- C)DRE means Certified Disaster Recovery Engineer, a Mile2 credential covering business continuity and disaster recovery planning.
- The exam has 100 multiple-choice questions, runs about two hours, and requires at least 70% to pass.
- Preparation follows nine published course modules, from Introduction through Pandemics; the outline is not a weighted blueprint.
- The Exam Combo listing shows a US$500 promotional price against US$795 list, with two attempts included.
What C)DRE Actually Is
C)DRE is the official styling for the Certified Disaster Recovery Engineer credential from Mile2. The acronym is shared by other credentials in the wider industry, so it pays to be precise: everything on this page refers only to the Mile2 disaster recovery certification, not to any similarly abbreviated program. If you want a quick orientation on the name itself, our explainers on what C)DRE stands for and the meaning of C)DRE cover the terminology in more depth.
The certification validates that you can plan, design, implement, test, and maintain the processes that keep an organization running when something goes wrong. That means going beyond backups and failover. A Certified Disaster Recovery Engineer is expected to understand how business impact is measured, how continuity and recovery plans are built, how IT recovery strategies are chosen, and how the whole program is exercised and kept current over time.
Who Issues It and How Testing Works
The credential is issued by Mile2, a vendor of cybersecurity and IT certification training. Candidates take the exam through Mile2's own online account and learning management system, historically referred to as MACS. No external third-party testing company has been verified for this exam.
Mile2's FAQ indicates that most of its standard exams do not require a scheduled live proctor, and C)DRE is not listed as a named exception. That said, specific rules around open-book use, calculators, adaptive delivery, and accommodations were not verified in the public sources reviewed, so confirm those details inside your Mile2 account before test day rather than assuming anything. For scheduling questions, see our guide to C)DRE exam dates and scheduling.
Exam Format at a Glance
| Element | What the Published Sources Show |
|---|---|
| Question count | 100 multiple-choice questions |
| Duration | Approximately two hours (course outline and general FAQ both indicate this) |
| Passing standard | Minimum 70% |
| Scored vs. unscored items | Not disclosed |
| Candidate pass rate | Not publicly disclosed |
| Delivery | Mile2 online account / LMS (MACS) |
| Exam-domain weighting | Not published as an official blueprint |
With 100 questions in roughly two hours, you have a little over a minute per item. The questions are multiple choice, and disaster recovery material tends to reward careful reading: many items test whether you can pick the most appropriate action or document for a given phase of the program. For a realistic view of effort, read how hard the C)DRE exam is, and for the scoring threshold specifically, see our page on the C)DRE passing score. Because Mile2 does not publish a candidate pass rate, our C)DRE pass rate article explains what can and cannot be said responsibly.
The Nine Course Modules
Mile2's current course outline lists nine modules. It is undated and is a course outline rather than a verified weighted exam blueprint, so treat the modules as the published preparation topics, not as percentage-weighted exam sections. We map them below as nine domains for study purposes. For a deeper walkthrough of each, see the complete guide to all 9 C)DRE content areas.
Domain 1: Introduction
Sets the vocabulary and scope of disaster recovery and continuity planning.
- Know how disaster recovery relates to business continuity
- Be fluent in the core terms used throughout later modules
Domain 2: Business Impact Analysis
The analytical foundation for every recovery decision that follows.
- Understand how critical functions and dependencies are identified
- Connect impact findings to recovery priorities and timeframes
Domain 3: BCP and DRP Design
How continuity and disaster recovery plans are structured and documented.
- Distinguish what belongs in a business continuity plan versus a disaster recovery plan
- Know how plan components fit together
Domain 4: IT Recovery Strategies
Matching technical recovery approaches to business requirements.
- Evaluate alternative recovery options against impact analysis results
- Understand trade-offs among recovery approaches
Domain 5: IT Resiliency
Designing systems and infrastructure to withstand disruption in the first place.
- Understand how resilience reduces reliance on recovery
- Relate resilient design choices to the recovery strategies in Domain 4
Domain 6: Implementation Phase
Turning approved plans and strategies into working capability.
- Know the sequence of activities that put a plan into effect
- Understand the roles and responsibilities needed to execute it
Domain 7: Testing and Exercise
Proving that plans actually work before a real incident.
