EH-Net

Hey Guys

I received an email in regards to Hacking DOJO as per the link below.  It sounds pretty good to me at a monthly fee of $95! You are not tied into any contract and can stop anytime you want  :)

There are 100 places and at the moment I have no money until friday so guys do me a favour and dont all buy the 100 available seats please :)

http://hackingdojo.com/

I received the email too.

I am thinking about it, I took one of his online training and I learnt some stuff (he did not try to teach you everything, just a couple of things but you learnt them very well. I practiced with some targets and got good results).

http://www.ethicalhacker.net/component/option,com_smf/Itemid,54/topic,6103.msg32558/ ;)

I'm looking forward to when he opens the Novice training myself.  :)

I really hate programming and don't do it. If I have to for a class, then I will. Otherwise I have no desire or will to learn it on my own.

I hate programming as well. Over time I have found that (unfortunately) understanding programming becomes more important in more advanced skills, especially reverse engineering. It's just one of the essentials that cannot be avoided.  >:-/ I wish it could be - I started out as a perl jockey since that was the most that was required for a solaris sysadmin. OO programming frustrates me.

Ok, I have to say it: I LOVE PROGRAMMING!!!  ;D

Reverse engineering is by far my favorite topic in this hacking world!! I personaly think that sysadmins and network guys are just script kiddie (ok, I am pushing a bit here...)! They run a command or they click on buttons while programmers create all these tools we use.

Having a programmer background, getting into ethical hacking was very tough at the beginning... But the further I go, the more my 11 years experience developing applications helps! I understand the x86 assembly language a bit so learning python wasn't a big thing...

Ok, I brag a lot right now, but you guys should stop complaining and start enjoying it, you're not done coding if you want to do a career in IT Sec!  ;)

BTW, this post is a big joke!  :D

Any reason why you feel this way?

Maybe I misunderstood, but I THINK that H1tM0nk3y was saying his OWN post was a joke, not that the thread was a joke...  Not certain of that, so I'll let him explain, but that's how I understood it.

Oups, sorry for being unclear. Like hayabusa said, I meant "my own post" and not the thread!

Yea, everybody understand that you love programming, it is ok. ;D

Oh ok, thats cool..... I didn't think the topic was that bad!!! :)

H1t M0nk3y

Don't get me wrong, when I'm writing programs or scripts daily, in shell or perl, I don't mind it. I even find it fun and enjoyable. However over the last several years, I have had to do any type of scripting so rarely, that I usually have to re-fresh everything I forgot. After a while it gets to you and you begin to hate it.

The current way I do it: Have an itch to scratch (problem that needs solved). Re-learn enough to scratch (solve the problem). wait several months for a new itch. Repeat.

I know people like doing it, and don't have a problem. I know its needed and I need to get myself motivated.

I really am looking forward to the point where join the dojo.

Hey, all is good!  :)

I only wanted to make a joke, but jokes and emails/posts sometime don't mix up very well...  :P

I got frustrated so often at the begining because I barely knew about networks and servers, that I felt like joking about it.

But back to the main topic, I am planing on joining it this winter. I just have too many things to do right now...

I'm in!

Is there anybody who applied?

So you sing up. Did they give you any material to begin or until October?

I am still thinking to join them.

I just paid. I am waiting for the materials, but I am not in a hurry.

alucian -

Got it, and I'll be sending you an email in the morning; I will want to talk with you for about half an hour to understand what you want out of the class, background, etc, so I can tailor the live training to meet your needs... so think about what might be a good time to talk (via Skype).

Just wanted to provide people with an update to what is happening at the hackingdojo.com... I've been getting repetitive emails, so want to spread the info at one time instead of one email at a time.

1) We still have openings. Classes are definitely filling up, but there's still plenty of room; once we get to 100 people though, I will only be accepting stand-by requests, and those will only be accepted once a student moves up to an advance level or someone quits.

2) To get to the upper level courses, students have to start at the first level. I won't be opening up the upper levels to the public - the slots for the upper level courses are reserved for students

3) There is no time requirement before someone can move up to the higher levels. The class is only in its second week, and I will be testing students within a few days who have expressed an interest to move onto more advanced topics.

4) Classes are being held in both the evening and during the day (one hour in length) - chances are there is a time slot open that meets your schedule. If not, just ask.

