Why Linux and DevOps Go Hand in Hand

Linux has had a profound effect on DevOps. It has forced the rethinking of processes and procedures due to the combined scalability, portability and source code that is processor independent from a build, compile, test and deploy perspective. There are tremendous opportunities in a number of DevOps-related career pathways, and having a solid understanding of Linux will set you up for a successful DevOps career.

Linux has a number of niche markets that allow IT pros move into specialized areas both vertically and laterally. Careers in the internet of things (IoT), embedded, client-based and server-based Linux systems all benefit equally from a career path oriented around the objectives covered by CompTIA Linux+.

But when it comes to DevOps, a Linux career path can traverse the Linux system scalability and portability trees with ease. From small to big scale, small to big data, the traditional functions of DevOps allow IT pros to work in any of these areas or to easily move from one to another. 

Standardized Build, Compile and Test Processes

Because Linux development can be single or multi-architecture, the build and make processes handle single and cross-platform compile and test processes with little to no effort on behalf of the DevOps pro. Through Linux networking, the same processes can be used to patch or deploy almost any application to one or more processor architectures or to one or thousands of Linux servers, workstations or IoT devices just as easily.

This is due to how Linux handles development, testing and deployment consistently across all platforms, architectures and all sizes of Linux distributions with only slight differences than what are normally handled in the build processes.

Scalability and Portability Across Architectures

Unique to the Linux OS, this benefit is possible because the operating system, administration and development processes and procedures are truly scalable and portable thanks to its UNIX roots. This is because a Linux DevOps career path remains focused on portable, scaled development and is hardware and software agnostic.

This allows IT pros to focus on the processes and procedures rather than the operating system design, which is ideal and normally almost impossible to accomplish. It also allows for a range of both lateral and vertical career movement offering almost limitless opportunities in the workforce.

If a DevOps pro decides to move on to large-scale systems, like the IBM Z series Mainframes, working for large organizations can easily be the focus for an entire career. That same person could just as easily center their career around the cloud or a large commercial applications development house that focuses on Linux DevOps for virtual machine or container development across many processor architectures.

Emerging Opportunities for Linux DevOps

Mainframe or Server, Cloud, Virtualization or Containerization, Intel, ARM or MIPS. Mix and match from the above list, and the Linux DevOps career path fits anywhere in the matrix. In more than 40 years of hardware and software development, there has never been a case where these rules could ever be applied.

The key is that machine virtualization and full processor emulation are built into and managed by the Linux kernel – unique to commercial-grade operating systems. This allows for cross-platform development from one processor architecture to another. It also means complete development, debugging, testing and deployment for many application types can be done completely on the host system of an Intel- or ARM-based computer and built, tested and deployed to the target systems directly from the host cross-development system.

These very features add career doorways that simply have never existed before. The Linux DevOps career path touches every technical area of Linux OS like no other. The growth potential into areas like software developer is natural. But some new areas are emerging that are changing the face of Linux DevOps forever.

These new and exciting growth areas are in part due to the reorganizing of the systems development and systems programming processes that have evolved over the past several years. A few years ago, these processes were centralized under the systems group, a carryover from the days of traditional mainframes. And these new Linux DevOps opportunities are growing very quickly, providing secure career growth for years to come.

Site Reliability Engineering

This is the new decentralized systems group of the 21st century – teams that include software engineers, systems architects, software infrastructure support and systems operations development and support. Linux DevOps specialists are members of these teams.

The processes and rules that have been a part of Linux DevOps are still there, but the Linux DevOps specialist now works within a team led by a systems engineer who both collaborates with and leads a team of skilled software developers working in a specialized area – applications for the server, desktop or cloud, device interface applications or specialized database or communications applications that are mission critical and require 100% uptime. This exciting new role allows Linux DevOps pros to work alongside software developers to develop incremental updates that morph an application from one generation to another with no system or application downtime.

Production Engineering

Similar to site reliability engineering (SRE), production engineering is the core team that updates, modifies, tests and patches the Linux core system, which includes the kernel, device drivers, memory management, and peripheral interfaces, peripheral software subsystems, and real-time monitor and control systems.

These groups, like SRE groups, have a systems core engineer, and the same staff as SRE, but with the responsibility of maintaining the system uptime at 100% by developing and testing patches to the Linux system while it is running. These teams have a Linux DevOps specialist who is responsible for building, testing and deploying core Linux system components to maintain live updates, allowing 100% uptime of all systems and applications relating to these respective systems.

