Common RHCSA Exam Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Published On: 25 February 2025

Objective

Earning the RHCSA (Red Hat Certified System Administrator) certification is a key milestone for IT professionals working with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). Many candidates face obstacles during exam preparation that can affect their performance. This blog highlights common mistakes and provides strategies to avoid them, helping you succeed on the RHCSA exam.

1. Lack of Hands-On Practice

Mistake:
Many candidates focus heavily on theory and neglect practical experience, which can be a significant setback during the exam. The RHCSA exam is hands-on, and a solid theoretical understanding alone isn’t enough.

Solution:

  • Hands-On Practice: Engage with practical labs on various platforms that offer interactive challenges closely resembling real-world tasks. This approach helps you develop the essential skills needed for the exam. If you're looking for a platform to guide you, visit RHCSA Guru, where we provide topic-wise labs that allow you to perform each task step-by-step and identify any mistakes you might be making. Additionally, our Mock Exam simulates the actual exam experience, giving you a realistic preview of what to expect.

  • Real-World Scenarios: Practice essential tasks such as file system management, local storage configuration, and mastering tools like vim, nano, grep, find, and awk. Regular practice will solidify your skills and prepare you for the practical nature of the exam.

  • Comprehensive Study Guide: A well-structured study guide is essential for focused and efficient preparation, helping you cover all exam objectives systematically and ensuring you don't miss any critical areas. A good guide should break down each topic clearly, offer relevant examples, and include practice exercises to reinforce learning. Whether you're looking for free or paid study guides, there are several resources available to help you prepare. To make it easier, we've covered a list of recommended study guides in our blog, so be sure to check that out for some valuable resources to aid in your RHCSA preparation.

2. Not Understanding Exam Objectives

Mistake:
Many candidates focus too much on areas they are comfortable with and overlook other important topics. Not understanding the full scope of the exam can lead to gaps in your knowledge and imbalance in your preparation.

Solution:

  • Review Exam Objectives: Carefully go through the exam objectives to ensure you're familiar with the full exam scope. This includes understanding key areas such as SELinux, user and group management, local storage configuration, and security practices.

  • Balanced Focus: While it's easy to prioritize topics like SELinux and networking, don’t neglect other areas. Ensure you're equally comfortable with all RHCSA objectives, as each topic is vital for both the exam and real-world applications.

3. Poor Time Management

Mistake:
Time management is a crucial aspect of the RHCSA exam. Many candidates get caught up in certain tasks and spend too much time on them, which leaves them scrambling to finish the remaining questions. As the exam is hands-on and tasks can take longer than expected, this mismanagement of time often leads to incomplete responses, negatively affecting the final score.

Solution:

  • Practice Effective Time Management: To build your time management skills, take time-bound practice exams and focus on completing each task within the allocated time. Mock exams can help simulate the pressure of the actual exam, preparing you to stay focused and efficient.

  • Simulate Real Exam Conditions: It's essential to practice under conditions similar to the actual exam. Set a timer while working through practice labs or tasks, and try to complete them in the same amount of time you'd have during the exam. This helps you adjust to the pace and pressure you'll face on the actual exam day.

  • Strategize Your Study Sessions: While preparing, break down your study time according to the weight and difficulty of each topic. Focus on mastering the more complex tasks first, but don’t neglect simpler ones that are often easier to overlook. By balancing your study time effectively, you’ll ensure you're well-prepared without wasting time on less critical areas.

4. Focusing Too Much on Certain Topics

Mistake:
Overemphasizing popular or familiar topics, such as SELinux or user management, can cause candidates to overlook other critical areas of the exam, resulting in an incomplete preparation.

Solution:

  • Balanced Preparation: Study all RHCSA exam objectives evenly, ensuring you’re well-versed in areas like local storage management, file permissions, and the boot process.

  • Holistic Approach: Use a comprehensive RHCSA study guide to ensure that no topic is left behind. Even areas that seem less challenging at first should be given attention.

5. Not Knowing the Exam Format

Mistake:
Unfamiliarity with the exam format can lead to confusion and mistakes during the test. Understanding how the exam is structured and what types of practical tasks you'll face can help you approach the exam more confidently.

Solution:

  • Understand the Exam Format: Review the RHCSA EX200 exam structure thoroughly. Be aware of the types of practical tasks and questions you’ll encounter.

