DevOps is demanding. A great deal of information has to be marshaled and analyzed, in a thorough and timely manner. Because of this requirement, any assistance is to be welcomed. One of the major helps that can be brought to bear on the operation is Application Release Orchestration (ARO).
We’ll go through what the benefits of ARO are in the field of DevOps, and see why it’s so valuable. But first, a definition.
What is Application Release Orchestration?
Also known as Software Product Release Orchestration, ARO is a way of coordinating the releases of improved versions of an application. There. Easy.
OK, there might be a bit more to it than that.
Think of ARO as a way of conducting release management. Metaphor fans may wish to see one aspect of it as giving the release pipeline glass walls so that all involved can see exactly what’s coming and what effect it will have. This extends to all involved in the software development concerned, as well as, to an extent, the end users.
But that’s only one part of what ARO does. The most important facet of its activity is its automation. And one thing’s for sure: whatever your professional activity, from onboarding to .qa domain registration, if intelligent automation can be applied, so much the better.
Every element of the application release process is automated, so that co-ordination is achieved across all related parties. There are no piecemeal manual installations or hastily rigged solutions. Everything is scheduled automatically and in advance, which is more effective to ensure adequate preparation across the board.
There will be parts of the process that require approval from certain individuals in key roles before they will execute. This is to ensure that what seemed like a good idea at the planning stage is still a good idea at deployment. The number of such checkpoints, though, is kept relatively low to allow as smooth a process as possible.
What does Application Release Orchestration Deliver to DevOps?
A release from boredom
Like all the best forms of automation, ARO emancipates staff from having to complete endlessly dull manual tasks. The benefits this delivers in terms of job satisfaction and mental well-being are huge. Staff can be redeployed in more creative and rewarding roles, perhaps elsewhere in DevOps, so it’s a win-win.
More harmonious teams
If every stage of application deployment is conducted manually, there’s a high potentiality for cross-team and in-team friction, as differing perspectives and priorities jockey for position. Automating the entire process will make it a done deal, which will encourage colleagues to get on board and work together.
Otherwise, if they don’t like it, other positions in other organizations are available. Sounds brutal, but sometimes one has to adopt a clear-eyed perspective in order to see good workplace relations triumph.
Adequate data
As mentioned, DevOps needs a lot of factors going well in order to succeed, not least information flow, perhaps via a data modeling tool to help with visualization.
The main aim of DevOps is the proficient delivery of improvements to systems. In order to do this, information regarding the performance of existing systems and the evolution of user needs has to be continually funneled through to the DevOps team.
ARO goes one better than this by ensuring that data is made available to the DevOps team and that this delivery is automated. Therefore, it’s not reliant on a team member’s memory or mindset.
Better service
In the SaaS sphere, one of the advantages is the seamless service delivered to the user, or so the prospective SaaS customer is told, in this brave new virtual world. There will be no more roadblocks thrown up by the arrival of a technician with disruption on their minds. We’ve said goodbye to all that.
Nowadays, so the theory goes, enhancements and repairs will be delivered with no break to service. However, with the best will in the world, a series of manual deployments of new software versions can result in stoppages as different parts of the organization using different versions struggle to work together.
ARO avoids this by building an appreciation of what parts of the organization need to work together and making sure that they have compatibility throughout the deployment process and that no crucial steps are missed.
For instance, if a new 10DLC messaging campaign is to be deployed, ARO will make sure that business processes include an application to the campaign registry hub.
ARO also works by supplying improvements little and often, using deployment automation processes known as Continuous Integration (CI) and Continuous Delivery (CD). The software delivery pipeline issues an open-ended course of small doses rather than a series of huge jolts to deliver what amounts to a smooth enhancement across the board.
Fewer bugs
Code writers don’t like to be told this, but a lot of system bugs can be traced to sloppy code. We all get over-casual sometimes, especially when we think we’ve got the job nailed. Thoughts stray to what’s on the menu for lunch and before you know it, some pathogenic code has snuck through, only to have a possibly calamitous impact way down the line.
When ARO is used, it’s important that everybody employs the same attention to detail and approach to writing, or the deployment pipeline won’t work as intended. In other words, sloppy coding becomes more readily visible with ARO. Everyone has to get on board with it, which means that fewer coding slips will eventuate.
It may cause a little disharmony and resentment at first, but, with sufficient attention paid to explaining why there are now compliance requirements, everyone should fall in line.
On top of this, Application Release Orchestration can feature testing routines that sniff out the bugs before deployment, one of the key challenges in mobile testing just as with standard testing.
Again, this can all be conducted automatically, so application enhancements will arrive on the scene tested and good to go. Time to market will be cut as error-checking can be completed overnight, and not when an employee finds time for it.
ARO is the Way Forward
Application Release Orchestration is an invaluable assistant in a multitude of ways.
The health and even continued existence of a business are dependent on the timely delivery of application developments that work. All relevant parts of the organization need to have the improvements delivered at the same time or dysfunctionality can result. There also has to be good feedback of data to the DevOps team on the success of deployments.
Application Release Orchestration can give all these benefits. No wonder it’s so important in the demanding arena of DevOps.
##
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Adam Stead – Content Marketing, Global App Testing
Adam Stead is a Content Marketer at Global App Testing, mobile app deployment and best-in-class software testing company that has helped top apps including Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Craigslist deliver high-quality software in markets across the world. Adam has 10 years of experience in editing, content creation and digital marketing within the tech section, with a wealth of Social Media Marketing, Content Creation, Project Management, Podcasting and Graphic Design skills. You can find him on LinkedIn.
