https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/index.htmlHugoen-ushttps://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/00-prerequisites/index.htmlMon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/00-prerequisites/index.htmlAudience: Everyone starting the path — new hires and existing engineers upskilling. Outcomes: Set up a personal lab, understand how verification works in this path, and adopt the “model before commands” mindset that every later module assumes. Checklist — work through in order Read Why this module exists and adopt the “model before commands” mindset Stand up a lab you can reach by console + CLI Complete access onboarding (SSO, repo access, cluster access) Confirm you know where completion is recorded and who reviews it Pass the Verification checks at the bottom Why this module exists This path deliberately teaches models before commands. The single biggest obstacle to learning DevOps tooling is not missing knowledge — it is a mental model that needs rebuilding, not extending. Each module opens with the mental shift required. Treat the lab as non-negotiable: every concept should map to something you can inspect in a console or from a CLI.https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/01-git/index.htmlMon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/01-git/index.htmlAudience: Anyone using Git day to day — developers, writers, infrastructure and platform engineers. If you’ve used Git but not internalized why the model works, this module is for you. Outcomes: Understand how Git stores history (the inside-out mental model); use the daily workflow (clone → branch → commit → push → PR/MR → merge) without looking up commands; reason about git log, diff, revert; operate comfortably in both GitHub and GitLab with branch protection, CODEOWNERS, and SSO/SAML; and earn the GitHub Foundations certification.https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/02-containers/index.htmlMon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/02-containers/index.htmlAudience: Engineers new to containerization, or coming from VM-centric operations. Outcomes: Build and run container images; understand the layer model, image digests, and registries; reason about base images, tags vs digests, and registry authentication — the foundation for Kubernetes (Module 3). Checklist — work through in order Read the mental model below (images, layers, tags vs digests, Podman vs Docker) Learn containers before Kubernetes — do a Docker/Podman fundamentals course: KodeKloud “Docker for the Absolute Beginner” or Podman docs getting-started Build and run your first image from a minimal base (UBI/distroless) DO180 (Red Hat: Containers, Kubernetes & OpenShift) as the formal path — free Red Hat Developer tutorials as a no-cost alternative Practice registry push/pull, tags vs digests, and image scanning Pass the scenario-based Verification at the bottom Mental model A container is an isolated, runnable instance of an image — an immutable, layered filesystem plus metadata. Unlike a VM, a container shares the host kernel and has no hypervisor. The unit Kubernetes reasons about is the container (packed into Pods), not the VM.https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/03-k8s-openshift-core/index.htmlMon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/03-k8s-openshift-core/index.htmlAudience: Infrastructure/platform engineers and developers operating or deploying on Kubernetes/OpenShift. (VMware admins: this is where you rebuild the mental model from Kubernetes up — see the mapping scaffold, then discard it.) Outcomes: Read and reason about YAML; navigate console + CLI; deploy and diagnose a stateless app; operate cluster-level concerns — cluster operators, MachineConfig, nodes, auth, SCCs, OLM, multi-tenancy, networking, storage, observability, and backup/DR. Checklist — work through in order Prereq: basic Linux (Red Hat RH124 or equivalent) — you will live on the CLI Read the Mental shift below and internalize desired-state / nodes-are-cattle 3.1 App layer — Deployments, Services, Routes/Ingress, ConfigMaps/Secrets, RBAC, Operators 3.2 Cluster ops — cluster operators, MachineConfig, nodes, OAuth, SCCs, OLM, observability, backup/DR 3.3 Networking — OVN-Kubernetes, NetworkPolicy, Multus/NAD, MetalLB, NMState 3.4 Storage — StorageClass, PV/PVC, CSI, ODF, RWX vs RWO Courses: KodeKloud “Kubernetes for the Absolute Beginners” / CKA / CKAD (Mumshad) for vendor-neutral depth; DO180 → DO280 for the OpenShift track Certify (optional, vendor-neutral): CNCF KCNA (entry) → CKAD or CKA (performance-based, 66% to pass, $445). OpenShift track: EX280 (Module 9) Pass the scenario-based Verification in each sub-section Mental shift (read first) OpenShift is a Kubernetes platform. OpenShift Virtualization (Module 4) is a Kubernetes add-on that runs VMs inside Kubernetes. The substrate is Kubernetes — not a