Preparation for the Kubernetes and Cloud Native Associate (KCNA)

The Kubernetes and Cloud Native Associate (KCNA) exam demonstrates a user’s foundational knowledge and skills in Kubernetes and the wider cloud native ecosystem.

Purpose

This repository is meant to be my personal preparation material for the KCNA exam.

Repository structure

The exam consists of five domains, and you can find my personal notes on each topic here

• Kubernetes Fundamentals
• Container Orchestration
• Cloud Native Architecture
• Cloud Native Observability
• Cloud Native Application Delivery

Certification Details

The Kubernetes and Cloud Native Associate (KCNA) exam demonstrates a user’s foundational knowledge and skills in Kubernetes and the wider cloud native ecosystem.

Pricing

$250

Includes

• Online
• Certification Valid for 3 Years
• Includes 12 Month Exam Eligibility
• One Retake
• Multiple Choice Exam
• Duration of Exam 90 minutes

Who is it for?

The KCNA is a pre-professional certification designed for candidates interested in advancing to the professional level through a demonstrated understanding of kubernetes foundational knowledge and skills. This certification is ideal for students learning about or candidates interested in working with cloud native technologies.

About This Certification

A certified KCNA will confirm conceptual knowledge of the entire cloud native ecosystem, particularly focusing on Kubernetes. The KCNA exam is intended to prepare candidates to work with cloud native technologies and pursue further CNCF credentials, including CKA, CKAD, and CKS.

What It Demonstrates

KCNA will demonstrate a candidate’s basic knowledge of Kubernetes and cloud-native technologies, including how to deploy an application using basic kubectl commands, the architecture of Kubernetes (containers, pods, nodes, clusters), understanding the cloud-native landscape and projects (storage, networking, GitOps, service mesh), and understanding the principles of cloud-native security.

Domains & Competencies

Domain	Weight
Kubernetes Fundamentals	46%
Container Orchestration	22%
Cloud Native Architecture	16%
Cloud Native Observability	8%
Cloud Native Application Delivery	8%

Kubernetes Fundamentals

• Kubernetes Resources
• Kubernetes Architecture
• Kubernetes API
• Containers
• Scheduling

Container Orchestration

• Container Orchestration Fundamentals
• Runtime
• Security
• Networking
• Service Mesh
• Storage

Cloud Native Architecture

• Autoscaling
• Serverless
• Community and Governance
• Roles and Personas
• Open Standards

Cloud Native Observability

• Telemetry & Observability
• Prometheus
• Cost Management

Cloud Native Application Delivery

• Application Delivery Fundamentals
• GitOps
• CI/CD