My RHCSA Certification in 2024: Exam Preparation Tips

Hello everyone! A couple of weeks ago, I successfully passed the Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA) exam, which focuses on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9. I managed to score the maximum 300 points, which made me very happy. In this post, I would like to share my experience in choosing, preparing for, and passing the exam. If you are planning to take this exam, I hope this article will save you some time in searching for information. Well, let's get started!

Why Did I Choose RHCSA?

In my opinion, understanding the Linux operating system and the ability to administer it is one of the fundamental skills for any IT professional, regardless of their future specialisation. Not just System Administrators, but also Software Developers, Cloud Engineers, SDETs, System Analysts, Data Engineers, DevOps Engineers, and many other positions require an understanding and ability to work in Linux. I wanted to systematise my knowledge of Linux, and certification was an excellent option because it had a measurable outcome.

Currently, there are quite a few different certifications available, and here are the main ones I considered:

• Linux Professional Institute Certification (LPIC-1)
• Linux Foundation Certified System Administrator (LFCS)
• Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA)
• CompTIA Linux+

I chose the certification program based on many criteria. However, the most important for me was that the certification not only tested theory but also practical skills, and that the tasks were as close to real-life scenarios as possible. Additionally, it was important to me that the certification provider offered a clear certification path to more advanced levels, so that, if desired, I could continue certifying within the same vendor.

Please understand me correctly, I have a lot of respect for the content of the study materials for LPIC-1 and CompTIA Linux+, they cover a wide range of topics. But in my case, I decided not to consider them primarily because these exams are conducted in a multiple-choice test format. However, I noted for myself that the Linux Professional Institute offers free and detailed materials for preparing for LPIC-1 on their website, and I want to return to these materials later because they cover various Linux distributions and specific tools.

Ultimately, I chose the RHCSA exam from Red Hat for the following reasons:

• The exam focuses on testing practical skills and knowledge.
• The tasks are close to real-world job tasks.
• The certificate is recognisable and popular.
• The difficulty of the exam is quite high, making the certificate valuable.
• There is an option to take the exam either at a certification center or remotely.
• Red Hat offers a clear (yet lengthy) certification path up to the Certified Architect level, allowing for continued certification with one vendor.

The RHCSA Exam Explained

The RHCSA exam is a 3-hour practical exam where candidates are required to perform tasks on real servers running Red Hat Enterprise Linux. The current version of the operating system for the exam is RHEL9.

When taking the exam in Australia, it cost AU$ 500 + GST. Interestingly, purchasing the first exam from Red Hat also includes a second free attempt if the first one is unsuccessful. I was unaware of this, but was pleasantly surprised when I received an email with this information after purchasing. It made me less nervous about the results and, as a consequence, allowed me to prepare more productively.

Both in-person and remote exam delivery options are available, with a very well-thought-out examination control system (for which you need to meet certain technical requirements, which I will discuss in the next section). The option for remote delivery was particularly convenient, as not every city has an exam center available.

System Requirements for Remote Exam Delivery

If you plan to take the exam remotely, I highly recommend reviewing the hardware requirements. For the exam, you will need to boot from a LiveUSB with an operating system image specially configured for the exam. And not just any computer will do.

For instance, currently, Apple computers with M1 and M2 processors are not supported. Therefore, I had to prepare an Intel CPU laptop for the exam instead of my MacBook with M1.

Additionally, you will need an external webcam with at least a 1-meter cable for the exam. It will be used to monitor your workspace and the room where you are taking the exam.

Detailed technical requirements are described in the brochure on the Red Hat website: Getting Ready for your Red Hat Remote Exam. I recommend reviewing them before registering for the exam. You can also prepare the LiveUSB according to the instructions provided, boot from it, and check the compatibility of your equipment.

How Long Did Preparation Take?

My preparation took 1.5 months in my spare time. If you have never worked with Linux before, I would recommend adding at least an additional month of preparation to get familiar and comfortable with the operating system, learn how to set up a stand with 2-3 virtual machines, and work through some beginner's course. After that, you can move on to the main program.

