We’ve upgraded the infrastructure behind our most complex remote labs. Courses like Kubernetes Administration and Configuration and Ansible Masterclass , which previously required bare metal machines—now run entirely on LXC containers provisioned in the Hetzner Cloud, managed using Ansible, AWX (Ansible Tower's upstream project), and OpenTofu (Community-driven Terraform replacement).
This change improves flexibility, increases scalability, reduces cost, and enhances security—all without compromising the technical depth of our hands-on training.
Why we use remote machines in our courses
Whether delivered online or on-site, nearly all of our instructor-led courses rely on pre-configured remote lab environments.
This model solves several key challenges:
- It removes dependence on participants’ own hardware, which can vary widely in capability.
- It ensures that every participant works in a uniform, fully prepared environment that aligns with the course content.
- It allows us to manage complex setups centrally, reducing troubleshooting and ensuring a smoother experience for both instructors and course participants.
This setup is especially important for DevOps and system administration training, where environment consistency and real-world simulation are critical.
Depending on the course we use:
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Cloud Machines: Most courses use virtualized machines provided by Hetzner. These are cost-effective and flexible, making them ideal for general use.
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Bare Metal Machines: Some courses, such as the ones we mentioned above, require multiple machines. Take, for instance, our Kubernetes Admin course involves operating a cluster of 11 machines. Previously, these courses relied on more expensive and less flexible bare metal machines, managed by students using HashiCorp Vagrant with KVM/libvirt.
Recent Improvements
To enhance flexibility and reduce costs, we have migrated the need for bare metal machines to cloud-machine setups by using LXC (Linux Containers) instead of Virtual Machines. Additionally, we have transitioned from HashiCorp Vagrant to OpenTofu, an open-source, community-driven alternative to Terraform.
Benefits
This migration allows us to leverage Hetzner's cost-efficient Cloud Servers even for courses that traditionally required bare metal machines, resulting in more affordable and flexible course offerings.
Real DevOps, behind the scenes
We don’t just teach Open Source and DevOps—we run our operations on those same principles. From how we automate our training delivery to how we build our course environments, the infrastructure behind our courses reflects the real-world practices we help our participants master.
This latest upgrade is part of our long-term commitment to training that’s practical, scalable, and ready for tomorrow.
Want to see it in action?
Explore our DevOps curriculum
or contact us to learn how we can support your team.