A practical treatment of vendor lock-in, the cost and difficulty of leaving a vendor relationship that is functioning perfectly well, distinct from the vendor failure risk covered in software-escrow-agreements. You will learn the three mechanisms that create lock-in, how to assess and negotiate portability before signing a contract, the infrastructure-layer and application-layer distinction, how to build an exit plan while a vendor is still healthy, and how to score, reassess, and honestly weigh the cost and benefit of reducing lock-in over time. Every scenario and figure in this course is a clearly labelled hypothetical; no real vendor or real migration is described.
Nothing. Every course, exam, and certificate on the catalog is free — including retakes. All you need is a free Safeguard account.
None. The flagship course, Safeguard Certified Practitioner, is a beginner-level course — basic familiarity with how software is built helps, but every exam question is answerable from the lessons themselves.
You can retake it after a 24-hour cooldown, as many times as you need. Retakes are free, and each attempt draws a fresh random set of questions.
The Safeguard Certified Practitioner credential is valid for 24 months from issue. The expiry date is printed on the certificate and shown live on its public verification page. Renewing means passing the current exam again.
