Overview

• Duration: 4 weeks
• Daily Study Time: 2 hours, 5 days per week
• Methods: Pomodoro Technique (25 mins study + 5 mins rest), Spaced Repetition (review at specific intervals)
• Goal: Master core C1000-058 topics, achieve proficiency in IBM MQ system management, and excel in troubleshooting.

Weekly Learning Objectives and Tasks

Week 1: Fundamentals and System Administration

Objective: Gain a foundational understanding of IBM MQ system management, focusing on queue manager operations and high availability configurations.

Tasks

• Day 1-3: Administration

  • Task 1: Creating and Starting Queue Managers
    • Understand how to create queue managers with commands such as crtmqm and strmqm.
    • Learn essential parameters (log size, location, naming) and how to initialize the queue manager runtime environment.
    • Practice using commands to start (strmqm) and stop (endmqm) queue managers safely.
  • Task 2: Managing Queues and Queue Manager Objects
    • Study the types of queues (local, remote, alias, model) and their uses.
    • Learn to configure queues, focusing on properties like maximum depth, storage allocation, and expiration time.
    • Practice using DEFINE QLOCAL to create and manage queues, and explore how to configure each type.
  • Task 3: Configuring and Managing Triggers
    • Learn about the role of triggers in automating message processing.
    • Understand trigger types, trigger monitors, and how to configure trigger conditions on queues and channels.

• Day 4-5: Availability

  • Task 4: Configuring Multi-Instance Queue Managers
    • Study primary and standby instance setup for high availability with shared storage.
    • Learn automatic failover mechanisms and understand how shared file systems work in multi-instance setups.
  • Task 5: Cluster Management
    • Gain a foundational understanding of clustering, cluster sender and receiver channels, and load balancing.
    • Learn how to configure clusters for message routing and distribute load across multiple queue managers.
  • Task 6: High Availability Replicated Data Queue Managers (HA RDQM)
    • Introduction to RDQM for data replication across nodes.
    • Understand RDQM’s high availability setup, network requirements, and disaster recovery benefits.

Study Method

• Pomodoro Technique: 4 Pomodoros daily (each Pomodoro is a 25-minute session focused on a specific task).
• Review: 1-day and 3-day reviews of each day’s content to reinforce understanding.

Week 2: Configuration and Monitoring

Objective: Develop skills in IBM MQ configuration and system monitoring, including setting up queues, channels, clusters, and monitoring system health.

Tasks

• Day 1-2: Configuration

  • Task 1: Creating Basic MQ Objects
    • Understand how to create essential objects such as queues, topics, and publish/subscribe entities.
    • Study the attributes of each object, including storage limits, maximum depth, and expiration time.
  • Task 2: Channel Types and Configuration
    • Learn the different types of channels (sender, receiver, server, requester) and their respective roles.
    • Configure channels with parameters like KeepAlive, batch interval, and heartbeat settings to reduce latency.
  • Task 3: Cluster Configuration
    • Master how to create and configure clusters, set up cluster sender and receiver channels, and define load balancing strategies.
    • Understand the roles of full and partial repositories in clustering.

• Day 3-4: Monitoring

  • Task 4: Event Monitoring Configuration
    • Set up monitoring for queue manager and channel events, including log overflow events.
    • Learn to configure event alerts and understand how to respond to events when they occur.
  • Task 5: Real-Time Monitoring of Queues and Channels
    • Use IBM MQ commands like DISPLAY QSTATUS and DISPLAY CHSTATUS to monitor queue depth, message rate, and channel transmission status.
  • Task 6: Activity Tracking and Statistical Analysis
    • Learn to analyze the lifecycle of messages through activity tracking, examining enqueue time, dequeue time, and message paths.
    • Use statistical tools to monitor system performance, identify bottlenecks, and optimize resource allocation.

• Day 5: Weekly Review and Practice

  • Review configuration and monitoring topics.
  • Practice using commands learned throughout the week and summarize key takeaways.

Study Method

• Pomodoro Technique: 4 Pomodoros daily to complete each task.
• Review: Schedule a review 1 day and 3 days after each topic to consolidate learning.

