The Linux Professional Institute Certification (LPIC) program is designed to certify the competency of IT professionals using the Linux operating system and its associated tools. It is designed to distribute the Linux Standard Base and other relevant standards and conventions.

The LPIC program is designed in multiple levels. "Job Task Analysis" (JTA) survey determines which tasks are suitable for each level. As well as all the LPIC exam development processes, the JTA was developed and executed with the use of recognized psychometric processes, to ensure its relevance and high quality.

The LPI Certification Program is:

• Designed by a group of Linux professionals, volunteers, vendors and educators
• Challenging: if you don't know the subjects you won't pass exams
• Accessible and available in thousands of test centers around the world or during special events
• High-quality: relying on critical opinion of numerous Linux experts and applying scientific and industry-recognized psychometric processes
• Distribution-neutral: verifying knowledge on any standard Linux system
• Relevant: surveying thousands to determine the skills that need to be tested
• Training-vendor independent: encouraging a variety of methods and approaches to test preparation
• Supported and sponsored by a large number of Linux companies and projects
• A kind of certification the Linux group can have respect for and be proud of the kind of program, which consists of three levels of certification: LPIC-1, LPIC-2 and LPIC-3.

Junior Level Linux Professional (LPIC-1)

• Status: Available now. First published January 11, 2000; latest revision published August 2006
• The first IT certification program to be professionally accredited by National Commission For Certifying Agencies (NCCA )
• Pre-Requisites: None
• Requirements: Passing Exams 101 and 102
• Overview of Tasks: To pass Level 1 someone should be able to:
• Work at the Linux command line
• Perform easy maintenance tasks: help out users, add users to a larger system, backup & restore, shutdown & reboot
• Install and configure a workstation (including X) and connect it to a LAN, or a stand-alone PC via modem to the Internet.

Advanced Level Linux Professional (LPIC-2)

• Status: Available now; first published November 29, 2001; latest revision November 11, 2006
• Pre-Requisites: You must have an active LPIC-1 certification to receive LPIC-2 certification, but the LPIC-1 and LPIC-2 exams may be taken in any order.
• Requirements: Passing Exams 201 and 202
• Overview of Tasks: To pass Level 2 someone should be able to:
• Administer a small to medium-sized site
• Plan, implement, maintain, keep consistent, secure, and troubleshoot a small mixed (MS, Linux) network, including a:
• LAN server (samba)
• Internet Gateway (firewall, proxy, mail, news)
• Internet Server (webserver, FTP server)
• Supervise assistants
• Advise management on automation and purchases

Senior Level Linux Professional (LPIC-3)

The LPIC-3 Certification program represents the culmination of LPI's Certification Program.
LPIC-3 is designed for the "enterprise-level" Linux professional. The program was developed with the help of hundreds of Linux professionals from around the world and with contribution of some of the world's leading technology companies. It also represents the highest level of professional, distribution-neutral Linux certification within the industry.

The LPIC-3 program consists of a single exam in LPIC-3 "Core" designation. A number of "specialty" exams are proposed as additional LPIC-3 "Core" certifications. Proposed specialties include the following: Mixed Environment, Security, High Availability and Virtualization, Web and Intranet, and Mail and Messaging. The first "specialty" designation, "Mixed Environment", became available in January 2007. The next available specialty, "Security", will be available in February 2009.

Senior Level Linux Professional (LPIC-3 “Core” and LPI Specialty)

• Status: “Core” and LPI 302 (Mixed Environment) Specialty available January 2007
• Pre-Requisites: you must have an active LPIC-2 certification to receive LPIC-3 certification, but the LPIC-2 and LPIC-3 exams may be taken in any order
• Requirements: Core--passing the 301 exam. Specialty--passing the 301 exam and any one of the LPI 302 - 306 exams to receive the respective specialty certification
•  Overview of Tasks: to pass LPIC-3 “Core” someone should:
• Have several years experience with installing and maintaining Linux on a number of computers for various purposes
• Have integration experience with diverse technologies and operating systems
• Have professional experience as, or training for, an enterprise level Linux professional. (Including having experience as a part of another role)
• Know advanced and enterprise levels of Linux administration including installation, management, security, troubleshooting and maintenance
• Be able to use open source tools to measure capacity planning and troubleshoot resource problems
• Have professional experience using LDAP to integrate with Unix services and Windows services, including Samba, PAM, email, Active Directory
• Be able to plan, architecture, design, build and implement a full environment using Samba and LDAP as well as measure the capacity planning and security of the services
• Be able create scripts in Bash or Perl or has knowledge of at least one system programming language (such as C)
•  Overview of Tasks: to pass LPI 302 (Mixed Environment) Specialty someone should:
• Have necessary skills and experience as outlined in LPIC-3 “Core” exam
• Have professional experience using Samba to integrate file and print services with Windows, including user management, domain control, security and performance tuning
• Be able to plan, architecture, design, build and implement a complete multiuser environment using Samba