Continuous Integration Certifications
Optimizing performance through hosted builds, caching, and proprietary Test Intelligence™. Designed to be blazing fast, simple, and open to help make developers' lives easier. Plus, all the scalable features needed to meet enterprise demands – with developer autonomy alongside software efficiency , reliability, and security.
- For Developers
- For Administrators
- For Architects
Prepare for the Exam
Get Certified | Harness Expert
Continuous Integration - Developer
Product version: Harness CI Free/Team PlansReview Study Guide
Assesses the fundamental skills to deploy CI projects.
| Topic | Material |
|---|---|
| 1. Harness Basics, Platform Entities, and Key Concepts | |
| Familiarize with artifacts, packages, and different CI build infrastructures | Harness CI |
| Set up and configure connectors like Git and Docker Hub | Connect to an Artifact Repo |
| 2. Grasp the role of Harness Delegate and differences between Pipeline Studio and YAML structure | |
| Understand and use Harness expressions and variables | [Fixed values, runtime inputs, and expressions](/docs/platform/variables-and-expressions/runtime-inputs |
| ) | |
| Get familiar with different types of artifacts and scanning options | Artifacts tab |
| 3. Discover supported platforms and Operating Systems on Harness Cloud | |
| Define and configure connectors, and understand their usage | Create a connector using YAML |
| Learn about the Harness Delegate and Harness Manager | Harness Platform architecture |
| 4. RBAC, best practices, and small configuration tasks | |
| Understand shared paths and Drone/CI plugins | CI key concepts |
| Learn about caching and test intelligence in Harness | Cache Intelligence |
| 5. Configure triggers, input sets, overlays, and failure strategies in CI | |
| Understand and apply conditional execution and looping strategies | Looping strategies overview -- matrix, repeat, and parallelism |
| Learn about advanced options such as timeout settings and selective stage executions | CI Build stage settings |
| 6. Set up notifications based on pipeline events | |
| Configure and run steps on host vs containers | Run Step Settings |
| Learn about chaining pipelines and GitHub actions support in Harness CI | Pipeline chaining in Harness |
| 7. Navigate through the Harness User Interface features such as the Overview, Build and Pipelines tabs | |
| Understand and configure tags and the execution history tab in Pipeline Studio | Tags References |
| Learn about details, inputs, and outputs in step configuration | Use step groups to organize CI steps |
| 8. Understand Docker Image pulls, their risks, and how to use images when shells are unavailable | |
| Learn about troubleshooting pipeline steps and Harness Cloud's advantages | Troubleshoot CI |
| Set up and manage user groups and permissions at different levels | Add and manage target groups |
| 9. Perform a basic Delegate installation and set container resources | |
| Learn about chained pipelines and GitHub actions support | Use the GitHub Action plugin step |
| Get familiar with common CI plugins and how to configure them | Explore plugins |
Exam Details
The Continuous Integration Developer exam tests your knowledge and skills of the Harness Integration Delivery module.
Prerequisites
- Basic terminal skills
- Basic understanding of on-premise or cloud architecture
Exam Details
Exam Duration: 90 minutes
Question Type: Multiple choice
| Covered Domain | Coverage |
|---|---|
| CI Domain | 65% |
| Hosted Builds | 15% |
| Test Intelligence | 10% |
| Code Configuration | 10% |
Exam Objectives
List of Objectives
The following is a detailed list of exam objectives:
| # | Objectives |
|---|---|
| 1 | Understand the basics of Harness and key concepts |
| 1.1 | Familiarize with artifacts, packages, and different CI build infrastructures |
| 1.2 | Set up and configure connectors like Git and Docker Hub |
| 2 | Grasp the role of Harness Delegate and differences between Pipeline Studio and YAML structure |
| 2.1 | Understand and use Harness expressions and variables |
| 2.2 | Get familiar with different types of artifacts and scanning options |
| 3 | Discover supported platforms and Operating Systems on Harness Cloud |
| 3.1 | Define and configure connectors, and understand their usage |
| 3.2 | Learn about the Harness Delegate and Harness Manager |
| 4 | Explore Harness Step Library for CI stages and codebase configuration |
| 4.1 | Understand shared paths and Drone/CI plugins |
| 4.2 | Learn about caching and test intelligence in Harness |
| 5 | Configure triggers, input sets, overlays, and failure strategies in CI |
| 5.1 | Understand and apply conditional execution and looping strategies |
| 5.2 | Learn about advanced options such as timeout settings and selective stage executions |
| 6 | Set up notifications based on pipeline events |
| 6.1 | Configure and run steps on host vs containers |
| 6.2 | Learn about chaining pipelines and GitHub actions support in Harness CI |
| 7 | Navigate through the Harness User Interface features such as the Overview, Build and Pipelines tabs |
| 7.1 | Understand and configure tags and the execution history tab in Pipeline Studio |
| 7.2 | Learn about details, inputs, and outputs in step configuration |
| 8 | Understand Docker Image pulls, their risks, and how to use images when shells are unavailable |
| 8.1 | Learn about troubleshooting pipeline steps and Harness Cloud's advantages |
| 8.2 | Set up and manage user groups and permissions at different levels |
| 9 | Perform a basic Delegate installation and set container resources |
| 9.1 | Learn about chained pipelines and GitHub actions support |
| 9.2 | Get familiar with common CI plugins and how to configure them |
Next Steps
The Continuous Integration Developer exam can start immediately after registering. Please allow up to 90 mins for the exam.