It’s an exciting time for Linux DevOps careers – and anyone who wishes to pursue a career in Linux. There are many careers paths that can be pursued with a CompTIA Linux+ certification and other certifications to round out your IT skills. These are just a few of the endless possibilities to explore and grow into Linux over a prosperous lifelong career.

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Top 5 Linux Certifications in 2019

Best Linux Certifications are what you should aim for in 2019. Well, this is what the experts believe! But definitely, it might be a tough decision to make about choosing the right Linux certifications to boost up your career. Especially, the beginners, right? But, we here have simplified it for you. And, here is the list of those top 5 Linux certifications that you must go for in this year.

1. LINUX+ CompTIA

It has almost been two decades that employers have used this certification as their skills benchmark for employing any professional in the IT world. And, so attaining this has become the utter need for every individual who is looking forward to entering into this area of IT.

CompTIA Linux+ is one of the Linux certifications that tests the essential usage and managerial tasks that are common to all Linux distributors. Yes, UNIX flavors need it too! So, to attain this Linux+ certification, you are ought to get through these two tests, which are CompTIA Linux Certification (LX0-103) and CompTIA Linux Certification (LX0-104), which actually shares the similar content to LPIC-1 (LPI Level 1 – Linux Administrator certification. Of course, this has to be done through any Linux Professional Institute to list yourself among all those who are actually eligible to enter into the field of Linux.

Let’s know more about these two Linux certifications here:

CompTIA Linux Certification (LX0-103) – Explained

This test covers these few domains, which are:

◈ GNU and UNIX Commands
◈ System Architecture
◈ Linux Installation and Package Management
◈ Devices, Linux Filesystems, Filesystem Hierarchy Standard

CompTIA Linux Certification (LX0-104) – Explained

This test covers these few domains, which are:

◈ Security
◈ Shells, Scripting, and Data Management
◈ User Interfaces and Desktops
◈ Administrative Tasks
◈ Essential System Services
◈ Networking Fundamentals

Both these tests have 60 MCQs, which needs to be done within a time limit of 90 minutes. The passing score is 500 on the scale of 200-800 and all questions are weight based. Both the tests are to be passed to get the certification.

Why should you go for these Linux Certifications?

These Linux Certifications are important for every Linux oriented professional because of these following reasons:

a) Brand Recognition– CompTIA Linux+ will give you brand recognition, which most of the HR departments and IT managers are already aware of. All of them know, if any certification in Linux is ending with a + sign, then that’s surely going to be a good skill benchmark for any IT professional. So, yes, brand recognition is something you will achieve after becoming a CompTIA Linux+ professional.

b) Foundation of all Linux Jobs- For almost every job that involves the word ‘Linux’, you can consider this certification as a foundation. As this certification edifies you about all the general administration tasks, which most of the organizations would generally seek, your chances of getting hired almost doubles. Basically, it allows you to gain knowledge of all the administration concepts and tasks, which are generally expected in any organization.

So, get yourself educated about CompTIA Linux+ seems to quite helpful in getting all those important tasks done in the Linux department.

2. RHCE- RED HAT CERTIFIED ENGINEER

In the dominion of Linux world and Linux certifications, there is another important certification called RHCE- Red Hat Certified Engineer. Red Hat Certifications really stand out amongst all the Linux certifications and surely it has the power to make you too stand out from the bunch of professionals as well.

Among all the Red Hat Certifications, Red Hat’s more senior-level certifications are quite popular. So, go for the senior-level ones for getting hired in those top organizations. And, in case you hold this certification, there are different roles in the Linux world which you may try for. Some of these job roles are senior Linux administrator, senior systems engineer, IT analyst, senior UNIX administrator, and the like.

How tough is it to attain this certification?

Well, if we believe those sitting at the top positions in the IT world, this is one of the best Linux certifications, which any Linux professional must go for. And, that’s why it is not easy to obtain. So, for becoming a Red Hat Certified Engineer, you must first obtain the Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA) credential, which is then followed by passing a three and a half hour test, hands-on, and an exam that is performance-based including both demanding and intense questions.

In case, you have earned RHCE, you become eligible for RHCA (Red Hat Certified Architect) credentials including:

◈ RHCA: Application development
◈ RHCA: Datacenter
◈ RHCA: Cloud
◈ RHCA: DevOps
◈ RHCA: Application platform

So, in short, if you are looking for a better position and payout in any IT organization, we recommend you to go for this certification in 2019.

