Containers · advanced
Istio Service Mesh & Advanced Kubernetes Networking
Master service mesh architecture and advanced Kubernetes networking with Istio. You'll learn how to design zero-trust microservices platforms with mTLS, fine-grained authorization, intelligent traffic management, and deep observability. Built for platform engineers responsible for production-grade Kubernetes networking at scale.
- 13 hours
- 25 lessons
- 6 modules
- updated May 2026
Try it before you sign up
Read a full lesson and answer 3 questions from the Module 1 quiz. No account needed.
The Kubernetes Network Model
6 modules, 25 lessons
Module 1 is free — lessons, hands-on walkthrough and quiz.
- readThe Kubernetes Network Model30 min
- videoCNI Deep Dive: Calico, Flannel, Cilium20 min
- hands-onLab: NetworkPolicy Default-Deny25 min
- quizQuiz: Kubernetes Networking Foundations15 min
Built by the CloudaQube team
No celebrity instructor — here is exactly what goes into the course instead.
- 01 7 guided hands-on walkthroughs you run in a real environment.
- 02 6 module quizzes — every answer comes with an explanation.
- 03 Last updated May 2026.
- 04 Any module can become a hands-on lab in Labs Studio.
What you'll be able to do
- 01 Explain the Kubernetes network model, CNI plugins, and how NetworkPolicy enforces ingress/egress isolation
- 02 Identify the responsibilities of Istio control-plane and data-plane components, including Istiod, Envoy, and the xDS protocol
- 03 Build canary, fault-injection, and circuit-breaking traffic policies using VirtualService and DestinationRule
- 04 Apply zero-trust security with STRICT mTLS, PeerAuthentication, AuthorizationPolicy, and JWT RequestAuthentication
- 05 Apply observability tooling — Kiali, Jaeger, Prometheus, and Envoy access logs — to debug production microservices
- 06 Evaluate multi-cluster topologies, revision-based upgrade strategies, and when to choose Istio vs Linkerd vs Cilium Service Mesh
- 07 Design and deploy a production-grade Istio mesh that meets security, reliability, and observability SLOs
- — Working Kubernetes knowledge (Deployments, Services, Namespaces) at intermediate level
- — Comfort with kubectl and YAML manifests
- — Basic container networking concepts (DNS, ports, IP addressing)
- — Linux command-line and shell fundamentals
- — Hands-on experience building and running Docker containers
Before you start
How long does it take?
About 13 hours of lessons, videos and hands-on walkthroughs across 6 modules.
What’s free?
Module 1 in full — lessons, hands-on walkthrough and quiz — with no card required. Any paid plan (from $8.99/mo) unlocks all 6 modules, and starts with a 14-day free trial.
Start the course with Module 1 free.
No card required. Unlock every module from $8.99/mo when you’re ready.