
Trace the evolution from bare metal to containers, learn how container orchestration addresses limitations, and explore runtimes like Docker and containerd for scalable, efficient microservices.
Explore how container orchestration with Kubernetes delivers high availability, self-healing, auto-scaling, zero-downtime upgrades, and efficient resource management through scheduling, health checks, and integration with monitoring, logging, and CI/CD tools.
Explore native, enterprise, and managed Kubernetes options, weighing control, cost, and vendor support to pick a setup that aligns with expertise, project needs, and budget.
Explore Kubernetes architecture by distinguishing control plane and node components, including Kube API server, etcd, controller manager, and scheduler, with kubelet and kube proxy on nodes; navigate for exam prep.
Set up a two-node Kubernetes cluster with kubeadm, covering master and worker prerequisites, container runtime cri-o, kubelet, kubeadm, kubectl, and Calico CNI deployment.
Demonstrate a hands-on approach to Kubernetes namespace operations using kubectl, including listing, creating, describing, switching context, and deleting namespaces to isolate resources and manage cluster security.
Demonstrates creating a replica set from a dry-run deployment, scaling and self-healing behavior, and cleanly deleting the replica set to maintain application availability.
Observe a hands-on deployment of nginx:latest with three replicas, scale to five and back to two, and see how pods are recreated to maintain the desired replica count, demonstrating self-healing.
Explore how Kubernetes uses in-built node labels to define roles, and learn to view and modify labels with kubectl.
Explore the Kubernetes API ecosystem and learn to develop Kubernetes object manifest files from scratch using the official documentation, focusing on API version, kind, metadata, spec, and status.
Demonstrates deployment creation and management with replicas, labels, and a pod template. Creates a nodeport service that routes traffic to nginx pods and reveals selectors and endpoints.
Demonstrate creating Kubernetes resources with kubectl, generating yaml via dry-run, and saving deployment and nodeport service manifests; align selectors, apply the manifests, and verify endpoints.
Scale out a Kubernetes cluster by provisioning new worker nodes, configuring cri-o, kubelet, kubeadm, kubectl, and calico, then join them with a fresh token; drain, cordon, and restore etcd.
Cordons mark a node unschedulable during planned maintenance or upgrades, letting existing pods continue while new pods are not scheduled; uncordon restores schedulability with kubectl cordon and kubectl uncordon.
Demonstrates draining a Kubernetes node with kubectl drain, cordon, and eviction of pods while ignoring daemonset pods, balancing a Mydb nginx deployment across workers.
Drain the node with kubectl drain node --ignore-daemonsets=true to evict pods, reset the node with kubeadm reset, and delete it from the cluster to scale in while minimizing downtime.
What’s in this course?
Practical Kubernetes - Beyond CKA and CKAD | Hands-on is a comprehensive course designed to take you from foundational Kubernetes concepts to advanced, production-level skills, with a focus on practical applications and real-world scenarios.
The course starts with foundational topics, perfect for beginners, covering core Kubernetes principles, container orchestration, architecture, and installation. As you progress, you'll dive into intermediate topics like Kubernetes objects, networking, and manifest file creation, setting the stage for more complex scenarios.
In the advanced sections, you'll learn how to manage Kubernetes in production, covering tasks like rollouts/rollbacks, cluster maintenance, security using RBAC, and advanced pod configurations. You'll also explore specialized topics like monitoring, network policies, Ingress, private registries, and Helm charts for efficient application management.
By the end of the course, you'll be well-prepared for both CKA and CKAD certifications, and more importantly, equipped with hands-on expertise to manage, deploy, and troubleshoot Kubernetes clusters in real-world environments.
Special Note:
This course is designed to showcase all practical concepts with live demonstrations. Every concept is presented in real-time, and any errors that arise are troubleshooted and addressed as they occur live in the demonstrations.
Legal Notice:
Kubernetes® is a registered trademarks of The Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) and/or The Linux Foundation in the United States and other countries. This course is not certified, accredited, affiliated with, nor endorsed by The Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) and/or The Linux Foundation.
Student Testimonials:
★★★★★ "This is an awesome and informative course that provides a deep understanding and knowledge of Kubernetes and containerization, with in-depth practical hands-on experience."
★★★★★ "Just the right amount of history and information to make the process from VMs to containers understandable without too much history that is irrelevant to learning how to use the tools."
Course Structure:
Lectures
Demos
Quizzes
Assignments
Course Contents:
Course Introduction
Getting Started with Container Orchestration
Kubernetes at a Glance
Understanding Kubernetes Architecture
Installation and Configuration of a Kubernetes Cluster
Kubernetes Objects
Kubernetes Networking
Understanding and Developing Manifest Files
Application Rollouts and Rollbacks
Kubernetes Cluster Maintenance
More Useful Kubernetes Objects
Advanced Pod Tasks
Scheduling in Kubernetes
Getting started with Kubernetes Volumes
PV, PVC and Storage Classes
StatefulSets for Stateful applications
Cluster Upgrade
RBAC in Kubernetes
Ingress
Network Policies
Monitoring and Cluster Dashboard
Private Registry Integration
Getting Started with Helm
Course Update History
December 03, 2024 - Added a New "Section 24" Certificate management with kubeadm
December 03, 2024 - Added a new lecture on "Deployment vs StatefulSets"
December 17, 2024 - Added a new lecture on "Introduction to StatefulSets"
January 24, 2025 - Added a New "Section 25 - Advanced K8s Tasks" with a lecture and a demo on "Pod Disruption Budgets (PDBs)"
February 07, 2025 - Added a New "Section 27 - Advanced Monitoring Using Prometheus and Grafana" with lectures on Getting started with Prometheus and Grafana and their hands-on demonstrations
March 05, 2025 - Added a new lecture and demonstration on "Kubernetes Events, Demonstration - Troubleshooting Tips | kubectl events"
All sections of this course are demonstrated live, with the goal of encouraging enrolled users to set up their own environments, complete the exercises, and learn through hands-on experience!