3. GCUX: GIAC CERTIFIED UNIX SECURITY ADMINISTRATOR

GIAC Certified UNIX System Administrators secures and audit Linux and UNIX systems. It is one of the Linux certifications that is done to attain the skills and abilities to do so. The main motive of this certification is to train individuals in installing, configuring, and monitoring both these systems. So, like any other Linux certification test, this one too has a few requirements, which are as follows:

◈ 75 questions
◈ 1 proctored exam
◈ Time Limit- 2 hours
◈ Minimum passing score of 68%

Basically, the candidate understands the physical security issues and password security with respect to both the UNIX and Linux systems. This exam even tests the capability of the candidate to understand Chroot- how to configure its services, its environment, how to configure scponly with chroot, and everything else about Chroot. Apart from this, some others areas of the UNIX and Linux are also touched including OS Install and Patching, Physical, User Account, and Password Access Control, Boot Services, Post-Exploitation and AIDE, SUDO, and many other important sections, without which UNIX and Linux, both are incomplete.

Being a part of SANS, this Linux certification is highly recommended to every Linux professional in 2019.  It encompasses more than 35 security certifications across different categories, which we mentioned above. Such an administrator falls under the Cyber Defense category. Also, their certifications need renewal after every four hours by earning 36 continuing professional experience which is also known as CPE.

4. ORACLE LINUX OCA & OCP

This Linux certification is all about attaining skills and abilities related to Oracle products and technologies. For passing the test to get the certification, the professional needs to pass the combination of passing exams and training and performance-based assignments, which depend on the level of certification.

With 6 levels of Oracle Certification Credentials- Oracle Certified Junior Associate (OJA), Oracle Certified Associate (OCA), Oracle Certified Professional (OCP), Oracle Certified Master (OCM), Oracle Certified Expert (OCE) and Oracle Certified Specialist (OCS), a candidate needs to master all such stages to be hired by a reputed IT company.

Certifications comprise of two exams, which are:

◈ OCA- 1Z0-100 Oracle Linux 5 and 6 System Administration, needs 61% to pass, and 80 questions to attempt
◈ OCP- 1Z0-105 Oracle Linux 6 Advanced System Administrator, requires 61% to pass, and has a total of 97 questions.

5. LPI (LINUX PROFESSIONAL INSTITUTE) Certifications

Started back in 1999 by Linus Torvalds, these Linux certifications today has become important for any Linux professional. This program is available in three distinct levels, which are:

LPIC- 1: Linux Administrator

It is a junior-level Linux certification with no perquisites. The candidate needs to pass 2 exams, which covers all basic Linux skills that even include installing and configuring Linux on a workstation, performing maintenance tasks, making LAN or internet connections, and more. Obtain CompTIA Linux+ powered by LPI credential first; which will make you qualified both for Linux+ and LPIC-1 credentials.

LPIC- 2: Linux Engineer

This is an advanced level Linux Certification, which requires an active LPIC-1 certification. It has two exams- First covers the file system and devices, kernel, system startup, network configuration, system maintenance, storage administration, and even capacity planning and the second exam covers email services, network client management, domain name servers, system security and troubleshooting, and the like tasks.

LPIC- 3: Linux Enterprise Professional Certification

It is a senior-level Linux certification, which needs an active LPIC-2 besides passing any single exam in the 300 series. This certification includes exam IDs, which are:

◈ 300: Mixed Environment
◈ 303: Security
◈ 304: Virtualization and High Availability

300: Mixed Environment covers Samba, work with Linux & windows client, and even plus OpenLDAP.

303: Security covers operations, application security, and the network are covered under the security exam besides cryptography and access controls.

304: Virtualization and High Availability covers virtualization and high availability cluster storage and engagement.

Latest Certification in LPIC

LPI’s latest certification is the LPIC-OT DevOps Tools Engineer, which allows the Linux professionals to utilize the tools for collaboration during software and system development. The exam has 60 questions and it lasts for about 90 minutes.

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Difference Between chmod and chown

The chmod and chown commands are used to control access to files in UNIX and Linux systems.

The chmod command stands for "change mode", and allows changing permissions of files and folders, also known as "modes" in UNIX. The chown command stands for "change owner", and allows changing the owner of a given file or folder, which can be a user and a group. That's the difference between them in a nutshell.

They are interrelated in so far as changing ownership of a file changes who the set permissions apply to. The new owner inherits the permissions.

Let's take a quick look at the basic usage of these commands.

chmod

The chmod command can be used in a couple of different ways, with permissions (or modes) set by numbers or by letters. Permissions can be given to a user who owns the file (u = user), group of said user (g = group), everyone else (o = others) or all users (a). And the basic permissions that can be given include read (r), write (w), and execute (x). There are also X, s, and t, but they're less commonly used.

