Hands-on labs give you the chance to apply your newfound cloud knowledge and retain what you’ve learned. Labs include a secure, temporary, pre-configured cloud environment and a set of learning objectives for you to complete within a certain timeframe.
Complete labs on their own or as part of a course. We provide all the tools in-browser, so you can practice without worrying about disturbing your production cloud environment.
Who can access Hands-on labs
Hands-on labs began as an A Cloud Guru feature also known as ACG cloud labs. Learners with a Skills Everything plan license, Skills Security + Cloud license, ACG Business plan license, or ACG Personal membership can access all Hands-on labs.
In order to provide Skills learners with the freshest content, Pluralsight-created cloud labs were removed from Skills in August 2024 in favor of ACG’s more current and comprehensive Hands-on labs, and Skills learners with a labs add-on license were granted access to a select number of Hands-on labs at no additional cost. If you’re a Skills plan admin, reach out to your Pluralsight contact if you want to give your plan access to more cloud labs.
Starting a Hands-on lab in Skills
Learners on updated Skills team plans can access Hands-on labs from the home page:
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Sign in to Skills (opens in new tab).
- If you’re an admin or team manager on the plan, use the navigation bar to switch to Learner navigation.
- On your home page, locate the Hands-on Learning widget.
- Click Hands-on Labs.
- Find a lab that interests you and click to open it.
- On the lab details page, click Start Lab.
Learners on other Skills team plans labs access can find Hands-on labs with the search function:
- Enter your preferred cloud platform into the search bar.
—or—
Click Browse all in the navigation menu. - Use Filters to refine your search:
- Under Category, check the box next to Cloud.
- Under Content type, check the box next to Labs.
Tip: ACG hands-on labs are indicated with an A Cloud Guru logo.
- Find a lab that interests you and click to open it.
- On the lab details page, click Start Lab.
Starting a Hands-on lab in ACG
Access Hands-on labs in ACG from your dashboard, the course outline page, or within the course player.
From the dashboard
- Click Labs in the navigation menu.
- Find a lab that interests you and click to open it.
- Click Start Lab.
From the course outline page
- Expand a course module and look for a clip with the Hands-on lab tag.
- Click the lab of your choice.
- Click Start Lab.
From within the course player
- In the navigation pane, click the Expand the navigation pane icon.
- Click All Lessons to show the course outline in the navigation pane.
- Labs are indicated with a lab icon. Click one to open it.
- Click Start Lab.
As you progress through a module, you may encounter a lab you don’t have time to complete. Click Skip this lesson to come back to it later.
Navigating your Hands-on lab
Once you’ve started your lab, you’ll see a video player and your lab tools.
- Watch the Videos to guide you through the lab, or click Guide to see written instructions instead.
- Click Lab Diagram for easy access to an infographic you can reference while you work.
- Click Instant Terminal to quickly launch Instant terminal in a new tab.
- Use your Credentials to log into the cloud environment for the lab—either Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, or Google Cloud Platform (GCP).
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Additional Resources might contain context, tips, or documentation that will come in handy.
Note: If you're taking the lab on Skills, you can find this information in the Project Resources tab in the main lab area.
- Learning Objectives are tasks you must work through in order to complete the lab.
Connecting to the cloud console
- In the Lab Credentials section of your lab tools, click the copy icon in the URL field. This copies the cloud console link to your clipboard.
- Open a private browser window and paste the link in the URL bar.
Tip: While you’re entering your credentials or following lab instructions, we recommend having the lab instructions and your cloud console open in separate windows side-by-side for ease of use.
- Go back to the lab page, then copy and paste the username and password into the cloud console page to sign in.
- In the Credentials section of your lab tools, click Open Link in Incognito Window. This will copy the cloud console link to your clipboard.
- Open a private browser window and paste the link in the URL bar.
Tip: While you’re entering your credentials or following lab instructions, we recommend having the lab instructions and your cloud console open in separate windows side-by-side for ease of use.
- Go back to the lab page, then copy and paste the username and password into the cloud console page to sign in.
You’re ready to begin your Hands-on lab. Don’t forget you’re on the clock—you can check the timer at the top of the lab page to see how much time you have left.
Common questions
How many times can I take a Hands-on lab?
Take a Hands-on lab as many times as you want. To take a lab again, revisit the lab details page and start the lab again. The Lab History section on the lab details page shows any previous attempts you’ve made at the lab.
