Kubernetes is the de facto industry-standard for production-grade container orchestration. The CNCF Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) Certification is an in-demand, industry-recognised benchmark denoting the holder as possessing the expertise required to create, secure, manage and troubleshoot Kubernetes clusters. The CNCF CKA exam is a fully hands-on, command line based assessment. This guide structure follows the CKA curriculum. Start with need-to-know Kubernetes concepts and implementation details using hands-on code examples and command line walkthroughs. You will explore core concepts including cluster architecture, installation and configuration. As the book progresses, you will master security principles with RBAC, confidently deploy and manage applications, and explore the intricacies of Kubernetes storage and networking. The following chapters on Troubleshooting and Exam Preparation provide important exam and assessment environment hints and tips, command line techniques and crucial exam strategies. The final two chapters present full-length CKA practice exams with fully-worked exam-grade solutions. This pragmatic blend of theory, worked examples, and analysis techniques ensures the reader is primed to be successful in the real Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) exam.

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication Page
• About the Author
• Acknowledgement
• Preface
• Table of Contents
• 1. Introduction
  • Introduction
  • Structure
  • Objectives
  • Prerequisites
  • Overview of CNCF CKA website and resources
    • Nomenclature
  • CNCF CKA exam details
  • CNCF handbook
  • CNCF curriculum overview
    • Cluster architecture, installation and configuration: 25%
    • Workloads and scheduling: 15%
    • Services and networking: 20%
    • Storage: 10%
    • Troubleshooting: 30%
  • Registering for the CNCF CKA exam
  • CNCF CKA exam simulator
  • Using this CNCF CKA exam guide
  • Conclusion
• 2. Cluster Architecture, Installation and Configuration
  • Introduction
  • Structure
  • Objectives
  • Fundamentals of authentication and authorization in Kubernetes
    • Authentication
    • Kubeconfig
  • Service accounts
    • API groups
    • HTTP Proxy for API resources
    • Authorization
  • Role Based Access Controls
  • Cluster roles and role bindings
  • Overview of use of kubeadm
  • Installing a basic Kubernetes cluster using kubeadm
    • Step 1: Install kubeadm, kubelet and kubectl
    • Step 2: Setup the Kubernetes controlplane using kubeadm init
    • Step 3: Install network plugin
    • Step 4: Join the worker nodes
  • Walkthrough of basic cluster installation
    • Step 1: Basic cluster walkthrough
    • Step 2: Basic cluster walkthrough
    • Step 3: Basic cluster walkthrough
    • Step 4: Basic cluster walkthrough
  • Overview of High Availability cluster etcd topologies
  • Kubernetes HA cluster configurations
  • Implementing a HA cluster
    • HA step 1: Complete basic cluster walkthrough
    • HA step 2: Provision a public DNS load balancer
    • HA step 3: Setup HA controlplane
    • HA step 4: Setup pod network plugin
    • HA step 5: Join other controlplane nodes
    • HA step 6: Join worker nodes
  • Overview of Kubernetes infrastructure
    • Infrastructure as Code
  • Infrastructure for Kubernetes
  • Overview of Kubernetes cluster maintenance
  • Kubernetes versioning and release management
  • Kubernetes upgrade process
    • Version skew
    • Cluster component upgrade order
    • Safely drain a cluster node
    • Update cluster using kubeadm upgrade command
  • Cluster upgrade process
    • $ sudo kubeadm upgrade node
  • Walkthrough of Kubernetes upgrade using kubeadm
  • Overview of etcd
  • Best practices for backup and restore
    • Use of etcdCTL_API
    • Accessing the etcd endpoints and certificates
    • Downtime during etcd restore operation
  • Walkthrough of etcd backup and restore
    • Steps to backup etcd
    • Steps to restore etcd from backup operation
  • Conclusion
• 3.  Workloads and Scheduling
  • Introduction
  • Structure
  • Objectives
  • Understanding deployments and performing rolling updates and rollbacks
    • Overview of Kubernetes application deployment lifecycle
    • Walkthrough deployment rolling updates
      • Deploy version 1
      • Deploy version 2
      • Fail in attempt to deploy version 3
      • Rollback to deploy version 2 as the new version 4
      • Deploy version 5
      • Rollback to deploy version 1 as the new version 6
  • Use ConfigMaps and secrets to configure applications
    • Handling application configuration data in Kubernetes
    • Use of Kubernetes ConfigMaps
    • Kubernetes ConfigMap walkthrough
      • Use of container environment variables
      • Use of container commands and arguments
      • Mounted container volumes
    • Use of Kubernetes secrets
    • Kubernetes ConfigMap walkthrough
  • Scaling applications
    • Overview of Kubernetes autoscaling
      • Horizontal Pod Autoscaler
      • Cluster autoscaler
    • Manual scaling using command line
    • Horizontal autoscaling with HPA
    • Walkthrough autoscaling using kubectl
  • Understanding the primitives used to create robust, self-healing, application deployments
    • Kubernetes primitives supporting self-healing applications
    • Kubernetes mechanisms for deploying self-healing applications
      • Startup probe
      • Readiness probe
      • Liveness probe
      • Probe integration with containerised applications
  • Understanding how resource limits can affect pod scheduling
    • Overview of Kubernetes scheduler
    • Pod scheduling concepts and considerations
    • Pod resource requests and limits
      • LimitRange resource
      • ResourceQuota resource
      • Workload resources requests and limits example
