What Is the DevOps Lifecycle?
The word ‘DevOps’ is made from development and operations. While developing
the software, the development team and operational engineers work together from
beginning to the release of the product. Since these days applications are developed in
an iterative environment, the DevOps team goes through many iterations or cycles - known
as DevOps lifecycle. The goal of the DevOps lifecycle is to make effective and secure
applications.
Stages of DevOps Lifecycle
DevOps’s primary implementation was seen in the development of e-commerce
websites, cloud-native applications, and other large platforms. Its multiple phases work
continuously which we know as DevOps lifecycle. Here is a list of stages that acts as a
cycle:
- Continuous Development: In the first phase of the DevOps
lifecycle, the team prioritizes the application’s objective in accordance with
the client’s requirement. Once the priorities are set, the team involves
project development. It, usually, starts with the code generation and taking it to
the next step. Remember, the same approach is applicable to each objective. Being a
continuous process, the DevOps team also works on the existing code after receiving
the feedback.
- Continuous Integration: This phase acts as a bridge between
development and testing. As the development phase starts, the integration process
starts automatically. The continuous integration process includes planning for the
test in the next stage, checking product outcomes based on initial project
documentation.
- Continuous Testing: The application is put to test in the real
environment. It is not the deployment phase instead it is known as beta testing. The
purpose of beta testing is to find out how the application performs in the real
environment. If it shows the intended or unexpected outcome. Based on the results
observed in this stage, the team decides whether it will be sent for improvement or
not.
- Continuous Monitoring: It’s the operational phase of the
DevOps lifecycle where the data of the application’s usage is recorded and
processed to identifies the trends and problem areas. The purpose of monitoring the
application while keeping it in continuous use is to enhance the operational
efficiency of the application.
- Continuous Feedback: Based on the application’s final
outcome, the performance is improved. Another way of improving the app’s
performance is customer feedback. It’s a continuous process and it plays a
crucial role in enhancing the current product. Plus, it helps teams to release new
and improved versions of the software.
- Continuous Deployment: This phase involves the deployment of the
final code to the production servers. The key challenge of this phase is to maintain
consistency with the precise deployment of the code on all servers. Hence,
Configuration Management comes into the picture that handles code deployment,
updates scheduling, and consistency throughout the production process.
- Continuous Operations: The goal of this phase is to automate the
process of release and subsequent updates. Unlike other phases, this one is the
shortest and easiest phase as development cycles in continuous operations are
shorter that allows developers to accelerate the time to market for the
application.
Benefits of DevOps Lifecycle
-
Better Customer Experience: Customers need quick assistance
from the service provider and the DevOps lifecycle ensures it. Be it providing
timely updates or making changes in the product, each DevOps lifecycle phase
magnifies user experience.
-
Seamless Digital Transformation: DevOps ensures that any
industry can transform itself using technology. Apart from the transformation,
industries can scale with maximum speed and accuracy.
-
Ensures Consistent Communication: The DevOps lifecycle breaks
many barriers that result in confusion and delays. The entire lifecycle is
designed in such a way that it improves the collaboration among the team
members, and all the teams work together to develop a stable product in less
time.
-
Faster Defect Detection: DevOps lifecycle is a continuous
process that helps teams to detect the problems faster. Be it preliminary
testing or customer feedback (suggestions for improvement), chances are that
defects are not only found early but resolved quickly too.
Conclusion
DevOps lifecycle is an innovative way of developing any application. It improves the
application’s performance because it goes through an iterative process that allows
users to share their valuable feedback from the development phase. No doubt it will
replace all the application development processes in the future because it provides
agility, scalability, and affordability.