Week 3: Performance Tuning and Security

Objective: Understand IBM MQ performance optimization techniques and configure system security settings to protect data and control access.

Tasks

• Day 1-2: Performance Tuning

  • Task 1: Queue and Channel Tuning
    • Study queue properties like maximum depth, storage allocation, and message attributes.
    • Configure channel settings (e.g., batch interval, KeepAlive) to optimize message handling and reduce network latency.
  • Task 2: Concurrency Settings
    • Configure concurrency settings for queue managers and applications to increase processing power and achieve higher throughput.
  • Task 3: Message Size and Memory Optimization
    • Adjust message size limits and memory allocation to ensure that resources like CPU and memory don’t create bottlenecks.
    • Understand how message compression can improve performance on slower networks.

• Day 3-4: Security

  • Task 4: Connection Authentication and Authorization
    • Learn to configure user authentication with CONNAUTH policies, channel permissions, and security auditing.
    • Implement identity verification using LDAP or PAM authentication servers.
  • Task 5: Channel Authentication (CHLAUTH)
    • Use CHLAUTH rules to control channel access based on IP addresses, user identities, and SSL certificates.
    • Learn how to configure these rules for secure client connections.
  • Task 6: TLS Encryption Configuration
    • Set up TLS encryption (1.2 or higher) on channels for secure message transmission.
    • Study how to configure cipher specs and SSLPEER rules for client-server communication.
  • Task 7: End-to-End Message Security
    • Configure advanced message security options for end-to-end encryption and integrity, preventing unauthorized access or tampering.

• Day 5: Review and Practice

  • Review all performance tuning and security topics.
  • Complete a practice exercise focused on security configurations.

Study Method

• Pomodoro Technique: 4 Pomodoros daily, focusing on each specific security and performance task.
• Review: 1-day and 3-day reviews after each topic to reinforce key points.

Week 4: Installation, Migration, and Troubleshooting

Objective: Master IBM MQ’s installation, migration processes, and troubleshooting methods. Conduct a comprehensive review of all topics before the final exam.

Tasks

• Day 1-2: Planning, Installation, and Migration

  • Task 1: Requirement Analysis and Architecture Design
    • Study architectural options for single-node, multi-node, and containerized deployments.
    • Plan for queue manager load, message flow strategies, and high availability.
  • Task 2: Installation Preparation and Prerequisites
    • Ensure system compatibility with IBM MQ, verify platform dependencies, and prepare the network environment.
  • Task 3: Installation and Automated Deployment
    • Practice different installation methods (interactive, command-line, script-based) and configure initial settings.
  • Task 4: Migration Strategy and Compatibility
    • Learn migration best practices, including version compatibility testing and application migration procedures.

• Day 3-4: Problem Determination

  • Task 5: Log and Fault Analysis
    • Learn to use IBM MQ’s error logs and FFST files to locate and diagnose issues.
  • Task 6: Trace Analysis
    • Use strmqtrc to record operation details and analyze trace files for complex issues.
  • Task 7: Dead-Letter Queue Management
    • Study dead-letter queue management for undeliverable messages, learn to configure policies, and use the dead-letter queue handler.
  • Task 8: Advanced Diagnostic Tools
    • Utilize application activity tracing and performance reports for analyzing system issues like latency or blockages.

• Day 5: Comprehensive Review and Mock Test

  • Review all topics from the past 4 weeks, focusing on key commands and troubleshooting techniques.
  • Complete a mock test to assess readiness and identify any remaining areas for improvement.

Study Method

• Pomodoro Technique: 4 Pomodoros each day, focusing on each installation, migration, and troubleshooting task.
• Review: Regularly review critical commands and configuration techniques.

Weekly and Final Reviews

• Weekly Summaries: At the end of each week, create a summary of key points for quick reference.

• Spaced Repetition: Review each topic again on Day 1, Day 3, Day

  7, and Day 14 after learning it to strengthen retention.

• Final Review: After the 4 weeks, schedule three additional review sessions 7 days, 14 days, and 28 days before the exam for final reinforcement.

Following this structured and detailed study plan, with a mix of focused sessions and systematic review, will ensure thorough preparation for the IBM C1000-058 exam. Good luck with your studies!