Beginner DevOps Learning Roadmap
This roadmap guides beginners through foundational Linux, scripting, Git, CI/CD, Docker, Kubernetes, IaC, and monitoring, providing a balanced approach to theory and hands-on practice over 90 days.
Days 1-9: Linux & Networking Fundamentals
Days 1-9Establish a strong foundation in Linux command-line operations and basic networking concepts essential for DevOps.
- What is Linux? Introduction to Operating Systems
- Common Linux distributions (Ubuntu, CentOS)
- Basic Linux commands (ls, cd, pwd, mkdir, rm, cp, mv, cat, less, grep)
- Linux file system hierarchy (/, /bin, /etc, /var, /home)
- User management and permissions (chmod, chown)
- Package management (apt, yum) and software installation
- Introduction to Networking: IP addresses, DNS, ports, firewalls
- SSH (Secure Shell) for remote access
- Set up a Linux Virtual Machine (e.g., using VirtualBox or WSL2)
- Practice core Linux commands and navigate the file system
- Create/manage users and assign file permissions
- Install and update software packages using apt/yum
- Connect to a remote server using SSH
Proficiency in basic Linux commands and secure remote access.
Days 10-18: Scripting Essentials & Basic Tools
Days 10-18Develop fundamental scripting skills in Python and Bash for automation, and become familiar with common text processing tools.
- Introduction to Python for scripting: variables, data types, control flow (if/else, loops), functions
- Working with files in Python
- Introduction to Bash scripting: variables, conditionals, loops, functions
- Executing Bash scripts and setting permissions
- Text processing tools: grep, sed, awk
- Environment variables and their use
- Write simple Python scripts to automate file operations or data manipulation
- Create Bash scripts for system maintenance tasks (e.g., backup, log rotation)
- Use grep, sed, and awk to parse and manipulate text files
- Automate a basic task by combining Python and Bash scripts
Ability to write basic automation scripts in Python and Bash.
Days 19-27: Version Control with Git
Days 19-27Master Git for version control, including branching, merging, and collaborating with remote repositories like GitHub.
- What is Version Control? Why Git?
- Git architecture: working directory, staging area, local repository
- Basic Git commands: init, add, commit, status, log, diff
- Branching and Merging: creating, switching, deleting branches
- Handling merge conflicts
- Working with remote repositories (GitHub/GitLab): clone, pull, push, fetch
- Introduction to Pull Requests/Merge Requests
- Initialize a local Git repository and track changes
- Create and manage branches for new features
- Perform merges and resolve merge conflicts manually
- Push local changes to a remote GitHub repository
- Collaborate on a small project using branches and pull requests
Proficient use of Git for individual and collaborative version control.
Days 28-36: Introduction to CI/CD & Automation
Days 28-36Understand the core concepts of Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery and get an initial exposure to CI/CD tools.
- What is CI/CD? Benefits and principles
- Phases of a CI/CD pipeline (build, test, deploy)
- Introduction to Continuous Integration (CI): automated builds and testing
- Introduction to Continuous Delivery/Deployment (CD): automated releases
- Overview of popular CI/CD tools (Jenkins, GitLab CI, GitHub Actions)
- Basic concepts of build automation tools (e.g., Maven, npm – conceptual only)
- Webhooks and basic integrations
- Explore the UI of a CI/CD platform (e.g., GitHub Actions web interface)
- Set up a basic CI pipeline to automatically build and test a simple application (e.g., Python script)
- Trigger builds automatically on code pushes to a Git repository
- Interpret CI/CD pipeline logs and identify failures
Conceptual understanding of CI/CD principles and basic interaction with a CI/CD platform.
Days 37-45: Review & Catch-upBuffer Phase
Days 37-45Consolidate learning from previous phases, reinforce challenging concepts, and address any gaps in understanding.
- Review of Linux fundamentals and advanced commands
- Revisiting Python and Bash scripting challenges
- Deep dive into complex Git scenarios (rebase, cherry-pick - conceptual)
- Re-evaluation of CI/CD concepts and chosen tool
- Re-do challenging exercises from previous phases
- Work on a small personal project integrating Git and a simple CI script
- Read official documentation for chosen tools
- Engage in online forums for clarification
- Take a planned break to prevent burnout
Solidified understanding of initial DevOps foundations; refreshed and ready for new challenges.
Days 46-54: Containerization with Docker
Days 46-54Learn to containerize applications using Docker, manage images and containers, and orchestrate multi-container setups with Docker Compose.
