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Chef Configuration Management Fundamentals

Chef Configuration Management Fundamentals

A practical beginner friendly course for teams adopting Chef to manage servers at scale. Participants learn Chef’s architecture, write readable recipes, organize cookbooks and data, and operate Chef safely in real environments. The agenda favors clear patterns, idempotence, and maintainable policy as code.

What will you learn?

You will understand how Chef Server, Workstation, and Client converge nodes from declared state to actual state. You will write recipes with built in resources, organize cookbooks, and separate code from data with attributes and data bags. You will also manage roles, environments, and Policyfiles, and adopt lightweight testing and operations practices.

  • Explain Chef architecture, convergence, node objects, and run lists
  • Author recipes and cookbooks using resources, templates, and notifications
  • Manage attributes, data bags, and secrets while keeping code and data separate
  • Use roles, environments, and Policyfiles with basic testing and operations

Requirements:

  • Comfortable with Linux command line and SSH
  • Basic understanding of configuration files and system services
  • Some familiarity with Git and YAML or JSON is helpful

Course Outline*:

*We know each team has their own needs and specifications. That is why we can modify the training outline per need.

Module 1: Chef architecture and workflow

  • Components and flow Chef Server, Workstation, Client, ohai
  • Convergence model idempotence, desired state, and catalogs
  • Node objects, run lists, and policy as code basics
  • Organization layout orgs, users, keys, and permissions

Module 2: Recipes and resources in practice

  • Resource syntax package, service, file, template, user, execute
  • Notifications and subscriptions for safe restarts
  • Guards and conditionals only if, not if, retries, and timeouts
  • Custom resources overview and when to create them

Module 3: Cookbooks, files, and templates

  • Cookbook structure metadata, attributes, recipes, files, templates
  • Templating with ERB variables, helpers, and validation commands
  • File management ownership, modes, and sensitive files
  • Versioning cookbooks and handling dependencies

Module 4: Attributes and data management

  • Attribute precedence default, override, force default, force override
  • Attribute files, role or environment attributes, and node persistence
  • Data bags and encrypted data bags or Chef Vault basics
  • Separating code from data and avoiding duplication

Module 5: Roles, environments, and Policyfiles

  • Mapping roles to node purpose and composing run lists
  • Environments for dev, test, prod with safe promotions
  • Policyfiles locking dependencies and repeatable releases
  • Organizing repos for teams mono repo vs multi repo

Module 6: Quality and validation

  • Style and linting with Cookstyle and common rules
  • Unit style checks for resources and helpers
  • Compliance at a glance with InSpec profiles
  • Simple CI hooks for cookbook changes

Module 7: Operating Chef day to day

  • Bootstrapping nodes and rotating keys
  • Knife usage search, upload, diff, and environment compare
  • Handling failures converge logs, why run, and rollback options
  • Health signals last run status, reports, and alerting

Module 8: Patterns and next steps

  • Roles and profiles style layering for reuse
  • Configuration drift reduction with periodic audits
  • Change management small batches, approvals, and release notes
  • Ninety day roadmap and a starter checklist

Hands-on learning with expert instructors at your location for organizations.

3.072€*
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Level:
intermediate
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Duration:
14
Hours (days:
2
)
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Training customized to your needs
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Immersive hands-on experience in a dedicated setting
*Price can range depending on number of participants, change of outline, location etc.
Get Quote

Master new skills guided by experienced instructors from anywhere.

3.395€*
Graph Icon - Education X Webflow Template
Level:
intermediate
Clock Icon - Education X Webflow Template
Duration:
14
Hours (days:
2
)
Camera Icon - Education X Webflow Template
Training customized to your needs
Star Icon - Education X Webflow Template
Reduced training costs
*Price can range depending on number of participants, change of outline, location etc.
Get Quote