On course completion, you will be able to achieve the following:

• Understand cloud concepts.
• Plan and design a cloud environment.
• Administer cloud resources.
• Manage cloud storage.
• Manage networks in the cloud.
• Secure and troubleshooting networks in the cloud.
• Manage cloud migrations and troubleshooting cloud deployments.
• Manage cloud automation and orchestration.
• Understand cloud security concepts.
• Manage cloud security.
• Manage cloud performance.
• Manage maintenance in the cloud
• Implement high availability and disaster recovery in the cloud.

This course prepares a student to take the CompTIA Cloud+ CV0-003 national certification exam.

Course Outline:

Lesson 1: Understanding Cloud Concepts

In order to better understand cloud services and providers, a consistent set of concepts must be applied. This lesson covers cloud concepts and terminology. Cloud service providers have their own unique names for their offerings, so it is easy to get confused. The final topic in the lesson addresses a common troubleshooting methodology that applies to on-premises and cloud deployments.

Lesson 2: Planning and Designing a Cloud Environment

Now that you understand cloud characteristics, service models, deployment models, and basic terms, it is time to begin planning and designing a cloud solution. One of the key factors for cloud designs is capacity planning. This lesson addresses business concerns and requirements associated with cloud solutions.

Lesson 3: Administering Cloud Resources

This lesson covers cloud administration tasks, such as subscription services or virtualization. It also covers managing compute resources and memory allocations.

Lesson 4: Managing Cloud Storage

Cloud storage is a critical component of any cloud deployment. VMs need storage in IaaS deployments. Developers and DBAs need storage at the PaaS level. End-users typically need lots of storage when using SaaS solutions such as Office 365 or Salesforce.com. As a cloud administrator, you need a good understanding of the types of cloud storage as well as the available configuration options.

Lesson 5: Managing Networks in the Cloud

Cloud technologies rely on networking. Some of that network infrastructure is on-premises physical connectivity, some is logical connectivity within your cloud service provider’s network, and some connects the two together. This lesson covers software-defined networking, network services, and VPN connectivity. The use of a virtual private cloud (VPC) is a key concept in this lesson. The lesson also covers virtual networking concepts such as routing, vNICs, and subnetting. Network appliances like load balancers, firewalls, and web application firewalls receive attention. Finally, the lesson covers VLANs. 

Lesson 6: Securing and Troubleshooting Networks in the Cloud

Cloud services rely heavily on security and networking. Managing security is really integrated into all cloud administration subjects, but a few specific network security concepts are covered in this lesson. Troubleshooting network connectivity is essential in three spaces: on-premises, in the cloud, and between the two. Understanding the flow of network traffic helps with both security and troubleshooting, and that flow will be regulated by segmentation.

Lesson 7: Managing Cloud Migrations and Troubleshooting Cloud Deployments

Cloud migrations are extremely complicated, and a phased approach is recommended. In this lesson, you will examine migration types, including rehosting (“lift and shift”), replatforming (“lift, tinker, and shift”), and refactoring (“rip and replace”). You will also view P2V, V2V, and V2P migrations, along with storage and database migration concerns. Finally, a series of common migration issues and probable causes are referenced to help with troubleshooting.

Lesson 8: Managing Cloud Automation and Orchestration

Automation and orchestration of private and public cloud systems support the rapid and consistent deployment of instances, containers, and applications. Such automation is made possible by the concept of infrastructure as code and the use of DevOps practices such as CI/CD. This lesson lists various automation tools, along with version control mechanisms and scripting practices. The lesson also lists common automation problems and likely causes.

Lesson 9: Understanding Cloud Security Concepts

Cloud security begins with identity management. Authentication and authorization allow the use of cloud resources. Another vital part of security is managing the VM instances in the cloud, including baseline configurations, patching, application security, and hardening. Data encryption can be used to guarantee data integrity and source. That data is managed by cloud vendors or third-party software, including automated classification and retention policies.

Lesson 10: Managing Cloud Security

Fundamental security concepts apply for both on-premises and cloud-based deployments. Understanding and cataloging vulnerabilities and then practicing good hardening procedures help mitigate a great many risks. Many help desk tickets and administrator issues will arise around authentication and authorization. Confirming that the systems and policies supporting proving identities and controlling access to resources are configured correctly will make troubleshooting much easier.

Lesson 11: Managing Cloud Performance

Managing cloud performance begins with understanding the lifecycle of cloud services, as well as the types of tasks cloud admins are responsible for. These tasks include backups, patching, upgrades, and more. Once deployed, VM instances, web apps, and other cloud services must be optimized. Optimization covers the major subsystems of any server, whether virtual or physical. These subsystems are CPU, memory, storage, and network capabilities. Finally, troubleshooting deployments is a common task, and the lesson presents various troubleshooting issues at the end.

Many of the topics in this lesson were covered from an installation and configuration perspective in other lessons. This lesson focuses on the maintenance of these services, rather than the subject concepts.

Lesson 12: Managing Maintenance in the Cloud

Cloud maintenance includes tracking system events and availability, as well as proactively backing up data in anticipation of failures. Tracking begins with centralized system log files and continues with monitoring systems and administrator alerts. Even with cloud deployments, administrators are responsible for backing up user data, system configurations, and application files. Backup targets now include cloud storage in addition to traditional tape and drive targets. Restore policies and procedures help ensure data is protected and can be recovered quickly.

Lesson 13: Implementing High Availability and Disaster Recovery in the Cloud

High availability is one of the hallmarks of cloud services. This lesson covers high-availability options and strategies, including redundancy at the component, service, and regional levels. Even with high-availability practices in place, disaster recovery may still be required. Proper planning, documentation, and procedures must be in place ahead of time. These approaches prepare the services and network for disasters and help staff responding to the incident bring services back online quickly. Finally, incident response documentation and training must be available to incident responders.

All necessary course materials are included.

Certification(s):

This course prepares a student to take the CompTIA Cloud+ CV0-003 national certification exam.