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Cloud Architect Roadmap

Design cloud infrastructure that scales, stays secure, and runs cost-effectively. Cloud architects are among the highest-paid roles in Indian IT.

8-12 months8-15 LPA → 35-70 LPA expected9 steps • 25 free resources
1

Cloud Computing Fundamentals

2-3 weeks

Understand what cloud is: IaaS, PaaS, SaaS, shared responsibility model, regions, and why companies migrate to cloud.

By the end, you'll be able to

  • Explain cloud service models and deployment types
  • Understand the shared responsibility model
  • Navigate the AWS/GCP/Azure console confidently
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Mini-project

Set up a free-tier AWS account. Deploy a static website to S3 with CloudFront CDN. Calculate the monthly cost for 10K visitors.

2

Networking in the Cloud

3-4 weeks

Design VPCs, subnets, route tables, security groups, NACLs, and VPN/peering connections. Networking is where most cloud architectures fail.

By the end, you'll be able to

  • Design VPC architectures with public/private subnets
  • Configure security groups, NACLs, and route tables
  • Set up VPN and peering connections between networks
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Mini-project

Design a multi-tier VPC: public subnet for ALB, private subnets for app servers and databases, NAT gateway for outbound. Draw the architecture diagram.

3

Compute & Storage

3-4 weeks

Master EC2, Lambda, ECS/EKS for compute and S3, EBS, EFS for storage. Know when to use which service and how to optimize costs.

By the end, you'll be able to

  • Choose the right compute service: EC2 vs Lambda vs containers
  • Design storage strategies with proper tiering and lifecycle policies
  • Optimize compute costs with reserved instances and spot/preemptible
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Mini-project

Deploy the same app three ways: EC2, Lambda, and ECS. Compare cost, performance, and operational overhead.

4

Databases in the Cloud

2-3 weeks

Managed databases are a superpower. Learn RDS, DynamoDB, ElastiCache, and how to pick the right database for each workload.

By the end, you'll be able to

  • Choose between SQL, NoSQL, and caching for different workloads
  • Set up managed databases with proper backups and replication
  • Design for high availability with multi-AZ and read replicas
🛠️

Mini-project

Design the database architecture for a high-traffic Indian e-commerce platform: RDS for transactions, DynamoDB for cart, ElastiCache for sessions.

5

Infrastructure as Code

3-4 weeks

Real architects never click in the console. Master Terraform or CloudFormation to define, version, and reproduce entire environments.

By the end, you'll be able to

  • Write Terraform/CloudFormation for production infrastructure
  • Create reusable modules and manage state properly
  • Implement infrastructure CI/CD pipelines
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Mini-project

Write Terraform for a complete production environment: VPC, ALB, ECS cluster, RDS, S3, IAM. Make it replicable across staging/prod.

6

Security & Compliance

3-4 weeks

Design secure architectures. Master IAM, encryption at rest/transit, WAF, CloudTrail, GuardDuty, and compliance frameworks.

By the end, you'll be able to

  • Design least-privilege IAM policies and roles
  • Implement encryption, logging, and monitoring for compliance
  • Pass cloud security audits and follow Well-Architected Framework
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Mini-project

Audit your Terraform infrastructure for security: IAM over-permissions, unencrypted resources, public access. Fix every issue.

7

High Availability & Disaster Recovery

2-3 weeks

Design systems that survive failures. Learn multi-AZ, multi-region, auto-scaling, backup strategies, and RTO/RPO planning.

By the end, you'll be able to

  • Design multi-AZ and multi-region architectures
  • Implement auto-scaling for compute and database tiers
  • Create disaster recovery plans with defined RTO/RPO
🛠️

Mini-project

Design a multi-region active-active architecture for a payment gateway. Document failover procedures and run a chaos test.

Recommended Resources

8

Cost Optimization

1-2 weeks

Cloud bills can explode. Learn to analyze costs, right-size resources, use reserved/spot instances, and implement tagging strategies.

By the end, you'll be able to

  • Analyze cloud bills and identify optimization opportunities
  • Implement cost allocation with proper tagging
  • Use reserved instances, savings plans, and spot instances effectively
🛠️

Mini-project

Take a sample AWS bill and cut it by 40%: identify waste, right-size instances, recommend reserved capacity, and implement budget alerts.

9

Certifications & Interview Prep

4-5 weeks

Cloud certifications matter for architects. Prepare for AWS Solutions Architect Associate, then Professional. Interview prep focuses on design scenarios.

By the end, you'll be able to

  • Pass the AWS Solutions Architect Associate exam
  • Design cloud architectures on a whiteboard for interviews
  • Discuss trade-offs: cost, performance, reliability, security
🛠️

Mini-project

Take 5 practice exams, design architectures for 10 common scenarios (e-commerce, streaming, IoT), and do 3 mock interviews.

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Pick the path that fits you

Not sure if this is the right roadmap? Browse all our career paths and find the one that matches your goals.