  • Take Sample Exams: Test yourself with practice exams that reflect the actual exam format. This will help you feel more comfortable and less stressed on exam day.

6. Configuration Not Being Persistent Across Reboots

Mistake:
Many candidates overlook the need for their configurations to persist after a reboot. This is a common issue, as settings like network configurations, services, and firewall rules can be lost if they are not properly saved or verified after a system reboot. This oversight can result in a failing grade, even if everything appeared correct initially.

Solution:

  • Verify Persistence: After making changes, always restart the system and verify that your configurations are still in place. Check that services are enabled and running, network configurations are applied correctly, and firewall rules are persistent using the --permanent option.

  • Double-Check Everything: Use the last few minutes of the exam to double-check your configurations. Make sure that networking, services, and other key settings are still functional and persistent across reboots. Reboot the nodes after completing critical tasks to ensure everything is working as expected.

  • Learn from Others: Candidates who have failed often report that overlooking the persistence of configurations—particularly in networking and service management—was a major issue. Always reboot and verify before submitting your exam.

7. Misunderstanding the Networking Tools Requirement

Mistake:
Some candidates mistakenly believe that nmtui is the only tool for configuring networking during the RHCSA exam, while newer versions of the exam, such as RHCSA 9.3, require the use of nmcli. Using the wrong tool can result in missed configurations or incorrect setups.

Solution:

  • Know Your Tools: In RHCSA 9.3 and beyond, Red Hat may require candidates to use nmcli instead of nmtui for network configuration. Even though nmtui is a valid tool for network configuration in many cases, nmcli is preferred for its more direct command-line interface.

  • Practice Both Tools: Make sure you’re comfortable with both nmcli and nmtui. While both tools can be used to configure networking, nmcli is often favored in the latest exams, so it’s essential to know how to use it effectively.

  • Verify Your Work: Regardless of the tool you use, always verify that the network configuration is persistent and correct before moving on. Some candidates reported that they missed this step, which led to issues during the exam. Always test your network settings after configuration and a reboot.

8. Overlooking Service Enablement and Reboot Verification

Mistake:
One common mistake is not verifying that services are enabled and running after a reboot. Even though configurations might work initially, if services or networking are not correctly enabled and persistent across reboots, this can cause the configuration to fail.

Solution:

  • Enable Services and Verify: Always use systemctl enable to ensure that services start automatically after a reboot. It’s not enough for services to be running when you configure them; they need to persist through restarts.

  • Reboot for Confirmation: After completing key tasks, reboot the systems and double-check that everything is still functional. Services should be running, network settings should be applied, and other configurations should persist. If anything is missing after rebooting, you can lose valuable points.

  • Practice Restarting: Many candidates report that restarting and confirming services post-reboot is crucial. If time allows, always check whether the settings you configured earlier are still valid after a reboot.

9. RH199: The Rapid Track Course for RHCSA

Mistake:
Some candidates may not be sure whether to take the RH199 Rapid Track course or proceed directly to the RHCSA exam, especially if they already have some Linux experience.

Solution:

  • What is RH199? : A simplified edition of the RH124 and RH134 courses, RH199 is designed for knowledgeable system administrators who wish to get ready for the RHCSA exam as soon as possible. It emphasizes the particular abilities and tasks required for the test.

  • When to Take RH199: If you have prior Linux experience but need to quickly adapt to Red Hat's methods, RH199 can be a good option. It provides a more focused and time-efficient path to RHCSA certification.

  • Skipping RH199: If you are confident in your RHEL administration skills and are familiar with the test objectives, you can skip RH199 and proceed directly to the RHCSA exam (EX200). However, you must be ready for a hands-on, practical test.

  • RH199 is not mandatory, but it can be a great way to solidify your knowledge and gain confidence before attempting the RHCSA exam.

Conclusion

Avoiding these typical RHCSA blunders can greatly increase your chances of success. Focus on hands-on preparation, make sure you understand the exam objectives, manage your time carefully, and become acquainted with the exam style. Remember that configurations must withstand reboots, and that tools like nmcli (instead of nmtui in some circumstances) are required for configuring networking in subsequent versions of the test. By following a balanced preparation strategy and considering the RH199 Rapid Track course if necessary, you’ll boost both your confidence and your performance. Start your preparation today and get closer to achieving your RHCSA certification!