Which is why I haven't done it yet myself. When I get home from work I have a limited amount of time since I work fairly long hours, have an hour-long commute one way (which is great for listening to security podcasts btw), wife and 2 small kids (infant and toddler) and am finishing up my B.S. degree this semester that I procrastinated on forever. Oh and working a 2nd job too as a consultant for a state agency doing security research but there's no set hours (usually log 10 to 15 hours a week) and I work from home on that one.

I can do a lot of this kind of stuff during work hours but they have not accommodated all my lab requests yet, including a dedicated cable modem, but I'm hopeful this can happen soon. Allowing me to VPN from our network to the Offsec network will not be happening, EVER. And honestly that's how I want to keep it.

I typically spend about 5 to 10 hours a week on developing skills in my lab. Would that be sufficient or would I likely need more time than that? I could probably shift things around and get another 10 hours in over the weekend if I had to, but probably not every weekend.

Thanks cd1zz. That's my issue, can't use Offsec labs at work (not until I get separate internet connection for my lab so I can connect to their VPN), and don't have time when I get home. At least not yet. That's why this one keeps getting delayed, which is too bad because it seems to be rising in demand quite rapidly.

tturner - I see your dilemma. If you could do it while you're at work that would be nice!! Having long blocks of solid time is the best way to to conquer the course.... best of luck.

Why don't you use a laptop with a wireless connection (mobile phone for example) to connect to the lab? I know that it is expensive, but if you really want to do the course this way you can attain your goal.

I was in one of the first few OSCP exam groups so I don't know how much it has changed since then. At that time, while the course starts at a basic level, muts made it clear to us that outside resources would have to be used. So to pass the exam, you needed to have expanded your knowledge in certain areas. You were expected to look at all the options/arguments/switches/etc of the tools you were using....to use your mind/think outside the box rather that a step1 do this kind of course. That's not to say you had to become an expert in Olly or memorize all the nmap commands, you just had to know they existed or how to find them quickly. Hope this helps.

Congrats. Hope you had as much fun as I did. I see you have listed yourself as Associate of ISC2. Is there a reason you didn't post it as CISSP (Associate)? Is there some rule against that?

Thanks for the reply. I understand about the cert process (I'm just now starting this one) but most employers don't know what "Associate of ISC2" is but would more likely know what CISSP (Associate) is. "Associate of ISC2" doesn't tell anyone what exam you have passed. Let me restate the question: Is there anything wrong with using CISSP (Associate)?

Jsm725 is right. i am waiting to get the experience (still 2 yrs to go) to be able to apply for a full CISSP degree. It is PROHIBITED to use the CISSP tag in any form when you are an ISC2 associate. If they find out you use it, even with the associate clarification, they will either ask you to remove it with a warning, or permanently revoke your certification, so be warned!