- Create an account in Harness University
- Register for an exam
- Take the exam
Prepare for the Exam
Get Certified | Harness Expert
Continuous Integration - Administrator
Product version: Harness CI Enterprise PlanReview Study Guide
Assesses the fundamental skills to deploy and maintain CI projects and the overall Harness Platform. This exam builds upon the CI Developer Certification.
| Topic | Material |
|---|---|
| 1. Introduction to Harness and Key Concepts | |
| Understand continuous integration fundamentals, including critical stages or steps | Harness CI |
| Grasp the core concepts: "Pipeline, Stages, Step Groups, Steps" and Harness hierarchy "Account, Organizations, Projects" | Key Concepts |
| Familiarize with Harness Manager and the role of Harness Delegate for CI capability | CI key concepts |
| 2. Harness Build Infrastructure and Configuration | |
| Explore Harness Cloud supported platforms, OS, and build infrastructures | Use Harness Cloud build infrastructure |
| Dive into CI Build Infrastructures and their diverse options | Harness CI |
| Understand Ephemeral Environments and the specific requirements for a K8s Build environment | Which build infrastructure is right for me |
| 3. Artifact Management and Connectivity | |
| Grasp Artifacts and Packages spanning from jar to container image, helm, and more | Artifacts Tab |
| Describe and configure Artifact Repositories like cont registry, object store, jfrog, nexus, etc | Connect to an Artifact repository |
| Delve into Harness Connectors: configuration of Git, DockerHub, and more | Connectors |
| 4. Harness CI Pipelines and Advanced Features | |
| Master Codebase configuration, shared paths, and step library, including plugin configurations | Create and configure a codebase |
| Understand and set up advanced features like caching intelligence, test intelligence, and flow control | Cache Intelligence |
| Configure pipeline features, including triggers, input sets, failure strategies, looping, and notifications | Input sets and overlays |
| 5. Pipeline Execution Strategies | |
| Get to grips with execution environments: running steps on host vs. containers | Stage and step conditional execution settings |
| Manage outputs, PR status updates, and understand chained pipelines | Output variables with chained pipeline |
| Delve into advanced options like timeouts, selective stage executions, and stage context sharing | Continuous Integration (CI) FAQs |
| 6. Security and Access Control | |
| Understand RBAC with user groups, roles, role bindings, and service account considerations | RBAC in Harness |
| Configure access and permissions, including tags and resource groups | Permissions Reference |
| Grasp the implications of anonymous Docker image pulls and other security considerations | Docker Connector Settings Reference |
| 7. Authentication and User Management | |
| Deep dive into OAuth, SAML, and SCIM integrations | Authentication |
| Set up and manage credentials, user and group permissions, and more | Manage user groups |
| Delve into debugging and troubleshooting techniques, including running pipeline steps locally | Troubleshoot CI |
| 8. Policy-Based Governance and Compliance | |
| Explore and configure policy as code with OPA and Rego | Harness Policy As Code quickstart |
| Enforce governance within pipelines and understand templates for Harness CI | Manage access control for asset governance rules |
| Familiarize with account audit trails and their respective use cases | View audit trail |
| 9. Enterprise Features and Dashboards | |
| Delve into Enterprise dashboards, including custom options like Looker | Best practices for building dashboards |
| Explore Pipeline Studio's execution history and other related features | Run pipelines using input sets and overlays |
| Get a handle on pipeline templatization for scalable CI solutions | Best practices and guidelines for templates |
Exam Details
The Continuous Integration Administrator exam tests your knowledge and skills of the Harness Continuous Integration module.
