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This article will introduce a specific component of Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery that may relieve you of stress, work, and bug reports. Learn about deployment automation's purpose, methods, expected outputs and outcomes, as well as its risks and drawbacks.
What Does "Automated Deployment" Mean?
Let's get everyone on board by explaining what "automated deployment" entails.
Automation of deployment to production can be achieved using Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment pipelines: pipelines that run based on certain conditions and execute actions at set points in time. From building, testing, and deploying to deployment - everything starts by making a GitHub Release which triggers automated actions designed to get your software deployed wherever required.
Why Does Automated Deployment Matter?
After providing you with an understanding of automation, let's outline its many benefits to development automation. Improving workflows and setting up automated deployments are just two. Here are a few more benefits of development automation for you to consider.
Instant Feedback And High-Release Frequency
Market realities have demonstrated our error; long-term efforts on code may lead to great fruit, but customers quickly tire of waiting and become bored with its features. Stay ahead by regularly introducing new software features while staying secure and bug-free!
Regular software releases will capture users' interest and solicit feedback. They'll show whether users appreciate where you're headed - most importantly, if they are willing to spend money! Just try something and change your mind immediately if it doesn't work out as intended.
An effective deployment pipeline can easily support high release frequency without manual FTP transfers, user downtime, or triggering tests manually.
Focus On Software Development To Increase Productivity
Understand it quickly and save time by automating one step in your software development process. No one can ever achieve total productivity; therefore, to maximize output, you should remove all sources of distraction or impediments to productivity.
Code deployments can be an enormous source of distraction in software projects. Teams must invest a significant effort to resolve all necessary processes and issues before returning their focus to writing code.
An automated deployment pipeline equipped with a practical deployment tool can streamline workflow and processes, helping you be more productive while free from context changes that limit flexibility. Imagine seeing how effective that automated pipeline could be! Oh yes, indeed.
Any Member Of The Team Can Deploy Software
No doubt we all desire experts and expertise, right? Not necessarily - do you really want to live in an environment where experts must solve every problem? Perhaps keeping things straightforward would be more suitable.
Automating code deployments enables you to bypass the need for full-time engineers at every step. Manual deployments often entail multistep processes, with error-prone manual processes relying heavily on one individual's experience and knowledge - creating the possibility for failure at any moment in the deployment process. Automating these deployments saves both money and person-hours spent manually performing them compared to manual.
Automated Deployment: How To Do It
Automating deployment has many distinct advantages that should not be discounted by any team engaged with application development. Therefore, every group involved with app creation should take the initiative in automating deployment.
How should one approach this challenge? Luckily there are universal tips which can easily be incorporated into any situation.
Implement The Complete CI/CD Flow
Unbeknown to many, software deployment isn't the only task which can be automated. Effective Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment solutions ensure each stage of the code journey from developer to end user is automated - this includes testing, building and any necessary housekeeping tasks along the way.
Consider developing Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment Pipelines to automate tedious, error-prone processes. Each pipeline ultimately results in the release to production of its outputs.
Simple Is Best - Start With One Environment
Start small regarding Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment; automating parts of your process could save time and boost performance. Your implementation requires a significant time investment in setting up the tools of choice - Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment tools, designing your process flow diagram, and customizing each of its components so they support automated flow.
The first steps can be complicated, with inevitable mistakes and decisions needing to be altered. One possible approach would be automating deployments on a small scale.
Are your mobile and desktop versions of an application separate, with different environments set aside for testing and staging? Please first set up an automated code deployment on one environment to test its operation; observe how team members use it and make any necessary modifications before rolling this configuration out in production environments.
Use Continuous Delivery To Sign Off Everything
If you prefer taking things slowly and don't trust machines entirely with your software deployment process, we have good news!
CI/CD stands for Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment and is an effective automation technique, ideal for anyone seeking total control with maximum automation levels. Continuous Integration refers to merging code being developed into one central codebase for greater effectiveness of development efforts.
Continuous Delivery, as discussed herein, integrates automated and manual deployment tools in an accessible package for those unfamiliar with them.
Continuous Delivery Model workflow is automated, but there's a catch. After running tests and builds, its pipeline moves on to deployment rather than automatically deploying. Users then have time to review each completed task's log and result.
Your automated deployment tool only deserves your go-ahead once it has successfully carried out its intended function and deployed your code in the environments you select - making this an apt metaphor for release management! With automated release management done "automatically", however, its effects don't become public until approved by you first.
What Could Go Wrong? Automated Deployment: Common Pitfalls
Even brilliant ideas, when misinterpreted or misused, can prove disastrous. Deployment automation is no exception, and here are a few things you should avoid doing if outsourcing some of your most critical tasks to robots who would happily assist.
What Do You Mean By "Set And Forget"? No Way!
