Consolidating 15 years of software engineering, cyber security, DevOps, and cloud into bite-sized bits 👇 Posting daily as I'm working. Sharing tips and tricks as I go michaellevan.substack.com

Security is actually pretty simple: 1. Ensure that the data is secure 2. Ensure that any third-party libraries/packages you're using in your code are secure Well... since that's 100% of security, I guess security isn't all that simple lol

Cloud Detection Response (CDR) and Network Detection Response (NDR) 👇 Cloud Detection and Response (CDR) focuses purely on cloud environments. (cont) #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

An important reminder when using `port-forward` with Kubernetes. If you run something like `kubectl port-forward svc/service_name portnumber:port:number` You're bringing the traffic from the Kubernetes to your local computer. (cont) #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

I updated KoaPerf to include: 1. AWS Support! You can get recommendations for containerized apps running in AWS now. 2. A better UI (more visually appealing) Check it out at the link below 👇 koaperf-apeseqd2cehnhjgh.z03.azurefd.net #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

For any organization, big or small. Enterprise or startup. Figuring out the workflow of how environments should be deployed, managed, and most importantly, what should be deployed and managed is the make or break. (cont) #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

I built a free tool to tell you the best place to deploy containerized workloads. koaperf-apeseqd2cehnhjgh.z03.azurefd.net (cont) #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

After planning and deploying a Kubernetes environment, you're left with: ✅ Performance optimization ✅ Monitoring and observability ✅ Upgrades and a few other specifics that are necessary to ensure k8s is running as expected. #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

The tool needs to be deployed before it can be used. ArgoCD is a great example of this. Argo is implemented for workloads in k8s to be deployed automatically based on an interval instead of having to run a bunch of `kubectl apply -f` commands locally or in a pipeline. (cont)

I was recently on a consulting project and the goal was to optimize AWS EKS. It came down to a few key aspects including: 1. Workload isolation 2. Multi-az 3. Cluster security around multi-tenancy 4. Performance optimization (cont)

I never thought about security as a specialty. i.e - DevOps Security, Cloud Security, Network Security, etc. The reason is that security should be embedded in all of our jobs. (cont)

I just updated DevOps-The-Hard-Way-AWS for the first time in 4 years. ✅ Removed the creation of a VPC for EKS with CloudFormation ✅ Terraform Modules for EKS and VPC creation ✅ Simplified the steps for the labs and A LOT more. Link below 👇 github.com/AdminTurnedD...

You're not late to learning Cloud/DevOps/Platform Engineering, you're right on time. Open up that new DevOps course. Learn Kubernetes and why orchestration is important. Understand networks, systems, and design. You'll never reach a point where you "know it all".

In the world of AI programming with things like Cursor... If you don't spend the time now getting really good at programming, you're going to fail drastically. If you let "the AI thing" do it all for you without you understanding what's happening underneath the hood... (cont)

All Kubernetes implementations start with: ✅ Proper planning and architecture ✅ Security ✅ Teamwork Ensure you know exactly what's being deployed, managed, and by whom. #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

In the last week or so, I started trying Cursor out to build some cloud-native tooling. The result? Pretty good actually! I created a tool in Python to do a `diff` on a bunch of cloud security policies across Azure CIS and MCSB. buff.ly/R7zDF8j #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

Do I know anyone who works at AWS?

Terraform is always funny. I need an S3 bucket to store my state! Ah, that S3 bucket needs to be created before I create my other resources that need to store state. I'll put it in my module! Wait, the module needs to access the S3 bucket and it's not created yet...

I built a new open-source cloud and Kubernetes based tool that: buff.ly/ZT8IyHs #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

Scaling k8s workloads in an event-driven fashion == ensure proper performance, cost, and resource optimization for various situations that occur. In this video, I break down one method of scaling Kubernetes workloads with KEDA. buff.ly/5WgJidU #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

Does anyone have the key takeaways for KubeCon EU? So far I'm seeing: 1. VMs on Kubernetes. 2. Kubernetes could be a solid place to run Agents and ML workloads Anything else? #kubernetes #kubecon

Managed k8s services were meant to be... well, managed. EKS Auto Mode and AKS Automatic got us there. In this blog post, I break down how to get started from a hands-on perspective with both. buff.ly/fhJweo8 #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

Wasm gives DevOps and Platform Engineers true Distributed Systems. You have the ability to not care where your app is running. 1. Build your application 2. Build a Component (made up of a WIT) 3. Compile it down to Wasm A thread 🧵 #kubernetes #devops #wasm

Alright, so this is rather interesting and why fine-tuning or creating a RAG is necessary. This agent has a clear, defined job: Tell me the best region to deploy k8s workloads to based on cost and performance. A few things: (in the next comment) #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

Just a reminder that those AI Agents that everyone thinks will "take jobs" have to run somewhere. That "somewhere" is most likely going to be: 1. k8s 2. Containers 3. Event-driven services This stuff isn't magic. It needs to run somewhere. #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

Look... I know package management in JS isn't fun, but like... I just had to run `pip3.12` instead of `pip3` because the ONE SPECIFIC library only worked on Python3.12 and below.... So... ya know

I've been reading a lot of stuff around App Modernization and it's ironic how much of it is about running workloads on VMs.

