Popular Types Of CompTIA Certification

The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA), is a trade association that was founded in 1982. Originally known as the Association of Better Computer Dealers, CompTIA is non-profit. During the 1990s, they experienced a period of growth. This decade saw the needs of the computer industry grow dramatically. Therefore, CompTIA increased the scope of their activities to help meet these needs. This article will discuss how the various types of CompTIA certification vary from one another.

CompTIA also provides the information technology (IT) industry with professional certifications. They use Pearson VUE testing centers to administer their certification exams. Along with certification, CompTIA offers corporate membership. In 2007, the American National Standards Institute accredited CompTIA's "Security+", "Network+" and "A+" certifications.

In 2010, there was a major rule change concerning certifications offered by CompTIA. All certifications that are awarded after December 31, 2010 will only be valid for three years. However, any certifications that were already awarded before this date will be valid forever.

Here are several of the most popular certifications that are offered by CompTIA:

1. A+

When a person receives the A+ certification, it shows that they are competent as a computer technician. A+ is a vendor neutral certification that covers various operating systems and technologies such as Novell, Apple, Microsoft and a few of the Linux distributions. The exam is meant for IT professionals who have hands on experience of at least 500 hours. It is made up of multiple choice questions and is computer based. More than 800,000 people in the world are A+ certified.

2. Network+

The skill of a network technician is measured by using this exam. Some of the main topics that are covered on this exam include troubleshooting, installation and understanding network hardware. This certification first came into existence in 1999. A person with this certification is also expected to know about wide area networks (WANs), various protocols used in local area networks (LANs), the OSI Reference model, software, connections and network hardware. Before a person takes this exam, they should have nine months of networking experience and A+ certification.

3. Security+

This certification deals with various topics that focus on the subject of computer security. Access control and cryptography are two of the primary topics in this area. Risk management and disaster recovery are two business-related topics that are also dealt with in this certification. Security+ was created in 2002 in response to the dramatic increase in computer-related security issues. This certification has been earned by over 45,000 people worldwide. Some of the exam topics include host and data security, vulnerabilities, threats, operational security, compliance and network security.

4. CASP

The CompTIA Advanced Security Practitioner (CASP) was created om 2011. This is a vendor-neutral credential. This exam will certify that a person has the required skills and knowledge to engineer, design and conceptualize secure solutions in enterprise environments that are complex. People who sit for this exam should be Security+ certified. They should also have at least a decade of experience in IT administration.

5. Server+

This certification started to be offered in 2001. It focuses on operating systems and server-specific hardware. It certifies that a person has technical skills in disaster recovery, SCSI and RAID. In addition to these, the person's knowledge of server issues and several CPUs will also be tested.

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