When using numbers you can use a numeric value such as 644 to set permissions. The position of the value represents to whom is the permission given, and the actual value represents which (or how much) permissions are given as a sum total of each permission's unique value.

First position (in the above example 6) refers to the user. Second refers to the group of the user, and the third refers to all others.

Numeric values for permissions are:

4 = read 2 = write 1 = execute

So a value of 4 will only give read rights, but a value of 6 will give read and write rights because it is a sum of 4 and 2. 5 will give only read ane execute rights, and 7 will give all rights. Do this calculation for each numerical position and you'll end up with the desired value. So in the example of 644 we're giving the user who owns the file the permission to read and write (but not execute), the group of that user the permission to read only, and others the right to read only as well.

To set this mode with chmod on a file called important.txt we would simply run this command:

chmod 644 important.txt

Note that making a file executable, if it were a script or a program, amounts to simply giving someone or everyone a permission to execute. If this was an important.sh bash script we could allow the owner to execute, and others to read with the 744 mode, or everyone to execute with 755.

chmod 755 important.sh

Now, we can also use letters to accomplish the same thing, and we've already mentioned the relevant letters above. This is probably easier to remember than using numbers. For example, to accomplish the 644 permissions above we would run this:

chmod u+rw,go+r important.txt

So we're saying file owner user gets read and write permissions, group and others get to read.

The second example, with the important.sh file being made executable we could just run this:

chmod u+rwx,go+rx important.sh

If important.sh already had permissions set to 644 we can add everyone execute rights by simply running:

chmod +x important.sh

Not specifying the letter for anyone is treated as if we said "a", for all.

Finally, if we're setting permissions to a folder we need to specify the -R option (standing for "recursive"):

chmod -R 644 important-files/

chown

Basic usage of chown is pretty straightforward. You just need to remember that first comes the user (owner), and then the group, delimited by a colon.

This command will set the user "daniel", from the group of "admins" as owners of the directory "important-files":

chown -R daniel:admins important-files

Just like with chmod, the -R is there when it's a directory.

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How to use a compass

As long as I can remember, I’ve disassembled nearly every electronic device I could lay my hands on. Starting with the old pick-up from my parents, my first hi-fi set and Mini Disc player, I continued to perform this exercise professionally as the lead editor of a Dutch audio and video magazine. As soon as you lift the cover of a device, the layout of the PCB and corresponding cabling tells quite a lot about the product. The differences in design can result in a major difference in audio quality. Even with the same components, like the DA-converter, Integrated Circuits, and capacitors. Nice to know, but what does this have to do with DevOps, you might ask? Let’s find out.

Lots of books, articles, and blogs are written on the subject of DevOps. They contain implementation examples, share success stories, and warn you of pitfalls. Still, there is not a single source that tells you exactly how to “do DevOps step-by-step”. There are, of course, some best practices. The Spotify Model is famous and broadly used on the Web as an example and DevOps succes story. Their model uses squads, chapters, tribes and guilds so it's great for extending your DevOps slang vocabulary as well. Also various consultancy firms have their own set of rules and experiences. Since LEAN, Agile, and Scrum, are the main components of DevOps, the major differences between all best practices can be found within the “design” of those best practices. Sadly, in contrast to audio equipment, even once you have a great design, DevOps can not be reproduced over and over again within different companies. This is because every company is unique.

Instead of searching for a golden DevOps blueprint, or documenting every action within the company, use all available information about DevOps as a guideline. Just the way you use a compass to help you to navigate. DevOps is not a super accurate GPS navigation system that precisely tells you where to turn left or right. It will help you to get to your destination, but you will have to conquer all the challenges on the route, and the route itself, by yourself. The reason behind this bears repeating: every company is unique, so every route towards DevOps is unique. Moreover, the final destination of every company is also unique.

Simply starting DevOps within a company by using a blueprint will not make it a success. No matter how good your blueprint is. In a way, it is comparable to what sometimes happens with ITIL. Some “ITIL fundamentalists” strive to implement ITIL according to the (comprehensive) booklet. Every process has an extremely precise description that defines all steps and actions to the smallest detail. To defend this bureaucratic disaster, excuses like “we need to be compliant,” or “this is demanded by our corporate policies and directors,” are often used. With DevOps, the same form of process madness is perfectly possible. It should be avoided at all costs.

With DevOps, every company needs to reinvent the wheel a little bit. From a LEAN perspective, this sounds like waste, but it comes with a big advantage. Customizing DevOps to the specific needs of your company will make sure it fits your corporate culture, the products and services you (want to) deliver, and most importantly, it will help you to involve and keep your engineers and specialists.

