By Nirav Patel

DevOps: Implementation Strategy and Advantage

The continued development of IT infrastructure has led to some of the most important victories in programming and integration. As we progress in the future, we are witnessing a different type of methodology and principles that streamlined the work process. One of them is DevOps, which was introduced in 2007- 2008 to bridge the gap between development (Dev) and operation (Ops).

This is a whole new concept in software development services where collaboration, cultural philosophies along with a different set of tools and practices creates better functionality and higher output in development. DevOps is a methodology like agile in which the focus is on shorting the development lifecycle, automation and collaboration. This will elevate the quality and the process as both the development and operation team work together and continually deliver the result. To understand the workflow and implementation of DevOps, we first need to learn about DevOps principles.

DevOps Principles

1. Collaboration

Collaboration is one of the main focuses of DevOps. Without clear communication and alliance, every side of software development becomes a silo. It will create dysfunction, criticism, slow processes that produce an inferior product. With teamwork, we can eliminate most of these issues with clear communication for mobile app development.

2. Automation

Automation plays a big role in DevOps because this methodology is all about continuous production at high velocity. It’s humanly impossible to create a workstream where we produce a higher quality of work like a perpetual machine. Automation in every step and process reduces the workload for DevOps operators.

3. Customer-Centric Action

Every small detail and feature in software development needs to help the customer. Customer centric approach is important because they are the end users. At every development stage, we need to ask, how this will help the customer? With this DevOps principle, we can build something better and outshine the customers expectation.

4. Keeping End Result in Crosshair

DevOps methodology is all about results and collaboration. In any other software development method, all departments have a different set of deadlines and results, but DevOps services bring them under one roof and provide them with one single goal. This is helpful as it will create harmony and synchronization between teams, and everyone is invested in achieving the same result.

5. Continuous Improvement

DevOps is all about continuity, that’s why we have continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) tools. This process of continuous development also refers to a steady stream of application delivery and improvement of the process. This methodology is useful as it inspires us to improve the workflow and make it better.

6. End to End Responsibilities

DevOps methods are all about working together as a group with the same goal. The silos process does not help with end results and that’s why every member of the group from developers, and operations to Software testing and quality assurance, all have same goal and end to end responsibility.

DevOps Implementation Strategy

DevOps principles are the foundation of the roadmap. We can use it for the implementation process. There are a few different sets of the process but all of them have a shared vision of DevOps.

1. Assess Current State

DevOps offers better results and speedy SaaS development but before we start the implementation process, we need to understand the status of our operation. This methodology is all about integration and collaboration, we can introduce the DevOps principles into our current system without removing the old elements. This will help identify areas for improvement and provide a baseline for measuring progress.

DevOps does not require 360 Degree updates from scratch, it’s about identifying the missing links in our system. Without a thorough look at your current strategy and recognizing the pitfalls, we cannot move further with implementation. This will involve conducting surveys or focus groups with development and operations teams and reviewing current processes and tools. Also examining the culture and attitudes towards collaboration and communication. Once we complete these steps and find our weak points, we can move ahead with the strategy and goal.

2. Define Goals and Building Strategy

Once our assessment is complete, we can focus on the goal of the DevOps implementation. DevOps is all about quality and end results and we need to leverage that with our own goals. The assessment should surface some of the inadequacies and shortcomings of our current method. We need to focus on improving those limitations and enhancing the process. Our Goals might include reducing time to market for new features, improving collaboration between development and operations teams, and increasing the reliability and stability of software releases.

Once we establish our goal, it’s time to build a perfect strategy for DevOps execution. What type of changes need to be made and how do we make it more efficient? It should also include customer centric approach and collaboration. Invite your team members and discuss the strategy for the upcoming project using DevOps method.

3. Choose tools for Implementation

We need to find perfect tools and technology for DevOps method in order for it to work properly. Finding the right tech stack is important as it will streamline the operation and development to its capacity. Choosing the right tool will decide the progress and compatibility of the DevOps with your established process.

