Week 1: Advanced Linux System Administration Day Topic Assignment Day 1 Linux System Architecture Overview Draw Linux boot process flow. Day 2 Managing Users, Groups, Permissions, ACLs Create a user with limited permissions. Day 3 Service Management (systemd, service, chkconfig) Create and manage a custom service. Day 4 Cron Jobs and Task Scheduling Create a cron job that backs up a folder every 12 hours. Day 5 Linux Logs and Troubleshooting (/var/log/, journalctl) Find and explain 2 errors from /var/log/messages. 🔥 Assignment 1 (Weekend Project) Setup: Install CentOS/Ubuntu VM if not already done. Task: Create 2 users, restrict access, configure a service (like nginx or any service), and setup a cronjob for daily logs backup. Week 2: Linux Networking, Security, and Monitoring Day Topic Assignment Day 6 IP Configuration, Hostname, DNS Setup Configure static IP and change hostname. Day 7 Network Troubleshooting (ping, traceroute, ss, lsof) Find open ports on your machine and list them. Day 8 Linux Firewall (firewalld, iptables) Block a port and unblock it. Day 9 SSH Basics and Key Authentication Setup passwordless SSH to another machine. Day 10 Linux Performance Monitoring Tools (top, htop, iotop) Monitor system for 10 mins and capture CPU spikes. 🔥 Assignment 2 (Weekend Project) Task: Setup a firewall to allow only SSH and HTTP. Bonus: Write a simple shell script that monitors CPU every 5 minutes and emails when CPU usage > 80%. Week 3: Bash Scripting and Kafka Installation Day Topic Assignment Day 11 Bash Basics: Variables, Loops, Conditions Write a script to print files modified today. Day 12 Bash: Functions, Arguments Write a script that accepts username and creates a user. Day 13 Bash Script Project: Backup Automation Write a script that backs up a given folder into /backup/. Day 14 Kafka Overview and Architecture Draw Kafka architecture and explain components. Day 15 Kafka Installation (Manual - No Docker) Install Kafka + Zookeeper manually on Linux VM. 🔥 Assignment 3 (Weekend Project) Task: Write a bash script to automate Kafka server start/stop. Task: Install Zookeeper and Kafka on your Linux server without any errors. Week 4: Kafka Configuration, Security, and Monitoring Day Topic Assignment Day 16 Kafka Broker Configuration (server.properties) Configure a custom port and log directory for Kafka. Day 17 Kafka Topic Management (CLI Commands) Create 3 topics, produce and consume sample messages. Day 18 Kafka Partitioning and Replication Create a topic with 3 partitions and 2 replicas. Day 19 Kafka Monitoring using JMX, CLI Tools Monitor Kafka broker metrics. Day 20 Kafka SSL and SASL Authentication (Intro Level) (Optional) Read and document SSL setup steps. 🔥 Assignment 4 (Weekend Project) Task: Create a topic, produce 10 messages, consume them from another terminal. Task: Simulate Kafka broker down and recover. Final 10 Days: Real-world Practice + Mock Troubleshooting Day Topic Assignment Day 21 Kafka Producer-Consumer Deep Practice Write a checklist to troubleshoot if producer stops. Day 22 Kafka Cluster Mini-Project Setup Setup a 2-node Kafka cluster (if possible) Day 23 Linux + Kafka Troubleshooting Scenarios Troubleshoot and fix a failed Kafka service. Day 24 System Hardening Basics (disable root login via SSH etc.) Harden your Linux VM. Day 25 Kafka Backup and Restore Concepts Create a plan to backup topics and broker settings. Day 26 Load Testing Kafka Topics (optional advanced) (Optional) Produce 1000 messages to a topic. Day 27 Project Review Day 1 Review system + Kafka setup and performance. Day 28 Project Review Day 2 Testing backup, monitor uptime. Day 29 Final Mock Troubleshooting Exam Troubleshoot a broken Kafka setup. Day 30 Course Completion + Interview Preparation Prepare for client-side technical questions.