Yet Another CKAD Article
I took and passed the CKAD exam at around December 2020 and as an individual who enjoys sharing what I have learnt with others, it just made sense to write this article for the very same reason. There are already many such resources out there but I guess one more doesn’t hurt.
What to expect from the exam ?
The Certified Kubernetes Application Developer exam also known as CKAD is a 2hr practical session where you are tested on basic kubectl commands. The exam is conducted thru a command line interface on a web browser. During this time, there will be a proctor, which means someone will be monitoring you thru your webcam, microphone and what you do on screen.
One of my first mistakes while preparing for this exam is not knowing how was it going to be tested. As mentioned earlier on, it would be thru a command line interface on a web browser. Everything is to be done thru that and here i was thinking i could copy and paste YAML files i created earlier on. Yes, you will be creating YAML files but thru the command line interface. There’s no VSCode or some code editor to help you.
The only external resource you can refer to during the exam is the official Kubernetes documentation. You can’t use Stack Overflow or use Google for help. However, fear not, with practice, you will eventually become very good with the documentation.
Get familiar with Vim
If you’re already using Vim with your daily work or you’re just super familiar with it then this section might not be of help to you. Feel free to skip.
If you don’t know what Vim is, start writing documentations with it. Just kidding but that’s still an option. In my opinion, if you try out the practice sites which will be mentioned later in this article and just keep practicing, you will eventually become familiar with it.
The essential commands that you should know are,
1. Use ‘i’ to edit the file
2. Copy a line of text with ‘yy’
3. Copying lines of text with ‘xyy’ where ‘x’ is the number of lines (eg. if it’s 3 lines, it’s ‘3yy’)
4. Cutting a line of text with ‘dd’
5. Cutting lines of text with ‘xdd’ where ‘x’ is the number of lines (eg. if it’s 3 lines, it’s ‘3dd’)
6. Pasting the copied or cut lines with ‘p’
7. Saving your work with either ‘:w’ or saving and quitting with ‘:wq’
8. Quitting without saving with ‘:q’
The above should be enough but feel free to explore and research on your own.
Udemy course
I took Zeal Vora’s Certified Kubernetes Application Developer 2019 course thru Udemy and what I really liked about it was that his lectures were all bite size. Each lesson was only a few minutes long which makes it very easy to absorb and pay attention to. At the end of every chapter, there were also questions for you to practice. The course also provides mock exams for you to practice but those are insufficient.
The way Zeal speaks reminds me of my call centre days where we were evaluated on how well and clear we spoke to the customer. It’s great because it enables me to watch the video in 1.2x to 1.5x speed and still understand what’s going on. I am not kidding, do give it a try. Zeal also has a github page with coupon codes to his courses if you are interested.
During the chapter on exam preparation, Zeal emphasises that this exam requires a lot of practice to pass and he’s right about it. There’s just no other way. Attending solely his lessons without practice of any kind will not allow you to pass the exams.
Overall, this course did help me understand the basic concepts. However, i took a span of a few months to complete the course which in my opinion was too long and because of that, I couldn’t remember a lot of things when I did the mock exams. Hence, if you’re taking this course, do it within a week and then start doing practice questions you can find all over the Internet.
Kubernetes documentation
The only companion you will need throughout your CKAD journey is the official Kubernetes documentation. You will eventually know how to use it, what keywords to search for. Up till this day, I still use it for my work.
With constant practice with the mock exams, you will learn how to use the documentation to search for answers.
Important instructions
Before taking the exam or practicing any mock exams, you should read the exam page on what you can and cannot do. It is recommended to read the FAQ section on the certification exam you plan to take.
As much as possible, try to setup the area you will be taking your exam in as close as possible to the rules. Take your mock exams in a similar fashion too.
The Open Source Curriculum for CNCF Certification Courses details what areas will be tested during the CKAD, CKA and CKS exam. You should check those too to ensure that the materials you are practicing on are up to date.
Where to practice ?
I setup Minikube on my own laptop and used that for practice. You can do the same too. Alternatively, you can make use of the many Cloud providers out there (eg. DigitalOcean, AWS, GCP, Azure) and create Kubernetes clusters out of it for practice but be careful as you may be billed for it.
There are many resources available on the Internet and I have categorised them into Must Do and For Endurance. For any mock exam you take, here’s what i suggest.
- Take it as if you’re in the real exam. Setup your environment similar to what you read from the exam rules.
- Time yourself. As much as possible, aim to complete the mock exams in 2hrs but even if you exceed, just complete it.
- Remember to take breaks ! You could maybe take a 1hr break between each 2hr practice. It’s up to you :)
Must Do
Almost all other articles that i read shared this and it has been tried and tested by many people including myself. This mock exam from this github page, dgkanatsios/CKAD-exercises is really good.
While doing this exam, take it as if you are doing the real thing. As mentioned above, give yourself 2hrs to complete it and even if you exceed the timing, just complete it. This is the one resource that you should constantly practice on.
For Endurance
I chanced upon this medium article while finding for more resources to practice. It has a whooping 150 questions and that’s why it is here because it really requires a lot of stamina. I don’t think 2hrs will be enough to complete it but i do recommend doing this at least once.
Honourable mention
While searching for mock tests to practice on, I used another Udemy course, Kubernetes Certified Application Developer (CKAD) with Tests, offered by Mumshad Mannambeth. His mock tests are run in an environment that’s quite close to the real thing. Do give it a try too.
Plan B
Shit happens.
Zeal Vora mentions during his video on preparing for the exam that he has a Uninterruptible Power Source (UPS) at home as blackouts do happen quite frequently. He also has his phone next to him to use as a hotspot in case his modem is down. That’s how prepared he is.
Let me share my experience. 30mins before my exam, my laptop died. The laptop that i practiced on and am so familiar with died at this crucial time. I was at a loss of words.
Thankfully, i had many other spare laptops laying around. I managed to find one that worked and quickly set it up again for the exam.
Prepare a backup plan and prepare for the worse. You never know when things like that happen.
Oh and when you faced such problems and still pass the exam, it’s a great story to share ;)
Where to find coupon codes ?
CKAD Coupon Codes
I try as much as possible to buy things on discount. This exam was no exception. I mean, come on, USD 300 is no small amount.
When i took the exam around December, there was a Cyber Monday sale (occurs around the end of November every year) and the discount code was on their official site (screenshot below). I did some research and this looks like the only time when there’s a sale for the various certification courses (including the CKAD) that they offer. It also seems like they announce this thru their newsletter. So, go ahead and sign up to stay up to date and get notified of such sales.
Zeal Vora’s Certified Kubernetes Application Developer 2019 on Udemy
I shared the link earlier on but just in case you missed it, you can get it here.
Parting notes
So, is this exam worth it ? Did it open more job opportunities for me ?
In my opinion, I did it because I was very interested in cloud applications and I particularly enjoy practical exams. I did not get more job opportunities but it gave me more confidence with the kubectl commands and using the documentation that comes with it.
Remember, this exam is passable with constant practice.
Just like any exam you have taken, keep calm and double check your work.
Good luck and have fun :)