AKS Automatic is what everyone thought managed Kubernetes services would be. The gist is that Azure takes care of the overall cluster configuration and you worry about the app. In this blog post, I break down how to set up and configure AKS Automatic. buff.ly/4gS5Y10 #kubernetes #cloud #devops

A little Python fun. 1. Specify some key libraries 2. Specify which Model you want to download 3. Save the Model locally And I'm thinking at this point this is "a future" for DevOps/Platform/Cloud engineers. A thread 🧵 #devops #python #cloud

Cloud-native areas to focus on in 2025 👇 ✅ App Modernization ✅ Hybrid Cloud ✅ Scalability A thread 🧵 #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

Just a heads up - If you're implementing Azure Local, you'll see the OS download called "Azure Stack HCI". That's because Azure Stack HCI is the predecessor. It's all officially now Azure Local. #azure #kubernetes #CloudSolutions

Just a heads up, software engineering is only 65 years old. That’s barely “one person ago”. You aren’t “late” to learning Kubernetes. You aren’t “late” to learning cloud. You’re not “late” or behind the curve. The curve hasn’t even started. #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

That feel when you're running on an M4 Max... this is why we need @wasmcloud.com

I just updated DevOps-The-Hard-Way-Azure 🚀 The update includes: - Creating the container image for the app that's being deployed in the project. - Creating the ACR - Pushing the container image to ACR Link below 👇 buff.ly/4jazIYz #kubernetes #cloud #devops

Microsoft Azure Cert breakdown for 2025 👇 👉 AZ-900 👉 AZ-104 👉 AZ-204 👉 AZ-305 👉 AZ-400 #kubernetes #azure #certifications

CFPs are open for BLDRcon (online)! The event is March 7th, 2025, and will be streamed across LinkedIn, X, and YouTube. sessionize.com/bldrcon #kubernetes #comnmunity #cfp

Having a bit of HTML fun lol

I've been writing in Golang for so long that I forgot how straightforward Python is 🤓

The majority of organizations haven't figured out a use case to create anything LLM/Model specific that'll benefit anything from a business perspective.

This sounds really neat. Isolating LLM workloads/Agents via containers. #azure #cloud

One thing I'm constantly searching for is community 🚀 People that enjoy the same things I do, like to talk about the tech, and solve problems. So, I decided to create a new community on Discord! buff.ly/40hsmex #cloud #community #devops #platformengineering

If you're going to join a chat-based community, what do you prefer? Slack, Discord, or something else?

I work with vendors and organizations on: ✅ Content Creation to show the value of products. ✅ Consulting to help implement tools, products, & best practices. ✅ Advisory services. Let’s chat about what your needs are for the new year and where I can implement value. DMs open #devops #consulting

BLDRcon CFPs are now open! 🚀 The first BLDRcon will be virtual and held March 7th, 2025. A thread 🧵 #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

What an amazing way to start off the New Year 🚀 Really excited to announce that I’m officially a Microsoft MVP! Thank you to everyone who’s supported me over the years because without you this wouldn’t be possible. Thank you to Microsoft for the recognition. #MVPBuzz #kubernetes #azure

The goal of Wasm is: ✅ Cross-architecture ✅ Cross-language ✅ Better Security ✅ Performance The goal of wasmCloud is to take Wasm and run it anywhere regardless of where it's built. In this blog post, I explain how to get started with wasCloud. buff.ly/40enZ3J #kubernetes #devops #cloud

What's your stack going to be for 2025? Kubernetes? Cloud-based services? On-prem? I'm really curious to hear how everyone is running workloads in the new year. #devops #cloud #platformengineering

Just in case you feel like confusing your family members on NYE.

For LLMs/GenAI, You need to know about: ✅ Where it ties into the DevOps, Platform, and Cloud Engineering world. ✅ What fine-tuning Models entails. ✅ How you can use Models for automation2.0 www.linkedin.com/feed/update/... #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering

Where does containerization end and orchestration pick up? The gist is that k8s doesn't know how to run containers. It needs a plugin. In this blog post, I break down the entire process. buff.ly/4fztNJC #kubernetes #devops #platformengineering