A Modern Approach to Software Delivery: DevOps Service

A Modern Approach to Software Delivery: DevOps Service

Software development is all about creating a positive experience for your users. But frustrated developers can lead to buggy code and delayed releases. DevOps fosters a collaborative environment where developers and operations teams work together to deliver high-quality software.

Let's dive into the pitfalls of the traditional siloed approach and learn about DevOps, the ultimate champion for faster releases, higher quality, and happier customers. Discover how Comarch ICT's DevOps services can help your development and operations teams become an unstoppable force.

Software Development Before DevOps

Traditionally, software development followed a sequential approach called the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC). Back then, programmers created source codes, testers tested the software and ensured its quality, and administrators were responsible for maintaining and developing the infrastructure. This sequential model functioned well for projects with well-defined, longer phases.

Unfortunately, during the course of the project, client requirements and market conditions may change, and adapting to changes after project completion can be difficult or impossible. Moreover, limited communication between operational teams often led to inefficiencies, delays, and finger-pointing when problems arose.

SDLC vs. DevOps

The DevOps methodology allows projects to be divided into shorter iterations (stages) for approval or modification. With it, the work is based on feedback from the client and, similar to the Agile approach, aims for the continuous improvement of project execution.

Modern software development outpaces the traditional model of separate development, testing, and operations teams. DevOps bridges these gaps, enabling continuous integration and delivery for real-time responsiveness to client feedback, market changes, and infrastructure cost optimization, says Mariusz Krzyżak, DevOps Director & Cloud Solutions Architect at Comarch.

So, What Exactly is DevOps?

DevOps is a culture, a set of practices, and tools that promote the collaboration and integration between development (Dev), operational teams (Ops), data center engineers, and security departments.

The development department creates applications and verifies their functionality, while the operations team provisions and manages the infrastructure required to run the applications.

This collaboration fosters:

• Standardized Procedures: Consistent approaches across projects for installations and other processes.
• Ongoing Monitoring: Proactive identification and resolution of potential issues.
• Improved IT Environment: Continuous optimization and enhancement of the infrastructure.

The Role of DevOps in the Software Lifecycle:

1. DevOps supports the integration of business objectives with development and operational processes, ensuring a better understanding of client requirements and expectations.
2. By implementing continuous integration and automation, DevOps enables rapid deployment of changes and code testing.
3. DevOps streamlines the testing and deployment process across various environments through automation.
4. Thanks to continuous monitoring of applications and infrastructure, DevOps enables quick identification and resolution of issues.
5. DevOps promotes the continuous improvement of software delivery processes through feedback analysis, automation of administrative tasks, and innovation implementation.

The Role of CI/CD Processes in the Efficiency of the DevOps Team

CI/CD is an integral element of the DevOps methodology. It ensures the reliable, secure, and frequent delivery of verified code changes.

• Continuous Integration involves frequent updates to the code repository, ensuring it always holds the latest version. This process relies heavily on automation for code updates and validation.
• Continuous Delivery allows for rapid iteration cycles, enabling the team to swiftly incorporate client feedback into the software. This focus on frequent, small deployments minimizes risk and helps the DevOps team maintain a high velocity of development.

DevOps Lifecycle

The DevOps lifecycle is an iterative and continuous process typically broken down into 8 phases. These phases encompass activities throughout the software development journey, from planning and coding to testing, deployment, monitoring, and feedback analysis. At each stage, teams collaborate and communicate to ensure high-quality code, efficient deployments, and rapid issue resolution.

The infinity symbol often represents the DevOps lifecycle, emphasizing the iterative and continuous nature of collaboration and optimization throughout the entire software delivery process.

Benefits of DevOps

• Faster Deployments: DevOps practices streamline the development lifecycle, allowing for more frequent and faster releases of software.
• Improved Quality: Automation and continuous testing help identify and fix bugs earlier, leading to higher-quality software.
• Reduced Costs: By minimizing errors and rework, DevOps can significantly reduce development and deployment costs.
• Increased Efficiency: Automation and collaboration tools free up time for developers and operations teams to focus on higher-value activities.
• Enhanced Agility: DevOps enables organizations to adapt to changing market demands and customer needs more quickly.
• Improved Collaboration: DevOps fosters a culture of shared responsibility and communication between development and operations teams.
• Increased Scalability: DevOps practices make it easier to scale applications and infrastructure to meet growing demand.
• Improved Security: Security can be integrated throughout the development lifecycle with DevOps, leading to more secure applications.
• Higher End-User Satisfaction: By delivering higher quality software faster, DevOps can help to improve customer satisfaction.

Comarch DevOps services accelerate product releases and enhance collaboration across teams. By leveraging our years of expertise in maintenance and infrastructure management, we deliver superior efficiency, security, and cost savings for our clients, states Paweł Wojas, Comarch ICT Services Business Unit Director.

Comarch ICT DevOps Services

Comarch ICT delivers DevOps services to streamline your software development process. By incorporating DevOps principles, our specialists can help you achieve faster deployments, fewer errors, and a more efficient development workflow.

Here's what our DevOps services provide:

• Design and ongoing support for CI/CD pipelines that automate software deployment and testing.
• Automate environment configuration using Infrastructure-as-Code tools.
• Implement tools for code quality, security analysis, and Kubernetes management across Comarch Infraspace Cloud, public clouds, and on-premise deployments.
• Implement DevSecOps practices to ensure application security throughout the development lifecycle.
• Optimize database performance and availability for efficient resource utilization.
• Support in implementations for development and operations teams.

Our team has many years of experience in implementing and maintaining successful customer loyalty solutions across this wide range of environments, from Comarch Infraspace Cloud and industry giants like AWS and Azure to on-premise data centers, emphasizes Mariusz Krzyżak.

Collaboration models

• Continuous support - an integrated approach that combines development, operational, and technical support activities continuously, accelerating responses to changing needs and issues throughout the entire software lifecycle (from planning through deployment to maintenance).
• Project-based or implementation collaboration - unlike continuous support, the project model focuses on specific projects with a clearly defined start and end rather than ongoing improvement.

Achieve DevOps Success with Comarch ICT

DevOps has become an essential approach for modern software development, fostering collaboration, streamlining processes, and delivering high-quality software faster. By embracing DevOps principles, organizations can gain a significant competitive advantage.

Why Choose Comarch ICT DevOps Services?

Comarch ICT offers comprehensive DevOps services designed to accelerate your product releases and enhance collaboration across your development and operations teams. With our extensive experience, we deliver:

• Practical experience in designing architectures for various hosting providers (on-premise, Comarch Infraspace Cloud, AWS, Azure, OCI, etc.).
• Experience with implementing and maintaining systems based on Linux/Unix and orchestrators such as Kubernetes or Openshift.
• Qualifications in AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, and beyond.

Ready to discover the full potential of DevOps?

Contact Comarch ICT today to discuss your specific needs and learn how our DevOps services can help you achieve your software development goals.