Free Course: Network Programmability Basics, Complete and Yours to Keep

We just opened our Network Programmability Basics class, and we're giving it away. Not a trial, not a teaser, not the first module with the rest behind a paywall. It's the complete course: the full course guide, the video lessons and 27 hands-on labs that run in your browser. It's free for anyone who wants it, and once you're in, your access is permanent.

Every network engineer is being asked the same thing right now: can you automate it? This course is how you get to "yes." It takes you from data formats and your first API call all the way to Ansible, telemetry and a CI/CD pipeline that deploys to switches, and you do the work hands-on, not just read about it.

Everything in the class

What the course covers

The course has its own blueprint: six domains and 34 objectives, each tied to a section of the guide and a lab. Here's how the weight breaks down:

27 labs, in two sets

Labs 1–17 follow the course sections. Labs 18–27 are extra labs we built on the skills network engineers use every week. Every step has a live check that turns green when you've done it right, and a Show answer button if you're stuck.

Where it all lives

Once you're approved, the class shows up in your Class Hub. That's your home base for the whole course.

• Launch every lab straight from the class page. No downloads, no setup.
• Track your progress against the blueprint. Objectives with a lab fill in automatically as you finish the lab's steps, on any computer you sign in from.
• Mark "I can do this" when you're confident on an objective, so you can see exactly what's left.
• Pick up where you left off, whether that's tomorrow or six months from now.
• Request a custom lab. If you need practice on something specific to your network or your job, put in a request through the Class Hub and we'll build a lab for it.

Who should take it

What you'll be able to do

• Read and write JSON, XML and YAML, and convert between them
• Call REST APIs with curl, Postman and Python
• Configure and query devices with NETCONF, RESTCONF and YANG models
• Automate Catalyst Center, Meraki, ACI and Nexus through their APIs
• Parse show output into structured data and verify changes automatically
• Stream telemetry with gNMI instead of polling
• Manage configs with Git, back them up and catch drift
• Build Ansible playbooks and roles the right way, with Vault and check mode
• Use NetBox as a source of truth and run a CI/CD pipeline that deploys to the network

How to join, step by step

1. Create your free thinQtank account. Go to thinqtanklearning.com and click Enroll at the top of any page. Sign up with your email, or use the Google sign-in. Already have an account? Just sign in.
2. Open Team Up Online. From the menu, go to Class Rooms, then Team Up Online. You'll see the list of active classes.
3. Find Network Programmability Basics. It's pinned near the top as an ongoing program, so you can join any time.
4. Click Request to Join. If you're not signed in yet, you'll be asked to sign in first, and your request is sent automatically as soon as you do.
5. Watch for your approval. Requests are typically approved within 24 hours. The button changes from "Request pending" to Enter the Classroom.
6. Start learning. Open the class to reach the course guide, the video lessons and your labs. Your access never expires.

— Scott