REASON # 7 – BUSINESS SAVES MONEY WITH CLOUDS

When you go to work in Cloud, you do not need to buy new powerful computers, servers, network equipment. Your employees need only simple computers and the Internet. When using Cloud services, you only pay for the resources you use. If you decide that your tasks need a minimum power, it can be reduced. In simple words, when you work in Cloud, your business stops spending money on the purchase of equipment. All equipment is provided and maintained by the Cloud provider. In addition, the Cloud server is easier to administer, maintain, and configure systems, so there is no need to connect additional resources and finances.

REASON # 8 – THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE PICTURES OF THE SYSTEM AND BACKUPS

There are unpleasant situations with data loss in every business. For example, losing a customer base is very disappointing, and losing an accounting base and important electronic documents is very dangerous. All this threatens financial losses and a collapse of reputation, sometimes bankruptcy. The causes of information loss are different: viruses that delete data themselves, hackers, malfunctions, failures, employee errors, information theft. Clouds provide an opportunity to protect against these events – to take pictures of the system and backups. These are backup copies of the system and data that allow you to recover information in case of loss. That is, if suddenly you lose some of the information or all the information, you can restore it, because you will have a snapshot of the system and/or a backup.

REASON # 9 – CLOUDS MAKE BUSINESS MOBILE

If up to this point your business has been tied to the office and equipment that is installed there, with the transition to Cloud, the business becomes mobile. You can connect to Cloud from any computer, tablet, or phone. You sit down at any device, connect to Cloud and see your usual desktop. Even if you decide to fly to the moon, and there will be Internet, you can continue to solve business problems remotely. No one will notice your absence in the office. Clouds allow you to work on any device in any place where there is Internet. At the same time, your information remains under reliable protection.

REASON # 10 – CLOUDS CAN BE ADMINISTERED EASILY

The infrastructure of Cloud is built on a single platform. This allows the customers to easily manage it, standardizing and unifying their own IT infrastructures within Cloud. Administration of such a system takes much less time and effort than managing a chaotically formed classical infrastructure. In Cloud, the system administrator of the client company monitors security, manages resources, and introduces new solutions, rather than picking on hardware and running from one workplace to another, simultaneously solving problems of lack of resources, as before. And for those clients who do not want to administer anything at all independently, there is a separate server administration service.

REASON # 11 – RELIABILITY AND CONTINUITY OF WORK

In order for the local infrastructure to work well and without interruption, you need to buy expensive, reliable equipment and constantly maintain it. But even in this case, from time to time something goes wrong. This is a technique. When using Cloud, you do not need to allocate a budget for the purchase of equipment, repairs and maintenance. You pay only the monthly fee, solve the problems of your business, and gain time that you can use for development. Everything works reliably and continuously.

REASON # 12 – FLEXIBILITY AND SCALABILITY

When using Cloud, you can change the configuration at any time: add a server, separate computing resources to it, workstations, additional services. You pay a provider only for what you really need. From resources that you do not need, you can always refuse. In fact, you choose how much to pay. For example, you can transfer to Cloud not the entire company, but individual units, whose information should be kept safe away from prying eyes.

Summary

In fact, there are more reasons. Each business has its own. The main benefit is that Cloud is a flexible tool with which you can set up a convenient ecosystem for your business and constantly improve it, increasing the speed of solving problems and the productivity of each department or employee.

In this article, we laid out the basics on the shelves. We hope it worked out. We tried not to use special technical terms. And if something is missed, we will be happy to answer additional questions in the comments. So, we list 12 reasons why you should use Cloud services in your business.

REASON # 1 – WHEN YOUR DATA ARE ABROAD, BUSINESS IS IN SAFETY

When you store information on the Cloud server abroad, it is difficult to reach it without your permission. If you install a physical server in your office or place it in one of the data centers, you will be virtually defenseless in front of local ill-wishers. After receiving physical access to the server, the attacker gets access to your information. Loss of data disrupts business processes or stops the company at all. And while idle, the business is losing customers. When the company will be able to restore work again is unknown. To avoid this, keep information in Cloud abroad. To work in it, you can transfer all employees of the organization or a separate unit (for example, accounting).

