devOps Engineer Interview Experience
Have you ever wondered what a DevOps engineer interview is really like? You may know the tools, but the actual process often feels different.
As a candidate, you usually face rounds that test scripting, cloud platforms, CI/CD pipelines, and problem solving. It can be difficult when you are unsure of what to expect.
In this blog, you will read real interview experiences from DevOps engineer candidates. You will also find common questions and preparation tips to help you get ready.
Real Candidate Interview Experiences
1. DevOps Engineer Interview with Microsoft
This interview experience is from Tanishq Arora, who interviewed for a DevOps Engineer role with the Microsoft SwiftKey team in London. The process spanned six rounds over three weeks.
Candidate Background:
- Experienced candidate with prior DevOps and SRE interview exposure.
- Skilled in coding, algorithms, problem solving, and DevOps practices.
Interview Process They Faced:
- HR phone screen about background, experience, and motivation.
- Telephonic interview with hiring manager on role fit and DevOps experience.
- Four on-site rounds in one day: three technical and one senior management round.
Questions Asked:
- Coding / Algorithms: Data structures (arrays, hash maps, linked lists, stacks, queues), sorting, searching, string manipulation, recursion, and optimization tasks on the whiteboard.
- Problem Solving: Writing efficient algorithms, explaining time/space complexity, debugging solutions.
- Behavioral: Career goals, reasons for role changes, long-term aspirations, and handling DevOps challenges in past roles.
Outcome & Difficulty Level:
- Outcome was positive.
- Difficulty was high, as technical rounds leaned heavily toward developer-style algorithm interviews rather than infrastructure design.
2. DevOps Engineer Interview at Livspace
This interview experience is from Kumar, who interviewed for a DevOps Engineer role at Livspace. The process involved multiple technical rounds, challenges, and leadership discussions.
Candidate Background:
- Experienced candidate with strong background in AWS, Kubernetes, Terraform, CI/CD, and system reliability.
- Skilled in infrastructure design, automation, and security.
Interview Process They Faced:
- Round 1 (Technical Screening): Discussion with Lead DevOps Engineer on AWS, Kubernetes, IaC, monitoring, and CI/CD.
- Round 2 (Technical Challenge): Build a full CI/CD pipeline with Terraform, Kubernetes, GitHub Actions, monitoring, logging, and security best practices.
- Round 3 (Infrastructure Design Deep Dive): Design scalable infrastructure for real-time collaboration and 3D rendering workloads.
- Round 4 (Problem Solving & Troubleshooting): Handle failing Kubernetes clusters, optimize pipelines, manage incidents, and multi-region deployments.
- Round 5 (System Admin & Security): Linux, Docker, container security, zero-trust security, backups, compliance.
- Round 6 (Leadership & Strategy): DevOps culture, project leadership, incident management, and new tool adoption.
Questions Asked:
- Cloud & Infrastructure: AWS services, Kubernetes orchestration, Terraform-based infrastructure, high availability, auto-scaling.
- CI/CD & Monitoring: GitHub Actions, Prometheus, Grafana, ELK stack, blue-green deployments.
- Security: Zero-trust security, secret management, compliance, backup and recovery.
- Case Studies: Design resilient infrastructure for 3D rendering workloads and real-time collaboration.
- Behavioral: Leadership experience, project ownership, improving reliability, adapting to emerging DevOps tools
Outcome & Difficulty Level:
- The candidate was selected.
- The difficulty was high, with strong emphasis on practical DevOps challenges, design skills, and leadership.
Common devOps Engineer Interview Questions
DevOps interviews usually test your coding skills, infrastructure knowledge, and ability to handle real-world system challenges. Below are commonly asked questions grouped by category.
Coding / Algorithms
- Solve graph, string, or recursion-based coding problems.
- Implement logic for sorting and searching algorithms.
- Explain time and space complexity for your solutions.
Cloud & Infrastructure
- Explain how auto-scaling works in AWS or Azure.
- Design a scalable infrastructure for real-time workloads.
- How do you implement Infrastructure as Code with Terraform?
CI/CD & Automation
- Set up a CI/CD pipeline using GitHub Actions or Jenkins.
- How do you optimize slow CI/CD pipelines?
- Explain blue-green deployments and rollback strategies.
Monitoring & Logging
- How would you implement monitoring using Prometheus and Grafana?
- What logging solutions would you use for distributed systems?
- How do you troubleshoot a failing Kubernetes cluster?
Security & Reliability
- What is zero-trust security and how would you apply it?
- Explain secret management in Kubernetes clusters.
- How do you design a disaster recovery plan?
HR / Behavioural
- Why do you want to work as a DevOps Engineer?
- Tell me about a time you handled a production incident.
- How do you lead infrastructure projects in a team setting?
Preparation Tips for DevOps Engineer Interviews
Balanced preparation across coding, cloud platforms, and real-world problem solving is key to clearing DevOps interviews.
- Revise Coding: Brush up on DSA basics like arrays, graphs, and strings. Many DevOps roles include developer-style coding questions.
- Strengthen Cloud Knowledge: Focus on AWS or Azure services, auto-scaling, and multi-region setups. Interviewers test your ability to design resilient infrastructure.
- Practice CI/CD: Build sample pipelines using Jenkins or GitHub Actions. Be ready to explain deployment strategies and optimization steps.
- Learn Monitoring Tools: Explore Prometheus, Grafana, and ELK stack. Be prepared to discuss metrics, dashboards, and troubleshooting approaches.
- Review Security Concepts: Revise container security, network policies, and zero-trust models. Security knowledge is critical in modern DevOps roles.
- Work on Projects: Highlight real-world projects where you implemented automation, handled scaling, or solved incidents. Hands-on experience is valued.
- Prepare Behavioral Stories: Use STAR method to explain how you solved incidents, led projects, or managed dependencies. Clear communication is essential.
Final Words
DevOps engineer interviews test coding, cloud knowledge, and problem-solving skills. Learning from real experiences and practicing common scenarios helps you prepare with confidence.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How can devops engineer interview experiences help in preparation?
DevOps engineer interview experiences help by showing real processes, technical focus areas, and candidate feedback for effective preparation.
2. What topics are frequently covered in devops engineer interviews?
DevOps engineer interviews frequently cover coding, cloud infrastructure, CI/CD pipelines, monitoring, security, and behavioral scenarios.
3. What is the usual duration of the devops engineer hiring process?
The devops engineer hiring process usually takes three to six weeks depending on the company.
4. Which devops engineer roles have the toughest interview rounds?
Senior DevOps engineer and site reliability engineer roles usually have the toughest interview rounds.
5. How do freshers prepare for devops engineer interviews?
Freshers prepare by learning cloud basics, practicing coding, building small automation projects, and revising DevOps tools.
6. Do devops engineer interviews focus more on concepts or coding?
DevOps engineer interviews focus on both concepts and coding, testing practical knowledge and problem-solving ability.
7. Do all companies follow the same process for devops engineer interviews?
No, each company follows a different process, but most include coding, infrastructure design, and behavioral rounds.
Thirumoorthy serves as a teacher and coach. He obtained a 99 percentile on the CAT. He cleared numerous IT jobs and public sector job interviews, but he still decided to pursue a career in education. He desires to elevate the underprivileged sections of society through education
Thirumoorthy serves as a teacher and coach. He obtained a 99 percentile on the CAT. He cleared numerous IT jobs and public sector job interviews, but he still decided to pursue a career in education. He desires to elevate the underprivileged sections of society through education
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