Prerequisites
- Intermediate terminal skills
- Basic understanding of on-premise or cloud architecture
- This exam builds upon the CI Developer Exam
Exam Details
| Exam Type | Duration |
|---|---|
| Knowledge Exam | 90 minutes |
| Hands On Exam | 120 minutes |
| Covered Domain | Coverage |
|---|---|
| Harness Basics, Platform Entities, and Key Concepts | 60% |
| Harness CI Pipelines and its Features | 20% |
| RBAC, Best Practices, and Small Config Tasks | 10% |
| Enterprise - Policy-based Governance (OPA), Dashboards, and Pipeline Templatization | 10% |
Exam Objectives
List of Objectives
The following is a detailed list of exam objectives:
| # | Objectives |
|---|---|
| 1 | Harness Platform Fundamentals |
| 1.1 | Understand continuous integration fundamentals and Harness hierarchy |
| 1.2 | Describe and configure key concepts like Artifacts, Packages, Build Infrastructures, and Connectors |
| 1.3 | Understand Harness Cloud and its supported platforms |
| 2 | Harness Configuration & Management |
| 2.1 | Learn to trigger build pipelines, manage secrets, and use expressions |
| 2.2 | Understand and install Harness Delegate |
| 2.3 | Describe and configure the Harness Manager |
| 3 | Harness Kubernetes Environment |
| 3.1 | Understand requirements for a K8s build environment, stages, steps, and how they share network context |
| 3.2 | Learn about project variables and how to install software on the delegate |
| 4 | Harness CI Pipelines and Features |
| 4.1 | Perform Codebase configuration and configure shared paths |
| 4.2 | Describe and configure caching, test intelligence, and triggers |
| 5 | Advanced Configurations in Harness CI |
| 5.1 | Learn to configure Input Sets, Overlays, Failure Strategies, and perform Conditional Execution |
| 5.2 | Understand and configure Looping Strategies, Flow Control, and Barriers |
| 6 | Notifications & Steps in Harness CI |
| 6.1 | Learn to configure notifications and send PR Status updates |
| 6.2 | Understand and configure various steps from the Step Library |
| 7 | Harness Security & User Management |
| 7.1 | Understand Docker Image pulls and its risks, set container resources, and security actions |
| 7.2 | Learn about OAuth and SAML Integrations, and RBAC in User Groups |
| 8 | Roles, Resource Groups & Tags in Harness |
| 8.1 | Understand and configure RBAC, Roles, Resource Groups, and Tags |
| 8.2 | Learn about Execution History Tab in Pipeline Studio |
| 9 | Harness Policy Governance & Customization |
| 9.1 | Understand and configure Templates, Policy as Code, and Custom Dashboards |
| 9.2 | Learn to enforce governance in a pipeline and understand Account Audit Trail |
Next Steps
The Continuous Integration Administrator exam can start immediately after registering. Please allow 90 mins for the knowledge exam and approximately 90 minutes for the hands on exam.
- Create an account in Harness University
- Register for an exam. There is a $50 fee for the exam
- Review the instructions for the Hands On Exam
- Take the exams
- There will be a knowledge and hands on portion.