hypervisor.https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/04-openshift-virtualization/index.htmlMon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/04-openshift-virtualization/index.htmlAudience: Platform engineers who need to run and migrate VMs on Kubernetes/OpenShift. Outcomes: Create, start, stop, and migrate VMs; connect storage/networking; understand KubeVirt primitives (VirtualMachine, VirtualMachineInstance, DataVolume) as Kubernetes resources — because that is what they are; perform live migration and plan bulk migration from vSphere (MTV). Prerequisite: Module 3 substantially complete. A VirtualMachineInstance is a Pod — you cannot operate it without understanding Pods, scheduling, networking, and storage. Checklist — work through in order Confirm Module 3 is substantially complete (a VMI is a Pod) Read the mental model + skim About OpenShift Virtualization Browse the Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization learning hub and kubevirt.io for the upstream project Create/start/stop a VM; find its backing VMI Pod Practice live migration (needs multi-node + RWX) and walk one MTV migration plan Formal course: DO317 — Managing VMs with OpenShift Virtualization (includes EX316 exam) Pass the scenario-based Verification at the bottom Mental model OpenShift Virtualization runs VMs inside Kubernetes via KubeVirt. The hypervisor is a process inside a Pod. The scheduler does not know or care it’s a VM. This is why Modules 2–3 come first.https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/05-cicd-gitops/index.htmlMon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/05-cicd-gitops/index.htmlAudience: Engineers ready to apply Git-as-change-management to cluster configuration and application delivery. Outcomes: Build CI/CD pipelines; use Argo CD (OpenShift GitOps) as the reconciliation engine; structure a multi-cluster GitOps repo; handle secrets safely; diagnose sync/drift and failure modes. Depends on: Module 1 (Git) and Module 3 (cluster operations). Lab: one cluster + one Git repo is sufficient. Checklist — work through in order Confirm Module 1 (Git) + Module 3 (cluster ops) are done Read the mental model (Git is source of truth; console is observe-only) Learn GitOps + Argo CD: Akuity Academy — Intro to GitOps & Argo CD (free, by the Argo creators) or KodeKloud/Coursera “Argo CD for the Absolute Beginners”. Argo CD is a CNCF Graduated project. Deploy your first Argo CD Application from Git; test drift + self-heal Learn ApplicationSet and app-of-apps; build the components/groups/clusters repo structure from the redhat-cop template Pick a secrets pattern (Sealed Secrets / External Secrets Operator) CI side: build a pipeline (GitHub Actions / GitLab CI / Tekton) that publishes images + manifests Pass the scenario-based Verification at the bottom Mental model A PR merge replaces a change ticket. A git revert replaces an emergency rollback. Argo CD closes the loop: it continuously reconciles what is in Git against what runs in the cluster. The console is read/observe only — changes made there do not survive a sync.https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/06-fleet-acm/index.htmlMon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/06-fleet-acm/index.htmlAudience: Engineers operating multiple clusters who need consistency, compliance, and declarative correction at fleet scale. Outcomes: Govern a fleet declaratively with RHACM — import clusters, target via labels, report compliance, enforce or inform, and bridge ACM + Argo CD (hybrid). Understand the decision framework: when should a config NOT be in Argo CD? Prerequisite: Modules 3 and 5. Lab: hub cluster with ACM + OpenShift GitOps, plus ≥1 managed cluster. Single-node lab is insufficient.https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/07-observability-day2/index.htmlMon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/07-observability-day2/index.htmlAudience: Engineers responsible for keeping workloads and clusters healthy, observable, and recoverable. Outcomes: Monitor with Prometheus/Alertmanager; aggregate logs with Loki; define SLO-style alerts; back up and recover workloads (OADP) and the control plane (etcd); reason about the two recovery models. Builds on: Module 3.2 (observability + backup/DR sections). Checklist — work through in order Read the Day-2 mental model below (detect and recover, not click and hope) Metrics — Prometheus docs + OCP Monitoring; enable user-workload monitoring, write a PrometheusRule Dashboards & alerting — Grafana docs; wire Alertmanager routes Logs — deploy and query LokiStack (current logging backend) Diagnostics — practice oc adm must-gather vs oc adm inspect Backup & DR — OADP/Velero for workloads + etcd backup for the control plane; understand the two recovery models (restore vs rebuild) Complete the scenario-based verification at the bottom Mental model Day-2 operations is detect and recover, not click and hope. Observability tells you what’s wrong; backup/DR tells you how to get back. Both are declarative and