DevOps is a culture shift from the traditional methodology in the Software Development Lifecycle. DevOps has transformed the entire Software industry. Its motive is to remove the barrier between the Development and the Operations team. DevOps Engineer is a popular role that many are aspiring for in the DevOps community. Here is the ultimate guide for DevOps in 2021.
What are the tasks of a DevOps Engineer?
A DevOps Engineer’s daily tasks include a wide variety of responsibilities. I have mentioned a list of duties here. It may vary from company to company.
Work with scalable distributed systems and take them from design, build, deploy phase to development and production. They have to manage code repositories, merge, integrate, branch, and maintain them along with remote repository management. The DevOps Engineer has to set up and maintain infrastructure systems. They are responsible for designing Database architecture and objects.
Responsible for CI/CD pipelines. As a DevOps Engineer, you must document all the workflows, systems, and processes involved. Work towards making the workflow efficient by automating redundant tasks by analyzing and continuously building enhancements to the process.
Prerequisites for becoming DevOps Engineer
DevOps is a methodology to bring all systems and processes together to reduce the time to the market. DevOps by removing the siloed nature that existed before in the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) has essentially brought wide-ranging fields together. I will list here major requirements that again vary with the company.
- It’s best if you have a degree (Bachelor’s, Master’s, or even BSc) in Computer Science, IT, Maths, or any related fields.
- It’s preferable to have a minimum of 2 years of experience as a Software Developer with strong concepts in SDLC with SCRUM.
- Proficient in OS. Linux/Unix and in Windows Administration will suffice.
- Solid grip in Programming Languages such as Python, Java, Shell Scripting, Ruby, Go, etc.
- Sound system-level knowledge of Linux, Unix Distros, and Windows Servers.
- Have sufficient experience in Database management.
- You must have experience in working with Source code Version Control Management. Take up a DevOps Certification to learn and master these concepts.
- You must understand the containerization process using Docker and Kubernetes.
- Must be experienced in Jenkins for CI/CD pipelines.
- Get a sound understanding of Data-centre and systems management with monitoring, networking, and security.
- Be proficient in Automation and experienced in Configuration management using Chef, Puppet, or Ansible.
- You should know how to monitor using Configuration Management tools like Nagios.
- Exhaustive knowledge about RESTful API.
- Good level of understanding of Internet protocols, Networking, security measures, and experience with working in AWS, Azure, or GCP for understanding Cloud architecture better.
- Soft skills include good interpersonal skills, communication skills, problem-solving attitude, self-learning motivation, curious mind, etc.
Roadmap to becoming DevOps Engineer
There is no clear Roadmap for becoming a DevOps Engineer, as some start after graduation, and others after years of experience, switch to DevOps. Anyway, here is a Roadmap to becoming a DevOps Engineer.
Get a working knowledge in a Programming Language
A good understanding of Coding certainly helps. These Programming Languages help users to interact and manage resources such as device drivers, I/O devices, Kernel, to write scripts and software. You could learn Java, C, C#, Ruby, Python, JavaScript, Bash Shell, PowerShell, etc.
Learn the various concepts of Operating System
You must be proficient in OS concepts, as the code you write interacts with machine resources, so you must understand the underlying architecture. You must know Kernel, Memory, Device Drivers, Resource, I/O, and Process Managements, Virtualization, threads, concurrency, Containerization process, Distributed File Systems, and its architecture.
Learn how to manage servers
You must be able to manage a group of servers, scale them up/down, without disturbing configuration files.
Sound knowledge in Networking and Security
It’s important to understand Networking and Security concepts. How you will implement security and how you will diagnose issues.
Understand DevOps Lifecycle
It’s best if you understand all processes of DevOps and its lifecycle, Continuous Development, Build, Testing, Integration, Deployment, and Monitoring. You must also gain knowledge about DevOps tools to use for CI/CD pipeline.
Dive into IaC
You must learn Infrastructure as Code as through this, you can define and manage Infrastructure resources like configuration files instead of managing each resource.
Get more knowledge on CI/CD tools.
To get the job done, you must look for the tools to continuously develop, integrate, test, build, and loop in feedback, deliver and deploy.
You must be aware of tools for Monitoring software and infrastructure
It is essential to monitor software and infrastructure continuously after setting up CI/CD pipelines.
Must learn more about Cloud Provider
Cloud adoption is rising exponentially. And DevOps processes leverage the flexibility of Cloud Computing. So get yourself a sound knowledge in top Cloud Vendors like AWS, Azure, or GCP.
What’s next for a DevOps Expert?
Once you go through these tips in the Roadmap, you will get a better idea. But what after you master DevOps concepts. You can transition to various roles like:
- Automation Architect
- Code Release Manager
- Software Developer/Tester
- DevOps Evangelist
- Security Engineer?
