What’s New in the AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate Certification Exam?

Amazon offers a wide range of cloud computing services to help organizations of all sizes and industries meet their business needs. To ensure that AWS professionals have the skills and knowledge necessary to effectively manage and operate AWS services, AWS offers a variety of certification exams. One such exam is AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate, which recently underwent updates to reflect the latest changes in AWS services.

Overview of the AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate Exam

The AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate certification exam, also known under the code SOA-C02, is designed for professionals who are responsible for managing and operating AWS services. The exam measures the candidate’s ability to:

• Deploy, manage, and operate scalable, highly available, and fault-tolerant systems on AWS.
• Implement and control the flow of data to and from AWS.
• Select the relevant AWS services according to data, compute, or security requirements.
• Define proper use of AWS operational best practices.
• Estimate AWS usage costs and define operational cost control mechanisms.

What Do the Exam Objectives Include?

The exam objectives for the SOA-C02 test cover a wide range of topics, from AWS monitoring and logging to deployment and management of applications. The exam is designed to assess the candidate’s ability to effectively operate and manage AWS resources, automate processes, and optimize performance. Here is a breakdown of the exam objectives:

1. Monitoring and Metrics: The candidates should demonstrate their ability to monitor AWS resources using various AWS services, such as CloudWatch, CloudTrail, and AWS Config. They should also be able to troubleshoot and resolve issues related to AWS resource performance.
2. High Availability: The test-takers should be able to deploy and manage highly available and fault-tolerant systems using AWS services like Elastic Load Balancing, Auto Scaling, and Route 53.
3. Deployment and Provisioning: The examinees should demonstrate their ability to deploy and manage AWS resources using AWS CloudFormation, AWS Elastic Beanstalk, and AWS OpsWorks.
4. Storage and Data Management: The candidates should be able to manage data on AWS using AWS storage services such as Amazon S3, Amazon EBS, and Amazon Glacier. They should also be able to back up and restore data using AWS Backup and AWS Storage Gateway.
5. Security and Compliance: The applicants should demonstrate their ability to secure AWS resources and comply with industry-standard security protocols using AWS services such as AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM), AWS Certificate Manager, and AWS KMS.
6. Networking and ConnectivityThe test-takers should be able to configure and troubleshoot AWS networking services such as Amazon VPC, AWS Direct Connect, and Amazon Route 53.
7. Automation and Optimization: The examinees should be able to automate AWS resource management tasks using AWS services like AWS Lambda, AWS Step Functions, and AWS CloudFormation. They should also be able to optimize resource utilization and costs using AWS services like Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling and AWS Cost Explorer.

What Changes to the SOA-C02 Exam Have Been Recently Made?

Previously the SOA-C02 exam included a practical lab section, which allowed the candidates to demonstrate their ability to perform real-world tasks in a simulated AWS environment. Starting from March 28, 2023, the certification exam will be temporarily modified to exclude exam labs until further notice. This decision was made to assess and enhance the exam labs for a better candidate experience. Consequently, the exam will comprise 65 multiple-choice and multiple-response questions, with a time limit of 130 minutes. All exam preparation resources provided on the exam page remain valid for this updated exam format. The exam fee is $150, and the candidates can take the test at a physical testing center or online through a remote proctoring system.

Preparing for the SOA-C02 Exam

To prepare for the SOA-C02 exam, the candidates should have a solid understanding of AWS services and architecture. Amazon provides a variety of resources to help learners prepare for the exam, including training courses, study guides, practice exams, and hands-on labs.

The candidates can also gain practical experience by working on real-world projects and using AWS services to solve business problems. The vendor offers a range of certifications, including the AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate and the AWS Certified Developer – Associate, which can provide a foundation for the SysOps Administrator certification.

Conclusion

The AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate is a valuable certification for professionals who want to demonstrate their expertise in managing and operating AWS systems. The associated SOA-C02 exam covers a range of topics related to deployment, management, and operations on the AWS platform, and it validates a candidate’s technical skills and knowledge. While preparing for the test can be challenging, Amazon provides a wealth of resources to help candidates succeed. By combining practical experience with training and study, they can prepare for and pass the certification exam and take their cloud computing careers to the next level.