Do not set and forget; keep tabs on your automated deployment to identify any changes to the infrastructure that could compromise it, any slowdowns and delays which might be resolved through better configuration choices, as well as any delays to triggers of deployments that might be avoided by altering how the process operates.
Compare Your Strengths With Your Intentions
Beginning automation deployments slowly is essential, but measuring your strengths against your goals is equally crucial. Even taking small steps, not everyone may be ready for automated deployments yet.
Automation may not always be feasible regarding deployment processes; sometimes, manual processes make more sense than automation.
Always make sound decisions. Manual deployment can often prove more reliable. Instead of dealing with an unexpected "auto-deploy" scenario that goes awry, with robots potentially contributing to further confusion by trying to deploy code automatically - they won't even know it happened!
What Is The Best Deployment Method?
Custom Software development strategies vary. This document explores different software deployment techniques available to you and available checks you can utilize to customize this process and tailor it to suit individual requirements.
- Software deployment methods
- Software deployment strategies
The Software Delivery Methods
Package Creation Is The Basis For Deployment Methods:
Software Package Automation:
Templates offer an efficient solution for automating software package production. Templates are predefined apps which can be easily deployed across multiple machines; choose from over 8,000 to build packages quickly and automatically update Windows template versions when new releases become available.
Create A Manual Software Package:
You can create Windows or Mac packages if the required software isn't listed under the Template section, storing these packages in the repository for installation when required on client machines.
Methods Of Deployment Based On Access By Users
Deployment Of The Administrator:
Standardizing deployment allows administrators to distribute software across remote machines using one centralized web console with silent installation enabled for convenience.
Installing Yourself Is Possible
Self-Service Portals allow end users to install software themselves. Administrators can set up such portals so end users can easily access available software from their system tray, eliminating the need to call upon an administrator every time for installs or downloads. Users in a network can then browse this catalog of available programs and install whatever best meets their needs without asking an admin every time; this software deployment method reduces both time and effort while making choosing what software best serves the end users' needs easier for both administrator and end users! Administrators can add or remove software easily via Self Service Portal.
Read More: The Benefits Of Automated Deployment In Software Development Services
The Best Practices For Software Deployment
General Best Practices For Deployment:
- Self-service Portal allows your users to download and install their software.
- Before deploying software, check out the "Templates" section. Create packages using a selection of over 8000 apps.
- Configure an online software repository to reuse packages for installing or uninstalling a program.
- Use the auto-update templates option to keep your applications and software up-to-date.
Pre-Deployment Checklist Before Installation/Uninstallation:
- You can check if the software is already installed.
- Minimum free space on the disk is required.
- Checking Registry Key/ Value
- Name the folder or file.
- Configuring processes, such as running custom scripts or creating or deleting shortcuts.
Post-Deployment Checklist After Installation/Uninstallation:
- Create or delete a shortcut.
- Create or add a path to a file.
- Computers can copy, move, rename and delete folders.
- Custom scripts can be executed.
- Change the registry value in Workstations.
- Windows Service Configuration: Setting up applications as Windows services
Automation Of Ci/Cd, Deployment And Automation
Deployment automation is integral to managing DevOps and an agile CI/CD Pipeline. Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) is a methodology to rapidly deliver applications to customers through ongoing automation and continuous monitoring from Integration, testing and Delivery through to deployment and beyond.
Continuous Integration occurs when developers upload changes (using tools such as Git or Container Registry) into a repository for deployment into production by an operations team live. After merging their changes into an application, developers must verify them by building and testing them automatically.
Continuous deployment (CD) refers to deployment automation to move developer changes out of their repository and into production, where they'll be accessible to customers. Continuous deployment relies heavily on test automation since no manual gate exists in the pipeline.
Automating continuous deployment helps teams avoid becoming overburdened with manual tasks that slow app delivery, while automating the pipeline's next step brings all of its continuous integration benefits.
Automating DevOps Support
DevOps or Site Reliability Engineering (SRE). CI/CD can best be achieved by teams of developers and operators collaborating agilely, using DevOps or ARE strategies to support it.
Agile development methods utilize shorter release cycles and reduced downtime; errors can be rectified immediately rather than waiting for new versions to release before correcting mistakes.
If deployment automation fails to function as expected, chances are it's because different teams are doing things in different ways. Consistency is essential in an automated environment, and you should implement the same deployment procedure across all environments - even your production one!
If these teams fail to cooperate effectively, your operations team could handle deployments manually, resulting in errors, inconsistency and an extended-release cycle. DevOps provides an ideal means of aligning both groups: DevOps should work collaboratively with development teams on automating your deployment process to guarantee consistency of release cycles and ensure timely releases.
Automating the Software Deployment Process
A typical deployment pipeline consists of three key steps: Build, Test and Deploy. These processes work to automate deployment so code gets out as soon as it has been committed to source control.
