You can see it againUnder pressure people bring back shapes and positions long after the wording has gone.
Picture superiority · Shepard 1967, Standing 1973
F5F5 Certified Administrator NGINX - Configuration:Demonstrate
The F5 Certified Administrator NGINX - Configuration: Demonstrate certification validates your ability to perform day-to-day administration of NGINX Open Source Software as a web and proxy server. This exam is one of four required for the F5 Certified Administrator, NGINX credential. It proves you can install, configure, and verify NGINX in real-world scenarios, from HTTPS and load balancing to logging and troubleshooting.
Duration30 minutes
DeliveryPearson VUE, Certiverse
Passing score245
Free questions319
Content last reviewed 30 July 2026 · Up to date
The certification
What F5N3 proves, and what it asks of you
What this certification covers, who it is written for, and what the exam itself looks like on the day.
5domains
19objectives
103concepts
USD $50 Online; US$65 Test Centerexam fee
What it is
What this certification is
What it validates, who it is written for, and the experience it assumes.
About this certification
The F5 NGINX Configuration: Demonstrate exam (F5N3) is one of four exams candidates must pass to earn the F5 Certified Administrator, NGINX certification. It validates the skills and understanding needed for day-to-day management of an NGINX web server platform, based on NGINX Open Source Software rather than NGINX Plus.
The minimally qualified candidate has a basic understanding of how NGINX works, including its primary characteristics, concepts, terms, and constructs, and can perform basic administration functions. They are comfortable with the Linux command line and have experience with essential NGINX functionalities, such as installing from official repositories, using NGINX as a web server, HTTPS, load balancing, understanding modules, shared memory zones, reading logs, and verifying proper operation.
Who it’s for
This certification is for administrators and engineers who manage NGINX Open Source Software in production environments. It is ideal for those responsible for the day-to-day operation of NGINX as a web server, reverse proxy, or load balancer. Candidates should be familiar with the Linux command line and have hands-on experience with foundational NGINX functionalities. The exam focuses on practical, real-world tasks rather than theoretical knowledge.
Recommended experience
Familiarity with the Linux command line and hands-on experience with essential NGINX functionalities. Experience with NGINX Open Source Software installation from official repositories; Understanding of NGINX as a web server, HTTPS, and load balancer; Ability to read and interpret NGINX logs and use variables; Knowledge of NGINX modules and shared memory zones
The syllabus
What you’ll learn
Every domain and objective F5 measures, with the weight they carry on the exam.
The official F5 exam outline · checked 30 July 2026 · See the source
Demonstrate how to manage connections and bandwidth
- Describe the difference between rate limiting and bandwidth throttling
- Demonstrate how to limit the amount of connections that are made to the NGINX server and its
- Demonstrate how to set a bandwidth limit
- Understand how to enable and optimize keep-alives for the NGINX server and its upstreams
Demonstrate how to restrict access
- Demonstrate how to restrict access to NGINX based on IP address
- Demonstrate how to restrict access to NGINX based on HTTP method
- Demonstrate how to authenticate (auth basic / auth request)
- Demonstrate how to restrict URIs
Demonstrate how to configure logging
- Demonstrate how to customize the format of log files
- Demonstrate how to customize the location of log files
- Demonstrate how to set log levels (severity)
- Describe the difference between an error log and an access log
Demonstrate how to configure certificates
- Define the difference between a server certificate and a client certificate
- Describe the components necessary to use an SSL certificate
- Describe how to protect the SSL certificate and key
Demonstrate how to enable HTTPS and associated security settings
- Compare the advantages of TLS termination, end to end encryption, and TLS passthrough
- Demonstrate how to enable TLS encryption
- Enable/Disable ciphers and TLS version
- Describe how force all traffic to redirect to HTTPS
On the day
The exam itself
Everything F5 publishes about sitting it, and nothing we inferred.
Prerequisites
Pass all four NGINX exams (F5N1, F5N2, F5N3, F5N4) to achieve the F5 Certified Administrator, NGINX certification.
Exam codeF5N3
CertificationF5 Certified Administrator NGINX - Configuration: Demonstrate
Duration30 minutes
Passing score245
DeliveryPearson VUE, Certiverse
LanguagesEnglish
PricingUSD $50 Online; US$65 Test Center
After you pass
Where this credential goes next
The path F5 lays out, how the credential is kept, and where to book.
