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Google Cloud Associate Cloud Engineer

From the overview to the practice on Google Cloud, at the pace of the Associate Cloud Engineer certification.

22 posts · 134 min read in total

Start with part 1

Levels show how deep you want to go into a subject, and each one assumes the one before. They are not difficulty levels: a practice level can be simpler than a concepts one, it is only more hands-on.

An optional level is not on the exam. It helps you fix the content, if you want to practice.

If you only want the certification, you can stop at Level 1.

Level 1Overview

  1. 01

    Cloud Fundamentals

    Why the cloud exists: the essential concepts that show up in any cloud certification, whether AWS, Azure, Google Cloud or Oracle Cloud.

    5 min read

  2. 02

    Regions and Zones

    Where the cloud really is: how regions and zones cut latency and keep one failure from taking everything down, on any provider.

    4 min read

  3. 03

    Security and Shared Responsibility in the Cloud

    The provider protects the cloud; you protect what you put in it. The division of responsibilities, IAM and least privilege, on any provider.

    6 min read

  4. 04

    Google Cloud: the starting point

    How Google Cloud organizes your space: organization, folders and projects, where permissions and billing live, and the global infrastructure behind it.

    6 min read

  5. 05

    Security and Identity on Google Cloud

    How Google Cloud applies IAM in practice: policies in the resource hierarchy, service accounts, encryption with your own keys and audit logs.

    6 min read

  6. 06

    Virtual Machines: from the dedicated server to the cloud

    From the dedicated server to the cloud VM: what virtualization is, who looks after what, and what the cloud brought that traditional hosting didn't have.

    4 min read

  7. 07

    Compute Engine: virtual machines on Google Cloud

    Compute Engine is Google Cloud's VM service: how to choose the machine type, the disks, the instance group and how to pay for it.

    8 min read

  8. 08

    Scaling and Load Balancing on Google Cloud

    How to keep several identical VMs running: a group that replaces a failed machine, and a balancer that decides where each request goes.

    7 min read

  9. 09

    Cloud Service Models: IaaS, PaaS, SaaS and FaaS

    Four ways to use the cloud, from renting infrastructure to ready-made software: what each model delivers and who looks after what, on any provider.

    6 min read

  10. 10

    Serverless and Cloud Run on Google Cloud

    How to run the brewery's site without paying for idle servers all year: Cloud Run, App Engine and Cloud Run functions, and when each one fits.

    6 min read

  11. 11

    App Engine on Google Cloud

    How to put a web application online without managing machines: App Engine, its Standard and Flexible environments, and when to choose each one.

    7 min read

  12. 12

    Containers in the Cloud

    How to run containers in the cloud without managing servers: container services, Kubernetes orchestration and image registries, on any provider.

    7 min read

  13. 13

    Kubernetes and GKE on Google Cloud

    How to keep many containers running without waking up at night: what Kubernetes does, and how GKE splits the work between Google and your team.

    6 min read

  14. 14

    DevOps, SRE and APIs on Google Cloud

    How to deliver and observe software in the cloud: automated deploys, monitoring, reliability targets (SRE) and APIs with a gateway.

    5 min read

  15. 15

    Cloud Storage: block, file and object

    Three ways to store data in the cloud: what block, file and object storage are, when to use each one and how the cost changes.

    7 min read

  16. 16

    Cloud Databases

    Installed on a VM or managed? How the cloud handles backups, replicas and failures, and what stays your responsibility.

    7 min read

  17. 17

    Data and Analytics on Google Cloud

    Where to keep each kind of data on Google Cloud, why the store's database should not answer business questions, and how the data reaches the report.

    7 min read

  18. 18

    Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

    How a computer learns from data: AI, machine learning, the three kinds of learning and the life cycle of a model, on any cloud provider.

    5 min read

  19. 19

    AI on Google Cloud: Pre-trained APIs, BigQuery ML and Vertex AI

    How to use AI on Google Cloud without starting from scratch: pre-trained APIs, SQL models in BigQuery and Vertex AI for custom and generative models.

    6 min read

  20. 20

    Cloud Networking: VPC, subnets and firewalls

    How to build a private cloud network: VPCs, subnets, gateways and firewalls, and how to decide what stays open to the internet and what stays protected.

    7 min read

  21. 21

    Digital Transformation and Migration to Google Cloud

    How to move systems to the cloud without stopping the business: migration strategies, Google Cloud tools and the transformation that comes after.

    5 min read

  22. 22

    Cloud Costs: pay for what you use and control the bill

    Where the cloud bill comes from, which pricing models exist (on-demand, committed use, spot) and how to avoid surprises with budgets, tags and right-sizing.

    7 min read

Level 2PracticeOptional

Coming soon: the posts of this level have not been published yet.