A brief introduction to DevOps
Published on: 8/27/2024
The process
Building a large-scale application — especially one that brings together several minds at each stage — demands powerful tools to coordinate efforts and ensure quality output at every iteration. Think of it like a car factory: from importing materials, welding the metal frames, installing electronics, to final testing and shipping, each step needs precision and structure. In software, this structured approach is what we call DevOps (short for Developer Operations) — a set of practices and tools that bring development and operations together to produce reliable, secure, and scalable code.
Git is essential
A core tool in this process is Git — a version control system that allows developers to track and manage changes across files and directories. It lets you create separate versions (branches) of the code where you can work freely, make changes, and later propose merging them into the main version. Git gives teams a safety net, allowing experimentation and iteration without jeopardizing the working product. If you’re new to Git, you’ll find a more detailed introduction in the some other post on this blog.
The remote
The remote — also referred to as the codebase — is where the project lives. Usually hosted in the cloud (i.e., on a server somewhere far away), the remote includes Git project tools and adds features like protected branches, access control, and policies for merging changes. It often supports automatic actions such as pipelines that run tests or deployments when new code is pushed. The most well-known remotes are GitHub and Bitbucket, though cloud giants like AWS and Azure now offer their own repository solutions. A solid and secure remote is key to keeping all minds in sync and delivering consistent progress.
The order
Everything starts with a request — a feature or fix from the client — passed on to the team lead, who breaks it down into tickets and assigns them to developers. From there, the developer creates a new branch from the latest code — what we call “branching out from main” — and dives into the requirements. After implementing the changes, the developer commits the work and pushes it to the remote, making it visible to the rest of the team. But things don’t just land on the main branch. Most remotes have strict policies in place: merge requests, pull requests, and user permissions help ensure only reviewed, tested, and approved code gets through. Once a change is merged into the main branch, it can automatically trigger a chain of actions — running tests, checking code quality, or even deploying the build to a staging or testing environment. When dealing with sensitive products, clients often have their own testing setups for additional validation.
The result
Delivering great software rarely happens in big jumps. It’s about shipping small features, solving specific bugs, and doing so in small, repeatable iterations. This rhythm ensures that changes are quick to test, easy to reverse, and safe to roll out. Ultimately, this makes the development process more secure, and helps guarantee the stability, safety, and performance of the final product — especially when many people are involved and the stakes are high.