overall exam score. In this case however, the exam objectives are not weighted so it is difficult to guess at which subject area has the biggest influence on your overall score.
Many of the people who have taken this exam have commented on its difficulty (compared to other Microsoft exams). By far the one objective that seems to cause people the most trouble is Designing Client Configurations.
On the surface, this particular exam objective seems simple. It is all about ensuring a consistent end user experience from one desktop to the next. However, what makes this objective so difficult is that candidates are expected to know how to configure a dizzying array of operating system settings. This one single objective covers everything from Internet Explorer customizations to logon scripts. You will also need to know about group policies, Windows Firewall rules, User Access Control policies, and a number of other security standards.
Another thing that seems to trip people up about this exam is the overall exam philosophy. Most of the Microsoft certification exams are designed to test basic product knowledge. This particular exam does require you to have a good understanding of Windows 7, but the exam places a very heavy emphasis on best practices. Much of the exam material is based on theoretical planning.
Preparation Hints
Exam 70-686 is probably the most difficult of the Windows 7 certification exams and there is a high rate of failure for the exam. Because the bulk of the exam focuses on image creation and deployment, many have found it helpful to take Exam 70-680 (TS: Windows 7, Configuring) prior to taking Exam 70-686. Passing Exam 70-680 ensures that you will have a good basic knowledge of Windows 7. More importantly however, roughly about 27% of the exam’s content focuses on deployment. Some people who have taken both exams report that some of the questions from the 70-680 exam showed up on the 70-686 exam as well.
Recommended Study Resources
Microsoft offers classroom training for this exam, but a number of other study materials are also available. Some of the available resources include:
MCITP Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-686): Windows 7 Desktop Administrator
Windows 7 Portable Command Guide: MCTS 70-680, 70-685, and 70-686
Microsoft Practice Exam for 70-686 MSCert: PRO – Windows 7, Enterprise Desktop Administrator
Exam Objectives
The exam objectives are broken up into six different categories. The 70-686 exam measures your ability to accomplish the technical tasks listed below.
The objectives for Exam 70-686 as stated by Microsoft are as follows:
Planning and Managing a Client Life Cycle Strategy
- Plan and manage client licensing and activation.
- Plan and manage software updates.
- Plan and manage a physical hardware and virtualization strategy.
This objective may include but is not limited to: applications and operating systems; activation method; KMS vs. MAK; prerequisites; choosing a SKU; licensing infrastructure; licensing compliance audits; inventory audits; virtualization licensing considerations; making recommendations for licensing strategy and compliance
This objective may include but is not limited to: application updates and operating system updates; evaluating and approving software updates; enterprise applications; designing an update strategy; choosing an update tool; planning and deploying a service pack; schedule considerations; network considerations; test updates; auditing for security compliance
This objective may include but is not limited to: analyzing existing hardware environment; determining which systems meet minimum requirements; tradeoffs of physical vs. VDI environment; network load considerations; disk space; direct connection vs. brokered connection; determining a VHD strategy; choosing 32 bit vs. 64 bit
Designing a Standard Image
- Design an image creation strategy.
- Design a custom image.
- Define an image update strategy.
This objective may include but is not limited to: identifying operating system and enterprise applications that will be included with the standard image; thick, thin, or hybrid; role-based or geographic-based images vs. single core image; image localization
This objective may include but is not limited to: identifying applications to be installed; identifying features and components to be enabled or disabled; testing the customized image
This objective may include but is not limited to: performance optimization; security considerations; efficiency; offline servicing vs. online or post-image updates; re-creating; recapturing
Designing Client Configurations
- Design standard system settings.
- Define client security standards.
- Define Windows Internet Explorer settings.
This objective may include but is not limited to: choosing methods, including logon scripts, startup scripts, and Group Policy; designing profiles; designing error reporting; designing audit policy
This objective may include but is not limited to: application control policies; encryption; stopping unnecessary services; designing firewall rules; defining anti-malware settings; changes to Kerberos and NTLM; configuring user rights; defining UAC policy; designing a security template for system lockdown; defining account policies; designing security standards for removable storage
This objective may include but is not limited to: defining security zones; cache location; branding; in-private mode; restricting or allowing plug-ins; add-ons; privacy policy; browser protected mode
Designing a Windows 7 Client Deployment
- Analyze the environment and choose appropriate deployment methods.
- Design a lite-touch deployment strategy.
- Design a zero-touch deployment strategy.
- Design a user state migration strategy.
This objective may include but is not limited to: building the infrastructure; advantages of lite-touch vs. zero-touch vs. local install; capacity and scale considerations; determining required changes to the infrastructure
This objective may include but is not limited to: unicast vs. multicast; auto-cast vs. scheduled-cast; staggered deployment; scheduling considerations; network load considerations; choosing a client boot method for deployment; unattended answer files; restricting who can receive images; choosing a delivery mechanism
This objective may include but is not limited to: designing and configuring task sequencing; unattended answer files; scheduling considerations; staggered deployment; network load considerations; restricting who can receive images
This objective may include but is not limited to: determining which user data and settings to preserve; local vs. remote storage considerations; determining mitigation plan for non-migrated applications; securing migrated data; testing designed strategy; wipe-and-load migration vs. side-by-side migration
Designing Application Packages for Deployment
- Design a delivery or deployment strategy.
- Manage application compatibility.
This objective may include but is not limited to: auditing for prerequisites and minimum requirements; choosing a deployment method such as virtualized, Remote Desktop Services, Group Policy, or software distribution; server-based or client-based install; scheduling considerations; staggered deployment; network considerations; package creation standards
This objective may include but is not limited to: testing incompatibility; choosing a method for resolving incompatibility, such as upgrading, Remote Desktop Services, shim, or VDI; auditing incompatible software
Identifying and Resolving Deployment and Client Configuration Issues
- Identify and resolve Internet Explorer issues.
- Identify and resolve Group Policy issues.
- Identify and resolve networking issues.
- Identify and resolve authentication and authorization issues.
This objective may include but is not limited to: security zones; Web applications; advanced settings; Group Policy restrictions; certificates
This objective may include but is not limited to: delegation; inheritance; policies are not effective; blocking; permissions; loopback processing; user vs. computer settings; filtering; performance
This objective may include but is not limited to: wireless; remote access; VPN; certificates; performance; IP communication; Windows Firewall
This objective may include but is not limited to: user rights; distinguishing between client-based and server-based issues; time synchronization (Kerberos)
Where to Go from Here
Candidates who pass the 70-686 exam earn the Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Windows 7, Enterprise Desktop Administrator certification. The exam does not count as credit toward any other certifications.