DevOps is a term that is often misunderstood and misinterpreted.
Before exploring the more nuanced aspects of DevOps, it is essential to clearly understand what DevOps means — and what it does not mean.

What is DevOps (and what it is not)?

DevOps is a set of principles, practices, and values aimed at strengthening synergies between teams, with the common goal of optimizing software delivery.

It is not a state that you achieve once and for all, but rather a continuous journey that requires constant commitment and effort from all stakeholders.

It is also important to note that DevOps is not tied to any specific technology or tools.

Exploring DevOps in a Real-World Context

To better understand DevOps, let’s consider the example of a traditional software development company where the development team and the operations team work in silos. Let’s examine the challenges associated with this scenario, what DevOps means in this context, and how it can help.

What are the challenges associated with the traditional application lifecycle?

The traditional application lifecycle tends to separate software development from the production process—that is, delivery to end users and ensuring its proper functioning.
This siloed approach leads to numerous inefficiencies.

For example, development and operations teams often have different goals:

• The development team focuses on innovation and continuous improvement of the software.
• The operations team aims to maintain stability and security in the environment.

These conflicting objectives cause friction and create a gap between different parts of the IT organization.

Moreover, traditional operational practices often rely on outdated and largely manual methods, making them slow and prone to human error.
This hinders innovation and increases the risks associated with deploying new application versions.

How does DevOps help?

The goal of DevOps is to resolve these inefficiencies.
This is achieved by unifying people, processes, and technologies.

DevOps promotes coordination and collaboration between traditionally siloed roles, covering areas such as:

• Development
• Operations
• Quality engineering
• Security