Step by step free learning paths for 2026
Every step on every path links to a free, hands-on tutorial on this site, in the order to learn it. Steps without a tutorial yet are marked Coming soon — they are this site's public writing queue, filled in the open as new guides ship.
Three paths, one rule: no dead ends. Every covered step is a tutorial you can start now, and the coverage counter only moves when a real guide ships.
The flagship path: Linux and scripting prerequisites, infrastructure as code, containers and Kubernetes, CI/CD, observability, security and the advanced topics — in the order a working engineer actually meets them.
Starts with the prerequisites: Linux, scripting, networking and Git
Start the roadmap →AWS first and deepest, with the Azure and GCP columns mapped beside it: compute, storage, databases, networking, security, monitoring and migration strategy for all three providers.
Starts with the AWS core: IAM → VPC → EKS
Start the roadmap →Fundamentals first, then the offensive, defensive, cloud-security and governance tracks. This site's depth today is cloud security and DevSecOps — and the roadmap says so honestly.
Starts with cloud security: IAM and the DevSecOps checklist
Start the roadmap →The deepest path on the site: 22 guides that already form one start-to-finish sequence, from your first kubectl commands to running Kubernetes in production. New here? Start at step 1. Already running clusters? Jump to the step that matches your problem.
Every tutorial on every path is free to read, in full. Pick a roadmap and start at step one — nothing is locked behind an account.
Each step builds on the ones before it, and each covered step links straight to its hands-on tutorial in reading order.
Steps marked Coming soon are the public writing queue. New guides are added to the paths as they ship — the coverage counters above are the scoreboard.
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Most readers start with the DevOps roadmap's prerequisites and take the Kubernetes path when they reach the container section. Both are free, and both start at step one.