Linux for Cloud and DevOps Engineers Course

Lesson 1 • Linux Architecture and Distributions

Covers kernel, shell, and userspace relationships plus distro selection for cloud. Establishes the conceptual foundation for all subsequent Linux work.

Lesson 2 • Terminal Navigation and Shell Basics

Introduces Bash syntax, prompt anatomy, and filesystem traversal commands. Enables confident command-line operation from the first session.

Lesson 3 • Linux Filesystem Hierarchy Standard

Maps the purpose of each standard directory in a Linux system. Prepares engineers to locate configs, logs, and binaries reliably.

Lesson 4 • Getting Linux Running Locally and in Cloud

Guides setup of local VMs and cloud-based Linux instances for practice. Ensures every student has a working lab environment immediately.

Lesson 1 • SSH Hardening and Key Management

Covers SSH daemon configuration, key-based auth, and access restrictions. Secures the primary remote access vector for cloud Linux servers.

Lesson 2 • File Permissions and Ownership

Explains read, write, execute bits and octal notation for files and dirs. Enables precise access control for application and config files.

Lesson 3 • User and Group Management

Covers creating, modifying, and deleting users and groups via CLI tools. Directly supports multi-user server and container security models.

Lesson 4 • Sudo and Privilege Escalation

Teaches sudoers file configuration and safe privilege delegation patterns. Reduces attack surface while enabling necessary administrative tasks.

Lesson 1 • Process Lifecycle and Monitoring

Explains process creation, states, and termination with key monitoring tools. Provides the basis for diagnosing application behaviour on servers.

Lesson 2 • Scheduling Tasks with Cron and Systemd Timers

Compares cron syntax with systemd timer units for scheduled automation. Supports recurring DevOps tasks like backups and health checks.

Lesson 3 • Resource Limits and Cgroups Basics

Introduces ulimit, cgroups v2, and per-process resource constraints. Prepares engineers for container resource management built on these primitives.

Lesson 4 • Signals and Process Control

Covers sending signals to processes for control and graceful shutdown. Essential for managing containerised and long-running cloud services.

Lesson 1 • Network Interface Configuration

Covers static and dynamic IP assignment using ip and nmcli tools. Directly applicable to configuring cloud VM network interfaces.

Lesson 2 • Virtual Networking and Bridges

Introduces Linux bridges, VLANs, and virtual Ethernet pairs used by containers. Connects host networking concepts to Docker and Kubernetes networking.

Lesson 3 • Routing and DNS Resolution

Explains routing tables, default gateways, and DNS resolver configuration. Enables engineers to control traffic paths in multi-subnet cloud VPCs.

Lesson 4 • Network Diagnostics and Troubleshooting

Applies ping, traceroute, ss, tcpdump, and curl to isolate network faults. Builds a systematic diagnostic workflow for cloud connectivity problems.

Lesson 1 • Logical Volume Management

Teaches LVM physical volumes, volume groups, and logical volume operations. Enables online resize and snapshot capabilities for cloud block storage.

Lesson 2 • Network and Shared Filesystems

Covers NFS and SMB mounting plus cloud-native shared storage options. Supports shared storage patterns used in stateful cloud applications.

Lesson 3 • Disk Partitioning and Formatting

Covers MBR vs. GPT partition schemes and tools like fdisk and parted. Prepares engineers to provision raw block devices in cloud environments.

Lesson 4 • Filesystem Types and Mounting

Compares ext4, XFS, and Btrfs and covers mount options and fstab. Enables correct filesystem selection and persistent mounting for cloud volumes.

Lesson 1 • Text Processing with sed, awk, and grep

Applies regex-based tools to parse logs, configs, and command output. Enables data extraction and transformation within automation scripts.

Lesson 2 • Error Handling and Script Robustness

Introduces set -euo pipefail, traps, and logging patterns for safe scripts. Ensures automation fails loudly and cleanly in production pipelines.

Lesson 3 • Functions, Arguments, and Input Handling

Covers function definition, positional parameters, and stdin processing. Promotes reusable, parameterised script design for DevOps pipelines.

Lesson 4 • Bash Scripting Fundamentals

Covers shebang, variables, quoting rules, and script execution modes. Establishes correct scripting habits that prevent common automation bugs.

Lesson 1 • Node Storage and Volume Management

Covers container image storage, overlay filesystems, and CSI driver setup. Enables correct persistent volume provisioning on Kubernetes nodes.

Lesson 2 • Container Runtimes on Linux

Covers containerd, CRI-O, and runc installation and configuration on Linux. Prepares engineers to manage Kubernetes node container runtime settings.

Lesson 3 • Kernel Parameters for Container Workloads

Tunes sysctl parameters required for Kubernetes networking and performance. Prevents common node-level failures caused by default kernel settings.

Lesson 4 • Node Networking and CNI Plugins

Explains how CNI plugins configure pod networking using Linux primitives. Enables diagnosis of pod-to-pod and pod-to-service connectivity issues.

Lesson 1 • System Logging and Log Management

Covers journald, rsyslog, and log forwarding to centralised platforms. Enables structured log collection required for cloud observability stacks.

Lesson 2 • Audit Framework and Compliance

Deploys auditd rules to track file access, privilege use, and system calls. Supports compliance requirements for regulated cloud environments.

Lesson 3 • Automated Hardening and Baseline Enforcement

Applies CIS benchmark controls and validates them with automated scanning tools. Ensures consistent security posture across fleets of cloud Linux instances.

Lesson 4 • Performance Profiling and Tuning

Uses perf, vmstat, sar, and flame graphs to identify system bottlenecks. Translates profiling data into actionable kernel and application tuning.