  • Awareness of manifest management and common templating tools
    • Overview of declarative resource management
    • Helm overview
      • Chart directory structure
      • Chart fields
    • Helm walkthrough
    • Kustomize overview
    • Kustomize walkthrough
  • Conclusion
• 4. Services and Networking
  • Introduction
  • Structure
  • Objectives
  • Understanding host networking configuration on the cluster nodes
    • Overview of Kubernetes host networks
    • Network policies
      • Pod selector constraints
      • Namespace selector constraint
      • IP block constraint
      • Port constraint
      • Network policy walkthrough
  • Understanding connectivity between pods
    • Understanding service discovery
    • Kubernetes service provision walkthrough
  • Understanding ClusterIP, NodePort, LoadBalancer service types and endpoints
    • Overview of Kubernetes services
      • Kubernetes service resource types
    • Kubernetes endpoints and EndpointSlices
    • Kubernetes services walkthrough
  • Using Ingress controllers and Ingress resources
    • Overview of Kubernetes Ingress
    • Ingress routing rules
    • Kubernetes NGINX Ingress walkthrough
      • Step 1: Deploy a Kubernetes Ingress NGINX Controller
      • Step 2: Deploy workloads, services and Ingress
      • Step 3: Test Kubernetes Ingress
  • Working with CoreDNS
    • Overview of Kubernetes DNS
    • DNS conventions for calling services
  • Choosing an appropriate CNI plugin
    • Cluster networking using a CNI plugin
  • Conclusion
• 5. Storage
  • Introduction
  • Structure
  • Objectives
  • Understanding storage classes and persistent volumes
    • Overview of Kubernetes storage
    • Emphemeral volumes
    • Persistent volumes
      • PersistentVolume API resource
    • Storage classes
  • Understanding volume mode, access modes and reclaim policies for volumes
  • Understanding persistent volume claim primitive
    • Persistent volume claim
    • PVC walkthrough with static PV
    • PVC walkthrough with dynamic storage
  • Configuring applications with persistent storage
    • Mapping application storage requirements
    • Walkthrough of application storage provisions
      • Database storage considerations
      • File share storage considerations
  • Conclusion
• 6. Troubleshooting
  • Introduction
  • Structure
  • Objectives
  • Evaluate cluster and node logging
    • Overview of Kubernetes cluster logging
    • Working with cluster and node logs
  • Understanding how to monitor applications
    • Overview of Kubernetes monitoring
    • Cluster monitoring examples
  • Manage container stdout and stderr logs
    • Container logging to stdout and stderr
    • Logging to stdout and strerr
  • Troubleshoot application failures
    • Overview of Kubernetes events
    • How to troubleshoot application failures
    • Examples of debugging application failures
  • Troubleshoot cluster component failure
    • Troubleshooting cluster component failures
    • Cluster troubleshooting walkthrough
  • Troubleshoot networking
    • Troubleshooting Kubernetes networks
  • Conclusion
• 7. CKA Exam Preparation
  • Introduction
  • Structure
  • Objectives
  • Understanding the CKA exam platform
    • Examining the PSI exam environment
    • Working in the CKA exam environment
    • CNCF Linux environment simulator
  • Hints and tips for the CKA exam
    • Overview of CKA exam hints and tips
    • Kubectl alias and export commands
    • Kubectl command history
    • Bash shell autocomplete
    • Kubectl auto-completion
    • Useful Linux tools and utilities
    • Managing Kubeconfig contexts
    • kubectl --help
    • Kubectl API resource documentation
    • kubectl explain .
    • Vi editor
    • Runbook guidance for CKA exam questions
    • Read CNCF hints and tips section
  • CKA exam readiness checklist
    • Overview of CNCF exam preparation checklist
  • Exam strategies and next steps
    • CNCF CKA exam strategies
    • Next steps
  • Conclusion
• 8. CKA Mock Exam 1 with Solutions
  • Introduction
  • Question 1
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 2
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 3
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 4
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 5
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 6
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 7
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 8
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 9
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 10
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 11
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 12
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 13
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 14
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 15
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 16
    • Task
    • Solution
• 9. CKA Mock Exam 2 with Solutions
  • Introduction
  • Question 1
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 2
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 3
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 4
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 5
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 6
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 7
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 8
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 9
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 10
    • Solution
  • Question 11
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 12
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 13
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 14
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 15
    • Task
    • Solution
  • Question 16
    • Task
    • Solution
• Index