The Wombelix Post - RedHat

AWS Neuron Kernel Modules on OpenShift with KMM

2025-07-24T00:00:00+02:00

As part of my work at AWS, I've been diving deep into running AI/ML workloads with the AWS Neuron SDK on Inferentia and Trainium instances on Red Hat OpenShift Services on AWS (ROSA). What started as exploring concepts quickly turned into building actual tooling to solve real problems.

The challenge: how do you get AWS Neuron drivers working reliably across different OpenShift versions? The solution turned out to be more interesting than I initially thought.

I developed and published kmod-with-kmm-for-ai-chips-on-aws, a project that automates building Kernel Module Management (KMM) compatible container images for AWS Neuron drivers.

Running specialized hardware like AWS Inferentia and Trainium chips requires kernel modules. Kernel modules are tied to specific kernel versions, and new driver releases need to be built against different kernel versions. This creates ongoing maintenance work that grows with each supported platform version.

Red Hat's Kernel Module Management (KMM) operator solves this by automating kernel module lifecycle management. But you still need to build the container images that contain your modules for each kernel version.

That's where the Driver Toolkit comes in - it provides the exact kernel headers and build environment for each OpenShift release.

I fully automated this using GitHub Actions with nightly scans for new OpenShift releases, automated builds triggered by driver or mapping changes, and minimal container images containing only busybox and the compiled kernel module.

GitHub Actions proved surprisingly powerful for this automation. The dual tagging strategy works well - images get both kernel-specific and OpenShift-specific tags for different use cases. The build script also works locally for development, automatically detecting the environment and adapting accordingly.

This removes the manual work of tracking releases and building modules for each kernel version. The process now happens automatically. The approach is reusable for other specialized hardware drivers on OpenShift.

If you're running specialized hardware on OpenShift, KMM and the Driver Toolkit are powerful tools once you understand how to use them effectively.

Red Hat Certified Specialist in Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA)

2024-09-05T00:00:00+02:00

It was time to re-new and keep my RHCSA, and RHCE current. I was curious about the recently released RHCS in ROSA Exam. I passed the EX229 today and earned the Red Hat Certified Specialist in Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA) (Archive: [1], [2]) Certification!

It was kind of a logical choice to take this one. Fits pretty well into my current Role, tech focus and complements previously gained skills.

It wasn't my first Red Hat Exam but I can tell, it was one of the most challenging one. I used the Red Hat Courses DO120, DO280, CS220 and CS221 to prepare. AWS and Kubernetes Hands-On experience helps a lot. Also the muscle memory from last years CKAD, CKA and CKS marathon. I don't think I would've passed otherwise.

You have 3 hours to finish the exam, which sounds long but the time is just flying by. You need to be fast and 100% focused. Makes me even more proud that I aced it :D

Summary: A Red Hat Certified Specialist in ROSA is able to configure and manage Red Hat OpenShift clusters running on Amazon Web Services (AWS). The credential is earned after successfully passing the Red Hat Certified Specialist in ROSA (EX229).

Source & Copyright: https://www.credly.com

Skills

Amazon CloudWatch
Configure AWS
OpenShift Cluster on AWS
PrivateLink ROSA clusters
ROSA Clusters

Source & Copyright: https://www.credly.com

Certificate

Downloads
- Certificate (2024-09-05) (PDF, 361K)
- Badge (PNG, 55K)
Links
- Credly Badge (Archive: [1], [2])
- Verify Certificate

Red Hat Certified Specialist in Linux Diagnostics and Troubleshooting

2021-09-20T00:00:00+02:00

It's been a while since I tackled the RHCSA, RHCE followed by the RHCS (Ansible Best Practices), but today I passed the EX342 and earned the 'Red Hat Certified Specialist in Linux Diagnostics and Troubleshooting' Certification!

That's already my second Certification counting towards the Red Hat Architect, let's see if that's something I can achieve within the next year :)

The Exam is still based on RHEL 7, what's probably fine because most of the Topics and Tasks would be more or less identical on RHEL 8. Was the hardest Red Hat Exam I attended so far, I studied with the RH342 eBook from my earlier RHLS and the Course from A Cloud Guru.

The ACG Course was okay but in my opinion didn't covered the Topics in the necessary depth, I don't think I could pass the Exam with ACG only. The original Red Hat eBook in combination with existing knowledge and the Hands-On Labs from ACG was a good mix and preparation.

But due to the fact that the "new" RHCE is focusing on Ansible, I can only recommend to prepare additionally with the RHCE RHEL 7 Content!

Summary: A Red Hat Certified Specialist in Linux Diagnostics and Troubleshooting is capable to prevent costly downtime due to system failure and quickly recover failed systems using analysis, diagnosis, and troubleshooting.