REASON # 2 – ETERNAL TOPICALITY WITHOUT COSTS

All computers and programs become obsolete with time, because time does not stand still. New technologies are being born that push the old ones to the museum shelves. For everything to work properly, you need to constantly update the equipment. If the company has acquired its server, it needs to be constantly maintained and updated for normal operation. When fails – to look for parts and repair.

When using Clouds, this question disappears. You do not think about how and when to upgrade your equipment, who to contact, and what to do if something is not working. A suitable provider always monitors the operation of servers and does not allow failures. You only pay for the use of capacity in Cloud – the ordered amount of resources and programs if you need them.

REASON # 3 – CLOUD IS A UNIVERSAL TOOL

When ordering the Cloud server, you can install your programs on it or rent a server with a set of programs already installed to solve specific problems. For example, you can order a mail server, a server for hosting sites on 1C-Bitrix, or a machine for hosting 1C: Accounting, an office software package for working with remote desktops, and so on. If necessary, in Cloud, you can build a self-sufficient IT infrastructure configured to work with your business – an individual tool to perform tasks with which you and your employees can work from any device.

REASON # 4 – BUSINESS CAN BE MOVED INTO CLOUD FOR A DAY

There is an opinion: to transfer information, programs, and other business resources to Cloud, you need to spend a few days or weeks. In most cases, this view is wrong. Of course, if you need to transfer several thousand or hundreds of thousands of employees, it will take more time. But a company of 10-20 people can move to Cloud in a day, or even a few hours. So everything depends on the size of the business and tasks. For your employees, nothing will change. Just now they will work through the remote desktop, and the business will be safe in Cloud.

REASON # 5 – MONITORING OPPORTUNITY

The Cloud infrastructure can be supplemented with monitoring and control tools to keep track of who performs what operations in your Cloud, what information they use in their work, and what they do with the data.

REASON # 6 – HIGH SPEED OF WORK

Technology is evolving. Clouds are becoming faster and more convenient. Now the speed of work in Cloud is no different from the usual work on the local computer. Only now your information is safe.

This is the first part of reasons to use the Cloud servers for your business. Check out our blog page to find the second part of this interesting article.

To be continued…

The major updates Redstone 5 and Redstone 4, which were released in 2018 for Windows 10, turned out to be as unsuccessful as possible. Microsoft has ceased to closely monitor the quality of software for electronic devices running Windows 10, and this happens solely because in May 2019, the public will be shown a new OS that will replace the old one.

It’s about Lite OS that is an absolutely new Microsoft OS, on which the organization has spent a lot of effort and time. According to forecasts, immediately after the presentation its test builds will be released, while the final stable version will be launched in the second half of 2019. The latest software will get a lot of various innovations, ranging from a higher speed of work to downloading an updated interface. This new development will replace Windows 10.

All these facts indicate that Windows 10 ceases to exist as it will soon be replaced, and from the moment Lite OS is announced, all attention will be paid only to the new OS, while everyone will quickly forget about Windows 10. It is bad or good – everyone should decide it for himself/herself, but it probably depends on what the new operating system will be, and it will be so good to replace the various versions of Windows that have been released to the market over the past decades.

Let’s remember the most common problems of Windows 10

• Activation errors

After a free upgrade from Windows 7 with SP1 or Windows 8.1, the users report a failed activation of the operating system. The list of errors that the individuals write about: “This product key does not work”, “There was a problem with the network”, “A security error occurred”, “The software licensing service reported that an error occurred while checking the license.”

• “Buggy” Chrome

The Chrome users in Windows 10 have encountered many problems, including slow work, especially when performing demanding tasks like watching a video. Probably, Google will fix bugs in one of the following updates. Some users have been helped by reinstalling Chrome.

• Folder problems

According to some users, there is an area in which Windows 8 is better than Windows 10: an email client. In the new OS, the program does not allow creating subfolders for organizing mail correspondence. For some individuals, this has become a real problem. Unfortunately, there is no way out of the situation: you should wait for the update from Microsoft.

