Introduction

In this blog post, I'll share my experience taking the AWS DevOps Pro Exam, how I prepared for it, well I guess not prepared for it, and some recommendations for resources to help you pass the exam.

Preparation

Like the Azure DevOps Expert Exam (AZ-400), I didn't have any specific preparation for the AWS DevOps PRO Exam either. I had a coupon expiring and the exam version was retiring, so I decided to wing it.

That being said, I do have one year of DevOps engineering experience using TeamCity, CloudFormation, Terraform, and Azure DevOps, which helped me understand DevOps principles and where AWS tools fit in the process. However, I wasn't familiar with AWS-specific tooling, such as CodeCommit, CodePipeline, and CodeBuild.

My Exam Experience

I took the exam in person at a nearby college rather than doing it remotely from my home, via PearsonVUE. The exam took almost two and a half hours out of the three hours allotted, and I found it challenging to focus after the 30-35th question due to a lack of breakfast and a bad headache.

The questions were lengthier compared to the Azure DevOps Expert Exam (AZ-400), requiring more reading and remembering the context of the questions. Nevertheless, I passed the exam with a score of 756.

Recommendations for Exam Preparation

I suggest familiarizing yourself with all the DevOps tools offered by AWS, such as:

• CodeCommit, CodeBuild, CodeDeploy, CodePipeline

• CloudFormation

• Elastic Beanstalk

• SSM and OpsWorks

• There were also questions about CloudTrail, CloudWatch logs, monitoring, AWS Config, and AWS Inspector.

Understanding the concepts of fault tolerance, disaster recovery, and high availability is essential. If you have a strong understanding of the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) and have worked within a DevOps or Cloud team, you should be well-prepared for the exam.

Resources

Though I didn't use any resources for my preparation, I recommend checking out Stephen Marek's courses on Udemy for AWS certificate courses.

AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional 2023 - Hands On!

For practice exams, Tutorial Dojo/Jon Bonso's practice exams are a great option.

Conclusion

While I didn't prepare extensively for the AWS DevOps Pro Exam, my experience in the field and understanding of DevOps principles helped me pass. Remember that hands-on experience is invaluable when preparing for an exam like this. Good luck with your preparation, and I hope you find these insights helpful!

Bonus: If you are a video person, check out my YouTube Channel, where I talk about Cloud, DevOps and tech.

Feel free to reach out to me on Twitter or LinkedIn, if you have any questions.