As with those old audio devices, the same DevOos components, but with another design, may give a different result. Start by understanding the components. Learn to use this as a guide . . . as a compass. Then, when choosing your route towards your destination, write your own blueprint. During the journey, continuously adapt your blueprint until it fits your company’s situation best.

One last thing. You might want to draw with a pencil. If you do it right, you’ll be making changes, and pencil is easier to erase than ink.

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Studying for the LPI Certification Exam

One of the question I often answer when taking part in a Free Software or Education event is, "How can I study for the LPI Certification Exam?"

The answer for this question depends a lot on the student profile. Is she a self-taught person? Do they like to study in groups? Does he need a coach or teacher?

In one way or another, this follow up question is usually "where do I get materials to study for this or that exam?"

I always tell people that LPI is an independent certification body, providing the topics people need to know to take an exam and get certified. We do not produce educational material, as our official partners produce their own (sometimes sharing with each other) and also independent authors also write books, produce videos, podcasts and other materials. That said, I have a set of hints for people who want to get certified.

For those who feel more comfortable having a coach or teacher, the LPI partners page makes it easy to search for a partner near the place you live or work.

Others prefer to study alone or form a study team, which is my own preferred method. If that sounds like you, it's best to start by reading the official LPI topics in the site wiki, then decide which ones have the most appeal, as well as any areas where you feel the need to learn more.

Consider the following examples . . .

Our first student has been using Linux for quite a while and knows enough about using the shell and terminal. Reading the Linux Essentials exam topics though, he feels he needs to know more about Searching and Extracting Data from Files (Topic 3.2), using the cut command.

We have excellent free material on all the topics covered by the Linux Essentials certification, so I would first refer that student to the link where we collect these materials: https://wiki.lpi.org/wiki/Free_Training_Materials. Here in Brazil, where I live, our partner, 4Linux, has a free online training that also covers all of our LE topics.

The next student is a DevOps professional who, with minor exceptions, feels confident about all of our topics. For instance, she is not familiar with CORS headers and CSRF tokens, and the topic, "701.1 Modern Software Development", specifically asks for this.

Typically, DevOps professionals are quite knowledgeable in finding information, so I suggest some Google searches. Try them yourself:

"CORS headers"
"CORS headers" site:.edu
"CORS headers" filetype:pdf
"CORS headers" book
"CORS headers" tutorial

And as a plus:

fabian devops blog site:lpi.org

Since I mentioned DevOps, I'm proud to report that here, in Brazil, 4Linux has complete DevOps training covering all of our DevOps certifications. This is the first LPI partner in the world to have produced such courseware in a practical training environment.

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Linux Professional Institute (LPI) Certifications

Started back in 1999 by Linus Torvalds, these Linux certifications today has become important for any Linux professional. This program is available in three distinct levels, which are:

LPIC- 1: Linux Administrator

It is a junior-level Linux certification with no perquisites. The candidate needs to pass 2 exams, which covers all basic Linux skills that even include installing and configuring Linux on a workstation, performing maintenance tasks, making LAN or internet connections, and more. Obtain CompTIA Linux+ powered by LPI credential first; which will make you qualified both for Linux+ and LPIC-1 credentials.

LPIC- 2: Linux Engineer

This is an advanced level Linux Certification, which requires an active LPIC-1 certification. It has two exams- First covers the file system and devices, kernel, system startup, network configuration, system maintenance, storage administration, and even capacity planning and the second exam covers email services, network client management, domain name servers, system security and troubleshooting, and the like tasks.

LPIC- 3: Linux Enterprise Professional Certification

It is a senior-level Linux certification, which needs an active LPIC-2 besides passing any single exam in the 300 series. This certification includes exam IDs, which are:

◈ 300: Mixed Environment

◈ 303: Security

◈ 304: Virtualization and High Availability

300: Mixed Environment covers Samba, work with Linux & windows client, and even plus OpenLDAP.

303: Security covers operations, application security, and the network are covered under the security exam besides cryptography and access controls.

304: Virtualization and High Availability covers virtualization and high availability cluster storage and engagement.

Latest Certification in LPIC

LPI’s latest certification is the LPIC-OT DevOps Tools Engineer, which allows the Linux professionals to utilize the tools for collaboration during software and system development. The exam has 60 questions and it lasts for about 90 minutes.

Linux professionals, thus, have a whole new set of Linux certifications to attain in 2019. We believe that this guide is helpful for all the Linux professionals in finding some of the best Linux certifications and finding a new way in the world of Linux thereafter.

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