Welcome back. In the last chapter, we defined what DevOps and the Cloud are (and why they are inseparable). We established that a certification isn't just a "piece of paper"—it's a structured learning path, a resumé filter, and a hands-on project all in one.
Now, let's talk about you.
"DevOps" is a role that's less about a specific degree and more about a specific mindset. It’s a career path that attracts people from all corners of the tech world. This book is written for you, the "Aspiring DevOps Engineer," who likely fits one of these profiles.
Defining the "Aspiring DevOps Engineer"
See if you recognize yourself in one of these roles.
- You are a Developer: You're comfortable writing application code, but you're getting curious (or frustrated) about what happens after you git push. You want to understand how your code is built, tested, containerized, and deployed to a scalable environment. You're tired of "works on my machine" and want to own the entire pipeline from your laptop to production.
- You are a System Administrator: You're an expert at managing servers, configuring networks, and ensuring everything stays online. You’re the master of the "Ops" side. But you see that the future is in automation, not manual configuration. You want to swap your physical servers for cloud APIs and trade your BASH scripts for powerful IaC tools like Terraform.
- You are a QA / SDET Engineer: You already live in the world of automation. Your job is to build the test suites that are a critical part of the CI/CD pipeline. The next logical step for you is to move from just running the tests to building and managing the entire pipeline itself.
- You are in IT / Tech Support: You are the frontline, troubleshooting everything. You have a broad (if not always deep) understanding of how all the pieces fit together—networking, operating systems, and user-facing applications. You're a professional problem-solver who is ready to move from reacting to problems to engineering systems that prevent them.
If any of these sound like you, you're in the right place. The common thread is a desire to see the bigger picture, automate the tedious parts of your job, and build resilient, efficient systems.
How to Use This Guide
This book is a roadmap, for you to create a learning path for yourself.
The most common mistake aspiring DevOps engineers make is trying to learn an advanced tool (like Kubernetes) without first understanding the foundation it's built on (like networking and basic container concepts).
Use this guide in order:
- Part 1: The Landscape: We'll compare the "Big Three" cloud providers. This will help you decide which "ecosystem" to start with.
- Parts 2-4: The Cloud Paths: Pick one provider (like AWS) and go deep. Follow the path from the foundational cert to the associate-level cert.
- Part 5: The Vendor-Neutral Tools: After you're comfortable with one cloud, we'll cover the "must-have" tools that work across all clouds, like Kubernetes and Terraform.
- Part 6: The Career: Finally, we'll talk about how to tie it all together, build a study plan, and land the job.
It's tempting to try and learn AWS, Azure, GCP, Kubernetes, and Terraform all at once. This is a recipe for burnout. The successful path is sequential: Foundation -> Cloud Specialization -> Multi-Cloud Tools.
Prerequisite Check: What You Should Know Before You Start
This book is for beginners to the DevOps role, but it is not a "Learn to use a computer" guide. To be successful, you should have a basic, conceptual understanding of the following.
Don't worry—you don't need to be an expert in any of these. But you should not be hearing these terms for the first time.
- Basic Linux Command Line: You should know how to navigate directories (cd), list files (ls), edit a text file (nano or vim), and understand what users and permissions are (chmod). Almost all cloud servers run Linux.
- Basic Git Concepts: You should know what a "repository" is and understand the basic git add, git commit, and git push workflow. DevOps culture runs on source control.
- Basic Networking Concepts: You should know what an IP address, a Subnet, and a Firewall are. The cloud is just one giant, programmable network, and these concepts are the absolute core of all foundational certifications.
If you're feeling shaky on these, that's okay! Spend a weekend on some free tutorials to brush up. It will make the journey ahead infinitely smoother.
Now that we're on the same page, let's start exploring the landscape. In the next chapter, we'll compare the 800-pound gorillas of the industry: AWS, Azure, and GCP.