Hey everyone!
I'm excited to share that I've recently passed the Cloud Native Platform Associate (CNPA) exam. With Platform Engineering emerging as a critical discipline in the cloud-native world, I wanted to validate my understanding of the ecosystem. This certification was the perfect way to do that.
Since this is a relatively new certification from the Linux Foundation, I noticed there aren't too many "battle reports" out there yet. So, I decided to write up my experience to help anyone else looking to sit for this exam.
What is the CNPA?
Unlike the CKA (Certified Kubernetes Administrator) which is hands-on and very technical, the CNPA is a knowledge-based, multiple-choice exam. It focuses on the concepts, patterns, and architecture of modern platforms.
It validates that you understand how to support platform engineering teams. Furthermore, it's not just about "how do I configure this pod," but rather "how do we build a self-service platform that developers actually want to use?"
The Exam at a Glance:
- Format: Multiple Choice
- Total Questions: 85
- Duration: 120 Minutes
- Validity: 2 Years
- Prerequisites: None (but 6-12 months of experience is recommended)
- New Prerequisites after pass the exam: CBA Exam, Deep dive in K8S
- Experience Level: The official page lists it as "Beginner," but don't be fooled—that is a joke! It is definitely an Intermediate level exam requiring solid domain knowledge.
The Key Domains
The exam covers a broad range of topics. You can't just know Kubernetes; you need to understand the full lifecycle. Here is what I focused on:
1. Platform Engineering Fundamentals
This is the core. You need to understand the difference between DevOps and Platform Engineering. You must remember and deeply understand the keyword "Product Mindset" in IDP. It covers the concept of "Platform as a Product" and why Internal Developer Platforms (IDPs) are essential for scaling organizations.
2. Continuous Delivery & GitOps
This section tests your knowledge of modern deployment strategies. I saw questions related to ArgoCD, Flux, and the principles of GitOps. Make sure you understand Canary vs. Blue/Green deployments and how they fit into a platform context.
3. Observability
It's not enough to just deploy code; you need to know how it behaves. The exam dives into Prometheus, Grafana, OpenTelemetry, and the distinction between logs, metrics, and traces.
4. Security & Compliance
This is huge. You need to know about "Shift Left" security, supply chain security (SBOMs), and policy-as-code (like OPA/Kyverno). They want to ensure you know how to bake security into the platform itself.
How I Prepared (and Passed!)
Since resources are still scarce, I had to be selective. I read through the official Linux Foundation domains, but reading documentation can only get you so far.
The biggest game-changer for me was doing practice tests. I wanted to get a feel for the question style and the depth of knowledge required.
I highly recommend this Udemy Mock Exam course:
https://www.udemy.com/course/certified-cloud-native-platform-associate-cnpa-exam/
I passed the exam largely thanks to this course. The questions were incredibly similar to the real thing, and the explanations helped clarify why an answer was correct (or incorrect). It gave me the confidence I needed going in.
Exam Day Experience
The exam was tough as fuck even I passed with enough score: 86/100 (requirement is 75)
If I have a chance, I wouldn't take this before finish Kyverno Certified Associate (KCA), OpenTelemetry Certified Associate (OTCA).
Final Thoughts
If you are working in DevOps, SRE, or specifically in a Platform team, this certification is worth it. It helps standardize the terminology and ensures you aren't missing any pillars of a robust platform.
A word of caution: The test is tough. It requires a lot of information for platform engineering as well as knowledge from the Kubestronaut domain.
I highly recommend taking this exam after completing the Certified Backstage Associate (CBA) and Certified GitOps Associate (CGOA) exams.
Also, be sure to understand the concepts I posted in My Platform Engineering Journey #1: The Beginning.
Good luck to anyone planning to take it! If you have questions, feel free to reach out.