Kubernetes has various certifications: CKA, CKAD, CKS, and KCNA. Read along if you are wondering which Kubernetes certification is right for you.
This article will discuss each certificate separately to help you advance in this field.
Kubernetes tutorials are all about learning, getting exposure, and getting experience, so more and more engineers are getting certified in Kubernetes deployment.
Let us see what Kubernetes is all about before proceeding to the certifications.
What is Kubernetes?
Kube, often known as Kubernetes, is an open-source container orchestration technology that helps to streamline formerly laborious tasks like deploying, managing, and scaling containerized applications.
Kubernetes offers developers a way to schedule and run containers across groups of physical or virtual servers, which helps to optimize application development for the cloud.
What is Kubernetes certification?
The Kubernetes certification lets you invest in your career and helps you create successful cloud-native projects.
Certification is the initial step, enabling administrators to establish their legitimacy and market value.
It also makes it easier for companies to find skilled workers to help them quickly grow their Kubernetes deployment.
Kubernetes training refers to learning about Kubernetes, an open-source framework for managing containerized apps and its associated ideas, such as Docker and Istio, and how to embark on the journey of cloud-native application development.
Top Kubernetes certification online
K8s training is now available on various platforms and educational portals. Let us discuss them one by one.
- Kubernetes and Cloud Native Associate (KCNA)- The Linux Foundation
This is the training course the Linux Foundation offers and is the first certification course for candidates who wish to pursue additional certifications like CKAD, CKS, etc.
A certified KCNA will demonstrate a conceptual understanding of the cloud-native environment, emphasizing Kubernetes. The KCNA is a great way for IT professionals who want to learn more about the importance of cloud and DevOps principles to get started.
The KCNA Certificate focuses on the following:
- Kubernetes concepts such as resources, architecture, API, containers, and scheduling are covered.
- Runtime, security, networking, service mesh, storage, and container orchestration basics are examples of container orchestration principles.
- Autoscaling, serverless, community and governance, roles and personas, and open standards are all examples of cloud-native architecture.
Course Details:
Fees: $250
Exam Format: Multiple choice
Duration of Exam: 90min
Validity: 3 years
Ideal for: Beginners
- Certified Kubernetes Application Developer(CKAD)
The Linux Foundation and the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) made CKAD so that standard training and certification could help grow the Kubernetes ecosystem.
The certification focuses on the following:
- Determining, constructing, and updating container images, comprehension of jobs, and multi-container pod design patterns
- Knowledge of security contexts, service accounts, authentication, authorization, and access control.
- A fundamental comprehension of network regulations, access to apps via services and using Ingress rules to expose applications.
Course Details:
Fees: $395
Exam Format: Performance-based
Duration: 2 hours to complete the exam
Validity: 3 years
Ideal for: Intermediate
- Certified Kubernetes Administrator(CKA)
Administrators will benefit from this Kubernetes training course because it gives them hands-on experience and the skills and confidence to implement a solution.
The certification focuses on the following:
- Understanding how the Kubernetes cluster is built, set up, and maintained.
- Creating health checks, multi-container pods, and deploying Kubernetes applications are all part of the workloads and scheduling module.
- Making networking policies, using ingress controllers, and exposing apps through services are part of the networking and services module.
Course Details:
Fee: $395
Exam Format: Performance-based
Duration: 2 hours
Validity: 3 years
Ideal for: Intermediate
- Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist (CKS)
The CKS is also made for operations and system administrators but is more focused on security and tools.
The CKA requirement will be of great value to security teams since it informs them about the day-to-day obstacles faced by operation teams.
The certificate concentrates on
- Establishing a Kubernetes cluster with a focus on managing access
- System hardening skills focused on making the cluster and kernel access less vulnerable to attacks.
- Managing Kubernetes secrets is an example of a module for minimizing microservice vulnerabilities.
Course Details:
- Fees: $395
- Format: Performance-based
- Duration: 2 hours
- Validity: 2 years
- Ideal for: Intermediate
Where to get CKA certified in India?
CKA is the most challenging and popular training program among the four certifications.
Container Orchestration using Kubernetes- Simplilearn
Even though the CNCF gives you links to courses from the Linux Foundation, you don’t have to use those courses to prepare.
If you’re new to Kubernetes, you could start with Simplilearn’s Container Orchestration using Kubernetes.
With the Container Orchestration using Kubernetes Training course, you can learn how to manage containerized workloads and services.
It covers everything: application lifecycle installation, configuration, verification, networking, planning, security, cluster maintenance, fundamental concepts, Azure Kubernetes, storage, and more.
The course material for Container Orchestration with Kubernetes has been carefully put together to give Kubernetes administrators the key skills and knowledge they need to do hands-on work.
By design, it covers everything you need to know to take the CKA exam, plus a lot more.
How much does a Kubernetes professional make in India?
As the career for K8 professionals is highly promising, the candidates always double up on skills and knowledge of DevOps.
According to Payscale, as per the skill, salaries start at around Rs. 10 lakh per annum. This is because people who work with Kubernetes add incremental value to those who work with DevOps.
So, when businesses can get both expertise from one person, the person’s pay goes up.
So, to conclude
To conclude the blog, we recommend opting for the CKA certification to help you grasp the key skills and concepts.
CKA is a widely recognized certification that shows how well a candidate can manage and run Kubernetes.
You will also have an advantage over people who don’t have the certification since recruiters and organizations want to hire professionals who have it.