How to Use This Site
This is a self-paced, hands-on curriculum. There are no lectures to attend and nothing to enroll in. Each module stands alone, the way MIT’s Missing Semester does — read the notes, do the labs, tick the checkpoint, ship the deliverable.
The three principles
Section titled “The three principles”1. Hardware-first
Section titled “1. Hardware-first”You learn infrastructure by building infrastructure on real hardware you own. Before Module 2, read the hardware guide and start acquiring gear. The whole lab costs less than one certification exam.
2. Public by default
Section titled “2. Public by default”From Module 0, everything you do lives in a public git repository. Your configs, your notes, your writeups, your mistakes. By Module 6 you’ll migrate that repo to a git server you host yourself. The result is a timestamped, verifiable record of real work — the thing no certificate can fake.
3. The closed loop
Section titled “3. The closed loop”Your documentation site is both the deliverable and the proof. You self-host your portfolio on the infrastructure you built, reachable through the network you secured. When it loads for an employer, that is your résumé.
How each module is structured
Section titled “How each module is structured”Every module page has the same shape:
- What you’ll learn — the concepts, organized into lessons.
- Labs — hands-on exercises. This is where the learning actually happens; don’t skip them.
- Checkpoint — a checklist. You’re done when every box is ticked. This is your “belt test.”
- Deliverable — the artifact that goes in your portfolio. Each one is chosen to be something an interviewer will find impressive.
- Resources — curated links to go deeper.
Suggested pace
Section titled “Suggested pace”There’s no clock, but for planning: most people spend 2–4 weeks per module at a few hours a week, putting the full curriculum around six months part-time. Go faster or slower as your life allows — the checkpoints, not the calendar, tell you when you’re ready to move on.
The curriculum map
Section titled “The curriculum map”| Phase | Module | Capstone artifact |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | The Toolkit | Public git repo + first blog post |
| 1 | How It Actually Works | Annotated packet-capture walkthrough |
| 2 | Build the Server | Server build log + hardening checklist |
| 3 | Build the Network | Network diagram + config repo |
| 4 | Storage & Virtualization | Verified restore demo |
| 5 | Overlay Networks | Remote-access design doc (ADR) |
| 6 | Self-Hosting | Live self-hosted portfolio + git server |
| 7 | Automation & CI/CD | Ansible repo that rebuilds the lab |
| 8 | Security Operations | Purple-team report + post-mortem |
| 9 | The Bridge | “Hire me” portfolio page |
This site is itself an example
Section titled “This site is itself an example”This site is built with Astro Starlight from a public git repository — exactly the kind of static site and workflow you’ll be running yourself by Module 6. Found a typo or want to add a resource? Open a pull request. Contributing here is good practice for the showcase submission that caps off the curriculum.