• Unstable Wi-Fi performance

After upgrading to Windows 10, many have stopped working Wi-Fi. The simplest thing you can do is restart your computer. A more reliable solution: turn off the Wi-Fi sharing feature. By default, the network sharing feature is active in the operating system. Disabling the option in the Wi-Fi settings makes the wireless connection more stable.

• Driver problems

Some users managed to encounter this bug with NVIDIA video cards and several monitors. The video card driver contains an error that causes flicker when working with multiple monitors, as well as system failures when using multiple video cards. To fix this problem, you should roll back to the previous version of the driver.

As you can see, we are waiting for big changes, and to be always up to date with all the news, visit the ExamCollection website.

The 802.11ax standard, or “high-efficiency wireless”, will now be called Wi-Fi 6. This is a new standard provided by the Wi-Fi Alliance, and the previous generations are now known as Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n) and Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac). It is expected that a new type of marking will soon appear on the devices, as shown below.

Technically, Wi-Fi 6 will have a single-user data transfer rate, which is 37% faster than 802.11ac, but more importantly, the updated specifications will offer 4 times the bandwidth per user on a wireless network with a large number of devices. It is also more energy efficient, which should lead to an increase in battery autonomy. To achieve these improvements in the 802.11ax standard, many changes have been implemented, including some multi-user technologies adopted from the cellular industry, namely OFDMA and MU-MIMO, technologies that significantly increase throughput and performance due to a greater number of simultaneous connections and more advanced ways to work with data bandwidth.

As already mentioned, Wi-Fi 6 is expected to have a more direct effect in areas where networks are heavily overloaded, and ultimately help lay the foundation for the expected future of intelligent infrastructure (for example, the Internet of things). Along with solving problems with a huge number of devices and network deployment arising as IoT is deployed, Wi-Fi 6 will be adapted to meet the ever-growing demand for higher data rates for several users. Wi-Fi 6 is based on 802.11ac with about or even more 50 updated features, although not all of them will be included in the final specification. Here are some of the expected achievements of Wi-Fi 6:

• Higher bandwidth per user for virtual reality andultra-HD streaming
• Support more concurrent data streams with increased bandwidth
• Spread spectrum (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz, eventually 1 GHz and 6 GHz frequencies are expected)
• Splitting spectrum into several frequencies, this will provide wider channels for data transmission
• Improved performance (4 times) at maximum distance of the access point
• Better performance/reliability in outdoor and multipath (cluttered) conditions

Wi-Fi 6 also introduces support (OFDMA) for incoming and outgoing communication lines, a modulation scheme that equates to a multi-user version of OFDM. It will reduce latency, increase throughput and efficiency, allowing 30 users to simultaneously use the channel.

Conclusion

Designed to replace both 802.11n and 802.11ac as the next WLAN standard, 802.11ax or Wi-Fi 6 is being developed to provide significant improvements in network efficiency and throughput for dense locations with moderate improvements in peak data rates that will be better supported on multiple devices simultaneously.

With the growth of the number of devices, the question arises about the convenience of infrastructure management. If they are not related to each other, then the administrator may need to perform some configuration operations individually on each device, which requires more time and can potentially lead to errors. In addition, the requirements for staff qualifications are also increasing. At the same time, the use of “large” network management systems does not fit into the organization’s budget or limits the choice of equipment.

The company Zyxel, a well-known manufacturer of network equipment, presented the Nebula system (its version of solving the problem of centralized management and control) last year. This product is the Cloud service for working with network equipment of the company, which can be used for networks of different scales from one small office to a company with several branches or offices.