Thus, I would say that with some experience, it's quite comfortable to prepare in 1.5-2 months, but without any experience, it would take about 2.5-3 months.

Materials I Can Recommend for Preparation

Stage 0. (Optional) Introductory Course

Experienced Linux users and administrators can easily skip this step. However, for beginners, I would recommend initially taking an introductory course on Linux to get acquainted with the system and accelerate further preparation for the exam. There are countless introductory courses available, both in video and book formats, so everyone can choose something suitable.

The main goal at this stage is not to choose a very comprehensive course that would take too much time. The primary objective is to familiarize oneself with the operating system and learn basic commands. For instance, the following free video courses can be used:

• freeCodeCamp - Introduction to Linux
• Linux For Beginners

Stage 1. Learning Linux

Before diving into the exam topics, I decided to systematise and deepen my existing knowledge and thoroughly work through one good Linux book, reinforcing the learning with practical exercises. This will also help to fill any gaps in knowledge. Here is a list of books I noted for myself; you can choose one of them and work through it, applying the knowledge in practice:

• Linux Bible by Christopher Negus
• UNIX and Linux System Administration Handbook
• Using and Administering Linux: Volume 1-3 by David Both. Caution! These are three large volumes, a very detailed guide.

Stage 2. Working Through the Exam Topics

Next, I moved on to work through the RHCSA book by Sander van Vugt and his corresponding video course:

• Red Hat RHCSA 9 Cert Guide: EX200 by Sander van Vugt
• RHCSA RHEL 9 Complete Video Course by Sander van Vugt

I worked through the book and video course in parallel, supplementing with additional YouTube videos and system experiments to clarify unclear topics. It's important to note that the book provides the essential information needed to pass the exam. However, to ensure a confident exam performance, an additional step of practicing the skills is necessary.

It's also worth mentioning that Red Hat offers training courses specifically designed for RHCSA preparation. These are excellent resources but come with higher costs:

• RH124 Red Hat System Administration I
• RH134 Red Hat System Administration II

Stage 3. Practice, practice, practice...

A critical phase in preparation is the practical reinforcement of all acquired knowledge and skills until they become second nature. To achieve this, I purchased an additional course on Udemy featuring practice exams for the RHCSA, which include exercises similar to those you might encounter on the exam. I found the tasks in this course required a deeper dive into the subject than those covered by Sander van Vugt's training course, which was exactly what I needed. For example, I needed extra time to practice working with rootless containers and configuring SELinux.

Registration for the Exam

The remote exam format allows you to book for the nearest dates as soon as you feel ready. There were many available time slots for registration, so I registered for the exam just three days before taking it.

Some may prefer to set a deadline in advance and register, for example, a month before the exam. But it's up to you to see if you need additional motivation for preparation or not. For me, it was much more comfortable to be fully prepared and register for the nearest available date.

Unfortunately, I am not familiar with the situation regarding registration at a certification center, as there was none in my city, and I only considered the remote format. Perhaps, in that case, it is necessary to register in advance.

Additional Small Tips

• Before the exam, watch the official video about the GUI in which you will take the exam. This will save you time from having to learn the interface during the exam.
• If any of the questions on the exam are unclear at first or you cannot solve them, try not to spend too much time on it if there are more understandable tasks left unsolved. It's better to move on to the next question and leave this one for the end. Despite the duration being 3 hours, time flies quickly.
• After completing tasks that need to be persistent after rebooting the system, do not be lazy and check this. It's better to spend a few minutes checking than to lose points for the task.

Conclusion

Well, that's probably all the useful information I can recall. I hope it will be useful for colleagues planning to take the RHCSA exam.

As for me, I am very satisfied with how the exam was organised and the practical skills I acquired along the way.

I'll be happy to answer any questions that arise.

Good luck with your preparation and passing the exam!