IT Support, Networking and Infrastructure
Scripting and automation for administrators
An administrator who types the same commands a third time is doing work a short script should own. PowerShell on Windows, Bash on Linux and Python across both are the usual tools, and none of them requires becoming a developer. This page covers what to automate first, why the exams have started to include it, and the risk carried by a script nobody else can read.
Why this topic exists: PowerShell, Bash and Python are how administrators stop doing the same thing twice (LPIC-1 topic 105; CCNA Automation and Programmability 10 %; SFIA System software administration).
Scripting for administrators is not software development. It is the habit of turning a task you have done by hand into a short file that does it the same way every time: creating accounts for a new starter, checking disk space across forty servers, collecting the same weekly report, pushing one change to every switch. The gain is partly speed and mostly consistency, because a script does not forget step seven on a Friday afternoon.
What to automate first
- Tasks you already perform from a written checklist, since the checklist is nearly a script.
- Joiner and leaver steps, where a missed step becomes a security problem.
- Morning checks: free space, certificate expiry dates, whether last night's backups finished.
- Reports someone assembles by copying numbers between windows.
- Changes that must reach many machines or devices identically.
Three languages and their home ground
| Language | Home ground | What it does well | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bash | Linux and macOS shells | Gluing existing commands together with pipes | Quoting, and filenames containing spaces |
| PowerShell | Windows, also available on Linux and macOS | Passing structured objects rather than text between commands | Execution policy and differing module versions |
| Python | Any platform | Libraries for files, web APIs and network devices | Which interpreter and packages the target machine actually has |
The exams have been moving this way for years. LPIC-1 gives shells and scripting a topic of its own: one objective on shaping the shell environment with variables, functions and aliases, another on writing simple scripts with loops, tests, command substitution and checks on exit status. A separate objective covers scheduling with cron, at and systemd timers, which is where most scripts end up running. The CCNA gives automation and programmability 10 % of its weight, and CCNA Automation takes the network side much further. Past a certain scale, tools such as Ansible replace step-by-step scripts with a description of the state each machine should reach.
Safe to run twice
A good administrative script checks before it acts: it creates the account only if it is missing and edits the file only if the line is absent. Scripts written this way can be rerun after a failure without doing damage, which is the property configuration tools are built around.
The common beginner's mistakes are a script kept on one person's desktop, a password written into the file, and no handling for the case where a command fails halfway. Put scripts in Git, read secrets from a vault or the environment, and stop on the first error. LPIC-1 covers the Linux side, the no-cost Python Essentials 1 course from Cisco is a start in Python, and AZ-104 carries the habit into Azure administration. The next steps are Linux administration and infrastructure as code; flows built by office staff rather than administrators are covered under workplace automation.
Next to this topic
- IT fundamentalsWhat computers, networks, operating systems and data are for, before fixing any of them: the scope of Tech+ and of the first weeks of every support course (SFIA Delivery and operation; A+ Core 1).
- Hardware, mobile devices and troubleshootingComponents, peripherals, mobile devices and the troubleshooting method are the largest part of A+ Core 1 (Hardware 25 %, Hardware and Network Troubleshooting 28 %, Mobile Devices 13 %, read 2026-09-26).
- Operating systems: Windows, macOS, LinuxInstalling, configuring and securing desktop operating systems is A+ Core 2's largest domain (Operating Systems 28 %) and the daily ground of support work.
- Linux administrationThe command line, package management, filesystems, users, services, scripting and networking as LPIC-1 objectives v5.0 lay them out (topics 101–110); Linux+ and RHCSA test the same ground.
- Windows Server and Active DirectoryDomains, group policy, file and print, identity for the desktop estate: the server side of most business IT (SFIA System software administration; Microsoft's Windows Server hybrid administrator track).
- Networking fundamentalsThe OSI and TCP/IP models, addressing, subnetting, DHCP and DNS are the first domains of Network+ (Networking concepts 23 %) and CCNA (Network Fundamentals 20 %).
- IT support and the service deskTickets, incidents, requests, remote support and the operational procedures of A+ Core 2 (21 %): the job most people enter IT through (Google IT Support; ITIL's service desk and incident practices).
- IT service management (ITIL)The practices that run IT as a service: incident, problem, change enablement, service level, continual improvement (ITIL's practice model, Version 5 since February 2026 with ITIL 4 in parallel; ITIL Foundation; ServiceNow CSA).
- Virtualisation and server infrastructureHypervisors, virtual machines and server hardware sit between the desktop and the cloud (A+ Core 1 Virtualization and Cloud Computing 11 %; SFIA Infrastructure operations; VMware and Server+).
Concepts to know
Glossary entries with the reason each one matters here.
Certifications that test it
Vendor exams and free certificates; facts, cost and the preparation path are on each page, and the certifications hub has them all.
- Cisco · 200-901Cisco CCNA Automation (formerly DevNet Associate)Cisco's automation exam.
- LPI · 101-500 + 102-500LPIC-1 — Linux AdministratorShell scripting is topic 105.
- Cisco · Online exam, not proctored · freePython Essentials 1A free Python start with a badge.
- Microsoft · AZ-104Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator AssociatePowerShell and CLI across the exam.
Tools of the trade
- Python
The administrator's automation language.
- Bash and the shell
Where automation starts on Unix systems.
- PowerShell
Windows and Azure automation.
- Ansible
Automation for administrators.
Frequently asked
- Should I learn Bash or Python first?
- Learn whichever matches the systems you look after, then the other. Bash is unavoidable on Linux for short jobs that chain commands; Python takes over once a task needs real data structures, error handling or calls to a web API.
- Is PowerShell only for Windows?
- No. Current versions of PowerShell run on Linux and macOS as well, and it is widely used to manage cloud resources. Its advantage over text-based shells is that commands exchange objects, so you filter on properties instead of parsing output.
- Is administrative scripting the same as DevOps?
- It is one ingredient. DevOps adds version control for everything, automated pipelines, infrastructure described as code and a shared responsibility between developers and operations. An administrator who scripts well and keeps those scripts in Git has already taken the first steps.
Courses in the directory
107 courses are filed here; the top 6 by our ranking, details and the provider link on each course page.
Last reviewed 26 September 2026 · Getting Digital