First of all, it is worth saying a few words about security issues. Still, when it comes to Cloud products, many users care about the confidentiality of their data. Of course, if the company’s policy does not allow the transfer of any information to the third parties, the Clouds may not be suitable. However, in the modern world, many services are implemented in this way, including e-mail, instant messengers, data exchange systems, and so on, which can significantly reduce their costs and at the same time provide the necessary reliability and performance. So in this case we can talk about administrative restrictions rather than technical ones. In addition, it is no secret that SMB enterprises are completely in a situation where the system administrator is not a full-time employee of the company or these functions are outsourced to a third-party company. Therefore, Cloud implementation can be considered just one of the characteristics of the solution in question and take into account the pros and cons of this approach. As for the question of the dependence of the system on availability of the Internet access in the office, here it can be argued that modern business without the Internet is practically inoperable and providing reliable access to the network does not depend on the network infrastructure management system.

Equipment

Among the equipment supported by the system today are security gateways, switches, and access points. Herewith, the device is hybrid and can be controlled either through Cloud or locally. We will not consider in detail the products used for publication in this article, but we will briefly describe their technical capabilities.

Zyxel NSG100 Cloud Gateway

In total, the lineup of gateways contains four models, differing mainly in overall performance and a set of ports. Of these, NSG100 is the second one in the line and is capable of providing up to 450 Mbps through a firewall and up to 150 Mbps via VPN. An external power supply unit (12 A 2.5 A), rack mount angles, rubber feet, console cable, brief instructions, warranty card are included in the delivery set of the gateway.

Zyxel GS1920-8HPv2 Hybrid Switch

There are usually rarely any special requirements for switches in the SOHO/SMB segment. But the GS1920v2 series is interesting in that it combines Smart capabilities and PoE/PoE+ support, which simplifies the use of network equipment such as access points and IP video cameras. The delivery package consists of brief instructions, a set of fasteners, rubber feet, and a power cable (the power supply unit is built-in).

Zyxel NAP102 Cloud Access Point

After gateways and switches, local access points are prevalent in local networks, without which it is not easy to imagine a modern office. Zyxel offers several product series to solve this problem. Zyxel NAP102 is the youngest in the line of products managed exclusively through Nebula Cloud. The package includes a power supply unit (12 V 1 A), a set of fasteners (frame, two variants of dowels and screws), instructions, a couple of leaflets.

Zyxel NWA1123-AC Pro Hybrid Access Point

In addition to access points with work only through Cloud, there are hybrid products with the NebulaFlex technology in the company’s catalog, in particular Zyxel NWA1123-AC Pro. The device comes complete with a mount, power injector with cable, network cable, and documentation. The case of matte white plastic has a diameter of 20 cm and a height of 3.5 cm. The model is equipped with a hardware antenna configuration switch, which allows to provide optimal modes in the case of mounting both on the ceiling and on the wall.

We hope that you received all necessary details about Zyxel Nebula and its equipment.

Open an account without leaving the couch

Recurrent is, first of all, a convenient system for managing bank accounts. Even if you do not have an account, you can open it with this application in minutes. It does not matter where the user is located: the platform unites tens of the largest banks around the world, and you can create an account in any of them.

You do not need to go anywhere to use services, for example, Swiss banks, which are famous for their reliability. It is enough to download and install the application, take a picture of the passport, take a picture of yourself – and the verification process is completed. The banks that have a contract with Recurrent will not require anything else.

Business without borders and barriers

Not only that with Recurrent you will not have to leave the country, you don’t even need to know foreign languages because in the application interface, all information is displayed in the user’s language. A few clicks and that’s all, you can transfer money to a newly-opened account. Moreover, if you want to send rubles from Russia, the built-in converter will easily convert them into euros or Swiss francs at an adequate exchange rate.

In the same way, a company opens abroad, quickly and without the need of personal presence. The application provides the most up-to-date information on the legal and financial aspects of running a business or storing funds in a particular country of the world. This will allow the user to take into account all the nuances in advance: consider tax privileges, calculate the exact return on bank deposits, etc.

Transfer money – fast and almost free

Recurrent has many useful features. But perhaps one of the main advantages of this application, focused on both individual and legal entities, is the ability to quickly transfer any sums of money between banks around the world. Thanks to the use of the blockchain technology, remittances have become instant. In this case, the commission, which does not depend on the volume of the transaction, will be only 50 cents. For comparison, “classic” international banking transactions take from a few days to a week. The minimum commission at the same time is a few percent of the amount sent.

