CompTIA Server + (SK0-005)

Examine server operating system requirements for Windows and Ubuntu, compare minimum and recommended hardware needs, and verify compatibility with certified hardware lists for reliable deployment.

Explore partitioning strategies and file system choices for server deployment. Compare MBR and GPT, primary and extended partitions, and NTFS, ext4, ZFS, VMFS, and ReFS.

Learn to install a server OS via bare metal, virtualized, or remote deployments, compare GUI and core installs, and manage drivers, partitions, and PXE boot.

Configure post-install network settings after installing the operating system. Configure IP addressing, MAC addresses, DNS, IPv6, and firewall rules using GUI or command line on Windows Server 2019.

Learn how server roles and directory services enable client-server networks, then see a hands-on demo installing Active Directory Domain Services and promoting a domain controller.

Master server storage management by partitioning storage pools, enabling storage spaces, data de-duplication, and provisioning strategies, then configure permissions, quotas, and connectivity for secure, efficient storage.

Migrate data across servers to a centralized location using secure transfer tools like scp and robocopy, while noting that ftp transfers are insecure.

Monitor server performance with Windows tools like Task Manager and Performance Monitor. Set baselines and alerts, track CPU, memory, disk and network, and extend monitoring to Linux and cloud environments.

Explore high availability concepts and techniques to maximize uptime, including five nines targets, redundancy, server clustering, NIC teaming, heartbeat monitoring, load balancing, and hardware versus software acceleration.

Learn virtualization fundamentals, including hypervisors, host and guest virtual machines, resource allocation, and lab setup to test production environments and examine different technologies.

Explore cloud technologies, including public, private, virtual private, community, and hybrid clouds; learn on-demand self-service, broad network access, resource pooling, rapid elasticity, and measured service, plus IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS.

Explore server scripting basics with bash, batch, and PowerShell to automate tasks, using loops, conditions, comments, and startup scripts to simplify administration.

Identify and track assets through procurement, utilization, end of life, and disposal within a lifecycle management framework, using inventory tagging, warranties, SLAs, and data erasure.

Explore documentation management for enterprise networks, including architectural and infrastructure diagrams, physical and logical network diagrams, cloud based diagrams, and change management to keep configurations and baselines up to date.

Explore policy and procedures for server management, focusing on documentation, risk assessment, BIA, and BCDR, and analyze MTBF, MTTR, MTTR variants, RPO, RTO, SLA, and security controls.

Master licensing concepts in server management, including per instance, per core, per socket models, concurrent user CALs, volume licensing, node-locked licenses, and software assurance for compatibility and audits.

Learn data security for servers, including data classification, lifecycle management, backups, encryption at rest and in transit, and secure boot with TPM and UEFI.

Deploy defense-in-depth for physical security, from outside lighting and cameras to secure vestibules and data center access controls, guided by policies, biometrics, and power and climate safeguards.

Explore how identity and access management centralizes user authentication and resource access via directory services like Active Directory, enabling single sign-on, centralized policies, and auditing.

Explore access control models, including mandatory access control, discretionary access control, non-discretionary access control, role-based access control, and rule-based access control, with Windows and Linux permissions and data classification concepts.

Explore data security risks in server environments and learn practical mitigations to protect availability, confidentiality, and integrity through redundancy, encryption, access controls, and breach and compliance awareness.

Harden servers by reducing attack surface, installing only needed features, applying updates, configuring firewalls, and disabling unused services and hardware.

Decommission servers safely and systematically by following corporate policies, change and asset management, and thorough backups, data eradication, and documentation throughout the server life cycle.

Explore media destruction for end-of-life servers, covering residual data risks and techniques like physical destruction, degaussing, and DBAN disk wiping, and when to outsource data destruction services with certificates.

Master server backup and restoration with validation, integrity checks, and tested recovery strategies. Explore media options from disk and cloud to tape, and understand bare metal and system state restoration.

Explore disaster recovery concepts across hot, warm, and cold sites, testing methods, and replication strategies to ensure site redundancy and rapid failover.

Explore server backup methods, including full, differential, and incremental backups, and learn how archive bits, system state data, open file backups, and snapshots impact recovery.

Explore how to troubleshoot server hardware components—cpu, ram, storage, and networking—using firmware checks, power and cooling diagnostics, and tools like hw monitor and memtest86.

Explore blue, purple, and black screens of death. Use dump files and logs to diagnose crashes and lockups across Windows and Linux.

Explore storage issues in server environments and the tools to troubleshoot them, including errors, failures, performance, and availability. Master utilities like disk management, diskpart, chkdsk, and sfc.

Explore operating system issues and tools for servers, including domain trust and login problems, Kerberos clock skew, permissions, malware, end-of-life concerns, and package and service management.

Identify and troubleshoot server network issues using common command-line tools, diagnose misconfigurations in IP settings, DNS, DHCP, VLAN, and verify cables and adapters for connectivity.

Identify common security issues in server environments, including file integrity and hashing, privileged access management, ACLs and NTFS permissions, firewall misconfigurations, and enforcing secure protocols.