I was recently laid off and have a screening call for an infrastructure role that looks like a great fit. I tend to undersell myself because technical interviews make me nervous.
The role lists Linux, Apache, MySQL, NFS, Squid, Redis, DNS, LDAP, Python and Ansible, among other things. What questions would you practice, especially for Ansible and Linux?
I'd practice troubleshooting out loud rather than trying to memorize answers for every product. For example: a website is down, but the server responds to ping. What do you check next? Talk through DNS, connectivity, whether Apache is running and listening, its configuration, and the logs. Then explain how you'd narrow down whether the application or database is involved.
Other useful prompts: How would you diagnose a DNS lookup failure? What would you check if an NFS mount hangs? How would you investigate an SSH login failure? You don't need a perfect checklist. Show how you form a hypothesis, test it, and avoid making risky changes before you understand the problem.
For Ansible, build something small. Use an inventory and a playbook to install Apache and configure a basic virtual host on a couple of test machines. Run it twice and look at what changes. That gives you a concrete way to discuss idempotence and configuration drift.
Practice explaining how you'd roll out a change to a larger group of servers, including testing it on a smaller group first and checking the result. If you've only used Ansible on your own, say so. You can still explain what you've built and how you'd learn the team's process.
For the first call, don't assume they'll use a particular Linux distribution or ask deep technical questions. Have a short explanation ready for why the role interests you, where your experience fits, and which areas you're still learning.
Ask what the screening and later technical stages cover, which distribution they use, and how the team manages configuration. That should help you aim the rest of your prep instead of cramming every tool on the list equally.
Use a mock interview to practice getting answers out clearly. A friend or an AI tool can throw questions at you, but check any technical answers against reliable documentation. If you use an AI tool during the actual interview, ask about the employer's rules first rather than assuming it's allowed.
Answers are reviewed before publication.
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