5) We are using Skype for the online, live portion of the class - meaning the calls are free. I have one student that cannot access skype (from the UAE) - in his case, I'm trying to set up a VPN that will allow him to connect.

6) Cost for the class is the same throughout all levels - $95 a month.

7) Because life injects itself and forces some people to miss classes, I am recording them as I go. They are to be made available to students only, so that they don't miss out on the information provided each week.

ok, I think that's everything. For more information about the courses and to sign up, just visit:

http://hackingdojo.com (http://hackingdojo.com)

Good.

I am planning to sign up November

HackingDojo.com has opened up the 2D Nidan (Intermediate) training class, and testing has begun for some students currently enrolled in the 1D Shodan Fundamentals class. I am still limiting enrollment for the Dojo to 100 students, so if anyone is interested in taking the more advanced courses, now would be a better time to enroll than later, when the class capacity has been met (hint hint).

Oh, and new twitter feed: http://twitter.com/hackingdojo

Seems my last announcement has stirred up interest in the novice level training at hackingdojo.com, so I'm going to send out feelers to the community and see what the demand is; the class will cover the following topics:

    * Programming Languages
    * Education and Certifications
    * Operating Systems
    * Virtual Machines and Labs

The cost for the classes is the same as all the other levels ($95/mo.), and the hour-long classes will be running on Wednesdays. If you are interested in attending, please send me a private message on this site, or contact me via email at twilhelm [at] heorot [dot] net... if there's enough interest I'll get people signed up and get the class moving. Fair enough?

Sent my email. I'm looking forward to hearing about the programming option.

Sadly I just started focusing hard core on Perl (as well as Security +), so not sure how much time I can dedicated, but still want to do this.

Will we need Skype for the classes? I lack that and things to make it work.


*edit:

Will we have to be there every week?

... ditto. It is more and more of a necessity.

The class does indeed use Skype to conduct the live portion of the course; however I do record a class each week and put the video online for the students to view at their convenience; I actually have students that only watch the videos instead of attending the classes. As for attendance in the classes, not required or expected - and another reason for me to provide videos (this last week, attendance was lower, undoubtedly due to the MLB playoffs).

As for the programming portion of the class, I am actually still deciding between perl and python.

I have a couple updates regarding my HackingDojo courses:

1) Video for the Shodan course...

A lot of people have been asking for a video for the course (kind of surprised me, actually) - I created and posted a video, just for you guys, which can be found on the front page of hackingdojo.com.

2) (1R) Mukyu Course will start January 1, 2011

I had to re-think the structure of the Novice class (dealing with OSes, programming, labs, etc.), and decided to do a specific start-time for anyone interested. The class will accept enrollment every two months after that, which will allow me to start people off at the same time. When you sign up, you will sign up for a two month enrollment (not recurring). Sign-ups will begin mid-December.

Thanks!

Awesome, I'm gonna check them out!  It makes sense for people asking with so many options out there. 

It's kind of like a commercial of the overall product I suppose some people would like to see.  Of course A/V is much easier to digest than text.. Thanks for the good work, I look forward to exploring more with you in the near future.

So is the 1R going to be designed to get people into the 1D program within 2 months (Based on work done)?

Two months should be sufficient to learn the material, but everyone learns differently, and I expect a lot of people will go a second round just because of the large amount of material we will be covering. I decided to focus on shell scripting for this class, since it will have to best "return" for the money for those new to Linux and  hacking. Other than that, yes, 1R feeds directly into 2D.

I signed up for the classes on the Dec. 5th. How long does it take to get access to the material??

Classes are held on Mondays and Tuesdays... We need to have an interview before I can schedule your class time. Hope that makes sense (this class really is different than the traditional online class that requires the student to just watch movies, read docs, etc.)

Man, I'm really looking forward to being part of your classes soon, they seem awesome.  There's nothing like having direct access to your instructor and LIVE sessions! Can't beat that, especially from a published author.  Hopefully starting Jan ther'll be some openings.

Actually, we still have spots open, and classes are self-contained... Meaning it doesn't matter when you start; you'll get all the same info over time no matter whether you begin at the beginning or mid-month.

I sure would LOVE to start now, no doubt especially after a couple months of research.  However, the reason I mentioned January is because I am about to finish my CCNP this month and had enrolled in eLearn's modules, so I feel I'd have too much on my plate for December (especially with my time frame goal of the CCNP).

