Dear kc73837,
You don't mention whether you are already working in IT or not. Regardless, please know that technical certification is intended to be a marker of expertise and knowledge. As such, certification is designed to be achieved by those who have practical, hands-on experience that goes beyond the classroom. So, to answer your question, attaining certification should not be your goal just yet. It should come after you have experienced the product.
As my colleagues have suggested, there are training courses and a wealth of related technical information about VMware vSphere available. As far as where you start - that depends on your learning style. It is not uncommon for techs, engineers and admins to prefer to start by first "playing" with a system. If that is your learning style, then do try to build yourself a mini-lab environment. Again, as someone has already pointed out, VMware offers evaluation for almost all of its products. If you do not have an environment, you can use an online lab for this.
If you are truly brand new to the arena of virtualization, however, I would suggest accessing an already built environment and experiencing it as an "end-user", which would involve just creating virtual machines, learning how interacting with the vSphere managment interfaces differs from interacting with the virtual computer itself, etc. As both a tech and a VMware instructor, I can confirm that it is always best to have at least some general idea and exposure to a technology before taking a technical course. You should always have some specific ideas of what you want to get from a technical course BEFORE you sign up for the class. Unlike end-user (non-technical) training, technical training cannot teach a person "everything" they need to know to administer a system. We aim to get the main highlights covered in a technical training class. However, every environment differs in the details of how a product is implemented and used. So during class you need to apply your experience/exposure to frame the information into a context that works for your company.
VCP certification mandates two requirements: Pass exam and attend a qualifying course. A popular urban myth is that the exam cannot be taken until one has attended a qualifying course. NOT TRUE!! You can take and pass the exam with a perfect score. Just know that VMware will not award VCP status until the class sit has been completed, too.. As you can imagine, VMware and most people (self included) RECOMMEND taking a course before taking the exam. The exam is focused on practical application and not just rote memorization. So, again, when you are attending the technical course, you need to always understand not just what you are doing, but also WHY you are doing it. If you get both those parts, then you should be able to apply that knowledge to pretty much any environment you work in.
To be clear - I am *not* saying not to get certified. Gosh, I would lose my job as a VCI if no one got certified any more!! :smileylaugh: Keep becoming certified as your GOAL. Your starting point, however, should be to learn something about the technology and get some practical experience using. it. Formal classroom training can be an excellent way to learn about technology. However, to get the most value from technical training, you should first have a basic idea of what the technology is about.
Hope this, along with the other posts, has answered your question.
Good Luck,
Claudia
"It's not the load that breaks you down. It's the way you carry it." - Lena Horne
