When it comes to cost effective software development, writing the software is only half of the battle. Actually getting software into production is a whole other feat of ingenuity. This leads to teams of developers searching for ways to remove potential roadblocks from the process, and among the many different tools in their belt, automated deployments are one of them. So what are automated deployments you ask from the other side of the screen? Automated deployments are a way to bring software into production without any hiccups. The concept seems easy enough, but many firms don’t implement them out of the fear of change. In this blog, we cover a few reasons why automated deployments make sense and provide some sanity to developers everywhere.
Streamlines the Testing and Deployment Process – Traditionally, a software engineer or system administrator has been needed to take a build and install it on a test environment for a quality assurance engineer. With automated deployment, builds can be automatically deployed without the intervention of a technical resource so that a quality assurance engineer can get straight to testing. Likewise, when the build is ready to go into production, the system can automatically deploy the application into production without a software engineer or a system administrator.
Doesn’t Depend on a Developer – One of the challenges plaguing the deployment of software is the fact that the original developer (the one who knows everything about the code) isn’t always available to help deploy the software. This leads to the original developer making a detailed set of instructions for the system administrator to follow out to deployment; one false move or one overlooked step can be disastrous. With automated deployment, the whole process is predefined so the process of deployment doesn’t introduce human error from anyone. If there is an issue with the defined deployment, the integration server will kick out the build so that the quality assurance engineer, or even worse case the end user, doesn’t experience the pain of a poorly designed or executed deployment. No more finger pointing or long nights blaming other team members about development follies!
Developers Can Spend Time Developing – If you were to ask anyone if they would like a tedious and time-consuming task off of their plate, the majority of people would be appreciative. For software developers, manual deployment of software is a prime example. These people have worked hard to become developers, which for the uninitiated, can be a very creative field working on new features and improvements to software. So when they get bogged down in the dirt with a thankless task, they become burnt out, just like anyone else. automated deployment is another way of letting developers get back to what they love: creating software that positively impacts lives.
Automated deployments serve as a life-changing process for software developers. It makes the testing and deployment process smoother, allowing those with limited technological skill the ability to deploy software into production. The original developer doesn’t have to be present in order to deploy the software and they don’t even need to provide detailed instructions to a system administrator on how to deploy it since the integration server will handle everything. Finally, it allows software developers to dive back into what they love doing, which is essential for exciting and innovative advancements. The best part? It helps your product get done faster. And if there’s anything software development partners can do to bring your product to life, they’re going to do it. This also falls in line with a people before projects philosophy to software development.
Originally on SmallFootprint.com.