7 AWS Online Training Resources that will help you pass your AWS Certification

If you’re planning to?kick-start your cloud computing career?and earn your?AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner?or?AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate certification,?you are probably looking for some quality?AWS online training resources.

Luckily, there is no shortage of information when it comes to?AWS training.

On the flip side, however, the abundance of information doesn’t always come as a blessing. With thousands or even millions of blogs, webinars, videos, and tutorials – finding the ideal resources for your needs can be perplexing.

Finding the ideal AWS resources depends on your needs and learning style. Therefore, whether you are just getting started with AWS or you consider yourself a veteran, below are some of the?best AWS resources?that suit many learning levels.

1 AWS free tier

One of the best ways of learning something is by jumping straight into it. If you are starting out on AWS training on a tight budget,?AWS free tier?allows you to try an array of services without paying a dime.

AWS free tier provides an ideal platform for you to decide whether or not AWS services are ideal for your business. Additionally, it’s a great way for developers to try incredible services such as AWS CodeDeploy and AWS CodePipeline before investing anything in them.

The only challenge that comes with AWS Free Tier is that there are usage limits so make sure you read the?FAQs?and understand what you can use and how much you can use each service. Ensure you track your usage with a billing alarm so that you don’t incur unexpected charges.

2 Hands-on Training using Practice Labs

Learning AWS at your own pace is one of the greatest ways of achieving success. There are multiple options to get help with gaining practical experience on AWS:

1. AWS Self-Paced Labs (Qwiklabs)

With the?AWS self-paced labs?you learn in a live AWS environment characterized by AWS cloud services and real-life scenarios you would encounter in cloud computing. The service is hosted on?Qwiklabs.com.

There are two learning methods using AWS self-paced labs. Firstly, you can either follow a learning quest or opt for an individual lab. Ideally, individual labs are designed to assist users to learn about AWS services in 15 minutes or less. On the other hand, learning quests guide users through various labs so that they can learn AWS at their pace.

Once you complete AWS using learning quests, you get a badge that you can use to spice up your resume or showcase your expertise in an array of social media platforms.

The challenge with the AWS self-paced labs is they are very short and limited in scope. After you’ve gone through the free labs you’ll find it can quickly become quite expensive to really get some decent exposure to AWS.

2. Hands-on Guided Training

The other option is to use a training course that provides lots of guided hands-on learning exercises. In this case, you’ll need to register your own AWS Free Tier account and then you can follow along and replicate the configurations the instructor shows you.

The?Digital Cloud Training courses?all include lots of hands-on training. In fact, our?AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate training course?is almost completely hands-on – if you want to build a solid practical skill set, this is the course for you.

This method means you can spend a lot more time working with AWS and building your knowledge as you get a generous amount of credits with the AWS free tier account.

3 YouTube

One of the most valuable AWS resources that we cannot overlook is YouTube. This huge video-sharing platform is a great place to find video training from Amazon and other credible sources.

Truthfully, taking the?AWS certification path?demands that you only get information from the best sources. Therefore, when searching for training videos on YouTube, make sure you utilize credible videos such as those on the?Amazon Web Services Channel, or those posted by AWS experts such as?Digital Cloud Training.

4 AWS documentation and whitepapers

You cannot ignore?AWS documentation?and?AWS whitepapers?if you want to get yourself through AWS certifications and learn the AWS services in-depth. This virtual resource contains everything AWS including tutorials, computing basics, case studies and much more.

Whether you are a novice in AWS or an experienced AWS pro, you will, without a doubt, find useful information in the AWS documentation.

Also, there are whitepapers written by experts in the AWS community that provide unlimited access to technical information that can sharpen your knowledge in cloud computing. They include architecture diagrams, reference materials and technical guides that might not be found in the AWS documentation.

5 GitHub

GitHub?is one of the largest developer platforms that contains vast amounts of useful code we can use in?AWS development projects.

Apart from providing an avenue for developers to manage projects, build software and host code, it also contains valuable materials that can boost your knowledge in AWS.

GitHub also brings people from all walks of life who have different experiences with AWS. They are able to share information about their specialties, thus giving motivation to those who are starting out on their certification.

In GitHub, you will find a host of resources, including videos,?samples, blog posts and eBooks that can go a long way towards helping you master AWS and pass your?AWS certification exams.

6 Online learning platforms

Thanks to the growth of public cloud computing, there has been an upsurge in online learning platforms. There are many options available today and the quality of training courses for AWS is very high.

At?Digital Cloud Training?we host our courses on?Udemy.com?as well as on our own?learning platform. These platforms each have slightly different features and pricing options. You can also find many more instructors and training providers out there that cater for your own learning style and preferences.

7 Blogs

Finally, blogs are another amazing resource for information on AWS. Finding a credible blog to learn cloud computing can be overwhelming. The good news is that AWS has a?blog?where you can get tips, insights, how-to, news articles, webcasts and many more. Also, check out the?Digital Cloud Training blog?for instructional and educational articles on AWS services.

Final Thoughts

It’s incredible how much quality information is available to us today, and often for free. The key to successful training is to carefully choose which resources you trust to help you build your knowledge. By utilizing these resources, you will find the guidance you need to?kick-start your AWS certification journey?and sharpen your skills on AWS. Ultimately, all the AWS online training you could possibly need is out there and it’s up to you to find it and use it to further your career. I wish you all the best for your cloud journey!

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This article by Neal Davis originally appeared on the Digital Cloud Training Blog: "7 Best AWS Online Training Resources"