Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD)
Learn Kubernetes from zero with real CKAD-style practice in a live cluster.
Stop Watching. Start Typing. Prepare for CKAD with Real Kubernetes Labs.
The CKAD exam gives you 2 hours, a live Kubernetes cluster, and 15-20 tasks. No multiple choice. No notes. No second monitor. You either know kubectl or you don't. Most candidates fail because they studied the wrong way. They watched 40 hours of video, memorised YAML snippets, and froze when the exam gave them a blank terminal. The exam does not test what you know. It tests what you can do under pressure. This course trains you the way the exam tests you. Every lesson has a live terminal. Every concept ends with a lab that grades itself. You will create pods, deployments, services, configmaps, secrets, volumes, probes, network policies, RBAC, security contexts, Helm releases, Kustomize overlays, and CRDs — not by watching someone else do it, but by typing the commands yourself, in your own cluster, with your own namespace. Module 1 is free. No signup. No credit card. Open the first lesson and you have a real kubectl terminal in 10 seconds.
Each student gets 4 dedicated Kubernetes namespaces: student-NNN for daily work, dev-NNN for cross-namespace labs, staging-NNN for deployment exercises, and secure-NNN for Pod Security Admission. No shared environments. No waiting for lab slots. No 'your session expired' interruptions. Your cluster is always ready. The terminal is real — a browser-based ttyd session connected to a live k3s cluster. kubectl, Helm, and buildah are pre-installed. Tab completion works. Vim is configured for YAML editing. This is not a simulator. The commands you type here are the same commands you will type on the exam.
What you'll actually learn
- Kubernetes FoundationsUnderstand clusters, nodes, and the API server. Master kubectl imperative commands, YAML manifests, and the generate-edit-apply workflow that saves minutes on the exam.
- Pods and WorkloadsCreate pods, inspect failures, read logs, exec into containers, configure resource requests, liveness probes, init containers, and the sidecar pattern.
- Networking and ServicesExpose applications with Services, route traffic with Ingress, resolve cross-namespace DNS, and enforce NetworkPolicies.
- Deployments and RolloutsPerform rolling updates with maxSurge and maxUnavailable, roll back to specific revisions, and implement blue/green and canary strategies.
- Configuration and SecretsExternalize config with ConfigMaps, secure credentials with Secrets, inject both as env vars and volume mounts.
- Storage and StatefulSetsPersist data with PVs and PVCs, deploy stateful apps with stable identities, and use volumeClaimTemplates for per-pod storage.
- Advanced WorkloadsRun DaemonSets on every node, execute Jobs and CronJobs, and control pod placement with node affinity.
- Security and RBACCreate ServiceAccounts, define Roles with least privilege, enforce SecurityContexts, and test Pod Security Admission.
- Deployment Tools and GovernanceInstall and manage Helm packages, patch manifests with Kustomize overlays, fix deprecated API versions, discover CRDs, configure ResourceQuotas, and monitor applications with kubectl top and events.
Who should take this course
- ✓ Your own k3s cluster
- ✓ 4 dedicated namespaces
- ✓ 68 lessons across 9 modules
- ✓ 64 auto-graded labs
- ✓ 100% CKAD v1.35 exam coverage
- ✓ Includes Helm and Kustomize
- ✓ Module 1 free — no signup
- ✓ 500 students max
- ✓ Cancel anytime
What students say
"I understood Kubernetes concepts from videos, but I could not move fast in the terminal. This course forced me to type kubectl commands every day. The labs made Deployments, Services, probes, and ConfigMaps feel automatic."
"The best part is having the terminal inside the lesson. I did not have to install Minikube or fight with Docker Desktop. I opened the lesson, typed the commands, broke things, fixed them, and actually learned Kubernetes."
"CKAD practice needs repetition. The auto-graded labs helped me see exactly what I missed. By the time I reached rollouts, probes, and resource limits, I was much faster with YAML and kubectl."
"I wanted more than exam cramming. The lessons explain why each resource exists, then make you build it. I finally understood how Pods, Services, Ingress, ConfigMaps, Secrets, and volumes connect together."
"I started with almost no Kubernetes experience. The course begins with the basics and slowly builds up to RBAC, NetworkPolicies, and Pod Security. The live terminal made it feel practical from day one."
"The no-video format worked for me because I was not passively watching. I was reading, typing, checking output, and fixing mistakes. That helped me build real confidence with Kubernetes commands."
Course Curriculum
| Unit | Lesson | What You'll Learn |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | What is Kubernetes? | Understand the problem Kubernetes solves, the journey from JAR to container to pod, and the control plane architecture |
| 2 | kubectl Imperative Commands | Create and delete pods and deployments using kubectl run, create, and delete across multiple namespaces |
| 3 | Working with YAML Structure | Write a complete Pod manifest from scratch using kubectl explain as your only reference |
| 4 | Working with YAML Apply and Validate | Apply manifests declaratively, validate with dry-run, extract live YAML, and output resources in JSON |
| 5 | kubectl Generating YAML | Generate valid manifests with --dry-run=client -o yaml and edit them to add resource requests and labels |
| 6 | kubectl Modifying Live Resources | Update images, set env vars, add labels, and annotate resources without touching manifest files |
| 7 | Building Container Images | Build container images with Buildah, tag them, and export in OCI format — an important CKAD application build skill |
Frequently Asked Questions
Every Student Gets Their Own Workspace
No shared environments. No waiting for lab slots. You get 4 dedicated namespaces (student, dev, staging, secure), a pre-configured kubectl terminal with Helm and buildah, and 64 labs that grade themselves. Open a lesson, click the terminal, start typing.