A structured, hands-on repository for anyone looking to bridge the gap between Cloud Support Technician and Cloud Engineer — built around real-world tasks that Senior Cloud Engineers perform daily.
- Cloud Support Technicians leveling up to Cloud Engineer
- Anyone preparing for AWS certifications and wanting practical experience
- Engineers who want to sharpen skills across infrastructure-as-code tooling
Each project is built around a Problem Statement — a realistic scenario you might encounter on the job. You then work through it using all four methods:
| Method | Description |
|---|---|
| AWS CLI | Command-line driven automation using the AWS CLI |
| Terraform | Infrastructure as Code using HashiCorp Terraform |
| CloudFormation | AWS-native IaC using CloudFormation templates |
| AWS Console | Manual walkthrough via the AWS Management Console |
Working through all four methods for the same problem builds deep understanding of what AWS is doing — not just how a tool works.
Every implementation method follows the same pattern:
Stage 1: Exercise → Complete a skeleton/partial version yourself
Stage 2: Troubleshoot → Find and fix intentional errors in a broken version
Stage 3: Solution → Deploy the working version, use it for future projects
This structure ensures you build and debug before you deploy — which is how real engineering works.
aws-cloud-engineer/
├── docs/ # Role definitions, project catalog, guides
├── projects/ # All projects live here
│ └── 01-foundational-vpc/ # Each project follows this pattern
│ ├── PROBLEM_STATEMENT.md
│ ├── aws-cli/
│ │ ├── exercise/ # Skeleton script to complete
│ │ ├── troubleshoot/ # Broken script with intentional errors
│ │ └── solution/ # Working deploy + teardown scripts
│ ├── terraform/
│ │ ├── exercise/
│ │ ├── troubleshoot/
│ │ └── solution/
│ ├── cloudformation/
│ │ ├── exercise/
│ │ ├── troubleshoot/
│ │ └── solution/
│ └── console/ # Step-by-step console walkthrough
└── templates/ # Reusable project scaffold
| # | Project | Skills Covered |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | Foundational VPC Network | Networking, Subnets, IGW, NAT, Routing, Security Groups |
More projects are on the way. See docs/project-ideas.md for the full roadmap covering 38 projects across 8 tracks.
Every project is designed to be torn down and rebuilt. Resources are provisioned with cleanup scripts or teardown instructions so you only pay while actively learning. Estimated costs are noted in each project's problem statement.
Note: As of February 2024, AWS charges $0.005/hr for all public IPv4 addresses — whether attached or not. Factor this into your session planning.
This project is built to be a community resource. If it's been useful to you:
- Fork the repo and work through it at your own pace
- Share it with teammates, study groups, or anyone making the jump from support to engineering
- Open a PR to add a new project, fix an error, or improve an existing walkthrough
- Suggest ideas by opening an issue — more project ideas and community input are always welcome
The goal is to make this the go-to hands-on learning path for Cloud Engineers at any level. A community website and Discord are planned as this grows.
See CONTRIBUTING.md for how to add projects and contribute improvements.