If you like to view the video version of this blog post, you can click on the video.
Exam Registration
Use only Chrome browser to
check exam requirements to be able to access all peripherals including webcam (I used MS Edge and it was giving the test is ok although the webcam test was not performed!!!).
Make sure the laptop is fully charged and plugged.
I prefer to use a wired USB keyboard, and mouse, and avoid wireless devices, as you never know the behavior of the new terminal and browser.
Please make sure to have an external good-quality webcam with an autofocus feature, you will be asked to scan the room, under the table, under the keyboard, under the laptop, or behind the monitor, it is better to have movable webcam. Autofocus is required as you will need to scan your id/passport with a clear name displayed. I used Logitech C922.
Make sure the room is well-lit as normally webcam needs good lighting.
You will need to disable the following features/applications (Other software might be listed by the browser before you begin your exam session):
Doc -> Reference -> One-Page API Reference for Kubernetes
Make sure to run the context command before answering the question, you should find a red warning on every question with the correct cluster.
Make sure to use the correct namespace while answering the question, after answering, please verify the creation in the correct namespace.
Read the question carefully, some can be tricky to understand.
Partial scoring is supported. The Linux Foundation will calculate a score based on successful subtasks. Also, they will consider if some subtasks are harder than others.
Edit ~/.vimrc to
include either the following:
Short form
Long form
:set ai cuc cul
:set autoindent cursorcolumn cusrsorline
Execute the following
command to create 20 folders:
mkdir `seq 20`
Every time you want
to copy text from Firefox into Terminal it shows a warning “Unsafe Paste”.
You can just confirm this. You can also disable this in the Terminal
Preferences -> General -> Show unsafe paste dialog.
Time management tips
Use imperative
commands as much as possible to get things done quickly, you can add using dry generate the output to yaml file as initial step then you edit the yaml file
answering the question requirements:
kubectl run nginx --image=nginx --labels="app=hazelcast,env=prod" --dry-run=client –o yaml > pod.yaml
Try to use short
names (ns, pv, pvc, cm, cj, hpa, as, svc, quota, deploy) as much as possible.
Don’t wait for a
graceful deletion of objects.
kubectl delete pod nginx --force
Consider using replace instead of deleting and then creation or apply.
kubectl replace --force -f pod.yaml
Use the following
command to search for fields/specs quickly:
My strategy in solving question was to solve easy quick questions first to gain as much as I can quickly as I know some topics will require more time to solve or troubleshooting, so I decided to skip and mark quetions of these topics for review later as usually require lengthy changes or validation: Network Policy, Ingress, Custom Resource Definition (CRD).
I hope this post will help someone out there, see you soon, bye.
If you like to view the video version of this blog post, you can click on the video.
CKAD is an online, proctored, performance-based test consisting of a set of performance-based items (problems) to be solved in a command line within two hours. It is not a multiple-choice exam.
You will be given access from a Ubuntu terminal to 4 clusters (Details), and you will have 15 - 20 questions to be answered with different weights. Partial scoring for each exam is calculated so your sub-tasks to achieve an answer are supported.
On Jun-2022, the testing platform received a massive change in the exam environment, I have collected the most important links to show the changes and new restrictions:
36 hours, so you can check your answers, plus during these hours your environment is evaluated again (Every 7 or 8 minutes) if you make changes, your exam score will change based on your modification.
2 hours (Exam only), I was not able to check my actual answers with the exam answers
Partial scoring supported as a real exam
Yes
No, you may score very low because of this.
Answer Explanation
Provided, and very comprehensive as a learning mode
If you like to view the video version of this blog post, you can click on the video.
Thanks to Allah; I passed "Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD)" on 30-Oct-2022. In this blog post, I’m sharing my experience with the study path/material required for passing the certification.
Target Audience
This certification is targeting developers (No specific programing language) targeting cloud-native development either used on the cloud or on-premise.
Exam Info
Current exam release: Kubernetes v1.25 (Exam env updated: 2022-10-19, Specs: 2022-08-23, as per this tips link alignment with newer k8s versions happens approximately 4 to 8 weeks of K8s new version release date). Kubernetes releases currently happen approximately three times per year.
Exam nature: Performance-based not multiple choice. i.e. You will have scenarios including deployment, rollout, and network service you need to perform, or check the existing environment and do the troubleshooting for issues & resolve them. So, hands-on experience is a must.
The number of questions: (15 - 20 questions)
Exam duration: 2 hrs
Passing score: 66%
Time/question: 6 - 8 mins/question, some are easy, and few are hard.
Validity duration / Expiry: 3 years
Location: Take from home as online proctored.
Pre-requisites / Path to CKAD (Personal opinion)
Officially, there are no pre-requisites for the certification, but I think you need to have a look at the below pre-requisites from my point of view. It is based if you are new in the field, you can skip if you are aware about the content and have hands-on experience. Initially, I selected to go for the online self-paced "Cloud Native Developer Bootcamp" from Linux Foundation (There are always discounts, just you need to subscribe (Free) and you will receive notifications on Sale).
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Requirements
My selected courses
My opinion / Alternative
1
Good Linux Foundation and hands-on experience focused on Ubuntu distribution
Good preparation course, that was supporting multiple distros of Linux, and the instructor is very knowledgeable and very responsive in the forum.
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There are several Linux courses in the market, your target should be to be familiar with Linux, Vim, basic bash scripting.
PROS: 1- The instructor is great 2- I learned a lot in DevOps while I was learning Docker, and Docker compose. 3- The course is full of hands-on experience with lots of labs. 4- Many tools (Jenkins, Spinnaker, ...) were used in labs.
CONS: 1- I was receiving delays in replies in the forum. 2- I like visual representation in a more structured way as PowerPoint, but the instructor uses hand-drawn diagrams which I don't think are the best in my opinion.
It is a short sufficient video to know YAML, there are several videos on the Internet. YAML is quite easy but the troubleshooting sometimes gets tricky.
Thanks, Nana Janashia for sharing your knowledge with the world.
I think these two courses are simply the best in the market and you don't need to look for alternatives. For many reasons: 1- The visual presentation is great and easy to understand 2- The courses are full of labs. 3- There are also lab challenges to get you hands-on experience with K8s. 4- There is a lightning-speed test, to get you faster in answering questions. 5- It includes tests for the exam. 6- The instructor is great.
It is free. Although the reference is considered old; I think it is the best out there, it includes link to very good video (I recommend seeing it first before solving questions).
Thanks, Ahmet Alp Balkan for such a great video, and GitHub repository.