Prepare for the Exam
Get Certified | Harness Expert
Continuous Integration - Architect
Product version: Harness CI Enterprise PlanReview Study Guide
Assess key technical job functions and advanced skills in design, implementation and management of CI. This exam builds upon the CI Admin Certification
| Topic | Material |
|---|---|
| 1: Advanced CI Concepts and Harness Practices | |
| Discuss the principles of Continuous Integration in the context of the Harness platform, including advanced practices such as parallel execution, matrix builds, and pipeline optimization. | Harness CI overview |
| Design and implement CI strategies within Harness, evaluating and analyzing the benefits and drawbacks in various contexts. | Looping strategies overview -- matrix, repeat, and parallelism |
| Implement advanced CI best practices within the Harness environment, such as trunk-based development, branch by abstraction, and feature toggling. | Pipeline chaining and more |
| 2: Harness CI Tools Proficiency | |
| Demonstrate expert-level knowledge of Harness's CI capabilities, utilizing its unique features to fit specific project requirements. | All Harness CI Tutorials |
| Customize and extend Harness CI functionalities through scripts or platform settings for complex CI flows. | What's supported by Harness CI |
| Integrate Harness with other elements of the DevOps toolchain, including version control systems, artifact repositories, and deployment tools. | Optimize and enhance CI |
| 3: Version Control and Harness Integration | |
| Exhibit proficiency in managing complex Version Control Systems (VCS) within the Harness environment, focusing on advanced branching and merging strategies. | Unified CI/CD |
| Demonstrate the ability to manage large-scale codebases in Harness, including conflict resolution, code reviews, and blame tracking. | Code coverage |
| Implement advanced GitOps strategies within a CI context in Harness, including automated synchronization, error handling, and rollback procedures. | Add a Harness GitOps repository |
| 4: Advanced Testing Strategies with Harness CI | |
| Apply advanced software testing techniques within Harness CI pipelines, including component testing, mutation testing, property-based testing, and contract testing. | Run tests in CI pipelines |
| Implement test environment management and test data management practices within Harness CI pipelines. | Format test reports |
| Manage complex testing scenarios in Harness, including handling flaky tests and performance tests. | Enable Test Intelligence |
| 5: Harness Build Systems and Scripting | |
| Exhibit proficiency in using Harness for managing advanced build systems and tools, including handling complex dependencies, multi-module projects, and artifact management. | Background step settings |
| Write complex build scripts and manage script lifecycle within the Harness environment. | Optimize and enhance CI pipelines |
| Optimize build performance and manage build infrastructure using Harness. | Set up build infrastructure |
| 6: Harness CI Metrics and Insights | |
| Analyze and interpret advanced CI metrics in Harness, including build times, pass/fail rates, flaky tests, and code coverage. | DORA metrics dashboard |
| Implement monitoring and alerting within Harness CI pipelines. | Dashboards |
| Use insights from Harness CI metrics to drive process improvement and optimization. | Troubleshoot CI |
| 7: Security Practices in Harness CI | |
| Implement secure development practices within Harness CI, including static code analysis, dynamic analysis, and secret scanning. | View code coverage reports on the Artifacts tab |
| Manage access control, credentials, and permissions within the Harness CI environment. | Manage access control |
| Discuss and implement security incident response within Harness CI pipelines. | Configure audit streaming |
| 8: Harness CI/CD Pipeline as Code | |
| Implement CI/CD Pipeline as Code in Harness, enabling versioning, peer review, and auditability of pipelines. | Git Experience vs Configuration as Code FAQs |
| Apply best practices for structuring, testing, and maintaining CI/CD Pipeline as Code in Harness. | Harness Policy As Code quickstart |
| Manage complex multi-stage pipelines in Harness using Pipeline as Code. | Use multiple services and environments in a deployment |
| 9: Scaling CI/CD Systems in Harness | |
| Demonstrate knowledge of scaling CI/CD systems in Harness, including distributed builds, parallelization, and handling of large codebases. | Optimize and enhance CI pipelines |
| Implement auto-scaling in Harness to manage load in CI/CD systems. | Use Harness Cloud build infrastructure |
| Apply advanced troubleshooting techniques to address common bottlenecks in scaled CI/CD systems within Harness. | Troubleshoot CI |
Exam Details
The Continuous Integration Architect exam tests your knowledge and skills of the Harness Continuous Integration module.