Source & Copyright: https://www.redhat.com

Skills

Understanding and employing general methods for troubleshooting
Diagnosing and troubleshooting system start up issues
Diagnosing and troubleshooting file system issues
Resolving package management issues
Troubleshooting and fixing network connectivity issues
Diagnosing application issues
Identifying and fixing authentication issues
Gathering information to aid third party investigation of issues

Source & Copyright: https://www.redhat.com

Certificate

Downloads
- Certificate (PDF, 856K)
- Badge (PNG, 64K)
Links
- Verify Credly Badge (Archive: [1], [2])
- Verify Red Hat Badge (Archive: [1], [2])
- Verify Certificate

Red Hat Certified Specialist in Advanced Automation: Ansible Best Practices - Ansible 2.8, Tower 3.5 & Enterprise Linux 8

2021-06-01T00:00:00+02:00

After passing the RHCSA and RHCE Exam already a few weeks ago, I also completed the Red Hat Exam EX447 today and earned the Red Hat Certified Specialist in Advanced Automation: Ansible Best Practices Certification.

It was the next logical Step to finish the Ansible Track before moving on to other Specialist Exams on my way to become a Red Hat Certified Architect (RHCA) one day ;).

Compared to the RHCE with a more or less 100% Ansible focus, EX447 was roughly 50% Ansible in more depth and 50% Ansible Tower.

I'm using AWX, the Tower Upstream Project, for quite some time already, I think that expirience helped a lot.

Summary: A Red Hat Certified Specialist in Advanced Automation: Ansible Best Practices is able to automate management of large or complex networks of machines. He demonstrate mastery of Ansible, knowledge of Ansible Tower and an understanding of Ansible best practices.

Source & Copyright: https://www.redhat.com

Skills

Understand and use Git to manage collections of playbooks
Manage inventory variables
Manage and Administer Ansible task execution
Transform data with filters and plugins
Delegate tasks
Install Ansible Tower
Manage access for Ansible Tower
Manage inventories, advanced inventories and credentials
Manage projects
Manage job workflows
Work with the Ansible Tower API
Backup and Restore Ansible Tower

Source & Copyright: https://www.redhat.com

Certificate

Downloads
- Certificate (PDF, 856.2K)
- Badge (PNG, 59.4K)
Links
- Verify Credly Badge (Archive: [1], [2])
- Verify Red Hat Badge (Archive: [1], [2])
- Verify Certificate

Red Hat Certified Engineer - Ansible 2.8 & Enterprise Linux 8

2021-05-25T00:00:00+02:00

Today I earned the Red Hat Certified Engineer Certification by passing the Red Hat Exam EX294.

It's the Version 8 RHCE Exam which quite differ from the "old" one by focussing on Ansible.

So during the performance-based Exam you have to create a lot of Ansible Playbooks and Roles to solve the Tasks. It's a tough Exam but fair and preparing for it improved my Ansible Skills a lot, even though I was using Ansible quite often within the last years.

Summary: A Red Hat® Certified Engineer (RHCE®) is a Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA) who is ready to automate Red Hat® Enterprise Linux® tasks, integrate Red Hat emerging technologies, and apply learned automation skills for efficiency and innovation.

Source & Copyright: https://www.redhat.com

Skills

Be able to perform all tasks expected of a Red Hat Certified System Administrator
Understand core components of Ansible
Install and configure an Ansible control node
Configure Ansible managed nodes
Script administration tasks
Create Ansible plays and playbooks
Use Ansible modules for system administration tasks
Work with roles
Use advanced Ansible features

Source & Copyright: https://www.redhat.com

Certificate

Downloads
- Certificate (PDF, 855.9K)
- Badge (PNG, 51.8K)
Links
- Verify Credly Badge (Archive: [1], [2])
- Verify Red Hat Badge (Archive: [1], [2])
- Verify Certificate

Red Hat Certified System Administrator - Enterprise Linux 8

2021-05-06T00:00:00+02:00

I passed the Red Hat Exam EX200 today and received my Red Hat Certified System Administrator Certification.

What I really like and what makes the difference is the fact that all Red Hat Exams are performance-based.

That means, you get access to a virtual environment during your Exam and have to perform real-world tasks. There are no Multiple Choice Questions, you actually have to configure those System accordingly. SUSE did something similiar in the Past but change recently to question-based Exams.

Summary: An IT professional who has earned the Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA®) is able to perform the core system administration skills required in Red Hat Enterprise Linux environments. The credential is earned after successfully passing the Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA) Exam (EX200).

Source & Copyright: https://www.redhat.com

Skills

Understand and use essential tools for handling files, directories, command-line environments, and documentation
Create simple shell scripts
Operate running systems, including booting into different run levels, identifying processes, starting and stopping virtual machines, and controlling services
Configure local storage using partitions and logical volumes
Create and configure file systems and file system attributes, such as permissions, encryption, access control lists, and network file systems
Deploy, configure, and maintain systems, including software installation, update, and core services
Manage users and groups
Manage security, including basic firewall and SELinux configuration
Perform basic container management

Source & Copyright: https://www.redhat.com

Certificate

Downloads
- Certificate (PDF, 855.9K)
- Badge (PNG, 58.5K)
Links
- Verify Credly Badge (Archive: [1], [2])
- Verify Red Hat Badge (Archive: [1], [2])
- Verify Certificate