OCI Operations Associate study plan

Map the OCI global hierarchy - regions, availability domains, fault domains, and tenancy - and explain in writing how each layer affects failure isolation and placement decisions

Create a free-tier or trial tenancy and navigate the Console to locate compartments, identity domains, policies, and the audit log for a single resource

Define at least eight core OCI networking and compute terms (VCN, subnet, route table, security list, NSG, VNIC, shape, image) in your own words with one operational consequence each

Diagram the request path for an internet-facing compute instance from client to guest OS, labeling each OCI component it crosses

Build a VCN with public and private subnets, an internet gateway, a NAT gateway, and a service gateway, then verify routing with connectivity tests from each subnet

Write security list and network security group rules that allow only the intended ports, and prove the restriction by attempting a blocked connection

Launch compute instances using both a flexible shape and an AMD or Intel shape, attach a block volume, and resize the shape to confirm the operation's effect on the instance

Configure an instance principal or a dynamic group so an instance can call an OCI API without stored credentials

Interpret the meaning of a CIDR overlap error and a route rule that silently blackholes traffic

Deploy a load balancer in front of two compute instances and demonstrate health-check failover by stopping one backend

Configure a private DNS zone and a resolver rule, then confirm name resolution from inside the VCN

Create block volume backups and a volume backup policy, and restore a volume from backup into a new instance

Compare Object Storage tiers and lifecycle policies, then write a lifecycle rule that transitions objects after a set number of days

Explain when to choose file storage versus object storage versus block storage for a given workload requirement

Provision an Autonomous Database or a Base Database system, connect to it with a wallet or connection string, and run a query from a compute instance

Configure a database backup schedule and describe the difference between automated backups and a manual on-demand backup

Create a Vault, a master encryption key, and a secret, then retrieve the secret from an application using the correct IAM policy

Write IAM policies that grant least privilege at compartment scope for a compute operator and a database reader, and test each with a separate user

Enable and interpret the audit log to identify who deleted or modified a resource

Enable Monitoring for a compute instance and a database, and create an alarm that fires on a high-CPU threshold with a notification topic

Query metrics in the Metrics Explorer and explain the difference between a metric namespace, a dimension, and an aggregation interval

Configure a Logging agent or service log and search the collected entries for a specific error pattern

Set a budget with an alert rule and forecast-based warning, then identify which resources are driving spend

Distinguish budget alerts from alarms and explain why each is needed for cost control

Write and run an OCI CLI command sequence that creates a compartment, launches an instance, and tags it, capturing the JSON output for each step

Automate the same sequence with a Resource Manager stack or a Terraform configuration, then destroy and re-apply it to prove idempotency

Apply defined tags and freeform tags to at least three resources and use a tag-based query or cost report to filter them

Build a simple scheduled script or function that stops a non-production instance outside business hours

Explain how compartments and tags together enable chargeback reporting

Diagnose three deliberately broken scenarios - a bad route rule, an over-restrictive security list, and a missing IAM policy - using only logs, metrics, and CLI output

Perform a full restore drill: recover a deleted object from a versioned bucket and a volume from backup, recording recovery point and recovery time

Review an IAM policy set for privilege escalation paths and rewrite the riskiest statement

Tune an alarm threshold and a budget alert after observing a week of baseline data

Summarize the shared responsibility boundary for a managed database and a compute instance

Assemble a personal one-page reference of the twenty facts you most often forgot during weeks one through seven

Re-run every hands-on deliverable from memory in a fresh compartment without consulting notes

Complete timed practice sets weighted to your two weakest domains and log every missed concept with its domain

Re-teach two weak concepts aloud or in writing as if explaining them to a junior operator

Confirm exam-day logistics and take one full-length timed simulation under real conditions