I absolutely will enroll as soon as I get my CCNP this month, just about 3 weeks to go (given I don't fail the last, TSHOOT), which I won't..

I see no reason why I couldn't attend the dojo and finish up eLearn concurrently in Jan though (since I already commited my payments and don't want to lose $450) so far.

Any chance you could ever get anyone (such as myself  ;) ) in on a random hour skype, one day just to check it out and get extra hungry for it?

I wanted to let everyone know that - as promised a month ago - the (1R) Mukyu Novice Hacking class is now taking applications for students. The sign-up link can be found at the bottom of the HackingDojo.com web site. Class size is limited, and will be held on every Sunday in January and February, 2011. The class costs a flat fee of $190... and when I mean that class size is limited, I mean it is very limited. Thanks!

Thanks for the update Grendel. I just signed up for the 1R course. Can't wait to start.

Will we have access to any of the materials prior to 1/1?

Thanks.

-Samurai

Glad to have you on board! I will be sending out links to materials around the 28th.

Again, thanks for signing up!

- Tom Wilhelm

hoping to squeek in under the wire. Not sure if I get paid the 30th or 31st. :)

But don't hold a spot for me. I can wait.

Hi,
I am very interested in this course. I am currently doing my BE in IT. I have 6 months free right now, Starting Jan 2011 I am free. I have done my CCNA, know C programming, Currently Studying AoA (Art of Assembly).

I want to sign up for the 1st Level Starting Jan 2011, but i have a question that I am not familiar with Linux. In fact From Jan I was gonna start with it, but I am very interested in your course.

Can you please Tell me what are the prerequisite for your course in detail, So i can make up my mind whether to take a break of 2 months, learn stuff or start right away.

Please let me know asap so I can decide on it.

Thanks.

Hi,
One more thing. As a student am I eligible for the 20% discount as posted on heorot.net?
Thanks.

Do you have to buy the 2 months or can you just do the month to month?

Sent you an email.

Chris - Are you still planning on enrolling? I have about 4 spots remaining... I can hold one if you still want to attend.

I had until yesterday afternoon. Don't hold one, I'll try for March. :(

Thanks Grendel.

For those interested in attending the novice (1R) class at hackingdojo.com, I wanted to let them know that sign-up for the March/April class is online now, and (surprisingly) already starting to fill up. I know it's only January now, but there are only 10 spots open in each class, and I didn't want anyone here who wanted to attend to miss out. 

Just in case anyone is interested, I'm giving away autograph copies of "Ninja Hacking" to the next 10 people who sign up for the Shodan 1R Certified Penetration Tester course at http://hackingdojo.com

Still have autographed books to give away!   ;D

That's an awesome offer  :)

Hey Tom

I attended your course for around 2 months when it was first released, but due to several commitments I had to pull out for a while and am intending to rejoin in March.  Is it possible to kick off at the Nidan level?

Thanks

I can give you the Shodan exam once you sign up - once you pass, I can place you right into the Nidan course.

Although I should have done this earlier, I have posted a class video on Local Password Attacks, in which I discuss some of the same material I wrote about in the article titled "Tutorial: John the Ripper - Why You Are Doing It Wrong," (http://www.ethicalhacker.net/content/view/341/1/) published on this site.

The video is 45 minutes in length, is a live, unscripted session, and came straight from one of the Shodan classes... so it should give everyone a good idea of how the classes actually work. Granted, we didn't do a lot of hands-on work in this specific class, but that's the exception more than the rule (hopefully some students that visit this site will back me up on that statement).

You can view the video by clicking on the "Local Password Attacks"  snapshot image at http://HackingDojo.com in the "About the Classes" section.

Enjoy!

The next Novice Hacking class (titled "Mukyu") at HackingDojo.com is set to start in 3 weeks... for those interested in attending, there are only 4 slots still available. If you really want to attend, and don't want to wait until May (which is when the next one starts), now would be the time to sign up.

The link to sign up is at the very bottom of the front page of the hackingdojo.com (http://hackingdojo.com) web site.

The material being covered in the Mukyu class is:

    * Programming Languages
    * Education and Certifications
    * Operating Systems
    * Virtual Machines and Labs

This class feeds into the shodan class - students who successfully complete the class will obtain a certificate of completion.

Grendel,
What level would I start at given my training to date?

* See sig

Actually, is there a good way (free online test maybe) that would tell us what level we should start at (1R & 1D).

