DevOps engineer is one of the highest-paying roles in tech, with salaries ranging from $100K to $200K+. But the learning path can feel overwhelming. Here's the roadmap I wish I had when I started.
Phase 1: Foundations (1-2 Months)
Linux Fundamentals
You'll spend 90% of your time in Linux. Learn the command line, file system, permissions, processes, and basic shell scripting. This is non-negotiable.
Networking Basics
TCP/IP, DNS, HTTP/HTTPS, load balancing, firewalls. Understanding networking will save you hours of debugging later.
Git & Version Control
Branching, merging, pull requests, git workflows. Everything in DevOps is version controlled.
Phase 2: Containers & Cloud (2-3 Months)
Docker
Containers are everywhere. Learn Dockerfiles, images, containers, volumes, networks, and Docker Compose.
Cloud Platform (Pick One)
Start with AWS (most jobs), Azure (enterprise), or GCP (modern tech). Learn core services: compute, storage, networking, IAM.
Phase 3: CI/CD & Automation (2-3 Months)
CI/CD Pipelines
GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, or Jenkins. Build pipelines that test, build, and deploy automatically.
Infrastructure as Code
Terraform is the industry standard. Learn to provision infrastructure with code instead of clicking through consoles.
Phase 4: Orchestration & Monitoring (3-4 Months)
Kubernetes
The most in-demand DevOps skill. Learn pods, deployments, services, ingress, ConfigMaps, Secrets, and Helm.
Monitoring & Observability
Prometheus, Grafana, ELK stack. You can't improve what you can't measure.
The Skills That Actually Get You Hired
- Kubernetes — #1 most requested skill
- Terraform — IaC is expected everywhere
- AWS — Largest cloud market share
- CI/CD — Every team needs pipelines
- Python/Go — For scripting and automation
Certifications Worth Getting
- AWS Solutions Architect Associate
- Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA)
- HashiCorp Terraform Associate
Want to Accelerate Your DevOps Career?
We help engineers level up their DevOps skills through real projects. Learn by doing, not just reading.
Get in touch: info@cloudelevate.ai
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