If you are an IT professional who uses or manages SolarWinds network and systems management products, you must earn the SolarWinds Certified Professional (SCP) certification.
The SCP certification program validates your technical expertise and skills in using and maintaining SolarWinds products.
In this blog post, we will give you an overview of the SCP program, its benefits, requirements, and exam details.
What is the SolarWinds Certified Professional Program?
The SolarWinds Certified Professional Program or SCP program is a certification program that validates the technical expertise and skills of IT professionals who use or manage major SolarWinds products and concepts.
The SolarWinds Certified Professional program aims to verify the ability of the candidates to effectively utilize and administer SolarWinds products in their IT environment. The program also enhances the marketability and competitiveness of the IT professionals who attain the certification.
The SCP program currently offers several certifications. Have a quick look at the following options:
Architecture and Design
This certification covers the architecture, scalability, deployment options, integration, and licensing of SolarWinds Orion platform products. This certification consists of 75 multiple-choice questions, which you must complete in 90 minutes.
Access Rights Manager (ARM)
This certification covers the configuration, troubleshooting, installation, architecture, and administration of SolarWinds Access Rights Manager. The ARM certification exam has 75 multiple-choice questions, and candidates will be given 90 minutes to complete this test.
Database Performance Analyzer (DPA)
This certification covers the installation, administration, architecture, troubleshooting, alerts, reports, scalability, REST API, and SolarWinds Database Performance Analyzer integration. The DPA certification exam covers the following topics: recognize the hardware, software, and port requirements for DPA, compare license types and user options for implementing and managing licenses; recognize the different types of database instances to register and monitor; explain the setup and functions of DPA architecture; configure user accounts and assign roles and privileges; explain how to configure Active Directory® or LDAP in DPA; explain how to manage SQL statements in DPA; implement DPA tools to resolve common database performance issues; perform DPA alert tasks; perform DPA report tasks; DPA scalability; use the REST API to securely connect the DPA server and issue commands; and SolarWinds Platform integrations.
Diagnostics and Troubleshooting
This certification covers the diagnostics and troubleshooting of SolarWinds Orion platform products, including NPM and SAM. It covers troubleshooting website/IIS, Orion services, database, high availability, installations, migrations, upgrades, configuration wizards, alerts and actions, and reporting.
The Diagnostics and Troubleshooting certification exam covers the topics such as analyzing the performance of the Orion® Platform system and components, troubleshooting tools and features of the Orion Platform system, conditions in a “system down” event, primary Orion Platform components, troubleshooting issues, and issues with primary Orion Platform features.
Hybrid Cloud Observability Network Monitoring
This certification includes network and performance monitoring, hardware health, capacity planning, network Insight™, flow optimization, bandwidth utilization, syslogs, traps, and event log analysis. The certification covers the topics such as network monitoring, flow monitoring, and log analysis and monitoring.
NetFlow Traffic Analyzer (NTA)
This certification includes features, installation, administration, upgrade, and troubleshooting. The NTA certification exam has 75 multiple-choice questions, and candidates will be given 90 minutes to complete this test.
Network Configuration Manager (NCM)
The NCM certification includes installation, configuration management, features, and settings. The NCM certification exam has 75 multiple-choice questions, and candidates will be given 90 minutes to complete this test.
Network Performance Monitor (NPM)
The NPM certification covers the Orion© platform, cloud services, interfaces, NetPath, Orion maps, capacity planning, custom SNMP polling, hardware health monitoring, network insight, SNMP trapping, and Syslog management.
The NPM certification exam covers the following topics: Orion; cloud services; interfaces; net path; Orion maps; capacity planning; custom SNMP polling; hardware health monitoring; network insight; and SNMP trapping and Syslog management.
Server & Application Monitor (SAM)
This certification covers alerts, AppStack, AppInsight, managing application component monitors, templates, and troubleshooting application issues. The SAM certification exam has 75 multiple-choice questions, which you must complete in 90 minutes.
Security Event Manager (SEM)
This certification covers the installation, configuration, administration, monitoring, alerting, reporting, and troubleshooting of SolarWinds Security Event Manager. The SEM certification exam has 75 multiple-choice questions, which you must complete in 90 minutes.
Service Desk
The Service Desk certification includes configuration and management of SolarWinds Service Desk, incident, problem, release, change management modules, IT asset management (ITAM), Service Desk setup, and reports.
This certification covers the following topics: understand IT service management (ITSM), the relevance of SolarWinds Service Desk, and what it means for an organization; get to know SolarWinds Service Desk as an Administrator and recognize the functions provided for an Administrator; SolarWinds Service Desk customization by Administrators; SolarWinds Service Desk features; SolarWinds Service Desk usability for analysts, agents, and technicians; and SolarWinds Service Desk usability for service users.
