Linux has had a profound effect on DevOps. It has forced the rethinking of processes and procedures due to its combined scalability, portability, and processor-independent source code from a build, compile, test, and deploy perspective. There are tremendous opportunities in several DevOps-related career pathways, and having a solid understanding of Linux will set you up for a successful DevOps career.
Linux has several niche markets that allow IT pros to move vertically and laterally into specialized areas. Careers in the Internet of Things (IoT), embedded, client-based, and server-based Linux systems all benefit equally from a career path oriented around the objectives covered by CompTIA Linux+.
However, when it comes to DevOps, a Linux career path can easily traverse the Linux system scalability and portability trees. From small to big scale and small to big data, the traditional functions of DevOps allow IT pros to work in any of these areas or to move from one to another quickly.
Standardized build, compile, and test processes
Because Linux development can be single or multi-architecture, the build and make processes handle single and cross-platform compile and test processes with little to no effort on behalf of the DevOps pro. Through Linux networking, the same processes can be used to patch or deploy almost any application to one or more processor architectures or one or thousands of Linux servers, workstations, or IoT devices just as easily.
This is due to how Linux handles development, testing, and deployment consistently across all platforms, architectures, and sizes of Linux distributions, with only slight differences from what is typically handled in the build processes.
Scalability and portability across architectures
Unique to the Linux OS, this benefit is possible because the operating system, administration, and development processes and procedures are truly scalable and portable thanks to its UNIX roots. This is because a Linux DevOps career path focuses on portable, scaled development and is hardware and software agnostic.
This allows IT pros to focus on processes and procedures rather than the operating system design, which is ideal but normally almost impossible to accomplish. It also allows for a range of lateral and vertical career movements, offering nearly limitless opportunities in the workforce.
If a DevOps pro decides to move on to large-scale systems, like the IBM Z series Mainframes, working for large organizations can easily be the focus for an entire career. That person could just as quickly center their career around the cloud or a large commercial applications development house focusing on Linux DevOps for virtual machine or container development across many processor architectures.
Emerging opportunities for Linux DevOps
Mainframe or Server, Cloud, Virtualization or Containerization, Intel, ARM or MIPS. Mix and match from the above list, and the Linux DevOps career path fits anywhere in the matrix. In more than 40 years of hardware and software development, there has never been a case where these rules could ever be applied.
The key is that machine virtualization and full processor emulation are built into and managed by the Linux kernel—unique to commercial-grade operating systems. This allows for cross-platform development from one processor architecture to another. It also means complete development, debugging, testing, and deployment for many application types can be done entirely on the host system of an Intel- or ARM-based computer and built, tested, and deployed to the target systems directly from the host cross-development system.
These very features add career doorways that have never existed before. The Linux DevOps career path touches every technical area of Linux OS like no other. The growth potential in areas like software development is natural. However, some new areas are emerging that are changing the face of Linux DevOps forever.
These new and exciting growth areas are partly due to the reorganizing of the systems development and systems programming processes that have evolved over the past several years. A few years ago, these processes were centralized under the systems group, a carryover from the days of traditional mainframes. And these new Linux DevOps opportunities are growing very quickly, providing secure career growth for years to come.
Site reliability engineering
This is the new decentralized systems group of the 21st century—teams that include software engineers, systems architects, software infrastructure support, and systems operations development and support. Linux DevOps specialists are members of these teams.
The processes and rules that have been a part of Linux DevOps are still there. Still, the Linux DevOps specialist now works within a team led by a systems engineer who both collaborates with and leads a team of skilled software developers working in a specialized area—applications for the server, desktop or cloud, device interface applications, or specialized database or communications applications that are mission critical and require 100% uptime. This exciting new role allows Linux DevOps pros to work alongside software developers to develop incremental updates that morph an application from one generation to another without system or application downtime.
Production engineering
Like site reliability engineering (SRE), production engineering is the core team that updates, modifies, tests, and patches the Linux core system, including the kernel, device drivers, memory management, peripheral interfaces, peripheral software subsystems, and real-time monitor and control systems.
Like SRE groups, these groups have a systems core engineer and the same staff as SRE. Still, they are responsible for maintaining 100% system uptime by developing and testing patches to the Linux system while it is running. These teams have a Linux DevOps specialist accountable for building, testing, and deploying core Linux system components to maintain live updates, allowing 100% uptime of all systems and applications relating to these respective systems.
It’s an exciting time for Linux DevOps careers—and anyone wishing to pursue a Linux career. Many career paths can be pursued with a CompTIA Linux+ certification and other certifications to improve your IT skills. These are just a few endless possibilities to explore and grow into Linux over a prosperous lifelong career.
Download the exam objectives to learn more about how CompTIA Linux+ covers the skills needed to use Linux throughout IT.