Grendel, I am overseas, and I am concerned about waking up at 11-12 pm to take the classes, is it possible for you guys to offer recorded sessions available anytime?

You'd be started in the shodan class automatically, but you can ask for the test to the nidan level right away (which I would probably do, given your certs).

The 1R is really for people unfamiliar with scripting and unix systems. If you can write code to scrub data off of a web page, or automate a series of activities, and can navigate around the system, then head into the shodan class.

I record all the classes, and make them available to students within a few days... so yes - recorded sessions are definitely available anytime.

I'll be signing up for the 1R class tomorrow and am looking forward to it.  Too bad it doesn't come with the autographed copy of Ninja Hacking :(

Thanks Grendel, now as soon as someone pays me, I'll be signing up for the 1D class. I'm good on Nix, can automate activities, and make it around the file system. Can't scrub sites, but I can learn between now and when I get paid. In fact, I need to get brushed back up on Perl for my new job.

I just wanted to give everyone a heads up that the monthly subscription for NEW students at HackingDojo.com (http://HackingDojo.com) will be increasing to $145 a month starting May 1, 2011. For any student who signs up before that date, they will be locked into the $95 a month subscription plan for their classes until they cancel. If anyone was thinking about trying out the course, I don't want you to miss out on the lower price.

Signed up today....and am looking forward to it.

Which class did you sign up for? I'm in the Monday 20:00 est class, and really enjoy it so far. I'm a little behind though, due to work this week.

Well, I am not in a specific class yet. I just registered today. I'm waiting to hear back from Grendel.

Look like you two are "bunking" together. See you two in class tonight (it's the Vulnerability Identification topic week, so it'll be fun).

Lol. But that works out as a very timely subject. I'm going to have a question tonight. Might be beyond scope of the class but issue at work that this one will help with. :)

Hit me with it in class - as always, I'm open to any question, even if it's not related to the subject of the week. You don't have to wait until class either, don't forget - the class is mentor-based, not lecture-based, so feel free to hit me up on skype whenever you have a security question... that's what you're paying for, so take advantage of it.  ;)

At the request of a current student, I have also added a link for a yearly subscription - however, it too will be changing for any new students who sign up on May 1 or later.

This has been a public service announcement.   ;D

Welcome to the course if you need any help just ask I am doing the shodan class on Tuesday.

I was looking at signing up for the classes, but not sure where I should start.  I have an intermediate knowledge of Linux, but my programming skills are basic.  I'm not sure of the languages taught in the Mukyu class, but I have intro knowledge of Perl and Python.  If possible, I'd like to subscribe into the Shodan classes to lock in the $95/month subscription fee, but I don't want to be in over my head.  Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated! :)

Lorddicranius

Go for the Shodan class. If you know how to set up a VM, and know the basics and how to google what you don't know (like web page scraping, in my case), then you're good.

I'm not a massively good programmer. I've taken college courses on Cobal, C, Unix Shell, and a few others. But other than some basic shell scripting I don't do much programing these days. I'm in the Shodan class, and following along quite well.

I would say shodan too as you have  linux + I done the mukyu class it covers common commands like wget,cd,ls,cat so on and then it covers Linux file structure and you do some bash scripting so if statement, loops etc and you cover basic linux stuff so what does rwxrwxrwx mean how do you change permission blar blar blar   

That's good to hear!  Thanks chrisj and Jamie.R.

One other point to ponder is that shodan students have access to mukyu class videos (but not access to the live sessions); so if you need to study up on just one or two topics, you can simply review the videos and the related material on the student forum.

That's good stuff, thanks for the FYI Grendel.

I'm in my 3rd week of the Shodan class and I highly recommend it.   :) :)

I missed my class last night (class 4 for me), but I know I can go hit up the videos to catch up.

Last week - last warning.

Also, to clear up some confusion, the Mukyu course will be increasing its price as well starting May 1, so if you want to join the May/June class ( which starts May 8 ), don't wait until May 1 - you'll be paying an extra $100 for the same course everyone else is.

How long should it take to hear from HackingDojo?  I signed up on Saturday and haven't gotten an e-mail yet  Maybe lots of people (like me) signed up before May 1 and they're backed up, but just thought I'd check.

Hi Seen,

You should hear from them pretty soon. Did you sign up to the shodan class ?

