How to Extend your DevOps Strategy For Success in the Cloud?

DevOps and Cloud computing are joined at the hip, now that fact is well appreciated by the organizations that engaged in SaaS cloud and developed applications in the Cloud. During the COVID crisis period, most of the organizations have started using cloud computing services and implementing a cloud-first strategy to establish their remote operations. Similarly, the extended DevOps strategy will make the development process more agile with automated test cases.

According to the survey in EMEA, IT decision-makers have observed a 129%* improvement in the overall software development process when performing DevOps on the Cloud. This success result was just 81% when practicing only DevOps and 67%* when leveraging Cloud without DevOps. Not only that, but the practice has also made the software predictability better, improve the customer experience as well as speed up software delivery 2.6* times faster.

If you consider implementing DevOps in concert with the Cloud, then the
below core principle will guide you to utilize the strategy.

Companies are now re-inventing themselves to become better at sensing the next big thing their customers need and finding ways with the Cloud based DevOps to get ahead of the competition.

This first logical step is as essential as the pre-planning phase of software application development. Always keep in mind that you are not solving the problem of a single application but adopting a core-cloud architecture that will accommodate all future applications from the build, test to deploy using your DevOps automation solutions. 

Here you need to understand the solution pattern of applications you want to build. For example, it can be data-intensive, processor-intensive, or the mix of both. You need to find out specific hardware or software requirements like HPC or IPC middleware. Finally, you will consider security, performance, ministering, and governance all the core details for requirements shipping.

DevOps process varies in an organization to organization, but you need to select a process that wants to employ and estimate the result at the same time. We must understand what is changed as DevOps with Cloud become the primary way of development.

Software build, shipped with features of deployment

Select proper tools and assure that tools should support network and IT resources is another vital requirement for the business. The tools must work with both public and private cloud servers so that enterprises can deploy to a hybrid cloud. Finally, businesses need to link the application and DevOps tools with proper security, high governance and implement monitoring features of the target cloud platform to manage the complex distribution system.

DevOps is more about people rather than tools and technology. Hence first, create a plan that reveals the gaps between existing skills right now in-house and skills that are required to implement the process successfully. Moreover, if the enterprise starts moving to DevOps and hybrid Clouds, it needs more planning to hire the right people to augment staff as well as train them in the right way.

The business needs to realize that organize DevOps in the Cloud means removing layers of organizations and simplify the roles. Next time you no longer separate the development and operations skills as they are tightly coupled and need to be good peers.

It is the most difficult part where you are implementing a DevOps strategy for your targeted cloud platform. Generally, organizations prefer to do this process in stages, working in the Dev tools, then Ops tools, and finally, cloud platform integration. Both technologies are new concepts so that businesses will have to allow time for solving problems and monitor progress.

The connected features of cloud computing enable a standardized and centralized platform for DevOps automation. The ability to create automated test scripts that have coupled to applications, providing test data for application testing and test services that are surrounded application core of this automation testing.

Most of the cloud service providers support DevOps objectives like continuous integration, delivery, and ensuring governance and control. It makes the overall process cost-effective than on-premises DevOps automation.

The process of end to end automation is a prerequisite to derive the full advantage from the Cloud. Here DevOps can utilize orchestration systems to monitor the application workloads and cloud datasets proactively. It ensures greater security and lesser system vulnerabilities as well.

Check out the best way of practicing cloud-based computing.

Infrastructure as Code (IAC): It enables the DevOps team for installation of application code and test application in the production environment early in the dev cycle.

Automated Application Deployments: The DevOps routine testing helps in a fully automated application deployment pipeline and detect any vulnerabilities as well. It improves governance and monitoring of teams working on cloud infrastructure.

Application Lifecycle Management: It helps cloud application manager indirect deployment and automates the frequency of deployment as it is a prime aspect for DevOps ALM.

Continuous Quality Assurance (QA) and Testing: DevOps capabilities, helps organizations to address the challenges of QA and test in the selected cloud platform by provisioning multiple test environment and using cloud-based resources that resulted in quality and productivity enhancement.

Fostering communication and collaboration on project risks and risk-mitigating strategies using online communities is another vital part of the application life cycle.

Most importantly, this bulletproof combination furnishes business with higher agility, makes IT infrastructure more flexible through streamlining and embedding DevOps adoption strategy in application-specific cloud infrastructure. Using the DevOps tools and cloud infrastructure business can eliminate human errors and establish repeatability through streamlined processes and automation in building and managing code.

The new mantra in the current environment is being built to succeed means being built to change. Container-based architecture and Innovations supporting microservices are now pushing business towards modernization, with advanced technologies such as machine learning and advanced analytics. Today, traditional software development proves obsolete without the Cloud, DevOps, or the combined efforts of both. The ideal strategy of Cloud and DevOps are fueling the modern software factory revolution.

* Adcock. M, How cloud and DevOps combine for software delivery success Retrieved from: CloudcomputingNews.net