DevOps ideology is a no-brainer to adopt once you hit a roadblock in the monolithic culture of development. This owes to the fact that the traditional development culture is 41% more time-consuming for operation executives. The siloed processes have been in the industry for longer than warranted, making them susceptible to change for the better. But it requires a wave of those changes and cannot be achieved overnight, especially in large corporations. There needs to be a phased process charted out for this humongous task. Each phase in the process must also be planned appropriately to strategically incorporate methodologies suitable for your business.

As the DevOps market grows with a 20% CAGR through 2030, with this article, we aim to give you an aerial view of what must be a part of an ideal DevOps strategy and how it can benefit your organization.

Low-code Tools

Low-code platforms are one of the top DevOps tools that support a microservices architecture. They provide a graphical user interface to create and deploy applications without writing code. Low-code platforms can be used by both IT and business users as they make it easy for business users who may not be trained in coding languages like Java or C++. As a result of which, the adoption rate of DevOps for building applications is skyrocketing.

Low-code tools can also be used in automation tasks such as Continuous Delivery (CD) and Continuous Integration (CI). Automating every step of your software delivery process is made possible by low-code tools via a CD pipeline. The steps range from testing changes before they are deployed into production to automating tests after deployment.

Serverless Computing

The type of cloud computing where resources are dynamically allocated to applications and services is the magic of going serverless. Instead of provisioning servers, you simply write code and deploy it to the serverless platform. The platform manages everything else, including scaling out your application as needed. The cloud architecture makes it easier to build applications quickly because there are no servers or Virtual Machines (VMs) to manage. You just write your code, test it locally, then push it live into production using a cloud server.

The advantage here is that serverless apps scale automatically in response to traffic spikes or user activity without requiring manual intervention by IT organizations that are responsible for managing data centers or deploying code changes into production environments. As such, this approach dramatically reduces cycle time between the development and deployment phases because all you have to do is write code once. It eliminates the need for separate testing stages for each environment (i.e., development versus production). At least 65% of the surveyed organizations in the mid-evolution phase have admitted to using the public cloud.

Using Kubernetes

Although Kubernetes can be used to deploy and manage applications in any language, it is most commonly used with containerized applications. Docker is a popular tool for building and managing containers. A container offers a standardized way of packaging an application, including all its dependencies and configuration files, so it can be easily deployed on different machines without requiring additional setup or configuration.

The DevOps deployment approach to using Kubernetes is to create multiple clusters of nodes (e.g., VMs or bare metal servers) that run the same software version of Kubernetes with identical configuration settings across all cluster members. Each cluster will have some worker nodes running containers managed by Kubernetes. These are referred to as “worker nodes,” “master nodes,” etc., depending on the terminology used by your cloud provider, such as Terraform, offering this type of infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS). The worker nodes in this configuration are called “minions” in common parlance because they follow instructions from their master(s) about what containers should be running and where at any given time.

Microservices Architecture

Microservice architecture is a software development practice that structures an application as a collection of loosely coupled services. A microservice is a small, independent, self-contained program that offers business capabilities. Microservices can be developed and deployed independently and evolve over time. Each microservice has its own database and communication mechanism with other services in the application. Rolling out changes to individual features instead of rolling out updates across all components simultaneously, helps developers deploy new features with minimal downtime.

In the current Fintech boom, microservices’ importance and subsequent use are evolving. The various payment products and services supported, created, and deployed through the microservices architecture are helping organizations penetrate the layers of the traditional financial landscape. Due to their functionality, developing niche services, such as the payments ecosystem for small vendors, is possible through Lego-like blocks of microservices. These can also serve as individual products when brought together in a specific fashion, but their integrative capacity is unfathomable.

Integrating Security is a No-Bargain

Integral security is more than a buzzword. It’s a top priority for many organizations, and it’s a complex topic that can take years to be understood fully. Security is also critical to DevOps, so you must get it right from the start. When you think about integrating security into your DevOps strategy, don’t worry if it seems intimidating. There are plentiful resources out there that can help guide you through this process.

Gartner has published an entire report on integrating DevOps with security practices. In a previous blog post, we discussed how companies like Netflix have streamlined their pipeline processes by implementing automated testing frameworks.

Start Your Transitional Journey

Even if you have outsourced DevOps, it’s essential to know the basics. You’ll need this knowledge to communicate with your team and help them understand what you need from them.

• You should first understand the tools your DevOps deployment team should use in their day-to-day work
• The specifics don’t matter much; it is more important to know how each tool fits into your overall strategy, including goals like deploying faster, using fewer manual processes and improving quality
• The most crucial factor while adopting DevOps is staying abreast with the latest technologies and having a dynamic approach due to the nascency of this field

DevOps requires a complex skill set and a consistent learning curve. If you are looking to get started with your DevOps journey, talk to the experts who will be happy to address all your concerns and guide you through every step of the process.

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