|
| 1 | +--- |
| 2 | +title: Extending the Academy |
| 3 | +weight: 2 |
| 4 | +description: > |
| 5 | + Learn how to create and publish custom cloud-native learning paths and challenges using the Layer5 Academy platform. |
| 6 | +categories: [Academy] |
| 7 | +tags: [Designer] |
| 8 | +--- |
| 9 | + |
| 10 | +# Extending the Academy |
| 11 | + |
| 12 | +The **Layer5 Cloud Academy** is a modular learning management system (LMS) designed for building **learning paths** (also referred to as **specializations**) and **interactive cloud-native challenges**. It is deeply integrated into the Layer5 cloud ecosystem and **Kanvas**—a visual designer and operator for cloud-native infrastructure. This integration enables embedding live visualizations, interactive designs, and contextual experiences directly within courses. |
| 13 | + |
| 14 | +--- |
| 15 | + |
| 16 | +## Who Can Extend the Academy? |
| 17 | + |
| 18 | +Organizations subscribed to the **Enterprise Plan** have the capability to: |
| 19 | + |
| 20 | +* Create and manage their own academy content |
| 21 | +* Publish courses to the Layer5 Cloud Platform |
| 22 | +* Enjoy full **multi-tenancy**, **white-labeling**, and **customization** support |
| 23 | + |
| 24 | +--- |
| 25 | + |
| 26 | +## How to Extend the Academy |
| 27 | + |
| 28 | +The Cloud Academy is designed to **avoid vendor lock-in**. Enterprise users manage their academy content in their **own Git repositories**—you own your content and data. |
| 29 | + |
| 30 | +Content is sourced using the **[Hugo](https://gohugo.io/)** static site engine. To get started, use the [Academy Starter Template](https://github.com/layer5io/academy-example). This provides a working scaffold based on the Hugo directory structure, pre-configured with the custom `layer5-academy` theme. |
| 31 | + |
| 32 | +> ✅ No need to write HTML, manage layouts, or build custom shortcodes. |
| 33 | +> Everything is abstracted behind a simple markdown-based authoring experience. |
| 34 | +
|
| 35 | +--- |
| 36 | + |
| 37 | +## Directory Overview |
| 38 | + |
| 39 | +When you clone the template, you’ll see a familiar Hugo structure: |
| 40 | + |
| 41 | +``` |
| 42 | +academy-example/ |
| 43 | +├── content/ |
| 44 | +│ └── learning-paths/ |
| 45 | +│ └── org-name/ # Replace with your actual org name |
| 46 | +├── static/ |
| 47 | +│ └── org-name/ # Static assets (images, custom CSS) |
| 48 | +├── layouts/ |
| 49 | +│ └── shortcodes/ |
| 50 | +│ └── org-name/ # Custom shortcodes (optional) |
| 51 | +``` |
| 52 | + |
| 53 | +### ⚠️ Organizational Scoping |
| 54 | + |
| 55 | +To ensure **isolation** between different organizations: |
| 56 | + |
| 57 | +* All your content must reside under your scoped folder: |
| 58 | + `content/learning-paths/<your-org-name>/` |
| 59 | + |
| 60 | +* Only content within your organization folder will be published. |
| 61 | + |
| 62 | +* Use the **same org-name** consistently across `content/`, `static/`, and `layouts/shortcodes/`. |
| 63 | + |
| 64 | +* Content outside of your scoped folders will **not be picked up in production**. |
| 65 | + |
| 66 | +--- |
| 67 | + |
| 68 | +## Adding Content and Assets |
| 69 | + |
| 70 | +You can begin by adding your learning material under: |
| 71 | + |
| 72 | +``` |
| 73 | +content/learning-paths/<your-org-name>/ |
| 74 | +``` |
| 75 | + |
| 76 | +This folder acts as the **root scope** for all your learning paths. Supporting assets can be placed as follows: |
| 77 | + |
| 78 | +* `static/<your-org-name>/` – images, stylesheets, other static files |
| 79 | +* `layouts/shortcodes/<your-org-name>/` – optional Hugo shortcodes for custom widgets |
| 80 | + |
| 81 | +> 🔒 This organizational scoping ensures that customizations made by one organization do not affect others. |
| 82 | +
|
| 83 | +--- |
| 84 | + |
| 85 | +## Learning Path Structure |
| 86 | + |
| 87 | +Each learning path can include multiple courses, chapters, and lessons, organized in a clear hierarchy. |
| 88 | + |
| 89 | +``` |
| 90 | +learning-paths/ |
| 91 | +└── <your-org-name>/ |
| 92 | + └── <learning-path-name>/ |
| 93 | + ├── _index.md # Metadata for the learning path |
| 94 | + └── <course-name>/ |
| 95 | + ├── _index.md # Metadata for the course |
| 96 | + └── chapter-1/ |
| 97 | + ├── _index.md # Metadata (requirements, summary, etc.) |
| 98 | + └── content/ |
| 99 | + ├── lesson-1.md |
| 100 | + └── lesson-2.md |
| 101 | +``` |
| 102 | + |
| 103 | +Each `_index.md` file contains frontmatter and overview content for that level (path, course, chapter). |
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