Journey to AZ-700 Azure Network Engineer Associate

My Latest Achievement: The AZ-700 Certificate. I'm quite proud of what I have accomplished over the past three weeks. Sharing is caring, so I'd like to share my preparation strategy. In case anyone is interested in pursuing it.

The exam was one of the best exams I've ever taken. It's an all-encompassing test that covers most topics from the official guidelines (Exam AZ-700: Designing and Implementing Microsoft Azure Networking Solutions - Certifications | Microsoft Learn). Interestingly, it was the first exam which I spent a full 120 minutes and still couldn't complete everything!

Over the past 12 months, I have earned two new certifications: the Terraform Associate and a Cybersecurity certification from ISC2. My focus has been on honing new skills in automation and security. This year, I plan to delve deeper into my foundational skills in Infrastructure and Development.

I chose AZ-700 as the opening of my next certification at the start of 2024 because it's not only the title sounded cool but also offered me an opportunity to update my knowledge in Azure Networking. It was like hitting two birds with one stone!

Start with Preparation (1st Week)

Having been in this field for over 10 years, and specifically working with the Azure platform for more than half of that time, I have some recommendations for those planning to take the exam.

• Firstly, I highly recommend watching John Savill's video on YouTube, which can be found at this link: John Savill - AZ-700 Preparation. This video is at the top of my list. Watching it at 1.5x speed is even better. It provides all the basic knowledge you need for the exam and covers nearly every topic.
• Next, take a week to review the materials on MS Learn, particularly the official documentation for the AZ-700 exam. It's a free resource and can be found here: Designing and Implementing Microsoft Azure Networking Solutions.

MS Learn supplied roughly 50-60% of the knowledge I needed for the exam. However, I recommend concentrating on specific products as indicated in their exam guidelines. Be sure to read the official documents for products like Azure Front Door, Azure Firewall, Azure Application Gateway, Azure Route Server, Route Table, NSG, and ASG. This is important because MS Learn doesn't provide the complete context for these products. Pay close attention to their usage, implementation methods, limitations, tiers, and design architecture.

Then Practice Hands-On (2nd Week)

Yes, hands-on practice is crucial for the AZ-700, as it is an engineering exam. The name of the exam itself, "Design and Implement," implies that you will need implementation experience.

If you have a Visual Studio subscription, you can carry out most of your hands-on practice using that subscription. Just remember to delete the lab setup once you are finished practicing.

I practiced hands-on using the following GitHub link: AZ-700-Designing-and-Implementing-Microsoft-Azure-Networking-Solutions (microsoftlearning.github.io). This resource covers most of the scenarios you need to understand for the exam.

I didn't do any extra hands-on practice apart from simulating a Hub-Spoke design with Azure Firewall, involving three spokes, and ensuring all could communicate freely. Then adding whip cream on top and try to use all features available there. (Then delete)

As long as you try it out, encounter issues, and work to resolve them, that should be sufficient. We all learn something new when making any mistake!

Practice on Questions (3rd Week)

Personally, I don't have access to Measure Up anymore. I used it in the past when I had someone paid for it. This time around, for my practice, I chose Pearson's practice tests. Specifically, I used "Pearson Practice Test AZ-700: Designing and Implementing Microsoft Azure Networking Solutions," available through O'Reilly Online Learning. You can find it here: Pearson Practice Test AZ-700 - O'Reilly Online Learning.

This resource helped me cover aspects I missed during my preparation, mostly related to features in different tiers of products and various scenarios. Previously, I tended to use a slightly more expensive tier than necessary, but not anymore. After an intense last three weeks of study, I feel quite confident now.

If you have a membership with O'Reilly, you can access the practice test using the link above. Alternatively, if you don't have a membership, the practice materials from Microsoft Learn are also a great option. You can find them here: Microsoft Learn AZ-700 Practice Materials.

Exam Day (It's the day)

Now that I've studied enough and ticked off all the requirements listed on their official page (link below), I admit I'm a bit nervous. I do have a lot of other priorities, which in the past week reduced my daily preparation time to only 2-3 hours.

• It's crucial to get enough sleep the day before your exam so that you feel refreshed.
• Pay attention to the time and use it wisely. The exam is 120 minutes long, so plan your approach carefully, preparing as if for a battle!
• Make sure you go to toilet before exam.
• If you're unsure about an answer, remember that during the exam, you can use the "MS Learn" button to access the "MS Learn document." Yes, it can be incredibly helpful!
• Check out this link for more information: Introducing a new resource for all role-based Microsoft Certification exams - Microsoft Community Hub

Lastly, you're likely to enjoy the exam (I sweated a lot may be too excited!). It's very well-structured, with great questions that will definitely challenge and test the skills you've developed to this point.

Remember:

Review the study guide and make sure you tick all the boxes there:

**** very important ****

Study guide for Exam AZ-700: Designing and Implementing Microsoft Azure Networking Solutions | Microsoft Learn

Enjoy the learning!! and if you've already taken the exam, "Congratulations!" :)