As a DevOps professional or aspiring DevOps professional, you understand the power of knowledge. You understand that every time you learn something new, you are adding another brick to your foundation and helping yourself to build for the future. Of course, the learning process is not something that simply happens. You need to take an active role in your growth and development, seeking out the right opportunities for yourself. Fortunately, I can help you there.
Classroom Learning Path:
Confirm laptop setup and configuration (confirm all required tools are installed).
Terraform: Introduction to Terraform (hands-on) creating instances in AWS.
Ansible: Introduction to the Ansible CLI (command line) and playbooks.
GitLab/Github: Build and configure a GitLab server (or set up a Github repo).
Ansible Project: Build an Nginx load-balancer and two web servers.
Jenkins: Build and configure a Jenkins server.
Integration: Setup your CI/CD workflow between Jenkins and GitLab/Github.
Serverspec: Setup tests to test the actual state of our servers.
ELK Stack: Install and configure ELK Stack (Elastic search) to monitor our VMs using Grafana
Packer: Create a ready built EC2 AMI image using packer.
You have the choice of either setting up your laptop or using the AWS StudentVM supplied free on the day of the course. Documents are sent out a few days prior to the course start with details of the required setup. The choice is yours.
Let me give you a little background on myself. In early 2018, I launched the London Infrastructure As Code meetup. My goal at the time was simple: I wanted to offer people an entry into the exciting world of Infrastructure as code, introducing participants to some of the most common DevOps tools in our field. Right around the same time, an idea occurred to me. People were thrilled to talk about these things and to hear about them at a high level – why not go deeper? Why not offer people a more structured learning opportunity?
Asking those questions of myself, I started to plan for a hands-on training day, which evolved into my Introduction to DevOps Tools course, combining all the talks and sessions that I had run up to then. What I have created is an inclusive course that teaches you how to install and configure the tools necessary to achieve a basic CI/CD workflow: Vagrant, Ansible, Terraform, AWS, Gitlab, Elastic Stack, Jenkins, and ServerSpec.
Now, maybe you're wondering just what sort of a learning experience this is. If you're worried that this experience is going to be dry or that it is going to be a regurgitation of information out of a textbook, don't be! Nope, this is an interactive learning experience, one in which I will guide you as you work. Throughout the course, you are going to "get your hands dirty," installing, configuring and running the applications that I am teaching. You will see real-world code examples, and I will quiz you along the way, testing your skills and capabilities as you launch live servers on Amazon EC2. From there, you will use Terraform to construct VMs in AWS, Ansible to install and configure software, Gitlab to provide source control and collaboration, Elastic Stack to add a visual layer to your server monitoring, Jenkins to orchestrate the CI/CD processes, ServerSpec to monitor your infrastructure state in AWS, and Packer to build out a pre-configured EC2 instance with the applications you need.
None of this is new to me. I have seen it all, and I have done it all (almost!). The course that I have devised is one that will hold your attention and push you toward your full potential, inspiring you to learn more and to think creatively. This is the course that you need to take if you are interested in setting up a CD/CD pipeline. Learning all day and training with an expert, you will get to ask questions and collaborate with other students like yourself. Everything that you code becomes yours, and you will also keep your student workbook and your AWS VMs (subject to standard AWS charges).
To guarantee the quality of the course, I am limiting the number of spots to 8.
Ready to start the first day of your DevOps life? Let's do it!
Please note as well:
You need to be comfortable using Linux from the command line (vi, vim, nano).
You will need to bring your own laptop and power supply.
You will need to install software on your laptop so will need Admin rights.
You will set up an AWS account unless you already have one (this can be completed before the course starts). You will spend less than £10 in AWS charges throughout the day.
Join the "London Infrastructure as Code" meetup page here: Meetup link
Refreshments are included (Tea/Coffee). Lunch isn't provided, but there are many local shops I can recommend.