Resources
Networks and cloud: the fundamentals
Understanding a network means knowing where a packet travels, who authorises it and what slows it down. That reading then applies identically in a cloud infrastructure, where the same notions carry different names.
Following a packet's path
A request leaves a workstation, crosses a switch, passes a router, meets a firewall, reaches a server, and returns. Being able to describe that path lets you diagnose almost anything: slowness sits on a segment, a refusal comes from a rule, intermittence comes from a badly configured redundant path. The same steps exist in a cloud architecture, as virtual networks, security groups and gateways: the reasoning transposes entirely.
- A readable addressing plan, stating what each range serves
- Segmentation separating workstations, servers and industrial equipment
- Documented filtering rules, justified one by one
- Monitoring that measures load before it becomes an outage
- An explicit transposition of the same notions into cloud infrastructure
What virtualisation changes
The machine becomes a file
A server is duplicated, moved and restored like a document. Disaster recovery is transformed by it.
The container isolates the application
Dependencies travel with the program. Differences between environments stop being a source of outages.
Orchestration decides placement
The desired state is declared, the system converges to it. You describe a target rather than a sequence of gestures.
Cost becomes a design variable
Sizing is priced by the hour. Architecture is then compared on an invoice, not on intuition.
The infrastructure programme, block by block
From enterprise networks to service continuity, by way of virtualisation and cloud architectures. The final workshop produces the documented build of a complete infrastructure.
| Teaching block | Year | Hours | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enterprise networks | 1 | 240 h | 24 |
| Systems administration | 1 | 200 h | 20 |
| Virtualisation and containers | 2 | 180 h | 18 |
| Cloud architectures | 2 | 180 h | 18 |
| Service continuity | 2 | 120 h | 12 |
| Cross-curricular base | 1-2 | 160 h | 16 |
| Workshop and placement | 1-2 | 120 h | 12 |
Infrastructure questions
Do I have to choose between local servers and cloud?
The two are combined according to load, acceptable latency and data sensitivity. The programme works exactly on that trade-off, quantified, with infrastructure cost as an explicit design criterion.
What entry level does this programme need?
The real prerequisite is stated on the programme page, and the programme runs over 2 years at 20 hours of work per week, in a regime compatible with a job.
How do I document an existing infrastructure?
With an addressing plan, a segment diagram and a table of filtering rules with their rationale. Those three documents run to a few pages and turn a day-long troubleshooting session into an hour's work.
Explore next
- Industrial maintenancePreventive plan, vibration analysis, thermography, alert thresholds, spare parts and availability indicators: organising a site's maintenance.
- OHADA accountingChart of accounts, journal, ledger, trial balance, financial statements, value added tax and fixed assets: OHADA accounting applied.
- Reading financial statementsBalance sheet, income statement, cash flow statement: the profitability, structure and liquidity ratios that support a reasoned diagnosis.
- Forecast budgetVolume and price assumptions, cost structure, break-even point, seasonality and variance tracking: building a budget that serves steering.
- Steering cashRolling cash plan, working capital, payment terms, customer chasing and short-term financing: steering cash day to day.
- Management controlFull and marginal costing, activity-based costing, budgets, variance analysis and dashboards: management control applied to decisions.