Money can not only be sent to a bank account, but also transferred to any user of the system. This individual is free to choose to leave money in a personal Recurrent account or withdraw it to one of its accounts. And soon it will be even easier to withdraw cash. In the near future there will be debit and credit cards Recurrent. Then the money can be cashed out at any ATM.

Security questions

How safe is it to keep your savings in Recurrent? The basis of the application is a decentralized blockchain network, much more resistant to cracking than the accounts of the above-mentioned Swiss banks. The chain of many separate independent servers ensures that no one can access the account without having a password. Judge for yourself: for 10 years of Bitcoin existence, no transaction has been hacked. At the same time, about 10 thousand hacks of ordinary bank accounts occur every day. So, nothing threatens the means of users and their personal data.

Application development prospects

Recurrent is the first similar system available to a wide range of users. At first, the platform was conceived as a tool for remote management of companies and their accounts. But over time, the project has grown into something more. Now the development team is evolving the investment direction of the project. Soon, new features will appear in Recurrent that will allow the users to trade exchange assets (stocks, etc.). The promising cryptocurrency market will not be ignored either: in the application, you can buy Bitcoins and other financial assets based on the blockchain system.

On March 25, 2019, Apple held its first press conference this year at which the company demonstrated its new products. There were a lot of rumors around the presentation, the main of which were related to the release of the iPad mini and Air tablets along with the new version of AirPods. However, Apple declared its new gadgets a week before the event. And the company did it without any preparation, it just sent press releases to journalists. Consequently, when the presentation began, Tim Cook pointed out that the whole press conference was devoted to new company services.

But let’s take a quick look at the new Apple gadgets.

A week before the event, Apple announced new gadgets. Three days in a row, one after another, the company introduced the new iPad, iMac, and AirPods. First, the new iPad mini and the iPad Air were shown, which received the A12 processors and the support of the 1^st generation Apple Pencil stylus. The Mini comes in the same design as its predecessor four years ago, and Air got a 10.5-inch screen, like last year’s iPad Pro. The cost of Mini starts from $515, and Air – from $670.

iMac received only the updated hardware without any redesign. So, iMac 21.5 is now equipped with the 8^th generation Intel Core processor. Also, Apple will begin to release a version of this monoblock with a video card Radeon Pro Vega. iMac 27 is equipped with the 6^th and 8^th processors of the 9^th generation. The iMac 21.5 cost is about $1,680, iMac 27 – $2,380.

AirPods received only a new processor, thanks to which the headset time during a conversation increased by 50%. They also received the function of calling voice assistant Siri using voice. At the same time, a wireless charging case for AirPods appeared in the market, which was announced in 2017. The cost of new headphones with a standard case is $210, and with a new case – $265. You can also buy it separately for $100.

Apple & a Subscription to Games and Magazines

The Apple News application will include a News+ subscription, which allows the user to access the articles in more than 300 different magazines with a monthly fee of $10. Along with this, the articles will be available in online publications with a paid subscription (i.e. The Wall Street Journal). This is a peculiar restructuring of the old application – Newsstand, in which the individual could buy new issues and had to manually subscribe to magazines of interest. The subscription cost is $10 per month; the first month of use is free. Apple claims that the total cost of subscriptions for all media available in News+ is about $8,000. In addition, the company was announced the Apple News application in the UK, Australia, and Canada at the end of 2019.

The Apple Arcade subscription gives the user access to more than 100 exclusive games. The company didn’t disclose any details, even the cost of the subscription, it only demonstrated parts from various projects. Konami and Sega are among the game developers for this new service. But it will be possible to play on the iPad, iPhone, and Apple TV, and in the autumn of 2019, a subscription will be launched in more than 150 countries.