Are Hands-on labs scenario-based?
Yes. Hands-on labs typically come with a scenario to resolve, and include video lessons and guides. This lets you follow along at your own pace with your preferred learning method.
You'll be guided through the lab by an expert. Once you’re comfortable with the material, you can try the lab again on your own without referencing the videos or guide to check your understanding.
Do Hands-on labs have restrictions?
There are restrictions to what actions you can take and services you can use in our lab and playground environments. Consult the restrictions and supported services listed in our AWS, Azure, and GCP articles.
Some Hands-on labs have restrictions to cloud services outside our standard restrictions. You can still complete these labs, but you may receive an abuse notification if you attempt to complete other tasks outside of those outlined in the lab guide or objectives. Excessive network traffic using lab resources may be flagged as lab abuse or misuse.
If you feel you’ve received an abuse notification in error, contact Pluralsight Support.
What's the difference between Guided mode and Challenge mode?
Some of our most popular labs are Challenge labs that you can take either in Guided mode or Challenge mode.
In addition to the instructional videos, guides, and diagrams you get in a typical lab, taking a Challenge lab in Guided mode allows you to run progress checks to see if you’ve completed the lab objectives correctly.
Challenge mode tests your knowledge in a Hands-on lab without the use of instructional videos or guides, and your work isn’t checked until you submit the lab for a grade.
See Challenge labs to learn more.
Why is the Start Lab button locked?
The Start Lab button is locked whenever you have another Hands-on lab active, or if the lab is undergoing maintenance.
If another Hands-on lab is already running, you can’t start another one. If this is the case, a banner on the lab details page prompts you to cancel or resume the in-progress lab.
A Hands-on lab is temporarily unavailable while it receives updates. If this is the case, you'll see a maintenance banner on the lab details page.
Click Email Me to receive an email notification once the lab is available again. If you’re taking the lab on Skills, this email is sent to the primary email address on your Pluralsight account.
Why do I see the error "Uhoh, this lab is temporarily unavailable"?
You’ll see this error if you’re taking a course in ACG that includes a lab that’s undergoing maintenance or receiving an update. Click Email Me to receive a notification when the lab is available again.
In the meantime, you can skip the lab and still request a certificate of course completion if you completed 80% or more of the course.
Why doesn't my Hands-on lab have a lab guide?
Most Hands-on labs are standalone and intended to be used to perform a specific exercise or task. However, some are intended to be completed while following along with a video course.
If you come across a Hands-on lab with no lab guide, read the description. Return to the course to see if there are videos you're meant to follow instead of a lab guide.
Note: Hands-on labs that are being updated won't have a lab guide.
How long do Hands-on labs last?
Hands-on labs have a built-in timer, and the time limit varies from lab to lab—usually one to four hours. After the timer expires or when you complete the lab, the lab closes and the resources are cleared. You can restart the lab from the beginning at any time by returning to the lab details page.
How do I resume a Hands-on lab?
All Hands-on labs have a timer that starts counting down immediately after starting the lab. If you don't complete the lab before the timer reaches zero, you'll need to restart the Hands-on lab from the beginning.
If the lab has time remaining and you navigate away from the lab, the Hands-on lab will remain active and the timer will continue counting down. Click Resume Lab in the banner to continue the lab where you left off.
Why does my Hands-on lab time out immediately?
If you start a Hands-on lab and it immediately times out, it’s because your local system time is out of sync with the network time. To fix this, choose the option to set date and time automatically in your machine's system settings. This process varies depending on your operating system:
- Instructions for Windows (external site, opens in new tab)
- Instructions for macOS (external site, opens in new tab)
How do I prevent my terminal from timing out?
If you're connected to one of the Cloud servers and your terminal session ends, you may receive the message Write Failed: broken pipe. This can occur when the server doesn’t receive a keepalive message after a period of non-use.
Windows users
Note: You need PuTTY installed to complete the following steps.
To manually set the keepalive message:
- Open PuTTY.
- Type your hostname or IP address in the field provided.
- Click Connection from the list of configuration options.
- Type 10 into the Seconds between keepalives field.
macOS/Linux Terminals
Update the ~/etc/ssh/ssh_config file to include:
Host *ServerAliveInterval 120
If you don't want to modify your ssh_config file, you can append your ssh command:
ssh -o ServerAliveInterval=120 user@ip.address