F5 Administering BIG-IP
Course Overview
If you have just been handed a BIG-IP system, or you are moving from routing and switching into application delivery, this is a sensible place to begin. F5 Administering BIG-IP training assumes no earlier BIG-IP experience, and it explains each idea before asking you to configure it.
The first idea is the full proxy. A BIG-IP system receives a client request, applies your settings, and makes a separate connection to a server. Once that clicks, the rest of the platform makes sense. You set up and license the system, then create VLANs, self IPs, and trunks to connect it to the network.
Next come the objects people use every day. A node is a server address, a pool groups servers, and a virtual server is what clients connect to. You choose a load balancing method, add a health monitor, and watch how traffic is shared. After that, you add profiles, persistence, and SNAT one at a time, so you can see what each of them changes.
Good habits are taught early. You save a UCS archive before every change, use the Configuration utility first and then tmsh, and set up logging so you can look back at what happened. User roles and administrative partitions stop new colleagues from changing things they should not.
Finally, the course covers high availability. You pair two devices, sync their configuration, and test failover, so you know the standby will take over when it is needed.
By the end, a new administrator should be able to read a BIG-IP configuration and explain it to a colleague. The course also provides the base for many of F5’s further BIG-IP classes, when you are ready for them.
Course Objectives
- Explain in plain terms what a BIG-IP system does and why it works as a full proxy.
- Set up and license a new BIG-IP system and provision its resources.
- Connect the system to the network with VLANs, self IPs, and trunks.
- Create nodes, pools, and virtual servers, and choose a load balancing method.
- Add health monitors and read object status to find a failed server.
- Apply profiles, persistence and SNAT, and describe what each one changes.
- Back up configuration with UCS archives and manage users through roles.
- Use the Configuration utility and tmsh, and collect logs, tcpdump captures, and iHealth data when a problem occurs.
- Configure a high availability pair with sync and failover.
Prior Knowledge
The following free Self-Directed Training (SDT) courses, although optional, are helpful for any student with limited BIG-IP administration and configuration experience:
- Getting Started with BIG-IP
- Getting Started with Local Traffic Manager (LTM)
Target Audience
- F5 BIG-IP administrators: build a clear map of every object they already touch each day.
- Network engineers: see how BIG-IP sits between routing, switching and the application.
- Application delivery engineers: learn the operational baseline before designing traffic policies.
- Systems administrators: understand why a healthy server can still fail to receive traffic.
- Network security engineers: know how access, roles and logging are controlled on the platform.
- Data centre and infrastructure specialists: support high availability pairs and configuration backups with confidence.
- Operations staff: gain the monitoring and log-reading skills used during incidents.
- Teams planning a BIG-IP deployment: share one vocabulary before design work begins.
Course Content
3 modules · 66 topics01Module 1: BIG-IP Setup32 topics
- Introducing F5 Solutions
- Introducing the BIG-IP System
- Initially Setting Up a Standalone BIG-IP System
- Configuring the Management Interface
- Activating the Software License
- Provisioning Modules and Resources
- Importing a Device Certificate
- Specifying BIG-IP Platform Properties
- Configuring the Network
- Configuring Network Time Protocol (NTP) Servers
- Configuring Domain Name System (DNS) Settings
- Backing Up and Restoring BIG-IP Configuration Data
- Using Single Configuration Files (SCF)
- Overview of the BIG-IP High Availability Feature
- Configuring DSC Communication Settings
- Establishing Device Trust
- Establishing a Sync-Failover Device Group
- Synchronizing Configuration Data
- Securing Management Access
- Securing Self IP Addresses with Port Lockdown
- Securing SSH Administrative Traffic
- Securing HTTPS Administrative Traffic
- Securing NTP Services
- Running BIG-IP in Appliance Mode
- Securing the Automatic Update Check and Phone Home Features
- Securing the Default System Maintenance Accounts
- Restricting Command Line Access by User
- Tracking User Access and Actions
- Enforcing a Secure Password Policy
- Securing Persistence Cookies
- Securing BIG-IP Generated HTTP Server Header Information
- Getting Help If You Are Under Attack or Experiencing a Security Breach
02Module 2: Local Traffic Basics16 topics
- Understanding BIG-IP Local Traffic Processing Configuration Objects
- Load Balancing Traffic through a BIG-IP System
- Monitoring Traffic Processing and Performance Using Statistics
- Managing the Status of Nodes and Pool Members
- Using the TMOS Shell (TMSH)
- Managing the BIG-IP System's Configuration State and Files
- Mapping IP Addresses with NATs
- Solving Routing Issues with Source Address and Port Translation
- Introducing Local Traffic Monitoring on the BIG-IP System
- Deploying a Local Traffic Monitor
- Managing Local Traffic Monitors During Application Delivery
- Overview of Modifying Traffic Behavior with Profiles
- Introducing SSL Offload and Re-encryption
- Introducing Persistence on the BIG-IP System
- Persisting Traffic Based on Source IP Address (Source Address Affinity)
- Understanding the Impact of Object State on Persistence
03Module 3: Administering BIG-IP18 topics
- Overview of Using TCPDUMP on a BIG-IP System
- Interpreting TCPDUMP Output
- Understanding TCPDUMP Filters and Options
- Analyzing TCPDUMP captures with WireShark
- Introducing BIG-IP System Logging Features
- Logging Locally on the BIG-IP System
- Logging Remotely Using High-Speed Logging (HSL)
- Configuring Audit Logging for the BIG-IP System
- Creating and Uploading a QKView
- Viewing Diagnostics and Status Information
- Troubleshooting
- Examining the BIG-IP Configuration
- Defining User Roles and Administrative Partitions
- Overview of Upgrading a BIG-IP System
- Planning for a BIG-IP System Upgrade
- Preparing to Upgrade a BIG-IP System
- Installing an Upgrade on a BIG-IP System
- Considerations when Upgrading a Sync-Failover Device Group
Schedule Dates
4 upcoming batches| Batch Dates | Duration | Batch Options | Language | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 November 2026 - 24 November 2026 | 2 Days | 4 hours & 8 hours | English / Arabic | |
| 01 March 2027 - 02 March 2027 | 2 Days | 4 hours & 8 hours | English / Arabic | |
| 07 June 2027 - 08 June 2027 | 2 Days | 4 hours & 8 hours | English / Arabic | |
| 13 September 2027 - 14 September 2027 | 2 Days | 4 hours & 8 hours | English / Arabic |
Can’t find a suitable date? Request a schedule that fits your team.
