Kubernetes and Cloud Native Associate (KCNA) Study Guide

Chapter 1. Introduction to the KCNA Certification and Study Guide

The momentum of the cloud native movement is unstoppable. Not only because of the Kubernetes project (don’t worry, if you don’t know about it, this book will equip you with all relevant information), but also thanks to the exponential growth and contributions of the cloud native community in recent years. Community-led ecosystems exist today for organizations, professionals, and even investors, and the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) is playing the primary role as a catalyst. If you look at the CNCF Landscape, you’ll see more than 1,200 tiles that represent the large and small companies involved in cloud native activities, about 820 company members, and a rich list of projects with an amazing level of community engagement.

Defining Cloud Native

But before we dive in, what exactly is “cloud native,” and what does it mean for an adopter company? We will discuss the difference between general cloud computing and cloud native later, but even if “cloud native” has no single definition, let’s take a look at CNCF’s definition as a guiding force:

Cloud native technologies empower organizations to build and run scalable applications in modern, dynamic environments such as public, private, and hybrid clouds. Containers, service meshes, microservices, immutable infrastructure, and declarative APIs exemplify this approach. These techniques enable loosely coupled systems that are resilient, manageable, and observable. ...