Implementing cloud-native DevOps: Best practices and tools

March 24, 2023 bhupendrachoudhary

Cloud-native DevOps is a modern approach to software development aiming to improve speed, efficiency, and collaboration at scale. Implementing cloud-native DevOps, however, requires the right mix of expertise, tools, and practices.

Collaborating with a leading DevOps consulting services partner can help willing organizations successfully transition to a cloud-native DevOps model. Hiring certified DevOps service providers gives organizations access to a holistic range of their strategy, consulting, implementation, and operations support services—all powered intelligent technology, delivery, and business centers.

This article explores the meaning and significance of cloud-native DevOps and how hiring DevOps consulting and managed service providers can catapult businesses to software delivery excellence with the scalability, maintainability, security, and operability benefits the cloud offers.

Cloud-native DevOps explained!

With the widespread adoption of cloud computing, the demand for cloud-native DevOps practices has increased with a snowball effect. At its simplest, DevOps is the practice of deepening collaboration between development and operations teams with a focus on streamlining the software delivery process with agility, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness at the core of it.

Cloud-native DevOps is built on the same proposition: embedding agility, productivity, and augmented collaboration into the heart of software development practices built over the cloud environments, such as Kubernetes and microservices. The goal of cloud-native DevOps is structuring teams to leverage the agility and scalability offered by DevOps and cloud computing to streamline the development, deployment, and management of apps.

While there are advantages to utilizing a cloud-native DevOps approach, the process of implementing this model can be a turbulent ride. The following article unveils the best practices and tools that can prove helpful to organizations looking to embrace cloud-native DevOps and future-proof their software development pipelines.

Best practices for cloud-native DevOps

Infrastructure as code (IaC)

Using Infrastructure as Code (IaC) is critical to the success of cloud-native DevOps. IaC tools like Terraform, Ansible, and CloudFormation are instrumental in automating infrastructure provisioning, configuration, and deployment and enabling incremental software development chains. By leveraging IaC, organizations can define infrastructure in code and apply requisite changes to it using version control systems like Git. Such an approach facilitates software infrastructure management, enabling developers to execute changes, maintain consistency, and track updates over time with increased efficiency.

Continuous integration and continuous development (CI/CD)

At the heart of DevOps are continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines that automate the software delivery process. CI/CD tools, such as Jenkins and TravisCI, create automated channels that contribute to building code, running tests (CI), and deploying a new application version safely (CD). These pipelines eliminate errors, offer consistent feedback loops to developers, and ensure rapid iterations.

Monitoring and observability

Monitoring and scalability are the bedrock of cloud-native environments, enabling developers to detect and resolve issues quickly. Tools like Grafana and Prometheus are of significant use to software development teams that strive to gain visibility into value chains, identify errors, anomalies, and bottlenecks, and fix issues early to boost systems’ performance and logs. To thrive in dynamic, virtualized environments governed by the cloud, the ability to monitor processes, make insightful decisions, and scale systems to meet market demands goes a long way in ensuring the win.

Microservices

Microservices have met resounding success for allowing developers to build and deploy software in smaller, independently deployable components. These have also become a fundamental element of cloud-native computing by simplifying the process of creating flexible, robust, and resilient software in shorter turnaround times, accelerating innovation, and improving user experience.

Best tools for implementing cloud-native DevOps

1.Kubernetes

Kubernetes, as a container orchestration tool, enables developers to manage containers and microservices effortlessly. It automates the deployment, scaling, and management of containerized applications, making it simpler to manage and scale applications at the speed of the market. Kubernetes packs a cool drool of features, including automated roll-outs and roll-backs, self-healing, load balancing, and more. In cloud-native environments, these features play a critical role in deploying applications reliably, with minimum-to-zero downtime and better resource utilization.

2.Docker

As a containerization tool, Docker helps software teams package applications into highly lightweight, portable containers that help professionals run their applications anywhere. Using Docker, developers can kill the complexity of creating and managing containers and boost turnaround times by 2X. Versioning, image sharing, and container isolation are some of the features that Docker offers.

3.Helm

Helm simplified the deployment and management of applications on Kubernetes, adding speed and value to the software development process in an orchestrated manner. With Helm, developers can easily create and deploy applications while leveraging pre-defined templates and values. Besides streamlining the management of software applications and accelerating turnaround times, Helm also makes collaboration easier: a win-win in cloud-native environments.

4.Istio

Istio is a service mesh that uncomplicates the management of microservices in cloud-native environments. With traffic management, load balancing, and security features, Istio helps developers manage microservices at scale and position software development pipelines for maximum efficiency and value. The tool offers a centralized control plane that enables 360-degree visibility for performance monitoring and enhancements.

5.GitLab

Powered by modular features, such as version control, CI/CD, and monitoring, GitLab contributes to managing codebases efficiently and automating workflows, accelerating the pace of software development and delivery. Moreover, GitLab helps create and manage projects, spurs collaboration, and deploys applications to production.

Connect with Kellton: Top DevOps consulting services providers in the industry.

Cloud-native DevOps makes a strong case for enterprise-level adoption. Cloud computing technologies are advancing, and it is only wiser to merge their potential with DevOps (automation, agility, and collaboration) to spark a new era of software development. That said, implementing cloud-native DevOps can be challenging as it involves disruption to the core.

While turning to industry-grade practices and tools will help, organizations must find the right partner to leverage the maximum value out of cloud-native DevOps. Kellton is a leading DevOps services provider company with a proven track record of helping organizations of all sizes embrace DevOps and embed agility and iterative innovation into their business cores. With our DevOps-managed services, our clients have been able to transform and scale continuous delivery for upcoming and ongoing market disruptions. If your business is ready to pivot to continuous delivery, our DevOps consulting services will help.