So let's take a closer look at how Microsoft envisions this Windows Server
Hybrid Administrator. I don't want to read every word here, but the bottom
line is you have experience in working with Windows Server, not only in an
on‑premises environment but also in a hybrid and native cloud
infrastructure in Microsoft Azure. It truly is a hybrid administrator
situation. You are a Windows Server systems administrator, but your
understanding of Windows Server is contingent upon deploying and
maintaining and troubleshooting these environments in Azure, as well as
on‑premises.
Now the candidate, as you can see in the third paragraph here,
I got this text from the AZ‑801 exam page out at Microsoft
Docs, by the way, that the candidate should have extensive
experience working with Windows Server.
So this is a callout that the Windows Server Hybrid Administrator role is
not a fundamental certification; it's not for beginners.
And so when I'm teaching our Pluralsight path on AZ‑801, I'm making
assumptions that you're already familiar with Windows Server. Now I do my
best as an instructor to be as well rounded as possible, and I like to
fill in gaps whenever I see them appear, but just understand that, and
that's all related to what I said earlier about those four Microsoft
certification tiers.
Now let's look at the Windows Server Hybrid Administrator Associate
requirements. Notice that this associate‑level cert is a bit different
from the vast majority of the other associate‑level certs that have
only one exam as a requirement.
This one has two, and this is because the content just
spilled over and was too big for one exam.
I mentioned in my exam AZ‑800 intro course that Orin Thomas, the Microsoft
cloud evangelist, Microsoft press author, and Pluralsight author designed this.
He was the chief architect of this certification, and that's what he told me.
There was just too much to fit in one exam.
So we have AZ‑800, Administering Windows Server Hybrid Core Infrastructure,
and then what we're doing here is AZ‑801. And in a demo,
I'm going to show you the blueprint for both of those exams so we can visually
eyeball the similarities and differences in the content.
But the bottom line is although you get a badge for each exam you pass,
you need to clear them both in order to earn your Hybrid
Administrator Associate certification.
It doesn't matter to Microsoft at all whether you pass 801
first or 800. That's just going to be on your interest,
aptitude, and availability.
And speaking of those three keywords,
a rubric I have after being a tech instructor,
an IT professional for a couple dozen years now is that finding
your best Microsoft certification, or really your career path,
boils down to three elements of your character. One would be your
interest in the subject matter.
Maybe you have deep interest in Windows Server, but minimal interest in Azure.
I would ask you to reconsider that in the name of future‑proofing your
career. Bottom line is I've seen people go into IT for reasons other
than interest, and they don't tend to do very well, thinking, well, I
want to earn a lot of money.
I think there are other career fields where you can earn a lot of money
without having to always be a student like you have to be an IT,
particularly with Azure. Aptitude is, can you do the work? Interest is I
enjoy doing the work. Aptitude is, is this for you?
And there's no shame if you determine that you don't have the
aptitude to be a Windows Server Hybrid Administrator.
No problem at all.
Maybe you belong somewhere else in IT, maybe development,
database administration, whatever, or maybe your best outside of IT.
It's best to find that out earlier rather than later.
And lastly, there's availability. So we have a coalescence of interest,
aptitude, and then the time that you're available to hone your craft.
These things come together, and I hope that you've run this self‑inventory
and decided that the Windows Server Hybrid Administrator is indeed your
best Microsoft certification. Let's proceed.