Prerequisites
- Basic terminal skills
- Advanced understanding of on-premise or cloud architecture
- This exam builds upon the Continuous Integration Admin
Exam Details
| Exam Type | Duration |
|---|---|
| Knowledge Exam | 90 minutes |
| Hands On Exam | 120 minutes |
| Covered Domain | % of Coverage |
|---|---|
| Advanced CI Concepts and Harness Practices | 12.5% |
| Harness CI Tools Proficiency | 12.5% |
| Version Control and Harness Integration | 12.5% |
| Advanced Testing Strategies with Harness CI | 12.5% |
| Harness Build Systems and Scripting | 12.5% |
| Harness CI Metrics and Insights | 12.5% |
| Security Practices in Harness CI | 12.5% |
| Harness CI/CD Pipeline as Code | 12.5% |
| Scaling CI/CD Systems in Harness | 12.5% |
Exam Objectives
List of Objectives
The following is a detailed list of exam objectives:
| # | Objective |
|---|---|
| 1 | Advanced CI Concepts and Harness Practices |
| 1.1 | Discuss the principles of Continuous Integration in the context of the Harness platform, including advanced practices such as parallel execution, matrix builds, and pipeline optimization. |
| 1.2 | Design and implement CI strategies within Harness, evaluating and analyzing the benefits and drawbacks in various contexts. |
| 1.3 | Implement advanced CI best practices within the Harness environment, such as trunk-based development, branch by abstraction, and feature toggling. |
| 2 | Harness CI Tools Proficiency |
| 2.1 | Demonstrate expert-level knowledge of Harness’s CI capabilities, utilizing its unique features to fit specific project requirements. |
| 2.2 | Customize and extend Harness CI functionalities through scripts or platform settings for complex CI flows. |
| 2.3 | Integrate Harness with other elements of the DevOps toolchain, including version control systems, artifact repositories, and deployment tools. |
| 3 | Version Control and Harness Integration |
| 3.1 | Exhibit proficiency in managing complex Version Control Systems (VCS) within the Harness environment, focusing on advanced branching and merging strategies. |
| 3.2 | Demonstrate the ability to manage large-scale codebases in Harness, including conflict resolution, code reviews, and blame tracking. |
| 3.3 | Implement advanced GitOps strategies within a CI context in Harness, including automated synchronization, error handling, and rollback procedures. |
| 4 | Advanced Testing Strategies with Harness CI |
| 4.1 | Apply advanced software testing techniques within Harness CI pipelines, including component testing, mutation testing, property-based testing, and contract testing. |
| 4.2 | Implement test environment management and test data management practices within Harness CI pipelines. |
| 4.3 | Manage complex testing scenarios in Harness, including handling flaky tests and performance tests. |
| 5 | Harness Build Systems and Scripting |
| 5.1 | Exhibit proficiency in using Harness for managing advanced build systems and tools, including handling complex dependencies, multi-module projects, and artifact management. |
| 5.2 | Write complex build scripts and manage script lifecycle within the Harness environment. |
| 5.3 | Optimize build performance and manage build infrastructure using Harness. |
| 6 | Harness CI Metrics and Insights |
| 6.1 | Analyze and interpret advanced CI metrics in Harness, including build times, pass/fail rates, flaky tests, and code coverage. |
| 6.2 | Implement monitoring and alerting within Harness CI pipelines. |
| 6.3 | Use insights from Harness CI metrics to drive process improvement and optimization. |
| 7 | Security Practices in Harness CI |
| 7.1 | Implement secure development practices within Harness CI, including static code analysis, dynamic analysis, and secret scanning. |
| 7.2 | Manage access control, credentials, and permissions within the Harness CI environment. |
| 7.3 | Discuss and implement security incident response within Harness CI pipelines. |
| 8 | Harness CI/CD Pipeline as Code |
| 8.1 | Implement CI/CD Pipeline as Code in Harness, enabling versioning, peer review, and auditability of pipelines. |
| 8.2 | Apply best practices for structuring, testing, and maintaining CI/CD Pipeline as Code in Harness. |
| 8.3 | Manage complex multi-stage pipelines in Harness using Pipeline as Code. |
| 9 | Scaling CI/CD Systems in Harness |
| 9.1 | Demonstrate knowledge of scaling CI/CD systems in Harness, including distributed builds, parallelization, and handling of large codebases. |
| 9.2 | Implement auto-scaling in Harness to manage load in CI/CD systems. |
| 9.3 | Apply advanced troubleshooting techniques to address common bottlenecks in scaled CI/CD systems within Harness. |
Next Steps
The Continuous Integration Architect exam can start immediately after registering. Please allow up to 90 mins for the knowledge exam and up to 2 hours for the hands-on exam.
- Create an account in Harness University
- Register for an exam. There is a $50 fee for the exam
- Review the instructions for the Hands-On Exam
- Take the exams
- There will be a knowledge and hands-on portion.