Four days of intensive practice to run a Kubernetes cluster with confidence and pass CKA, the Linux Foundation exam taken entirely at the command line. The course follows the five official domains and puts extra weight on troubleshooting, which accounts for almost a third of the score. Each day ends with timed tasks set up like the real exam.
Install and upgrade a cluster with kubeadm, including a highly available control plane
Control cluster access with RBAC and service accounts
Deploy, scale and roll out applications without downtime
Configure Services, Ingress, the Gateway API and NetworkPolicies
Provision persistent storage through StorageClasses
Track down a failing node, component or service quickly
Work fast and accurately with kubectl against the clock
Program
Cluster architecture, installation and configuration (25%)
RBAC and access management
Preparing infrastructure and installing with kubeadm
Cluster lifecycle and upgrades
Helm, Kustomize, CRDs and operators
CNI, CSI and CRI extension interfaces
Workloads and scheduling (15%)
Deployments, rolling updates and rollbacks
ConfigMaps and Secrets
Autoscaling
Scheduling constraints and pod admission
Services and networking (20%)
Pod connectivity and NetworkPolicies
Service types and endpoints
Gateway API and Ingress
CoreDNS
Storage (10%)
StorageClasses and dynamic provisioning
Persistent volumes, access modes and reclaim policies
Troubleshooting (30%)
Node and control-plane component failures
Resource monitoring and container logs
Service and network issues
Prerequisites
No official prerequisite for the exam
Recommended: comfort with the Linux command line and basic container knowledge
You should be at ease with a terminal text editor such as vim or nano
Target audience
System administrators and infrastructure engineers
DevOps, SRE and cloud engineers
Security professionals planning to take CKS next
Developers already shipping to Kubernetes who want to understand the platform underneath
The exam
CKA is a remotely proctored, hands-on exam: you work through a set of tasks directly on live Kubernetes clusters within 2 hours and need 66% to pass. The environment tracks the latest Kubernetes minor release (currently v1.35). The exam purchase includes a second attempt, two Killer.sh simulator sessions and 12 months to schedule. Tasks are available in English, Simplified Chinese and Japanese. The certification lasts 2 years and is renewed by retaking the exam.
Preparation tips
Master imperative kubectl and --dry-run=client -o yaml
Learn to navigate the official docs quickly, since they are allowed during the exam
Do both Killer.sh simulator sessions under real exam conditions
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Is the CKA multiple choice?
No. There are no multiple-choice questions; every task is done at the command line on real clusters.
How long does it take to prepare for the CKA?
With a solid Linux background, the four-day course followed by two to four weeks of regular hands-on practice is usually enough. Candidates who are new to containers should plan a little more time before booking the exam.
Do I need another certification first?
No, CKA has no prerequisite. It is, however, required before you can sit CKS.
Which Kubernetes version is tested?
The exam moves to the latest minor release within weeks of its launch; it is currently v1.35. Our labs use the same version.
Which formats do you offer?
Live online, in person in Casablanca, or on-site at your organization, in French or English.
Securevalley training — online and in-person sessions. Contact us for pricing and registration terms.
Securevalley is not a training partner of the Linux Foundation or CNCF. Kubernetes and CKA are trademarks of The Linux Foundation.