version-controllable.https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/08-ztp/index.htmlMon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/08-ztp/index.htmlWho this is for: Teams managing 50+ clusters, especially remote/edge sites where manual install isn’t viable (retail, utility, telco). This is a distinct engineering specialty — Day 0/1/2 automation — beyond fleet operations. If you manage 3–20 clusters in a datacenter, Module 6 is sufficient; return here when provisioning becomes a bottleneck. Outcomes: Automate the full cluster lifecycle — bare-metal prep through install into Day-2 — via the GitOps ZTP pipeline (SiteConfig, PolicyGenTemplate, TALM, ClusterGroupUpgrade, ClusterCurator/AAP, ESO).https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/09-certs-nextsteps/index.htmlMon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/modules/09-certs-nextsteps/index.htmlAudience: Engineers planning formal credentials alongside the learning path. Outcomes: Map each module to relevant public certifications, choose a sensible sequence, and identify deeper specializations. Checklist — choose your track Pick a vendor-neutral track (portable across employers) and/or a Red Hat track (matches our OCP stack) GitHub Foundations (after Module 1) — GitHub/PSI, $99, 75Q, no prereq Linux base (Red Hat): RH124 → RH134 → RHCSA (EX200) Kubernetes (CNCF, vendor-neutral): KCNA (entry) → CKAD or CKA (66%, $445) → CKS (requires CKA) OpenShift (Red Hat): DO180 → DO280 → EX280; then DO317 (Virt + EX316 included), DO432 → EX432 (fleet) Book one exam with a target date; the rest follow the module sequence below Certification map Certification Track After which module(s) Notes GitHub Foundations Vendor-neutral Module 1 Git + GitHub fundamentals; GitHub/PSI, $99, 75Q, no prereq; study via Microsoft Learn GitHub Fundamentals path RHCSA (EX200) Red Hat / Linux Module 0–2 (Linux base) RH124 → RH134 → EX200; the Linux foundation OCP assumes KCNA — Kubernetes & Cloud Native Associate CNCF (vendor-neutral) Module 3 (entry) Multiple-choice entry credential; good onboarding milestone CKAD — Certified Kubernetes Application Developer CNCF (vendor-neutral) Module 3 (app layer) Performance-based, 66%, $445; for those deploying apps to K8s CKA — Certified Kubernetes Administrator CNCF (vendor-neutral) Module 3 depth Performance-based, 66%, $445; the benchmark admin cert CKS — Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist CNCF (vendor-neutral) after CKA Requires a valid CKA; advanced security EX280 — Red Hat Certified OpenShift Administrator Red Hat Module 3 depth Core cluster admin; 3hr perf-based, 210/300; prep with DO180 → DO280 EX280 — Red Hat Certified OpenShift Administrator Red Hat Module 3 depth Core cluster admin; 3hr perf-based, 210/300; prep with DO180 → DO280 EX316 — Red Hat Certified Specialist in OpenShift Virtualization Red Hat Module 4 depth Included in DO317 bundle; covers VM management with KubeVirt EX432 — Red Hat Certified Specialist in OpenShift Advanced Cluster Management Red Hat Module 6 depth RHACM, policy, fleet governance; prep with DO432; replaces retired EX480. Red Hat lists DO380 (OpenShift Admin III) as a recommended prereq — optional but useful for deeper cluster-scaling context DO180 / DO280 / DO317 / DO432 Red Hat (courses) Modules 2 / 3 / 4 / 6 Formal Red Hat courses aligned to each module; DO317 bundles EX316 exam Suggested sequencing GitHub Foundations (Module 1) — early, low-cost, universally useful. RHCSA (EX200) — if Linux is new to you; the base OCP assumes (RH124 → RH134 → EX200). KCNA → CKA/CKAD after Module 3 — vendor-neutral, portable Kubernetes proof. EX280 after Module 3 — validates core OCP admin on our stack. EX432 after Module 6 — validates fleet governance for platform roles. Red Hat recommends DO280 → DO380 (optional) → DO432 as the prep path; DO380 covers cluster scaling and is useful but not required to attempt the exam. Role-specific: DO317 (Virt, includes EX316) for virtualization focus; CKS (after CKA) for security; ZTP/specialist for edge fleets. Beyond this path Contribute to internal runbooks; mentor the next cohort through Modules 0–1. Deepen weakest verification checks — they mark real operational gaps. Track upstream changes (course renumbers, ZTP tooling, ACM policy API) and update this path.https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/learning-curriculum/index.htmlMon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://samplayskeys.github.io/Workspace/openshift-learning-path/learning-curriculum/index.htmlPurpose This curriculum provides structured, role-based learning paths for engineers and support staff working with the OpenShift / RHOSV platform. Each path draws from a shared set of modules; the modules differ in depth and scope by role. Philosophy: Learn the model before the commands. Most failures come from a wrong mental model, not a missing command. Every module front-loads the mental shift, then the mechanics. Treat the lab as non-negotiable — concepts should map to something you can inspect in a console or from a CLI.