The DevOps methodology is experiencing an unprecedented surge in popularity. In 2021, the global DevOps market is estimated to be approximately $7 million, and is expected to grow to approximately $37 million by 2030.
While DevOps promises increased efficiency and convenience, it is also seen introducing new challenges and risks. If your company is part of the rising wave adopting a collaborative approach to streamline software delivery, then this article is for you.
Today, we’ll introduce you to the most significant obstacles DevOps teams have encountered this year and will continue to struggle with for at least a few more months, according to Dreamix’s survey Among Experienced DevOps Experts. In addition to these, you’ll read strategies for overcoming these obstacles and tips for maintaining a high-productivity work environment.
Moving away from legacy systems
In the era of escalating digital transformation demands, numerous companies find themselves still reliant on outdated legacy systems. These aging technologies often present significant hurdles when it comes to maintenance, updates, and their inherent limitations compared to more contemporary alternatives. Even if your existing infrastructure has faithfully served your needs for years, it might now be constraining your progress.
At the heart of a successful DevOps implementation lies an efficient CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Development) pipeline. This automated sequence of steps streamlines the software development process by continuously building, testing, and deploying code changes with every commit. A robust CI/CD pipeline ensures swift integration and testing of code alterations, consequently accelerating the overall software development lifecycle.
However, these benefits remain out of reach for older systems that struggle to align with modern tools and processes. For instance, legacy systems might lack the requisite APIs or integration hooks to seamlessly function with contemporary CI/CD tools.
One viable solution worth considering is IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service), a cloud-computing model that furnishes virtualized computing resources. This approach offers a cost-effective means to modernize your infrastructure, liberating you from the constraints of outdated models and propelling your operations into the realm of 2023.
Notably, IaaS harmonizes well with microservices, especially within the DevOps framework. The capacity to independently develop, deploy, and manage microservices leads to expedited development cycles and enhanced scalability. Coupled with the streamlined resource management facilitated by cloud-based infrastructure, this creates a potent DevOps platform capable of promptly adapting to evolving market conditions and customer demands.
Automating complex release processes
As technology evolves, software development, deployment, and maintenance become increasingly intricate. With the continual addition of features and dependencies, DevOps teams face the challenge of accelerating software releases while upholding stability and scalability.
The adoption of specialized software to automate repetitive tasks in the development lifecycle simplifies complexity and enhances release reliability. Automating the development-operation relationship to the fullest extent possible optimizes the production process, reduces redundancy, and fosters improved team collaboration, thereby mitigating the risk of errors.
In the realm of DevOps automation tools, Docker and Kubernetes stand out as popular choices. Docker serves as a containerization platform for building and distributing software containers across various environments, while Kubernetes excels at automating their management on a large scale. Together, they form a potent duo that expedites software delivery.
DevSecOps – the future of DevOps
The evolving landscape of DevOps prioritizes shorter development cycles, and deferring security to a later stage can result in significant delays. According to a 2021 study conducted by Security Compass, 73% of respondents reported that manual security procedures were causing slowdowns in code releases.
Consequently, the concept of DevSecOps (Development, Security, and Operations) has gained traction. This approach is becoming increasingly popular in conjunction with DevOps, as organizations acknowledge the critical importance of integrating security throughout every phase of the development process. By incorporating security considerations throughout the entire development cycle, issues can be identified and rectified at an early stage, ultimately optimizing software delivery.
To implement DevSecOps practices effectively, it’s crucial to involve a security team early in the development process, ensuring their ongoing participation at each stage. Automating security tests within your CI/CD pipeline, triggered at the appropriate development phases, is essential. Additionally, continuous monitoring and evaluation of these tests are vital to ensure that your systems remain as secure as possible.
Maintaining high availability and scalability
As you embrace DevOps, the need for maintaining scalability takes on heightened significance. The proliferation of services and dependencies, coupled with the inevitable surges in demand, can complicate the timely detection of issues.
Addressing these challenges involves the implementation of monitoring and logging tools to closely track your systems and services. When seamlessly integrated into your CI/CD pipeline, these tools offer early alerts to potential issues, enabling proactive resolution. If your system grapples with meeting high demand, solutions like auto-scaling and load balancing, such as Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling, can improve system responsiveness.
Additionally, it’s imperative to employ load testing to assess your system’s performance under real-world conditions. Tools like Apache JMeter and Gatling can replicate high-traffic scenarios, gauging response times and resource utilization. This method is highly recommended for identifying and rectifying bottlenecks before they disrupt your operations.