- What are containers? Introduction to containerization vs. VMs
- Docker architecture: Daemon, Client, Images, Containers, Registries (Docker Hub)
- Installing Docker Engine
- Docker commands: run, ps, stop, start, rm, rmi, images, pull, push
- Dockerfile: syntax, instructions (FROM, RUN, CMD, ENTRYPOINT, EXPOSE, ENV, WORKDIR)
- Building custom Docker images
- Docker volumes for persistent data
- Docker networking basics
- Introduction to Docker Compose: defining multi-service applications
- Install Docker on your system
- Run various official Docker images (e.g., Nginx, Redis)
- Create Dockerfiles to containerize simple web applications (e.g., Python Flask app)
- Build, tag, and push custom images to Docker Hub
- Use Docker Compose to run a multi-container application (e.g., web app with a database)
Ability to containerize applications and manage them with Docker and Docker Compose.
Days 55-63: Infrastructure as Code (Terraform & Ansible)
Days 55-63Grasp the principles of Infrastructure as Code and gain practical experience with Terraform for provisioning and Ansible for configuration management.
- What is Infrastructure as Code (IaC)? Benefits and principles
- Declarative vs. Imperative IaC
- Introduction to Terraform: HCL (HashiCorp Configuration Language)
- Terraform basics: providers, resources, variables, outputs, state file
- Terraform commands: init, plan, apply, destroy
- Introduction to Ansible: agentless configuration management
- Ansible architecture: control node, managed nodes, inventory
- Ansible playbooks: tasks, modules, variables, handlers
- Basic Ansible roles and command-line ad-hoc commands
- Install Terraform and configure a cloud provider (e.g., AWS Free Tier)
- Write Terraform configurations to provision basic cloud resources (e.g., EC2 instance, VPC)
- Apply and destroy infrastructure using Terraform
- Install Ansible and create an inventory file
- Write Ansible playbooks to configure a web server (e.g., Nginx) on a provisioned EC2 instance
- Run ad-hoc Ansible commands to manage remote hosts
Capability to provision cloud infrastructure with Terraform and configure it with Ansible.
Days 64-72: Container Orchestration with Kubernetes
Days 64-72Understand the fundamentals of Kubernetes and deploy, manage, and scale containerized applications on a basic cluster.
- What is Kubernetes? Benefits of container orchestration
- Kubernetes architecture: Master and Worker Nodes, Pods, Deployments, Services, Namespaces
- kubectl: The Kubernetes command-line tool
- YAML for Kubernetes manifests
- Key Kubernetes objects: Pods, Deployments, ReplicaSets
- Services: exposing applications within and outside the cluster
- Basic networking in Kubernetes
- Setting up a local Kubernetes cluster (Minikube or Kind)
- Set up a local Kubernetes cluster using Minikube or Kind
- Use kubectl to interact with the cluster (get nodes, pods, services)
- Write YAML manifests for a simple Pod and Deployment
- Deploy a containerized application to Kubernetes
- Expose the application using a Kubernetes Service
- Scale a deployment up and down
Basic understanding of Kubernetes concepts and ability to deploy and manage simple applications.
Days 73-81: Monitoring, Logging & Security Basics
Days 73-81Learn the importance of monitoring and logging, explore basic tools, and understand fundamental security practices in a DevOps context.
- Importance of Monitoring and Logging in DevOps
- Metrics vs. Logs vs. Traces (conceptual)
- Introduction to Prometheus: architecture, exporters, basic querying (PromQL)
- Introduction to Grafana: creating dashboards for visualization
- Basic concepts of centralized logging with ELK Stack (Elasticsearch, Logstash, Kibana)
- DevOps Security (DevSecOps) principles: 'Shift Left'
- Secrets management (e.g., environment variables, basic vaults - conceptual)
- Least privilege principle and basic network security
- Set up Prometheus to monitor a basic application or system metrics
- Create simple dashboards in Grafana to visualize metrics from Prometheus
- Explore basic log collection and viewing using a tool like rsyslog or a simple ELK setup
- Implement basic security best practices for your containerized applications (e.g., non-root user in Dockerfile)
Ability to implement basic monitoring, logging, and foundational security practices.
Days 82-90: Final Project Integration & Advanced Concepts PreviewBuffer Phase
Days 82-90Integrate learned tools into a cohesive project, reinforce understanding, and identify next steps for advanced learning.
- Review of all learned concepts: Linux, Git, CI/CD, Docker, IaC, Kubernetes, Monitoring
- Project planning and architectural considerations
- Troubleshooting common issues across the toolchain
- Introduction to advanced topics: Service Mesh (Istio), Serverless, Cloud-Native security, FinOps (conceptual)
- Design and implement a final project that integrates: Git, CI/CD for a Dockerized application, deployed to Kubernetes via IaC, with basic monitoring.
- Document the project architecture and deployment process.
- Troubleshoot and debug issues encountered during project integration.
- Present the final project and discuss design choices and challenges.
- Research and outline a personal learning path for the next 3-6 months based on interests.
Successful completion of an end-to-end DevOps project and a clear path for continued learning.