Yeah I signed up for shodan, and I'm in no hurry to start (I still have to finish elearnsecurity) but I just wanted to make sure their e-mail didn't go to my spam.

Can you shoot me a private message with the name you signed up under? Things were hectic this week, but emails have been sent out for everyone that signed up this weekend. Thanks.

Cool well welcome to the Shodan class. I am sure you will enjoy it.

Has anyone done a proper review of the Shodan clas yet?

I was doing a running weekly review on my blog, tagged as hacking dojo. I fell behind though. I'm going to write a full once I finish the section, but probably before I take the test.

Can anyone suggest any recommendations in terms of the courses, I signed up April 30th and haven't really heard anything regarding the course with the exception of what time the courses (but I have no idea how to connect or access the course material at those times).  Am I missing something in the enrollment process?  I've gone back through the emails and can't see where I've missed a step, I was expecting some type of training material or access to be setup so I can access the wiki and forums..

TWS

Shoot him another email or msg him on Skype using the name provided at the end of the registration process.

Shoot me a PM here as well. Make sure you include the email address you used to sign up under.

Wanted to let people know that the HackingDojo now has an online lab, accessible by students 24/7. The lab is designed to emulate a real world internal corporate network so that students can practice basic through advanced skills in a realistic setting. We're adding (and will continue to add) additional targets and complexity, based on the requests of students and hacking trends.

Access to the lab is included as part of a student's monthly subscription - no additional costs are required, and there is no time allotments / restrictions either.

Thanks!

- Tom Wilhelm

it is a good news, sure you can learn building your lab but you lose time where you can practice hacking, with the lab you go directly to hack

The labs is such a good idea. I need to try free up some time have play with them but at moment I am having to get good at web security as my new job demands I can do web test so my time is bit split at the moment.

If they had the lab back in July, I might of picked DOJO instead of The Hacker Academy (which I will be doing a full review within the next couple of days). Also glad there isnt a charge for the lab 8)

Has anyone passed the nidan class yet ?

Not yet - Philip is the only one that has asked for it, but didn't take it due to time constraints. Still waiting for the first person to step up.
 :)

The labs are pretty cool, I'm taking it nice and easy towards Shodan first though ;) No need to rush it for me hehe  ;)

MaXe what are the labs like?

I can answer that...

Right now there is a mix of Linux and windows systems that are all exploitable. However, over the next week there will be other systems added that are not exploitable, in order to provide a realistic example of an internal pentest. By the end of this week, there will be switches and routers added as well, with additional network(s) within the lab so students can practice network hacking. There will also be layer 2 attack options added, along with web hacking.

The lab is designed, like I mentioned, to simulate what can be done in a real world pentest. We have the targets and the hardware inline... we are just adding them one at a time over this entire week to make sure everything works smoothly.

Wow, that sounds pretty awesome. I hope to try hacking DOJO soon. I did not have a good experience with The Hacker Academy.

Cool Sounds good Tom i put my name forward once I have been thought all the lesson as don't want miss anything out.

I was wanting to setup a lab similar to that at home, but not sure how to get started. Are there any VM images that would be a good start? I honestly haven't got any practice since I took the CEH exam in 2008.

I can setup Windows/Linux boxes like crazy, but I feel like if I setup a machine to hack, I'm already going to know what exploits to look for. I used to play around with Hacme Bank (http://www.mcafee.com/us/downloads/free-tools/hacme-bank.aspx) before I knew anything about hacking. ;D

Actually, in my book "Professional Penetration Testing" I brought up this exact problem - how can you learn to hack something when you already know the solution? Which is why I created the De-ICE disks; they are liveCDs that you can run on a system or in VM, and begin to hack immediately. Check out http://forums.heorot.net to download them.

I have some De-ICE images in the Hacking Dojo lab, but not just those. You might also want to install other systems as well, especially older windows platforms, in order to practice certain exploits... finding vulnerabilities is one skill, effectively exploiting them is another, especially with all the options available on the various tools we use.

@eth3real - Tom's DE-ICE cd's are excellent, and there are numerous other live CD-based distros, and prebuilt / preconfigured apps, on other threads, here on the forums.  Well worth your time to find the threads here (as well as using Tom's stuff) for your learning.

That's extremely helpful, I'm glad I asked. Thank you Grendel and hayabusa!

