Am I ready for self-paced cloud learning?
☐ I can use the Linux terminal comfortably
☐ I understand IP addresses, subnets and ports
☐ I can read error messages and search docs effectively
☐ I will set budgets and delete resources every time
3-4 ticks → self-paced can work
0-2 ticks → guided labs will likely save time and money

# A typical IAM error beginners hit:
# An error occurred (AccessDenied) when calling the ListBuckets operation:
# User: arn:aws:iam::123456789012:user/learner is not authorized to perform: s3:ListAllMyBuckets

# Fix: attach a policy that allows the action (in a learning account), e.g.
aws iam attach-user-policy --user-name learner \
  --policy-arn arn:aws:iam::aws:policy/AmazonS3ReadOnlyAccess

Day-one safety for your own cloud account
1. Enable MFA on the root user
2. Create an admin identity for daily use; lock away root
3. Create a budget with an email alert at a small amount
4. Pick one region and stay in it
5. After each lab: delete instances, load balancers, NAT gateways, databases
6. Check the billing page weekly

# Quick checks after a lab (AWS CLI, one region)
aws ec2 describe-instances --filters Name=instance-state-name,Values=running \
  --query "Reservations[].Instances[].InstanceId" --output text
aws elbv2 describe-load-balancers --query "LoadBalancers[].LoadBalancerName" --output text
aws rds describe-db-instances --query "DBInstances[].DBInstanceIdentifier" --output text
aws ec2 describe-nat-gateways --filter Name=state,Values=available \
  --query "NatGateways[].NatGatewayId" --output text

Architecture review (use for your own designs)
☐ Spread across at least two Availability Zones
☐ Public subnets only for load balancers / bastions
☐ App and database in private subnets
☐ IAM roles, no access keys on servers
☐ Backups and recovery plan
☐ Monitoring and alerts
☐ Estimated monthly cost written down
☐ What fails if one AZ goes down?

Self-paced weekly plan
Mon-Thu: 1 lesson + its lab (45-60 min)
Fri: review notes, delete leftover resources
Sat: mini project or redo hardest lab without video
Sun: 20 practice questions + update progress log
Monthly: share one architecture diagram for feedback

Cloud Course Scorecard (1-5)
Criterion                Weight   Guided (Uncodemy)   Self-paced course
Lab support when stuck     3          ___                 ___
Account and cost safety    3          ___                 ___
Architecture feedback      3          ___                 ___
Schedule flexibility       2          ___                 ___
Exam preparation           2          ___                 ___
Total cost                 2          ___                 ___
Score from real evidence and a trial.

Two-week self-paced trial
Week 1: cloud basics + launch and delete one VM
Week 2: storage bucket + simple static website
Track: hours done ___, labs finished ___, days stuck ___
If stuck for more than 2 days twice → consider guided labs

Cloud Progress Log
Date    Lab                   Done   Resources deleted   Notes
____    __________________    ☐      ☐                   ______
____    __________________    ☐      ☐                   ______