Apple & a Credit Card

The company has presented the credit card – Apple Card, which can be issued by any owner of the iPhone. There is no a service charge. At once, the users of Apple Card will receive a daily cashback of 3% of the purchase amount at Apple stores, 2% for purchases via Apple Pay, and 1% – via a physical card. Nonetheless, it works only in the USA, the company did not say anything about the appearance the card in other countries.

Apple & an Online Cinema with Exclusive Shows

Most of the presentation was devoted to the new streaming service Apple TV+ with exclusive movies and TV shows. The projects of Steven Spielberg (who previously spoke out against Netflix), Jay Jay Abrams, Damien Chazelle, and other directors were announced. Famous actors, including Steve Carrell, Reese Witherspoon, and Jason Momoa, spoke about the shows available on TV+ where they will be filmed.

Along with this, Apple has completely updated the Apple TV app. It will be available on macOS and on TVs by Samsung, Sony, LG, and Vizio. With this application, you can watch the shows of HBO, Showtime, Starz, and CBS channels, as well as streaming services like Amazon Prime and Hulu. A new Apple TV app will launch with a subscription to channels and streaming services in May 2019, and TV+ will be available in the autumn of 2019 in more than 100 countries.

It is an interesting fact that Apple has already tried to present their own shows. In 2016, Apple bought the rights from CBS to the Carpool Karaoke rubric in the American show – The Late Late Show with James Corden. The first episode of Carpool Karaoke: The Series was released in August 2017, 21 episodes were produced during the first season. The second season of the show began in October 2018, and at the moment there are 18 episodes.

Also, in June 2017, Apple launched the Planet of the Apps show, in which the developers had a minute to tell the jury about their application and convince them of the importance of their product. If at least one of the judges agrees to listen to the idea, the developer was given more time for the presentation. In total there were 10 episodes, after which the show was closed.

As you can see, Apple can surprise. The year 2019 has just begun, so many new products await us. To be continued…

Hello Spring! Nice to meet you. It’s not a secret that spring is the best time for changes and upgrades. The IT world also falls under the spring “perestroika” (changeover). The globally recognized IT vendors withdraw or replace old certificates and exams, and launch new ones. These changes are always good because they test, confirm, improve, and broaden the knowledge and skills of current or future IT professionals.

Today, in this article you will know about updates related to the global organization EXIN, its retiring certifications and exams. Let’s start.

Some Words about EXIN

EXIN is a world independent certificate institute for ICT professionals. It never stands still, the institution permanently innovates via developing exams to improve its portfolio and widen the scope of the proposed tests. The main goal of EXIN is to provide digital transformation of organizations and professionals by evolving and testing digital competencies. It is committed to becoming a leader in digital transformation. And this institute has every reason to achieve it. After all, EXIN is 30 years of experience, about 2 million ICT professionals, 1000 accredited partners. The good reason to be a reliable and leading authority in the ICT market.

The most significant EXIN credentials are PRINCE2®, ITIL®, and ISPL. Nowadays, the institute focuses on responding to market trends with certifications, such as Information Security, Agile Scrum, DevOps, and SIAM.

Retiring Examinations

EXIN made a spring-cleaning thereby the following 6 certification exams will be no longer available, and won’t meet spring:

1. ITIL-Foundation offers a general understanding of the candidate for core terminology, concepts, and elements used in the ITIL® service life cycle, including links between used processes, life cycle stages, and their contribution to service management practices.
2. MOPF verifies that the individual has sufficient understanding and knowledge to work as an informed member of the Portfolio Office or in a number of portfolio management roles.
3. MORF confirms that the candidate has sufficient knowledge and understanding to help identify, assess and control risks in any organizational perspective.
4. MOVF verifies the individual’s knowledge and expertise in making an efficient contribution to MoV activities led by other.
5. MSPF is the first step to become a registered practitioner. It provides the candidate with information about the knowledge in program management.
6. PR2F measures the applicant’s ability to operate as an informed member of a project management team using the PRINCE2 technique in a project environment that supports PRINCE2.