- Recognize the different kinds of tests and exercises and their purposes
- Understand how results feed plan improvement
Domain 8: Maintenance and Execution
Keeping the program current and carrying out the plan when it is needed.
- Understand why plans decay without scheduled review
- Know what execution looks like during an actual event
Domain 9: Pandemics
Applying continuity and recovery thinking to prolonged, people-centered disruptions.
- Recognize how a pandemic differs from a facility or system outage
- Understand planning considerations when workforce availability is the main constraint
Who Benefits From the Credential
Disaster recovery skills matter wherever downtime is expensive: IT operations teams, infrastructure and systems engineers, security and risk staff, and the project or program managers responsible for continuity planning. The credential is most directly relevant to roles that own or contribute to recovery planning, testing, and maintenance, and to professionals who need to speak credibly with business stakeholders about impact and priorities.
We deliberately avoid quoting salary numbers because no verified figures exist in the sources we reviewed. For a qualitative discussion of how the credential fits into career paths, see our C)DRE salary guide, our overview of C)DRE jobs, and the ROI analysis of the certification.
Fees, Prerequisites, and Training
Pricing mechanics
Mile2's official Exam Combo listing shows a promotional price of US$500 against a US$795 list price. We could not verify the final checkout price, so confirm it at purchase. The combo includes two exam attempts and preparation resources. It is not structured as a member versus non-member split. A fuller breakdown lives in our C)DRE certification cost article.
Prerequisites
Mile2 suggests twelve months of experience in Information Systems and twelve months in Information Systems Management. These are suggested, not mandatory. Training is also not required to attempt the certification, so candidates with relevant experience can sit the exam directly. See C)DRE requirements for how to judge your own readiness.
Training option
Mile2 offers a four-day course that awards 32 CEUs. If you prefer instructor-led learning, that route also front-loads CEUs toward your eventual renewal. Details on formats are in our C)DRE training overview.
Validity and Renewal
The credential is valid for three years. Mile2 describes two renewal routes:
- CEU path: 60 CEUs over the cycle, commonly spread as 20 per year, plus an ethics/policy acknowledgment and a US regional renewal fee of $200.
- Examination-based renewal: retaking the exam as an alternative to accumulating CEUs.
Because a single four-day course already awards 32 CEUs, candidates who take training can cover more than half of the CEU requirement in one step.
Sequencing Your Preparation
Since the modules form a lifecycle, study them in lifecycle order rather than jumping around. Business Impact Analysis deserves early attention because its logic underpins the recovery strategy and design modules. A reasonable arc looks like this:
Foundations
- Introduction and Business Impact Analysis
- Build a personal glossary of recovery terms
Design
- BCP and DRP Design, IT Recovery Strategies, IT Resiliency
- Practice tying each strategy back to impact findings
Execution and Proof
- Implementation Phase, Testing and Exercise, Maintenance and Execution
- Compare exercise types and their purposes
Specialized Scenario and Review
- Pandemics, then timed practice sets across all nine modules
- Revisit weak areas identified by practice results
For a fuller plan, use our C)DRE study guide, and keep the C)DRE cheat sheet handy for last-day review. When you are ready to test your recall under realistic conditions, take a timed set on the C)DRE practice test platform and review every missed explanation. Practice-question allocations across modules on that site are editorial, not official weights.
Key Takeaway
Do not over-invest in any single module on the assumption that it carries more points. No official weighting is published, so balanced coverage of all nine modules, with extra time on Business Impact Analysis because everything else depends on it, is the safest approach.
Frequently Asked Questions
In this context, C)DRE stands for Certified Disaster Recovery Engineer, a certification offered by Mile2. See what C)DRE stands for for more.
The exam has 100 multiple-choice questions in approximately two hours, and a minimum of 70% is required to pass. Mile2 does not disclose how many items are scored versus unscored.
No. Training is not required to attempt the certification. Mile2 does offer a four-day course that awards 32 CEUs if you want structured instruction.
No. Mile2 publishes a nine-module course outline, but not a verified weighted exam blueprint. The nine modules are best treated as preparation topics rather than weighted exam sections.
It is valid for three years. You can renew with 60 CEUs (commonly 20 per year), an ethics/policy acknowledgment, and a US regional renewal fee of $200, or you can renew by re-examination instead.