Before the advent of DevOps, software development processes typically followed a waterfall or sequential approach, where each phase of the development lifecycle was performed sequentially and independently. Here is a high-level overview of the traditional software development process:
1. Requirements Gathering: The business requirements and specifications for the software are gathered from stakeholders, often through documentation and meetings.
2. Design: The software architecture and design are planned and documented based on the gathered requirements. This phase includes creating high-level and detailed design specifications.
3. Development: The actual coding and implementation of the software are carried out by developers. Each developer typically works on their assigned module or component.
4. Testing: The developed software is tested to identify and fix any defects or issues. Testing may include unit testing, integration testing, system testing, and user acceptance testing.
5. Deployment: Once the software is deemed ready for deployment, it is handed over to the operations team for deployment on the production environment. This phase often involves manual steps and coordination between development and operations teams.
6. Operations and Maintenance: The software is monitored and maintained in the production environment. Any issues or bugs that arise are reported, investigated, and resolved through patches or updates.
In this traditional model, development and operations teams often worked independently, leading to challenges such as longer release cycles, increased risk of errors during handover, slower response to changes, and limited collaboration and communication between teams.
DevOps emerged to address these challenges by promoting a more collaborative, iterative, and automated approach to software development and operations. By integrating development and operations functions, adopting automation, implementing continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD), and fostering a culture of collaboration and shared responsibility, DevOps aims to streamline and improve the software development process.
