Obsidian adds technician training to its Red Hat lineup

Leading South African Linux trainer Obsidian Systems has added the recently released Red Hat Certified Technician (RHCT) qualification to its training lineup.

The certification, a subset of the already very popular Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE) qualification which is also on offer from Obsidian Systems, is primarily aimed at production technicians and gives qualifiers a solid grounding in the building, configuration and troubleshooting of Red Hat-based machines.

"The RHCT qualification is exactly the same as the first two modules of the full RHCE qualification," says Warren Bell, lead trainer at Obsidian Systems. "The course includes all the essential configuration and troubleshooting skills required of users in this area of work and because it is heavily biased towards hands-on skills, it gives learners an excellent practical grounding."

Bell says the course has been introduced by Red Hat to meet the growing demand for solid Linux skills without the additional requirements of the full RHCE course. "Not everyone requires the elements of the third RHCE module in their specific area of work."

Because the course is based on extensive hands-on training, says Bell, companies and organisations that send their staff on the course can be confident they are equipping them with the best possible skills in the market.

Bell cautions, however, that the perception that the RCHT is an inferior qualification to the RHCE is wrong. "The RHCT is by no means a lesser qualification. It caters for a specific market and is an exact copy of the first two RHCE course modules."

Topics covered in the course include, among others, an introduction to open source software and its development model; installation and troubleshooting; scripting and use of the command line; networking and device management; as well as an understanding of the most common Linux-based applications as well as desktop configuration. Most importantly, though, qualifiers will emerge with a comprehensive understanding of managing systems, hardware and users. Also included are sections on configuring software RAID systems, backup to local and remote systems as well as kernel management and configuration.

Although designed to provide technicians with installation and troubleshooting skills, in reality the qualifier will emerge with many additional skills that will allow them to undertake areas of work including network configuration and desktop support.

Bell says that while the RHCT gives users a solid grounding in Linux-based systems it is not simply an introductory course but provides an excellent base for users to move onto other areas of specialisation. Once certified as an RHCT, qualifiers may later move on to take the remaining modules to qualify as an RHCE.

RHCE is currently one of the most sought-after technical certifications available and the RHCT qualification offers newcomers to the industry a logical first step towards achieving that goal. The RHCT is also a valuable yardstick for users moving from other Unix-based systems to Linux.

Bell says the RHCT training course is immediately available and the company is already signing up its first users.