You may want to check this out if you want to mess with little home lab

http://www.securityaegis.com/network-pentest-lab/ (http://www.securityaegis.com/network-pentest-lab/)

also this kinder review I done on my website on shodan its not the best in the world but people may find it useful.

http://www.jamierougive.co.uk/dojo.html (http://www.jamierougive.co.uk/dojo.html)

I finally got around to posting a sanitized network diagram of the lab, if anyone is still interested in this topic - go to: http://HackingDojo.com -> "Online Hacking Lab" (at the top).

Very nice visualization, that makes it all a lot more clear  ;D

Ok, so I have made some changes to the HackingDojo.com web site (in advance of a new book coming out towards the end of the year), which includes a new "downloads" page.

As part of the change, and for those interested in finding out more about how classes are conducted at the Hacking Dojo, I included some new videos that are free to view, which include course recordings that until now have only been available to students at HackingDojo.com... enjoy!

http://HackingDojo.com/downloads.html

Ok, so I have a new passion with the Hacking Dojo, and that is expanding the hacker lab. After posting my rant on having a hacker lab, I've decided to expand the lab and increase the equipment / targets / systems within the lab. To help fund this endeavor (and it will be costly, based on what I have planned), I have started a "fundraiser," with different levels of contributors who will naturally receive different levels of access in return, starting with access to the Hacking Dojo's online hacking lab.

Swing by HackingDojo.com (http://HackingDojo.com), and let's see where we can take this to.

Someone suggested I post the goals for the fundraising and the current contributions for transparency reasons. The goal is $10k, and we hit 10% after the first day!! Thanks!

I'm glad to hear the labs are being expanded, so they can become even better  :) Can't wait to see how they'll turn out  ;D

Me too, to be honest. Think it'll be great. Also, I'm posting extra incentives once in a while on twitter (@HackingDojo) for anyone following me.

Update: we are on day 10, we have brought in 40% of our goal. Thanks for everyone who has helped out - I have a few more subscriptions to hakin9 magazine to give out to anyone who contributes, in case people are still interested.

Added an unreleased De-ICE disc to the HackingDojo.com online hacker lab last night, for anyone interested in testing their abilities. The challenge is rated at level 2, and is available to students at the Dojo, as well as anyone who contributes to the Hacking Dojo's fundraiser (details on the web site).

Enjoy, and good luck!

I wanted to give everyone a heads-up that I will be dropping the offer of a free iPad with the yearly student subscription to HackingDojo.com (http://HackingDojo.com) starting April 15th (primarily due to a heavy travel load coming up for me). If this was of interest to you, I might suggest you sign up sooner than later.

Hay all,

Does anyone know how to make a de-ice disk I have idea and wanted to created one but after having a Google cant find a process to a guide to follow.

I know what i want to do it just applying the changes then producing the iso any tips links or advice would be cool.

Thanks

I gave a talk almost 5 years ago at DefCon in how to build images like the De-ICE disks. Check out the links at:

http://www.defcon.org/html/links/dc-archives/dc-15-archive.html#Wilhelm

LMK if you have any questions.

I have watch this and I just wanted to make sure that I put any changes in the rootcopy folder ? also what software did you use to turn the files back into an iso ?

As it stands I have copy the files from the de-ice 2.100 I plan on changing them.

Within the disk are a couple apps that will build the images. Cannot remember the names, but it's something like buildiso.sh or .bat.

Yes, do your mods in rootcopy, and make any file mods in the rc.local file.

ok I will look into it see how I get on

Thanks

Just wanted to let everyone know that the Hacking Dojo will now be offering its 7-week Novice course as a on-demand video course. In addition, we knocked 30% off the price. Sign up for the course at our re-designed web site: HackingDojo.com (http://HackingDojo.com)

Can one take up the Nidan (2D) without going through the 1D?

This may have been explained earlier, but would like to understand.

Advancement is based on demonstration of skill, not time attended.

You can move onto the 2D when you pass the 1D test (which can be taken the first day you sign up if you feel you're skill level warrants the advancement). There is a written and a practical - but if you can pass both you can immediately move onto the 2D.

This is to ensure that everyone in the 2D has the same level of understanding - that way we don't have to reteach prior knowledge. There have been students that were able to advance pretty much right away, so if you want to and can test out, I'm all for it.

I recommend taking at least a couple of weeks on the first level, so you can get an idea of what the test will be about  :)