Waterfall, Agile, vs DevOps – Software Methodologies

The IT industry is constantly evolving. It has seen continuous innovation in technologies and methods over the past decade. It is constantly updated to incorporate new solutions and meet market needs.

The industry started with the waterfall approach and has since shifted to agile methodologies and focuses heavily on DevOps principles. Ever wonder why companies such as Amazon, Netflix and NASA have adopted DevOps practices? What is the origin of DevOps? Why was DevOps developed? In this quick comparison of methods, let’s attempt to answer all these questions.

What is the Waterfall Model?

This is a unique software development method that follows the linear process of software development. The Agile relies heavily on customer, tester, and developer involvement at every stage of the project, including reviews.

These are the steps to implement agile:

• Scrum is a team-driven development environment for 7-9 people. Scrum usually includes a scrum master and product owner.
• Crystal methods This methodology emphasizes interaction between people rather than tools.
• Dynamic Software Development Method – Also called the “rapid Action Development Model”, where members of the team are empowered with decision-making abilities.
• FDD This methodology focuses on completing small features within a given time.

Advantages of Agile

• The client is welcome to participate in any stage of the development process.
• The customer can feel ownership by working actively with the team during the entire project.
• The Agile method can be used to create a basic version of an application that can be iterated on repeatedly until it is complete.

What is DevOps?

DevOps refers to an engineering culture that integrates development and operations for better development. DevOps is not a standard or framework, but rather an organizational collaboration. Continuous integration and deployment is possible by focusing on the different stages of the DevOps cycle. They focus on monitoring, operating and implementing continuously and then responding to user feedback.

The lifecycle of DevOps consists 8 processes, which include:

1. Planning: Plan, track, visualize, summarize, and plan before you start working on a project.

2. Coding: To write their code, developers use version control platforms such as Github, Github and Gitlab.

3. Building: Developers use tools such as Kubernetes and Maven to create pre-release versions that are recognized by a build number instead of a release number.

4. Testing: To find and fix bugs, the QA team tests new code.

5. Release: This step allows the build process to be planned, controlled, and scheduled in a new setting.

6. Deployment: The deployment process is ongoing during this stage. This is done so that any changes made to the code at any stage shouldn’t have any impact on how busy websites operate.

7. Operate: After the product has been installed, the application or product is given to the customer so that he can use it every day.

8. Monitor: The operation team will monitor production for any abnormal system behavior or problems.

DevOps’ Advantages

• Speedier Delivery DevOps principles have a reputation for being faster to iterate and using standard processes that are easily available on the market
• DevOps is replacing the old linear process where one team would complete all responsibilities for a project and then hand it over to another team to continue work on it.
• Software quality DevOps makes it easier to find and fix bugs, which leads to higher software stability. This allows you to focus on quality and innovation.

The Key Differences between the Three Models

The waterfall method is best for software development projects that are well-defined, predictable, and unlikely undergo significant change. This category includes smaller and simpler projects. Waterfall projects do not include feedback throughout the development process, are rigid in their process definitions, and have little to no output variability.

Agile development is based on incremental, iterative design that quickly produces a marketable product. Each piece of the product is then broken down and tested. It is not necessary to have a detailed definition of the product before agile initiatives can begin. To guide their progress, they rely on continuous feedback.

DevOps, which stands for DevOps, is about combining teams and automation in Agile development. Agile development can be used in both traditional and DevOps environments. DevOps is not like a traditional dev-QA/ops organization. Developers don’t throw code at the wall. DevOps teams are responsible for overseeing the whole process.

Last Thoughts

Software development can take many forms. Each company is unique, so the choice of methodology will depend on their projects, audience, and other factors. This blog will briefly outline the main types of software methodologies.