EXIN Guarantees

Today, companies want to obtain generalized knowledge in related fields. By studying different areas in their general context, ICT professionals obtain a better understanding of their relationship. To meet the growing demand for experts, EXIN has developed the Certified Integrator: an integrated approach to business practices, new technological developments, and IT methodologies. When you receive three Foundation credentials, you will attain the EXIN Certified Integrator certification automatically and for free.

EXIN guarantees:

• EXIN Certified Integrator certificate
• EXIN Certified Integrator Secure Cloud Services certificate = Service Management + Cloud Computing + Information Security (you will receive it, in case you have EXIN Information Security Foundation, EXIN Cloud Computing Foundation and EXIN IT Service Management Foundation or ITIL Foundation)

Don’t forget about a thorough exam preparation, as it is the best way to earn one of the significant EXIN certifications. As usual, ExamCollection will provide you with all necessary information related to these examinations.

LPI strives to provide the IT community with exams of the highest quality, relevance, and accuracy. No wonder, they are so prestigious among IT specialists.

LPIC-2 is the second certification in LPI’s multi-level professional certification program. The LPIC-2 will validate the candidate’s ability to manage small to medium–sized mixed networks.

To become LPIC-2 certified, candidate must be able to:

• perform advanced system administration, including common tasks regarding the Linux kernel, system startup and maintenance;
• perform advanced Management of block storage and file systems as well as advanced networking and authentication and system security, including firewall and VPN;
• install and configure fundamental network services, including DHCP, DNS, SSH, Web servers, file servers using FTP, NFS and Samba, email delivery.

Requirements for receiving the LPIC-2 certification: + an active LPIC-1 certification; +passed LPIC-2 201 and 202 exams.

It’s necessary to note that current version of the exam is 4.5 (201-450 and 202-450). The certification exams with the v4.0 objectives (201-400 and 202-400) will remain available until August 2017. But! You may write any version of the exams to receive your LPIC-2 certification.

A validity period of the certification exams is 5 years. They are available in 4 languages: English, German, Portuguese (Brazilian), Japanese.

The following table lists the LPIC-2 exam topics which will help you prepare for the exams.

Follow the link to know more information about objective weights and exam topics.

Pass your LPIC-2 exams on the first try with free practice tests from ExamCollection! Here you can find exam questions and answers with the reliable and up-to-date template that will exactly match the actual exam and will definitely help you pass the exams.

We wish you good luck!

Japan plans to deliver a tenfold increase in computing performance for the same power consumption which will probably bring booming popularity to its supercomputer. And this grandiose event is expected to occur by 2017.

Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (with the abbreviation AIST) wants not only to build supercomputers that leave behind all the world’s machines. It is also aiming to the effectiveness. But how to attain a power consumption of under 3 megawatts? One can claim everything is possible if to put your shoulder to the wheel. But let’s imagine just for a minute that Japan’s current highest entry in the Top500 supercomputer list, Oakforest-PACS, delivers one-tenth the performance (13.6 petaflops) for the same power. So it becomes clear that the next aim is truly overwhelming and almost unreal.

TaihuLight consumes over 15 MW.

Another considerable objective of AIST is a power usage effectiveness (the ratio of total power consumption, including that required for cooling, to power consumed by computing devices) of under 1.1. That’s a PUE value obtained only by the world’s most powerful data centers.

AIST has its trump card – liquid cooling, a method that is also used by French company Atos in its supercomputer design for the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA). A curious fact is that Atos is aiming for a performance one exaflop (one billion billion flops). But its computer will not be ready until 2020, while AIST expects its “child” to be born a year from now.

Other countries tend to optimize their main supercomputers for calculations such as atmospheric modeling or nuclear weapon simulations. And what is AIST doing meanwhile? It is targeting machine learning and deep learning applications in the growing field of artificial intelligence (AI) with the new computer design.

The project is called AI Bridging Cloud Infrastructure (ABCI), and is designed for use by startups, modern industrial supercomputing users and academia, in compliance with a document published by AIST.

ABCI, the fastest computer in the world, will be built at the University of Tokyo’s Kashiwa Campus, around 40 kilometers northeast of Tokyo.