- Build: The developer uploads the code into a repository. The code changes must be integrated into environments that match the production environment.
- Test: An automation tool for deployment, like Jenkins(r) or Ansible (r), sees the code and triggers several tests. After a build passes all tests, it is ready to be deployed. This step is done manually without a deployment process.
- Deployment: This stage involves the deployment of a production application.
Testing should co-occur with development for agile teams and DevOps; feedback should be collected throughout.
Continuous Integration (CI) is an indispensable aspect of development that ensures updates don't clash between them, with successful CI defined as changes being merged regularly into an application's source code repository, tested, merged back, and then built upon.
Creating environments should be effortless at any point in time; otherwise, you aren't automating your process effectively.
What Is A Deployment Strategy?
DevOps teams employ various strategies and tactics to successfully launch new software versions and transition network traffic from an old version into a new one. A deployment strategy may depend on your business specialization, as it could impact downtime and operating costs.
Different Types Of Deployment Strategies
Now that you know what they are, let's examine the different types of deployment strategies.
Blue/Green Deployment
This strategy involves installing both old and newer software versions simultaneously - often known as red/black strategies; stable applications will typically appear blue or red, while the latest releases will either appear green or black on load balancers after testing and certification are complete. The load balancer then automatically switches traffic onto the latest release after completion of certification processes.
This strategy offers many advantages for updating or rolling out applications quickly but cheaply. Engineers commonly employ this technique when developing mobile apps and their deployment.
Canary Deployment
Canary deployment involves gradually transitioning production traffic from an older version to its newest version. For instance, at one point during deployment, as much as 90% may still be directed toward it. In contrast, 10% goes toward its successor version. DevOps engineers can use canary deployment as a test method on live end-user groups of various levels representing production environments varying over time.
Canary deployment provides better monitoring of performance. This enables quicker and more effective rollback if the new software version proves unsuccessful; however, canary deployment takes much longer for implementation due to its lengthy deployment cycle.
Recreate The Deployment
This deployment strategy involves having the development team completely shut down an application before installing its replacement, deploying, and rebooting the entire system. Your computer may remain offline until both programs back up again after their respective shutdown/upgradation procedures are complete.
Load balancers may not be required as traffic does not shift between versions during live production. Software companies often opt for this cheaper approach when wanting to entirely overhaul an application, particularly those using live production environments, as load balancers won't shift as frequently between versions of their application.
Users often express displeasure at this strategy because of its effect on downtime; users must wait before being able to use an application live; hence few developers opt for this technique unless no viable alternative exists.
The Ramped-Deployment System
Ramped implementation gradually transitions from the old version to the latest version, unlike canary deployments, which make the switch by replacing older app instances with instances from the latest version, also known as the rolling upgrade strategy.
Once developers have deleted all copies of an older version, this newer one takes control of production traffic.
The strategy allows for performance monitoring with zero downtime. Rollback periods remain lengthy in case of unexpected incidents; downgrade processes follow similar paths but co-occur.
Shadow Deployment
Developers use this approach to deploy both old and new versions. However, users won't immediately access them - the shadow version acts like an intermediary that shows how developers will react when requests come their way for requests previously sent only through the old version.
DevOps Engineers should be extra cautious not to duplicate live requests by employing two versions of their system simultaneously.
Engineers can employ shadow deployment to monitor and test system stability. Unfortunately, it can be costly and complex to set up; and cause severe issues.
A/B Testing Deployment
Developers perform A/B tests of both versions. Engineers then choose specific users based on certain conditions or parameters such as user location, device type, UI language requirements or operating system version for testing the newer version of an app.
By applying this approach to measuring application functionality, developers can select and release the most effective version to users after gathering performance statistics.
Real-time statistics provide software developers with tools for making better decisions in real-time. Unfortunately, setting up A/B tests requires complex setup procedures as well as the costlier addition of an intelligent load balancer (i.e. not an inexpensive load balancer).
Improved Deployment Tools
Launching new features using any deployment strategy is no simple task. Yet, DevOps must understand their value to users to succeed. DevOps tools make the deployment of features simpler.
Release management tools allow companies to control and plan releases, from adopting deployment strategies to tracking analytics. When planning deployments another essential tool should be the deployment planning tool; it streamlines deployment procedures while mitigating risks.
Custom software development tools save time as they automate deployment by managing continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD). They can also improve security through role-based access control integration.
Wrapping Up
These strategies can help your DevOps group successfully deploy new versions of software. Each strategy has its benefits and drawbacks, which makes the most sense depending on their goals as a DevOps group and your downtime tolerance, among other constraints. Our release management platform and deployment management tools offer complete assistance in managing software implementation activities - register now to arrange your personalized demo!
Every software company will eventually need to upgrade or modify their software in some capacity, whether this means an entirely new release being issued or simply fixing errors within existing releases.
