This guide provides information candidates may use in preparing to take the RHCT or RHCE exam. Red Hat is not responsible for the content or aclearcase/" target="_blank" >ccuracy of other guides, books, online resources, or any other information provided by organizations or individuals other than Red Hat Global Learning Services. Red Hat reserves the right to change this Guide when appropriate, and candidates who have enrolled in forthcoming classes or exams are advised to check this guide periodically for changes.
The Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE) and Red Hat Certified Technician (RHCT) exams are performance-based evaluations of Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Red Hat Linux system administration skills and knowledge. Candidates perform a number of routine system administration tasks and are evaluated on whether they have met specific objective criteria. Performance-based testing means that candidates must perform tasks similar to what they must perform on the job.
Prospective employers of RHCEs and RHCTs should verify any and all claims by people claiming to hold one of these certificates by requesting their certificate number and verifying it here.
Only Red Hat and Red Hat Certified Training Partners administer the RHCE and RHCT exams. Prospective candidates should exercise due diligence when purchasing a seat in an RHCE or RHCT exam from a provider other than Red Hat itself. They should verify that the provider is, in fact, an authorized training partner in good standing. Please notify [email protected] about organizations that purport to offer the RHCE or RHCT exams, but who are not Red Hat Certified Training Partners.
Official scores for the RHCE and RHCT exams come exclusively from Red Hat Certification Central. Red Hat does not authorize examiners or training partners to report results to candidates directly. Scores on the exam are usually reported within three (3) US business days.
Exam results are reported as section scores. Red Hat does not report performance on individual items, nor will it provide additional information upon request.
Red Hat encourages all candidates for RHCT and RHCE to consider taking one or more of its official training courses to help prepare for the RHCE or RHCT exam. Attendance in these classes is not required, and one can choose to take just an exam. Many successful candidates who have come to class already possessing substantial skills and knowledge have reported that the class made a positive difference for them.
To help you determine the best courses to take, Red Hat provides online skills assessment.
While attending Red Hat's classes can be an important part of one's preparation to take the RHCE or RHCT exam, attending class does not guarantee success on the exam. Previous experience, practice, and native aptitude are also important determinants of success.
Many books and other resources on system administration for Red Hat's OS products are available. Red Hat does not officially endorse any as preparation guides for the RHCT or RHCE exams. Nevertheless, you may find additional reading deepens understanding and can prove helpful.
The RHCT exam is a subset of the RHCE exam, and is organized as follows:
In order to earn RHCT, one must successfully complete all the requirements in Troubleshooting and System Maintenance, and must achieve a score of 70 or higher on Installation and Configuration.
For RHCE exams given on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 and higher, the exam is organized as follows:
In order to earn RHCE, one must successfully complete all the RHCT-level Troubleshooting and System Maintenance requirements, and successfully complete enough additional RHCE items to earn a score of 80 or higher overall on the section.
In addition, one must score 70 or higher on the RHCT items of Installation and Configuration, and 70 or higher on the RHCE components of that section. We describe the skills associated with RHCT and RHCE below.
For RHCE exams given on Red Hat Linux 9, the following structure applies:
In order to earn RHCE on these exams, one must successfully complete all the RHCT-level Troubleshooting requirements, score a minimum of 50 on the multiple choice, score 70 or higher on both the RHCE and RHCT components, and earn an overall score of 80 or better for the exam as a whole.
Candidates should possess the following skills, as they may be necessary in order to fulfill requirements of the RHCT and RHCE exams:
RHCTs should be able to:
RHCTs must be able to:
RHCEs must demonstrate the RHCT skills listed above, and should be able to:
RHCEs must demonstrate the RHCT-level skills listed above, and they must be capable of configuring the following network services:
For each of these services, RHCEs must be able to:
RHCEs must also be able to: