Articles
Explanations, step-by-step guides, cheat sheets and fixes. Pick an area, or tell us what you need.
What kind of help
What do these mean?
- Beginner
- You are new to this topic.
- Intermediate
- You use it, and want to get better.
- Advanced
- You know it well and need the details.
- Guided project
- Build something small from start to finish, step by step.
- Explains an idea
- Plain words on how something works and why.
- Step by step
- Numbered steps to get one task done.
- Cheat sheet
- Commands and options in a table, to look up fast.
- Fixes an error
- An error message, what it means, and how to solve it.
Area
Clear filters
196 entries match these filters
- 0307 What is encryption? Encryption scrambles data with a key so only someone with the right key can read it again. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article TLS & certificates 15 Oct 2026
- 0292 What is a database? A database is an organised store of data that programs can search, update and share safely, even with many users at once. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Choosing a database 15 Oct 2026
- 0308 What is a backup snapshot? A snapshot is a frozen picture of a disk or system at one moment that you can roll back to if something… Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Strategy & restore drills 15 Oct 2026
- 0293 What is SQL? SQL is the language you use to ask a relational database questions and to add, change or delete its data. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Queries 15 Oct 2026
- 0309 What is RAID? RAID combines several disks into one so data survives a disk failure or is read and written faster. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Disks, LVM & filesystems 15 Oct 2026
- 0278 What is a certificate? A certificate is a digital ID card that proves a website or server is genuine, issued by a trusted authority. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article TLS & certificates 15 Oct 2026
- 0279 What is a reverse proxy? A reverse proxy is a server that sits in front of your apps, receives all requests and forwards them to the right… Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Web servers & reverse proxies 15 Oct 2026
- 0280 What is a firewall? A firewall is a filter that decides which network connections are allowed in or out of a computer or network. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Firewalls 15 Oct 2026
- 0281 What is a package manager? A package manager is a tool that installs, updates and removes software for you and keeps track of what depends on what. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Packages & updates 15 Oct 2026
- 0266 What is a port? A port is a numbered door on a computer that lets one machine run many network services at the same time. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article DNS, IP addresses & ports 15 Oct 2026
- 0282 What is a dependency? A dependency is another piece of software your program needs to work, such as a library it imports. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Environments & packages 15 Oct 2026
- 0267 What is an API? An API is a set of rules that lets one program ask another program for data or actions without knowing how it… Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Making requests 15 Oct 2026
- 0283 What is a virtual environment? A virtual environment is a private folder of Python packages for one project, so different projects never clash. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Environments & packages 15 Oct 2026
- 0268 What is a container? A container is a lightweight box that packs a program with everything it needs so it runs the same on any computer. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Docker basics 15 Oct 2026
- 0284 What is a shell? A shell is the program that reads the commands you type and tells the operating system to run them. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Basics 15 Oct 2026
- 0269 What is a commit? A commit is a saved snapshot of your project in Git, with a message explaining what changed and why. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Branching & rebasing 15 Oct 2026
- 0285 What is a terminal? A terminal is the window where you type commands; the shell inside it does the actual work. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Basics 15 Oct 2026
- 0270 What is a branch? A branch is a separate line of work in Git, so you can try changes without touching the main version of the… Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Branching & rebasing 15 Oct 2026
- 0286 What is PATH? PATH is the list of folders your shell searches to find a program when you type its name. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Basics 15 Oct 2026
- 0271 What is a merge conflict? A merge conflict happens when two branches changed the same lines and Git needs a human to decide which version wins. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Branching & rebasing 15 Oct 2026
- 0287 What is an environment variable? An environment variable is a named value the operating system passes to programs, such as settings or secrets. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Basics 15 Oct 2026
- 0272 What is a virtual machine? A virtual machine is a complete computer made of software, running inside another computer with its own operating system. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Basics 15 Oct 2026
- 0288 What is a daemon or service? A daemon or service is a program that runs in the background all the time, waiting to do its job without a… Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Services & systemd 15 Oct 2026
- 0273 What is a hypervisor? A hypervisor is the software layer that creates and runs virtual machines and shares the real hardware between them. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Basics 15 Oct 2026
- 0274 What is DNS? DNS is the internet's phone book: it turns names like example.com into the IP addresses computers actually use. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article DNS, IP addresses & ports 15 Oct 2026
- 0275 What is an IP address? An IP address is the unique number that identifies a device on a network so data knows where to go. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article DNS, IP addresses & ports 15 Oct 2026
- 0276 What is SSH? SSH is a secure way to open a command line on another computer over the network, with everything encrypted. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article SSH 15 Oct 2026
- 0277 What is TLS? TLS is the encryption layer that puts the S in HTTPS, protecting data between your browser and a server. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article TLS & certificates 15 Oct 2026
- 0261 Build a Python command-line to-do app: from empty folder to installable command Create a small to-do tool in Python with argparse and JSON storage, test it with pytest and package it with pyproject.toml so… Beginner · Guided project · Any system Article Environments & packages · Files & automation · Testing 15 Oct 2026
- 0262 Make your first pull request: Git and GitHub from first commit to merged change A complete beginner's path through Git and GitHub: set up Git, make commits, ignore files, use branches, push to GitHub, open a… Beginner · Guided project · Any system Article Branching & rebasing · Pull requests · Setup 15 Oct 2026
- 0263 Build a notes REST API with plain Node.js: CRUD, validation, status codes and CORS Write a small JSON API for notes using only Node.js built-ins: create, read, update and delete, input validation, correct HTTP status codes,… Intermediate · Guided project · Any system Article Making requests · Node.js · Status codes 15 Oct 2026
- 0265 Turn a one-liner into a robust bash script: strict mode, options, logging, traps, locking and a schedule Grow a find-and-gzip one-liner step by step into a dependable bash script with strict mode, getopts, usage text, logging, error traps, dry-run,… Intermediate · Guided project · Linux, macOS Article Services & systemd · Shell scripting 15 Oct 2026
- 0232 mongosh cheat sheet: CRUD, indexes and explain() The mongosh commands you use every day: switching databases, inserting, querying, updating and deleting documents, creating indexes and checking a query plan… Beginner · Cheat sheet · Any system Article Basics 15 Oct 2026
- 0235 Fix: MongoServerSelectionError: connect ECONNREFUSED 127.0.0.1:27017 Your app or tool tried to reach MongoDB on port 27017 and nothing accepted the connection. Usually mongod is not running, crashed… Intermediate · Fixes an error · Linux, macOS, Windows Article Administration · Basics 15 Oct 2026
- 0236 Redis data types and commands: a quick reference Redis stores values under keys, and each value has a type: string, hash, list, set, sorted set or stream. The essential commands… Beginner · Cheat sheet · Any system Article Basics 15 Oct 2026
- 0241 Choosing a database: relational, document or key-value Relational databases, document stores like MongoDB and key-value stores like Redis each fit different jobs. An honest look at what each does… Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article Choosing a database · Database operations 15 Oct 2026
- 0250 Containerize a Node.js app and run it with PostgreSQL using Docker Compose Package a small Node.js web app in a multi-stage Docker image, then run it next to PostgreSQL with Docker Compose, named volumes,… Intermediate · Guided project · Linux, macOS, Windows Article Docker basics · Docker Compose · PostgreSQL 15 Oct 2026
- 0251 Learn Kubernetes on your laptop with kind: from first cluster to Ingress Build a throwaway Kubernetes cluster in Docker with kind, deploy a web app with config, secrets and probes, scale it, roll out… Beginner · Guided project · Linux, macOS, Windows Article Concepts · Workloads & services 15 Oct 2026
- 0252 Package a web app as a Helm chart: create, test, install, upgrade and roll back Turn a small nginx web app into your own Helm chart, check it with lint and template, install it into a namespace,… Intermediate · Guided project · Any system Article Helm 15 Oct 2026
- 0253 Take an app to production on OpenShift: S2I build, TLS Route, storage, autoscaling and network policy Build a small Python app from Git with Source-to-Image on OpenShift or OKD, then add an HTTPS Route, config and secrets, storage,… Intermediate · Guided project · Linux, macOS, Windows Article Concepts · Deploying applications 15 Oct 2026