Exam outline: SolarWinds Certified Professional Program
The SolarWinds Certified Professional (SCP) program is a certification program that assesses the technical expertise and skills of IT professionals who use and maintain SolarWinds network and systems management products.
The SolarWinds Certified Professional program offers certifications for major SolarWinds products and concepts, such as Architecture and Design, Access Rights Manager, Database Performance Analyzer, Diagnostics and Troubleshooting, Network Performance Monitor, Server & Application Monitor, Security Event Manager, and Web Performance Monitor.
The SCP exams are computer-based and administered online through Pearson VUE. The exams consist of multiple-choice and multiple-select questions that evaluate the knowledge and skills of the candidates on the specific product or concept. The exams have a duration of 90 minutes and a passing score of 75%.
The SCP exams have different exam outlines depending on the certification that the candidates want to take. However, some general exam topics that are common to all certifications are:
- Analyze the performance of the Orion Platform system and components
- Troubleshoot tools and features of the Orion Platform system
- Identify conditions in a “system down” event
- Identify primary Orion Platform components and troubleshoot issues
- Configure Orion Platform features
- Monitor network devices using Orion Platform products
- Monitor applications using Orion Platform products
- Monitor security events using Orion Platform products
- Monitor web performance using Orion Platform products
Exam details: SolarWinds Certified Professional Program
Format: The SCP exams are computer-based and delivered online through Pearson VUE. The SCP exams consist of multiple-choice and multiple-select questions that test your knowledge and skills on the specific product or concept.
Duration: The SCP certification exams have a time limit of 90 minutes. You need to complete all the questions within the time limit.
Passing score: The SCP exams have a passing score of 75%. To pass the exam, you must answer at least 75% of the questions correctly.
Prerequisites: SolarWinds Certified Professional Program
The SCP program has some requirements before you can take the exams and become an SCP. These requirements are:
What is the required experience
You need at least one year of experience in using or managing SolarWinds products that are relevant to the certification you want to take. You must also have a basic understanding of network and systems management concepts and technologies.
What is the registration process
You need to register for the SCP program on the SolarWinds website. You must provide personal and professional information, such as your name, email address, company name, job title, country, and phone number. You also need to agree to the terms and conditions of the SCP program.
What is the scheduling process
You must schedule your exam date and time on the Pearson VUE website. You must create an account on Pearson VUE and select SolarWinds as your testing program. You can choose from a variety of dates and times that are available in your region. You can also reschedule or cancel your exam up to 24 hours before your scheduled exam time without penalty.
Benefits: SolarWinds Certified Professional Program
SolarWinds products are the go-to solution for all things IT for over 300,000 customers worldwide. By passing the SCP exam and earning the certificate, you can use SolarWinds tools to quickly and proactively measure and address issues in your IT environments.
Many people who have completed the certification process have said that preparing for the exam helped them learn more about the SolarWinds products they already use. This formal certificate, along with the increased know-how, can help you prove your worth to your current organization and improve your marketability and competitiveness as an IT professional.
After you become certified, you will also enjoy these additional benefits:
The support team will recognize that you have completed basic troubleshooting steps and reports, saving time by skipping the initial information-gathering steps and allowing you to get to the root of your issue faster—or provide quicker escalation if needed.
Who should take the SolarWinds Certified Professional (SCP) exam?
The SolarWinds Certified Professional (SCP) exam is designed for IT professionals who use SolarWinds products and want to prove their skills in managing networks, systems, applications, or security and compliance issues.
The SCP certification exam is suitable for those involved in the daily operational tasks of supporting and managing their environments.
To take the SolarWinds Certified Professional (SCP) exam, you should have at least the following:
- One year of experience in a technical role, working in network, systems, applications, or security and compliance management or engineering.
- Six months of hands-on experience with SolarWinds products.
- Knowledge of the technology and processes related to SolarWinds product features, such as PerfStack™, NetPath™, and AppStack™.
What is the validity of the SCP certification program?
The SolarWinds Certified Professional (SCP) certification is valid for three years from the date you receive it. This helps ensure you keep your skills and knowledge updated with SolarWinds's latest product features and software tools.
The final say
As mentioned above, the SolarWinds Certified Professional Program is a world-famous certification program certifying your technical expertise and skills in using and maintaining SolarWinds products.
The SCP certification program offers certifications for major SolarWinds products and concepts, such as Architecture and Design, Access Rights Manager, Database Performance Analyzer, Diagnostics and Troubleshooting, Network Performance Monitor, Server & Application Monitor, Security Event Manager, and Web Performance Monitor.
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