Getting Started with DevOps

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Table of contents

1. Where to start?
2. The first technical steps
3. Building your lab
4. Learning roadmap
5. Recommended resources

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1 - Where to start?

Assess your starting point

Prerequisites checklist

Skill	Required level	Priority
Linux basics	Intermediate	High
Command line	Comfortable	High
Git	Fundamentals	High
Scripting (Bash/Python)	Basic	Medium
Networking basics	Fundamentals	Medium
Cloud concepts	Notions	Medium

Self-assessment

Rate yourself from 1 (beginner) to 5 (expert):

Domain	Score
Linux/Unix	?
Git	?
Scripting	?
Containers	?
Cloud	?
CI/CD	?
IaC	?

tip

Focus first on your most critical gaps (Linux, Git, scripting) before moving to advanced tools.

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2 - The first technical steps

Step 1: Master the Linux fundamentals

Essential skills:

# Navigation et fichiers
ls, cd, pwd, mkdir, rm, cp, mv

# Visualisation
cat, less, head, tail, grep

# Permissions
chmod, chown, sudo

# Processus
ps, top, kill, systemctl

# Réseau
ping, curl, netstat, ss

Step 2: Git and GitHub

Commands to master:

• git init, git clone
• git add, git commit, git push, git pull
• git branch, git checkout, git merge
• git log, git diff, git status

Step 3: Scripting

Bash for system automation:

#!/bin/bash
# Exemple: Script de backup
DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d)
tar -czf backup_$DATE.tar.gz /path/to/data
echo "Backup completed: backup_$DATE.tar.gz"

Python for more complex scripts:

#!/usr/bin/env python3
import os
import subprocess

def check_service(service_name):
    result = subprocess.run(
        ['systemctl', 'is-active', service_name],
        capture_output=True, text=True
    )
    return result.stdout.strip() == 'active'

services = ['nginx', 'docker', 'postgresql']
for svc in services:
    status = "UP" if check_service(svc) else "DOWN"
    print(f"{svc}: {status}")

Step 4: Docker

Essential commands:

# Images
docker pull nginx
docker build -t myapp .
docker images

# Containers
docker run -d -p 80:80 nginx
docker ps
docker logs <container>
docker exec -it <container> bash
docker stop <container>

# Cleanup
docker rm <container>
docker rmi <image>

Step 5: First CI/CD pipeline

GitHub Actions example:

name: CI
on: [push]
jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - name: Build
        run: echo "Building..."
      - name: Test
        run: echo "Testing..."

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3 - Building your lab

Option 1: Local lab with Vagrant/VirtualBox

# Vagrantfile
Vagrant.configure("2") do |config|
  config.vm.define "devops-lab" do |lab|
    lab.vm.box = "ubuntu/jammy64"
    lab.vm.network "private_network", ip: "192.168.56.10"
    lab.vm.provider "virtualbox" do |vb|
      vb.memory = "2048"
      vb.cpus = 2
    end
  end
end

Option 2: Docker Desktop

# docker-compose.yml pour un lab DevOps
version: '3.8'
services:
  jenkins:
    image: jenkins/jenkins:lts
    ports:
      - "8080:8080"
    volumes:
      - jenkins_data:/var/jenkins_home
  
  gitlab:
    image: gitlab/gitlab-ce:latest
    ports:
      - "80:80"
      - "443:443"
    volumes:
      - gitlab_data:/var/opt/gitlab

volumes:
  jenkins_data:
  gitlab_data:

Option 3: Free cloud

Provider	Free offer
AWS	Free tier 12 months
Azure	$200 credits + free services
GCP	$300 credits + always free
Oracle Cloud	Generous always free tier

note

Start with a local lab to learn at no cost, then move to the cloud for more realistic projects.

Recommended hands-on projects

Project	Skills developed
Website with CI/CD	Git, GitHub Actions, Docker
AWS infrastructure with Terraform	IaC, Cloud
Monitoring stack	Prometheus, Grafana
Local Kubernetes cluster	K8s, containers

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4 - Learning roadmap

12-month roadmap

By level

Months 1-3: Fundamentals

• Linux administration
• Git and GitHub
• Bash scripting
• Python basics

Months 4-6: Containerization and CI/CD

• Docker
• Docker Compose
• GitHub Actions or GitLab CI
• Automated tests

Months 7-9: Cloud and IaC

• AWS or Azure fundamentals
• Terraform
• Ansible basics

Months 10-12: Orchestration and Monitoring

• Kubernetes basics
• Prometheus + Grafana
• ELK Stack

warning

Do not try to learn everything at once. Master each level before moving to the next.

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5 - Recommended resources

Books

Title	Author	Level
The Phoenix Project	Gene Kim	Beginner
The DevOps Handbook	Gene Kim et al.	Intermediate
Site Reliability Engineering	Google	Advanced
Kubernetes in Action	Marko Lukša	Intermediate

Learning platforms

Platform	Type	Price
Linux Foundation	Certifications	Paid
KodeKloud	Interactive labs	Freemium
A Cloud Guru	Videos + Labs	Paid
freeCodeCamp	Free	Free
Udemy	Videos	Paid (frequent promos)

Free online labs

Resource	Description
Play with Docker	Temporary Docker lab
Play with Kubernetes	Temporary K8s lab
Katacoda	Interactive scenarios
GitHub Learning Lab	Learn Git/GitHub

Communities

Community	Platform
DevOps subreddit	Reddit
Docker Community	Slack
CNCF	Slack
DevOpsDays	Conferences
Local meetups	Meetup.com

Certifications (optional but useful)

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Concrete action plan

Week 1

• Install a Linux environment (WSL, VM, or dual boot)
• Create a GitHub account
• Follow a basic Git tutorial
• Write your first Bash script

Weeks 2-4

• Complete a Linux basics course
• Master the essential Git commands
• Create your first repository and README

Month 2

• Install Docker
• Containerize a simple application
• Create your first docker-compose.yml

Month 3

• Set up your first CI/CD pipeline
• Automate the tests
• Deploy automatically

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Key takeaways

• Assess your level before starting
• The fundamentals (Linux, Git, scripting) are essential
• Build a hands-on lab to experiment
• Follow a progressive roadmap over 12 months
• Practice is more important than theory
• Join communities to learn from others

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