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RSS feedPractical writing on getting job-ready for platform and infrastructure engineering.
How to become a DevOps or platform engineer: the skills, in order
A practical DevOps roadmap: the eight skills platform and infrastructure teams expect, the order to learn them in and why, what 'good enough to move on' looks like for each, and what to leave until later.
7 min readcareerdevopsroadmap
Linux load average explained: what the three numbers mean, and how to find the culprit with top
What load average actually measures, why you compare it with the CPU count, how to read the 1, 5 and 15-minute trend, why high load with idle CPUs points at disks, and how to find the process behind it with top.
7 min readlinuxtroubleshootingperformancecommand-line
Terraform state explained: drift, a deleted state file, and getting it back with import
What Terraform state actually is, what's inside terraform.tfstate, and what plan shows when someone changes infrastructure by hand, when the state file is lost, and when two applies run at once, with the fix for each.
8 min readterraforminfrastructure-as-codestate
SSH tunnels explained: -L, -R and -D, with real examples
Local, remote and dynamic SSH port forwarding in plain English: which side listens, where the traffic goes, the flags that make tunnels reliable, and when to use each one.
4 min readsecuritysshnetworkinglinux
What actually happens in a TLS handshake, shown with openssl s_client
Watch a real TLS 1.3 handshake message by message with openssl s_client: the key shares, the certificate chain, CertificateVerify, Finished, and the verify codes you'll see when it goes wrong.
5 min readsecuritytlsopensslnetworking
How to decode and verify a JWT from the command line
Decode a JWT's header and payload with base64 and jq, check its expiry, and verify HS256 and RS256 signatures with openssl, without pasting a live token into a website.
4 min readsecurityjwtbashopenssl
Learn Ansible by doing: describe the state you want, and run it as often as you like
Terraform builds the machine. Ansible configures what runs on it. Here's how OpsPath teaches configuration management: real ansible-playbook runs in your browser, with idempotency you can see in the output.
6 min readansibleconfiguration-managementcareer
Learn AWS by doing: real CLI calls, a safe sandbox, and no surprise bill
You can't automate a cloud you don't understand, and you shouldn't learn it on a credit card. Here's how OpsPath teaches AWS: real AWS CLI commands against a sandboxed AWS emulator, in your browser, with every step checked.
7 min readawscloudcareer
Learn Bash scripting by doing: from your first variable to a script you'd trust in CI
Most Bash gets copied, pasted and hoped over. Here's how OpsPath teaches you to write scripts you understand: real Bash, run in your browser, with every step checked and the exit code in front of you.
8 min readbashscriptingcareer
Learn Git by doing: branches, real merge conflicts, and a history you can explain
Most people learn Git by memorising three commands and panicking at the fourth. Here's how OpsPath teaches it instead: real git in your browser, real conflicts to resolve, and every step checked.
6 min readgitversion-controlcareer
Learn the Linux command line by doing: from ls to triaging a log in one line
Every infrastructure job assumes you can use a Linux shell, but almost nobody teaches you to. Here's how OpsPath gets you fluent: real commands in a real shell, in your browser, with every step checked.
8 min readlinuxcommand-linecareer
Learn Python for operations by doing: real code, graded by real tests
When a Bash script outgrows itself, infrastructure engineers reach for Python. Here's how OpsPath teaches the Python that ops work actually uses: JSON, CSV, regex, subprocess and small CLIs, written in your browser and graded by real test suites.
6 min readpythonautomationcareer
Learn Terraform by doing: from your first resource to a production pipeline
Videos can't teach you state, drift, or how to read a plan under pressure. Here's how OpsPath teaches Terraform the way the job actually works — hands-on, in your browser, with no cloud bill.
7 min readterraforminfrastructure-as-codecareer