Step-by-step path to F5 Certified Administrator NGINX - Configuration: Demonstrate
PrerequisitePass all four NGINX exams (F5N1, F5N2, F5N3, F5N4) to achieve the F5 Certified Administrator, NGINX certification.
Credential earnedF5 Certified Administrator NGINX - Configuration: Demonstrate Certification Lifecycle status
This certification is currently active and available. F5 maintains this certification to validate current skills and industry relevance.
Exam status: ActiveMaintained by F5
Exam registration
Register for the exam through Pearson VUE, Certiverse, F5’s authorized testing partner.
Schedule your examVisit the official F5 certification page for exam policies and requirements.
View the official pageYour coach
And when you are serious, your coach Pip takes over
Your coach in the app reads what you have answered with the book closed and tells you one thing to do tonight. It will not count an answer you gave with the page open, and it will tell you when you are not ready.
See how the coach worksBefore you book
Questions people ask
What is the retake policy if I fail the F5N3 exam?
After the first failure, you must wait 15 days. The second failure requires a 30-day wait, the third 45 days, the fourth one year, and the fifth or more 90 days. You can schedule a retake during the wait period but cannot sit for the exam until it ends. Your retake count resets only by passing the exam.
Can I take the NGINX exams in any order?
Yes, the four NGINX exams (F5N1, F5N2, F5N3, F5N4) may be taken in any order. You must pass all four to earn the F5 Certified Administrator, NGINX certification.
Is the F5N3 exam based on NGINX Open Source or NGINX Plus?
The NGINX certification is based on NGINX Open Source Software, not NGINX Plus.
How do I schedule or reschedule my F5N3 exam?
You can schedule, reschedule, or cancel your exam through the F5 Education Services Portal. Rescheduling or cancellation must be done at least 48 hours before your appointment to avoid a fee. F5 Support, Pearson VUE, and Certiverse cannot process these requests for you.
What are the online proctoring requirements for F5N3?
Online exams are delivered via Certiverse and require camera access. You must have a valid, signed government-issued ID when checking in, and the name on your ID must match the name on your F5 Certified account.
What job roles does the F5 Certified Administrator, NGINX credential map to?
The credential is designed for administrators and engineers responsible for day-to-day management of NGINX web server platforms, including tasks like installation, configuration, load balancing, and troubleshooting.
Are there any study resources recommended for F5N3?
F5 provides an exam blueprint and study guides on the exam page. The NGINX Administrator Accelerator self-directed training is also recommended and awards an F5 NGINX Administrator Accreditation (Credly Badge) upon completion.
Information freshness · Content last reviewed on 2026-07-30 Up to date
Practice free questions 319 questions, free, no account needed.
The curriculum
The whole exam, mapped and written
Every domain, every objective, and every concept F5 measures — each one written out.
5domains
19objectives
103concepts
72free pages
The domains, and what sits inside them
Every objective below is a page you can open and practise now, without an account.
The official F5 exam outline · checked 30 July 2026 · See the source
1Demonstrate how to manage connections and bandwidth64 questions
Describe the difference between rate limiting and bandwidth throttling9 concepts · 6 pagesOpen →Demonstrate how to limit the amount of connections that are made to the NGINX server and its8 concepts · 2 pagesOpen →Demonstrate how to set a bandwidth limit4 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →Understand how to enable and optimize keep-alives for the NGINX server and its upstreams4 concepts · 3 pagesOpen →
2Demonstrate how to restrict access62 questions
Demonstrate how to restrict access to NGINX based on IP address5 concepts · 3 pagesOpen →Demonstrate how to restrict access to NGINX based on HTTP method5 concepts · 3 pagesOpen →Demonstrate how to authenticate (auth basic / auth request)4 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →Demonstrate how to restrict URIs6 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →
3Demonstrate how to configure logging57 questions
Demonstrate how to customize the format of log files6 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →Demonstrate how to customize the location of log files5 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →Demonstrate how to set log levels (severity)5 concepts · 3 pagesOpen →Describe the difference between an error log and an access log4 concepts · 2 pagesOpen →
4Demonstrate how to configure certificates69 questions
5Demonstrate how to enable HTTPS and associated security settings67 questions
Compare the advantages of TLS termination, end to end encryption, and TLS passthrough6 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →Demonstrate how to enable TLS encryption8 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →Enable/Disable ciphers and TLS version4 concepts · 3 pagesOpen →Describe how force all traffic to redirect to HTTPS5 concepts · 3 pagesOpen →
Not a table of contents
Every line on this map already opens
In front of every objective the practice pages are already there, free and without an account. This is one objective, opened.