Request More InformationF5 BIG-IP Training in Ethiopia for Growing Banking and Telecom Networks
Addis Ababa is the centre of Ethiopia’s banking, telecom, and government activity, and cities such as Hawassa and Dire Dawa are growing their own business and technology communities. As banks and telecom operators expand digital services under the national digital transformation strategy, more applications and more traffic pass through networks that engineers have to keep running. F5 Administering BIG-IP training in Ethiopia is aimed at the people who take on that work, including those who are new to BIG-IP. The Information Network Security Administration (INSA) works on national information security, which makes careful access control, logging, and backups part of good practice for any team. For engineers weighing an F5 BIG-IP course in Addis Ababa, the full topic list is on this page, and a natural next step is our F5 course catalogue. If you would like to strengthen your basics first, see our TCP/IP and networking fundamentals courses. Questions are welcome, so get in touch with the training team to ask about the outline.
FAQs
What is F5 Administering BIG-IP training in simple terms?
It is a course that teaches you to run a BIG-IP system, a device that directs traffic between users and application servers. You learn what each configuration object does, how to set it up, and how daily tasks such as backups, logging, and failover work. Lectures and hands-on labs support the learning.
What is a BIG-IP system used for?
It is used to deliver applications reliably. The device receives requests, picks a healthy server, and forwards the traffic, while also handling tasks such as address translation and failover. Organisations place it in front of web and business applications so that one failed server does not stop the service. The course covers the objects that make this work.
Can engineers with no BIG-IP experience attend?
Yes. The course introduces the BIG-IP system, so prior BIG-IP experience is not required. Network administrators, operators, and engineers are the intended audience. You will find it easier if you already understand IP addressing, routing, and TCP/IP basics, which F5 recommends before attending any of its instructor-led courses.
What networking basics should I revise first?
Revise the OSI model, routing and switching, Ethernet and ARP, TCP/IP concepts, IP addressing and subnetting, NAT and private addressing, default gateways, firewalls, and the difference between LAN and WAN. F5 does not require an earlier F5 course, but it offers optional, free Getting Started web-based training as a gentle introduction to BIG-IP.
What will I know how to do after the course?
You will know how to license and set up a BIG-IP system, build virtual servers and pools, add health monitors, and apply profiles, persistence, and SNAT. You will also be able to save and restore UCS archives, create users with limited roles, read logs, and configure a failover pair. You practise these steps in labs.
Do I get an F5 certificate by attending?
No. Attending gives you training only. An F5 certification is earned by passing the applicable F5 exams, which are separate from the course. F5’s BIG-IP Administrator certification now includes five exams. Because exam rules and eligibility can change, confirm the current details on F5’s own certification pages before you plan.
What do load balancing and health checks add to an application?
They add resilience and capacity. Load balancing shares requests across servers so that none is overloaded. Health checks, called monitors on BIG-IP, detect a server that has stopped responding and take it out of use. With high availability added, the device itself is also protected, and users keep seeing a working service while administrators fix the fault.
How can the course support my growth as an engineer?
It gives you a practical base in application delivery, a skill area that sits between networking and applications. The course also presents prerequisite knowledge for many other F5 BIG-IP courses, so you can choose further study later. It cannot promise a certification, a job or a salary rise, since those depend on your effort, any exams and your employer.
Flexible Training Options to Meet Your Needs
Choose how you learn — live online, in-classroom, at your workplace, or internationally. CounselTrain delivers certified IT training in the format that fits your team.
Select the method that best suits your needs.
Online Instructor-Led Training
Learn from the comfort of your workplace or at home through live virtual sessions led by expert trainers.
Learn moreHighlights
Classroom Training
Participate in interactive, face-to-face training in our top 5-star training facilities in Dubai.
Learn moreHighlights
Onsite Training
Learn a customised curriculum in your workplace to ensure the most impact and team participation.
Learn moreHighlights
Overseas Training
Participate in our international training sessions and improve your abilities with world-class instructors.
Learn moreHighlights
Related Courses
Other courses in the same category that might interest you.
