770 real-world scenario questions with plain-language answers — covering Kubernetes, AWS, CI/CD, Terraform, Docker, Linux/SRE, Observability, Networking, Security, and Git.
This repo was built as a study companion for DevOps and Cloud engineers preparing for interviews at all levels. The focus is on scenario-based questions — the kind where an interviewer describes a real situation and asks "what would you do?" — because that's how mid-to-senior interviews actually work.
Each domain has its own folder with a scenarios.md file:
devops-cloud-interview-scenarios/
├── ☸️ kubernetes/scenarios.md 150 questions
├── ☁️ aws/scenarios.md 120 questions
├── 🔄 ci-cd/scenarios.md 100 questions
├── 🏗️ terraform/scenarios.md 80 questions
├── 🐳 docker/scenarios.md 80 questions
├── 🐧 linux-sre/scenarios.md 47 questions
├── 📊 observability/scenarios.md 47 questions
├── 🌐 networking/scenarios.md 46 questions
├── 🔒 security/scenarios.md 40 questions
├── ⚙️ general-devops/scenarios.md 40 questions
├── 🌳 git/scenarios.md 20 questions
├── 📄 README.md (this file)
├── 🤝 CONTRIBUTING.md (how to contribute)
├── 📜 LICENSE
└── .gitignore
| Domain | Focus | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| ☸️ Kubernetes | Container orchestration, pod debugging, deployments, networking | 150 |
| ☁️ AWS | EC2, S3, RDS, IAM, Networking, Cost Optimization | 120 |
| 🔄 CI/CD | Pipelines, GitOps, deployments, testing, secret management | 100 |
| 🏗️ Terraform | State management, modules, locking, imports, best practices | 80 |
| 🐳 Docker | Images, containers, networking, multi-stage builds, security | 80 |
| 🐧 Linux / SRE | System administration, performance tuning, incident response | 47 |
| 📊 Observability | Monitoring, logging, metrics, tracing, alerting | 47 |
| 🌐 Networking | VPCs, security groups, routing, DNS, load balancing | 46 |
| 🔒 Security | IAM, secrets, encryption, compliance, supply chain | 40 |
| ⚙️ General DevOps | Cross-domain, disaster recovery, automation | 40 |
| 🌳 Git | Version control, branching, rebases, conflicts, recovery, history rewriting | 20 |
We also created a site for easier reading on the go:
techikrish.github.io/devops-cloud-interview-scenarios
An Android app is also coming soon.
- Pick your weak domain — don't study what you already know well. Start with one domain.
- Cover the answer first — try to answer the scenario yourself before reading the answer.
- Focus on the "what the interviewer is testing" note — understanding the intent helps you structure better real answers.
- Practice out loud — DevOps interviews are conversations, not written tests. Talk through your reasoning.
- Learn from patterns — notice recurring troubleshooting patterns across scenarios.
Each question is tagged with a level:
[L1]— Fresher / 0–1 year — foundational knowledge, simple debugging[L2]— Mid-level / 2–4 years — production experience, architecture decisions[L3]— Senior / SRE / 5+ years — complex systems, design tradeoffs, incident response
- 1–2 weeks to interview? Focus on
[L1]and[L2]in your main domain. - Deep prep? Do all scenarios in order of difficulty.
- Weak domain? Pick 2–3 scenarios daily for focused learning.
Use these scenarios to build interview guides:
- Pick scenarios across all difficulty levels.
- Mix different domains for well-rounded candidates.
- Scenarios are designed to be answered in 5–10 minutes.
Found a gap? Have a better answer? Want to add scenarios?
See CONTRIBUTING.md for detailed guidelines.
Quick start:
- Fork this repo.
- Add/improve scenarios in the appropriate domain folder.
- Follow the scenario format.
- Open a Pull Request.
- Share your on-call war stories (anonymized).
- Help the DevOps community prepare better for interviews.
- Get featured as a contributor.
- Build your personal brand.
- Star the repo — it helps others discover it.
- Share with your team — prep together.
- Contribute your scenarios — help the next person.
- Give feedback — issues and discussions are welcome.
This repository is licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for details.
This repo is maintained by the community. Every scenario, improvement, and contribution comes from real DevOps and Cloud engineers preparing for interviews or helping others succeed.
Maintained by the community. PRs and contributions welcome. 💙
- Found an error? Open an Issue.
- Want to discuss something? Start a Discussion.
- Have scenarios to contribute? See CONTRIBUTING.md and open a PR.
Good luck with your interviews! 🚀 You've got this. 💪