Describe the difference between rate limiting and bandwidth throttling6 pagesOpen →
Free in front of it
26 questions on this objective, five to a page. Every range above is a real page, open now, with no account.
Reading the map is not the same as knowing the ground
The curriculum tells you what is on the exam. Proving you know it is a different job — and it is the one the closed-book run does.
Free questions
319 questions. No account, no card.
The whole bank is open. 5 questions to a page, every answer explained, and a discussion thread on each one.
319questions
72pages
19objectives
Freealways
Start anywhereDescribe the difference between rate limiting and bandwidth throttling 26 questions · 6 pages
Browse by domain
Every objective, and every page range, is a link — so you can pick up exactly where you left off.
1Demonstrate how to manage connections and bandwidth64 questions
2Demonstrate how to restrict access62 questions
3Demonstrate how to configure logging57 questions
4Demonstrate how to configure certificates69 questions
5Demonstrate how to enable HTTPS and associated security settings67 questions
What a practice page gives you
1Five to a page
Short enough to finish, long enough to matter.
2Every answer explained
Not only which one is right — why the others are wrong.
3A discussion on each
Ask, answer, and vote. Every question has its own thread.
A question, and the idea behind it
Every question comes from a concept
These are not trivia. Each one is written against a concept in the book, so when you get one wrong there is somewhere to go and find out why.
The visual book
See it once. Carry it into the exam.
The pages shown here come from our AI-900 book — an example of how each concept is written in plain language and, where the idea needs one, drawn as a full page you can take in at a glance.
103concepts
319free questions
Why a picture, and not another paragraph
Three reasons, and each one is a real finding rather than a slogan.
You can see it againThe whole idea at onceWhere it starts, what happens in the middle, what comes out, and the mistake to avoid.
Multimedia principle · MayerThe look-alikes sit togetherThe pairs the exam tests are drawn side by side, so the difference is seen, not told.
Dual coding · PaivioWhat one page is made of
You are never asked to read a poster here — only to see how one is built. After that, every other page is legible at a glance.
1A numbered strip on top
The idea as a sequence, followed with a finger before a word is read.
2Panels for the parts
What it is, how the machine learns it, when it is the right tool.
3The trap, framed
The distinction the exam tests, given its own box instead of buried in prose.
4One line at the bottom
The sentence to carry into the exam room.
Open book, on purpose
Answer it with the picture beside you
This is the part that teaches. The illustration and the written explanation stay where they are while you work, so a scenario stops being a memory test and becomes something you can simply look at.
It teaches · it does not count
A smartphone uses AI to unlock when the owner looks at the camera. Which AI capability is being used?
AImage classification
BFacial recognition
COptical character recognition
DObject detection
Look at the five steps. Detect finds a face, align straightens it, encode turns it into numbers, search compares it with a stored face, and decide answers one question: is this the same person? Classification would only say “a face”. Detection would only draw a box. Neither decides whose.
Then the page shuts, and it starts counting
The same questions come back with the book closed — that run is the one that counts. After it, your coach picks one thing for tonight, sized to the time you have, and brings pages back before you lose them.
Testing effect · Roediger & Karpicke 2006 · spacing effect · Cepeda et al. 2006
Official resources
Straight from F5
Where the exam is defined, scheduled and scored.
3official links
103concepts mapped
The source
F5’s own pages
We link to them rather than repeat them, so nothing here goes stale behind them.
Checked against the source
Every objective on the official F5 outline already has questions here
We build from the official skills outline, not from a summary of it — 19 objectives, 103 concepts written under them, and free questions against every one. When F5 changes the outline, this page changes with it.
19objectives on the outline→103concepts written→319free questions
An official page tells you what will be asked. It cannot tell you what you will get right.
That is the only question worth answering the night before, and no link answers it. You answer it by taking the questions with the book closed, and seeing what comes back.