One of the easiest ways to choose the right tool is to find the requirements. An organization might choose to use Jenkins for continuous integration and deployment, Ansible for configuration management, and Nagios for monitoring and logging.

4. Automate Processes

Automation is a big part of DevOps. We cannot achieve a higher level of productivity without automating some aspects of the process. There are several reasons behind using automation in development, such as reducing manual errors, faster feedback, faster delivery and removing dependency are just a few of them. With automation, the development team could reassign their focus to an important task.

The automation process is done with Containerizing. This is a process where software components, dependency, configuration and environments are put inside an isolated unit or container. This will help developers to put the software in any environment like the cloud or OS. With Containerizing in place, we can automate the build, test, and deployment process with a CI/CD tool like Jenkins can help ensure that new releases are tested and deployed consistently and quickly.

5. Test and Monitoring

Automation requires testing and continuous monitoring by quality assurance to establish a better process for development. Automation can be applied to many fields in development, but it also requires human interference. Some of the tasks must be done by the team to assure quality and reduce the risk of bugs.

With monitoring, we can find the issue before users do. This will help the development team isolate the problematic area and resolve the issue swiftly. This will also help the team with finding the flaws in DevOps methods and fixing them.

6. Establish Feedback Loops

One of the DevOps principles is about focusing on the user’s needs. We need to understand user’s requirements and how the E-commerce software development or any others solves an issue for them. Establishing a feedback mechanism will provide continuous reports on feedback. We can leverage this feedback and incorporate new features in an update to solve issues for the users.

7. Foster a Culture of Collaboration

As we mentioned before, DevOps is all about collaboration. The idea behind the one shared goal of teamwork is exactly the opposite of silo methods. In silo practices, every developer, operation managers and testers have a different set of goals and responsibility. Once their work is done, they cannot contribute anything to the counterproductive end result. Encouraging regular meetings and collaboration between development and operations teams will solve this issue. Also promoting a culture of open communication and collaboration can help break down silos and improve collaboration.

8. Continuously Improve

For many years, developers were using waterfall models, it worked in the past, so why change now? But then developers adopt other models like agile, spiral, Incremental and more. The reason behind choosing a different model is to improve the process of development along with the quality while shortening the development time. This also applies to DevOps methodology as we need to continuously improve our methods, process, and environment to provide a better result. By conducting regular assessments of DevOps implementation, we can find a better way to enhance the process.

9. Scale

End goal of any development method is to ensure the quality and scale it. Scaling is important in DevOps as it is known for faster delivery at higher velocity. To scale higher and continue to produce, we need to apply all the principles and steps of implementation in the process.

DevOps Implementation Advantages

1. Faster Software Delivery

By automating manual processes and improving collaboration between development and operations teams, DevOps enables organizations to deliver software faster and with greater reliability.

2. Increased Efficiency

Automation of manual processes will save time and reduce work for the team. Combining it with the use of tools such as CI/CD and configuration management will increase efficiency and reduce errors.

3. Improved Collaboration

Once we establish collaboration, we can break down silos between development and operations teams and foster a culture of collaboration. It will increase communication between the team and the shared goal and will result in faster results.

4. Better Quality Software

DevOps methods enhance the quality of development for the team. By using automation, collaboration and feedback, we can eliminate all the weaknesses in the process and streamline the process with higher quality work.

5. Increased Customer Satisfaction

DevOps’s customer-centric approach provides better results and overall customer satisfaction. By applying the DevOps process, we are putting the customer first and designing the best functions for their solution.

6. Continuous Improvement

It’s important to understand that software development is always evolving. DevOps methods offer us a chance to evolve with technology and continually improve our process and method along the way.

7. More focus on Innovation

Automation allows us to set aside many tasks that require time and effort. Now we can focus our attention on new innovations, ideas, problem solving and quality for the software.

Conclusion

DevOps has opened the floodgate for higher quality and fast delivery of software development. This approach entails a higher level of collaboration, automation, improvement and better customer satisfaction. Many Software development Services are leveraging DevOps methodology in their process to gain better results.