DevOps and Cloud Engineer

DevOps work is making someone else's software build, deploy and stay up, repeatedly and without heroics. This route starts at the command line and Git, adds a language for tooling, then covers containers, cloud, scale and the security side of holding production credentials. It ends with the interview topics for the role, and is explicit that a cloud provider and an incident are things you cannot practise here.

6 stages · 28 steps

1. 1

   The shell and the machine

   Move around a Linux machine confidently, and write a script instead of repeating yourself.

   • Language guideBash & the ShellThe first tool of the job: everything else is driven from a shell.
   • Concept guideThe Linux Command LineFiles, processes, permissions and pipes, which the rest of this roadmap assumes.
   • ReferenceLinux commands referenceKeep it open for the first few weeks on a server.
2. 2

   Version control as a working habit

   Use Git the way a team does, and make a push trigger the work instead of doing it by hand.

   • Concept guideGit and GitHubInfrastructure is code now, which means it lives in a repository with reviews.
   • ReferenceGit commands referenceIncluding the commands that destroy work, clearly marked.
   • Concept guideCI/CD PipelinesThe direct consequence of the previous step: a push that builds, tests and deploys.
3. 3

   A language for tooling

   Write and debug a real script — parse some output, call an API, exit with a status that means something.

   • Language guidePythonWhere shell scripts stop being readable, Python starts.
   • LessonPython FunctionsWhere a script that grew too long becomes something you can change one piece of.
   • LessonPython DictionariesEvery config file and API response you parse becomes one of these.
   • ExercisesPython exercisesSmall checked problems, so your first real automation is not also your first Python.
   • PlaygroundPython playgroundFor trying a parsing expression out before it goes into a pipeline step.
   • Language guideGoWorth knowing about: a large share of the infrastructure tools you will operate are written in it.
4. 4

   Containers, services and scale

   Package an application, run it somewhere rented, and reason about what happens when there is more traffic or a broken machine.

   • Concept guideDocker and ContainersThe unit almost everything is shipped as today.
   • Concept guideCloud Computing FundamentalsThe service models and the regions, before any one provider's product names.
   • Concept guideMicroservices ArchitectureBecause you will be asked to operate one whether or not it was a good idea.
   • Concept guideDistributed Systems BasicsPartial failure and retries are the daily reality of the previous step.
   • Concept guidePerformance and ScalabilityMeasure before scaling: the discipline that separates this role from guesswork.
5. 5

   What you are being trusted to keep safe

   Hold production credentials responsibly, and know what your pipeline pulls in on your behalf.

   • Concept guideSecrets and Credential ManagementThis role holds the keys, which makes it the most valuable target in the system.
   • Concept guideDependency and Supply Chain SecurityYour build machine installs code from the internet on every run.
   • Concept guideEncryption BasicsCertificates, keys and hashing, so TLS is not a black box you restart.
   • Concept guideHTTP and HTTPSLoad balancers, health checks and proxy debugging all happen at this layer.
   • Developer toolSHA Hash GeneratorFor checking a checksum instead of trusting a download.
   • Developer toolJWT DecoderFor the token in a failing request between two services.
6. 6

   Data, and interviewing for the role

   Answer the operational questions, including the database ones that arrive uninvited.

   • Language guideSQLYou will be asked to check something in a database during an incident.
   • PlaygroundSQL playgroundPractise the read-only query you will want during an incident, calmly, in advance.
   • Concept guidePostgreSQLConnections, locks and backups are operational concerns, not only developer ones.
   • Interview prepDevOps & Cloud interview questionsThe round most specific to this role, covering Git, pipelines, containers and cloud basics.
   • Interview prepSystem Design interview questionsExpect to be asked how a deploy happens and what you do when it fails.

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