Understanding DevOps: Everything You Need to Know

Of the many benefits that come from adopting DevOps practices, these are perhaps the most noteworthy:
 

1. Increased speed and velocity

Arguably the most visible benefit to adopting DevOps is that the development cycle speeds up. Because development and operations are no longer siloed, teams don’t waste as much time moving software to deployment since they’re handled by the same group. Continuous delivery also means updates are pushed quickly and regularly, without lengthy delays.

2. Improved reliability

Because operations teams collaborate with developers early in the development process, they can spot and squash more quickly. Again, the principles of continuous integration and continuous delivery mean that teams can discover any lingering issues quickly and roll out new features efficiently. 

3. Enhanced collaboration and culture

One of the goals of DevOps is to reduce the adversarial nature of separate development and operations teams. The sharing of responsibilities helps teams operate as a cohesive unit, improves overall morale and makes for a better working environment. This doesn't just make teams happier, it makes them more efficient.

4. Better security

Security is such a core component of DevOps that an iteration of DevOps has even been suggested, known as DevSecOps, with security embedded with and bridging the development and operations teams. Well-crafted DevOps policies help teams integrate compliance, authentication and configuration management into the production process from the start.

The DevOps lifecycle is commonly described in six to eight phases which feed back upon each other in an endless loop. It works like this.

1. Discover

Similar to the practice of traditional software development, this phase involves coming up with strategic ideas and approaches to the software being developed. In DevOps, however, discovery involves not just software developers but also operations teams. This collaboration can lead to more creative and more innovative products.

2. Plan

Using an iterative approach, DevOps team members break a large project down into smaller pieces. They then use project management software to plan how to undertake development so they can complete the project within budget and on time.

3. Build

The dirty work. Code is written with reliability, security and scalability in mind from the start. Continuous integration means that multiple developers can work on the same project simultaneously, which in turn means the build phase of a DevOps development cycle is usually very short.

4. Test

This is another aspect of continuous integration, with automated testing being performed on code as it is delivered by developers. Because testing takes place during the development cycle, completed applications are usually more reliable than they would be through traditional development.

5. Release and deploy

The flip side of continuous integration is continuous deployment. This process means software is not simply released one time and forgotten about. Rather, DevOps teams can push new features to applications at a steady clip. You can observe this philosophy in the real world by watching how frequently your favorite mobile apps are updated.

6. Operate

In this phase, operations teams get a workout. During the operate step, teams ensure that applications are available and running as expected, leveraging the tools needed to maintain the IT infrastructure that’s powering the application and spotting bugs as they arise.

7. Observe and report

Another core principle of DevOps is continuous feedback. DevOps teams are constantly monitoring the performance of their application, ensuring it’s running according to expectations and with the desired uptime. With each release, DevOps teams collect metrics about how well the application performed. They then use this information to improve the process next time around, which returns the team back to the discover phase to start the cycle again.

As the DevOps lifecycle illustrates, DevOps is fundamentally a cultural shift and not just a set of tools. Here are some of the core values that define a working DevOps culture.
 

Collaboration and shared ownership

With silos dismantled, the old blame game of who is at fault for an issue becomes much less prevalent. Development and operations teams share in both the successes and the failures of everything they release.

Continuous improvement

Rather than separating development and operations into two separate phases, DevOps stresses the importance of continuous improvement, where smaller changes and updates are constantly released.

Embracing feedback

Again, DevOps teams strongly avoid a culture of blame for mistakes. They treat any incidents that arise instead as an opportunity for learning and growth, rather than a cause for punishment for someone who made an error.

Any software team can get started with DevOps with the right buy-in and dedicated planning. Here are some of the best practices that successful DevOps teams follow.

1. Foster a collaborative culture

It starts with culture. Previously separate teams must learn how to work together and how to take accountability for a software project from cradle to grave. In many new DevOps environments, this means physically locating developers and operations teams next to one another.

2. Implement CI/CD pipelines

Continuous integration and continuous delivery are managed via pipelines. These pipelines are automated systems that help teams more quickly build, test and deploy applications. A well-designed CI/CD pipeline will improve delivery speed and product quality.

3. Automate everything possible

Automation is critical to the speed of DevOps. The CI/CD pipeline uses automation to orchestrate the entirety of a software release, including post-release activities. By offloading low-value, manual activities, developers are free to work on the more creative side of development, while operations teams can take a more strategic role in production.

4. Prioritize monitoring and situational awareness

Monitoring isn't just done after an application is released; the entire development lifecycle is monitored so teams can look for areas to improve. Monitoring and situational awareness allow teams to respond quickly if performance begins to degrade, or if customers become dissatisfied with a recent release of the product. DevOps tools often allow for quick rollbacks in the event that an application doesn’t work as expected.

While DevOps is a way of life (and work), it’s supported by tools at every stage of the DevOps lifecycle. These include: 
 

Source code management

Tools like Git, Bitbucket and Azure Repos help DevOps teams enable version control and change tracking over the course of the software development lifecycle.

Build & CI/CD

With tools like Jenkins or CircleCI, DevOps teams are able to put continuous integration practices into place, while a solution like Spinnaker enables continuous delivery/deployment. These tools allow for the seamless integration of code changes as they are delivered by developers and the rapid rollout of new code releases into production.

Containerization and orchestration

Docker and Kubernetes are some of the most popular tools used for packaging and deploying applications along with their dependencies. (These tidy units are known as containers.) Kubernetes is a foundational DevOps tool that automates the way containers are released and how they scale, including load balancing and other complex features.

Configuration management

Ansible, Puppet and Chef are commonly used to manage the way software is configured in various environments, improving consistency and streamlined deployment.

Monitoring and observability

An array of tools including Dynatrace, Prometheus and Loki help teams keep tabs on applications and any errors they are generating after they’ve been deployed in the field.

A scalable, secure and integrated infrastructure is essential for supporting successful AI initiatives at the enterprise level. By combining flexible technology platforms with strong security measures and streamlined workflows, organizations are able to embark on rapid experimentation, streamlined model deployment and effective management of those models, ultimately fostering innovation, enhancing operational efficiency and helping maintain compliance.