Hi all,

I'm looking for some advice in regards to certification and training. I just finished Introduction to Linux on edx (https://www.edx.org/course/introduct...ionx-lfs101x-0), and my boss is now encouraging me to take Linux System Administration Essentials (https://www.edx.org/course/linux-sys...ationx-lfs201x) but it looks like it gets really crappy reviews.

I'm also a little lost when it comes to which certification is best (Linux+, LFCS and LPIC). Any opinions out there on certifications and online courses (budget around $500) would serve me best?

Thanks,

Alanna

If your boss is "encouraging you to take" any sort of Linux course, then your boss should be fully prepared to be paying for you to do so, out of his/her professional-development budget.

(And if s/he has none, then s/he has no business asking!)

Think about it: the entire concept of "employment" is that a company pays you (a salary ...) to do work for them. (They dutifully bill the "expenses," namely your salary, as "direct" or "indirect.")

Although (in the US, today ...) employment is generally "at will," and any company therefore retains the prerogative "to summarily fire your butt and to replace you with someone who has this-or-that" (and who does not have to be concerned with exactly-how said person came to be possessed of 'this-or-that' ...) . . .

. . . an employer may not require, nor even "pressure" you nor "suggest to you," that you (must|could|might|maybe-should|gee wouldn't-it be-smart-to) do something out of pocket either to "maintain" nor to "advance" your employment.

(If you, on your own initiative, "want to be ambitious and pro-active," then you are entitled to do so. But your <<employer|manager|boss>> can't be the one to tell you. Nor even to overtly suggest it! Furthermore, your retention in your present position may not be preconditioned upon any such "ambition.")

If your boss is "encouraging you to take" this-or-that course, but is not simultaneously offering to pay for it in full, then s/he has crossed a legal "no-no line" of United States law, and should immediately consult with Human Resources. (As should you.)

Hi. You can try https://training.linuxfoundation.org/certification/lfcs or https://training.linuxfoundation.org/certification/lfcs

Hey alanna908, I read your post and have been thinking carefully and if your budget is $500 I would consider Linux+ Cert or the LFCS cert if you want a clear-cut answer.

In my opinion being certified in Linux administration while it looks good on paper is actually kind of silly considering Linux is the type of operating system that lets you be the administrator of your own computer almost immediately from the beginning when you start. What is being an administrator anyway? Is it that administrators are more familiar with permissions commands (chmod) and have a better understanding of file sharing, sudo, networking, and data backup? Is it that administrators can compile there own code from source? Many people have different definitions of what being an administrator really is. To me administrating a system means literally a person who installs, maintains, and manages a company's computers for pay.

What I really think you should do is just strive for MASTERY OF LINUX. Most good administrators I have seen don't have a cert, they just really know the inner workings of a computer, meaning they understand the hardware, operating system, firmware, individual programs, and even the mathematical theory that goes into it.

To understand Linux I would recommend IN ORDER you read the following: "How Linux Works" by Brain Ward for knowledge of the Operating systems inner workings, "Discrete Mathematics and Its Applications" by Kenneth H. Rosen for a good basis in logic, math, and computational understanding, Any CompTIA A+ Cert book for hardware knowledge and understanding, and lastly "The C Programming language" by Brain W. Kernighan and Dennis M. Ritchie. All four of these books together if read in entirety should enable you to solve 80 percent of the problems you will see.

Also if your boss is not going to pay for your certification I would argue learning from the books is better anyway
(Unless your boss gives you a significant raise if you get the cert.), after all certs are expensive. Does your company have a policy that requires more pay for more qualified individuals?

Hi all,

Thanks for your responses.

sundialsvcs, I appreciate you're looking out for me. I don't know if those laws exist in Canada but I'll certainly now go look for something similar.

deadstar32, amazing! Thanks for the book recommendations, looks like I have a lot of reading to do!

My boss will be willing to pay for something, I hope. I was using the $500 price point because the course he was recommending I take cost that much. I work for a very small company in telecom in a very niche market but with sip and VOIP, telecom is quickly turning into IT and I feel I am a little behind.

Thanks again!

Let's face it, any employer worth working for should have $500 ... a paltry sum ... in an "Employee Professional Development" budget line-item, especially if it's something that they consider "valuable to the company." It's downright rude for a manager even to suggest that the employee do it "on his own nickel."

If you mentioned VoIP and telcom I would also like to recommend this to the list of what you should know. Hacking VoIP: Protocols, attacks, and countermeasures by Himanshu Dwivedi and Getting Started in Electronics by Forrest M. Mims III. Learning how electronics work is awesome. And if you can "hack" you know how it works. Hacking is the art and science of exploitation.

Alanna, the only Linux certifications that has any return on investment or market value are the ones offered by Red Hat Linux. See URL below for more info.

https://www.redhat.com/en/services/a...ications-exams

Also I would recommend Linux Academy for Linux certification training along with Amazon Web Services. Here you can spin around 8 virtual machines of various flavors of Linux to practice the various labs that you have access to with a paid membership (NOTE: I do not work for Linux Academy nor do I know of anyone who works there, I've had a membership since July 2015).

https://linuxacademy.com/

Don't get caught up in the drama that your employer "should" pay for this or that. Most companies are barely getting by and don't have a training budget anymore. Or that you should buddy up with someone where you work to get to the next level. Those days are long gone and its all on you now.

Also certs show a desire to learn and take the initiative Vs. just brain dumping aka cheating.

And I would recommend coming to this forum where you can learn alot by reading alot of the various threads here.

If you get your Linux+ from CompTIA, you can forward your scores to LPIC and SuSe and you would receive those certifications as well. 3 birds with 1 stone.

Hi,

My advice is practise as lot as you can, master the Linux well above what is required for our work.
Then you will soon see yourself doing more than what you're paid for. The next step being to do be paid more than what you're doing.
Then go for challenging, rewarding and recognized Red Hat Certified System Administrator, Red Hat Certified Engineer and Red Hat Certified Architect.

thanks deadstar32 for your definition of administration. That is exactly what I aim to do. Newbies with energy are capable of becoming administrators if we want to

I have my Linux+ from CompTIA. How do I take part in this?

Taken from the CompTIA certification website:


3-for-1: How to earn 3 certifications with Linux+

Obtain an LPI ID.
Once you have passed both Linux+ exams, log into your CompTIA certification account. Choose Demographics | Settings. On the Settings page check the box to have your information forwarded to LPI, then click Submit.
Upon receipt of your LPIC-1 apply online for your SUSE CLA.
Please note that the 3-in-1 process is not reciprocal and you cannot earn LPIC-1 and then apply for Linux+. It is not available in Japan.

Hmmm...I don't see that option. I got my Linux+ back in 2009, so maybe it doesn't qualify.

Thats a possibility. It's not something I would know. You would probably have to contact CompTIA or LPI directly to ask them about it. You could still take the LPI test and forward theirs to SuSe I think.