There’s one more incredibly useful nugget inside this prep guide. It reads: “This exam is the Windows Vista version of Exam 74-134: Pre-Installing Microsoft Products and Technologies, [and is] focused on the OEM Pre-Installation Kit (OPK).” Why so? Because you’ll find some great links to study materials for the other exam on its prep page (linked at the head of this paragraph) that don’t appear on the 70-624 exam page.

The prep tools and resources that appear on the 70-624 page include the following:

• Classroom training: Course 5105: Deploying Windows Vista Business Desktops and Course 5058: Deploying Microsoft Office 2007 Professional.
• e-learning offerings: Collection 5058: Deploying 2007 Microsoft Office System Client Products.

The lack of books and complete e-learning coverage explains nicely why the 74-134 page is referenced, and also why it’s a good idea to dig up its study material citations to help you get ready for this exam as well.

Skills measured on the 70-624 exam break down as follows:

• Deploying 2007 MS Office System:
  Configure MS Office settings & components, install 2007 MS Office system, and migrate from earlier MS Office versions.
• Configuring Windows Vista Automated Installation Settings:
  Configure Vista automated install settings, manage Windows Vista catalogs, add device drivers to Vista installs, manage Windows components, and configure and manipulate Windows Imaging Format (WIM) images.
• Deploying Windows Vista:
  Deploy Vista using Lite Touch Installation (LTI) and Zero Touch Installation (ZTI), customize Windows Preinstallation Environment (PE), and troubleshoot deployment issues.
• Using Business Desktop Deployment (BDD) Workbench:
  Install BDD, configure distribution point in BDD 2007 Workbench, create a reference computer image, manage XML files in BDD Workbench, automate 2007 MS Office system installation, and customize and maintain Windows PE in BDD Workbench.
• Application Compatibility Toolkit (ACT):
  Install and configure ACT 5, deploy ACT 5 agents, report application compatibility, and fix compatibility issues.
• Managing User State Migration:
  Upgrade user state from XP to Vista, automate user state migration, manage Vista deployments using SMS 2003, determine Operating System Deployment (OSD) prerequisites, install and configure SMS 2003 OSD Feature Pack, and troubleshoot and plan for user state migrations.

There’s a lot more to this exam than the title conveys, especially where automation, deployment, and user state migration are concerned. This one’s going to take some work and experience to get through, so be prepared to invest substantial time and effort in preparing, unless you work with these tools and technologies on a daily basis. My guess is that those conditions hold only in enterprises or outside services companies big or specialized enough to have their own Vista deployment teams. How many of those can there be? The total count for MCTS: Business Desktop Deployment certified professionals as of 10/27/08 is 4,868, so the answer could be: “More than you think!”

The 70-620 counts toward a surprising number of credentials:

• Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCITP): Consumer Support Technician
• Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCITP): Enterprise Support Technician
• Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator (MCSA) on Windows Server 2003 and Microsoft Windows 2000
• Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) on Windows Server 2003 and Microsoft Windows 2000 Server
• Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCITP): Enterprise Administrator

This exams aims to certify that individuals have at least one year of experience working in IT, often providing telephone support at the tier-1 or tier-2 levels across various types of environment that range from retail stores, to medium sized companies, to enterprise environments. General areas of knowledge required to pursue this exam include networking, desktop operating systems, security, and end-user applications, plus basic administrative tasks including solving logon problems, resetting passwords, and supporting desktop applications.

The exam’s coverage is broken into seven areas:

• Installing and Upgrading Windows Vista
  Covers the basics of hardware requirements and compatibility checks (e.g. Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor), performing a clean installation, upgrading to Vista from an earlier Windows version or from one version of Vista to another, troubleshooting installation issues, and installing and configuring Windows Vista drivers.
• Configuring and troubleshooting post-install system settings
  Includes troubleshooting post-install configuration difficulties, configuring and troubleshooting Aero, parental controls, and Internet Explorer (version 7 is the primary current focus).
• Configuring Windows Security features
  Working with User Account Control (UAC), Windows Defender, Dynamic Security for IE 7, and security settings in Windows Firewall and Windows Firewall with Advanced Security.
• Configuring network connectivity
  Configuring networking through the Network and sharing centers, troubleshooting connectivity issues, and configuring remote access (Remote Desktop Connection).
• Configuring applications included with Windows Vista
  These include media applications (Media Center, Media Player), Mail, Meeting Space, Calendar, Fax and Scan, plus the Windows Sidebar.
• Maintaining and optimizing systems that run Windows Vista
  This means troubleshooting performance issues, using built-in tools to troubleshoot reliability issues (System Health Check, Reliability Monitor, Problem Reports and Solutions, and so on), plus configuring Windows Update and data protection.
• Configuring and troubleshooting mobile computing
  This entails managing mobile display settings, and configuring mobile devices, Tablet PC software, and power options.

In the new exam page format, Microsoft not only lists relevant Classroom training courses, it also lists e-learning items as well as Microsoft Press books that focus on the exam. All in all this exam should help IT professionals establish a solid working knowledge of basic Vista operation, installation, configuration, and troubleshooting. As we’ll see in the next exams, things quickly get more complex and interesting from here.