GitOps at its core, is a collection of procedures aimed towards maintaining the application's infrastructure. The infrastructure code is managed using Git, a source code management platform. For the purposes of provisioning infrastructure declaratively, GitOps employs the single source of truth provided by Git to evaluate infrastructure as code and implement DevOps methods.
Weaveworks coined the word "GitOps" in 2017 to describe the process of managing Kubernetes clusters. However, Terraform and other infrastructure management systems are now supported as well.
Simplifying and streamlining the development process is one of GitOps' primary objectives. As a result, infrastructure may be built that is repeatable and has adequate state management, which:
- Boosts the overall level of exposure
- Reduces the application infrastructure's management burden.
Developers or the Operations team can use GitOps to describe their infrastructure as code and keep track of changes to it using Git version control. Changes to the infrastructure are made by running the CI/CD pipeline, which starts when a pull request with the new modification is created.
A further benefit of GitOps is that it allows users to create infrastructure with the same DevOps methods, regardless of the tool, technology, or platform they choose. Read on as we offer you help in understanding GitOps model.
The GitOps Principles
When it comes to the implementation and management of GitOps, there are a few fundamental concepts to keep in mind. What do you think?
1. Declarative Programming Language
Declarative configuration is used throughout the GitOps concept. As the name suggests, this declarative approach is more concerned with the end result (the intended state) than the procedures required to get there.
Instead than focusing on each individual step required to achieve a goal, users can simply state the desired outcome using a declarative approach. It is possible to quickly save these states in Git, allowing for easy deployments and rollbacks.
2. Git Maintains a History of The System's State
The version-controlled system, which serves as the only source of truth for all declarative states, stores them all. All system infrastructure changes are presented in chronological order using this version-controlled method, allowing users to easily identify infrastructure changes over time. In addition, it aids in:
- Troubleshooting
- Auditing
- Rollbacks
3. Approved Changes are Immediately Implemented
Since all the changes are kept in Git, a pull or merge request may be checked and then authorized.
In addition, the system should be able to automatically implement modifications once they have been accepted. In order to attain the desired state as rapidly as possible, GitOps prefers instantaneous automatic deployments.
The Advantages of a Gitops Strategy
An organization's infrastructure provisioning and application deployment processes can be streamlined with the help of GitOps. This results in a wide range of advantages/benefits.
1. The Scalability of the IT Infrastructure
It is possible to manage infrastructure with GitOps, which is part of the larger DevOps services process, by using:
- CI/CD software
- Automated installation
- Less time spent in the loop
When infrastructure is part of the CI/CD pipeline, each application modification that needs a change to the infrastructure may be bundled and handled at the same time. To solve production issues like network connectivity, it is easier for users to see the changes that have been made with deployments.
2. Improved Efficiency
There is less time spent on troubleshooting and correcting problems that can occur during deployments when the infrastructure is source-controlled and validated. Another benefit of using source control is that it allows various teams to operate independently yet simultaneously on different portions of the infrastructure.
Dev and Ops teams will be more productive as a result of this, resulting in speedier development and deployment times.
3. Improved Sturdiness and Dependability
The status of the infrastructure is always preserved when using a version-controlled method. Declarative infrastructure provisioning can significantly reduce application infrastructure error rates when used in conjunction with this technique.
While this isn't the only benefit of version control, it's an important one. As a result of these changes, the application's stability and reliability are enhanced.
Managing configuration drifts is also important. Some manual hotfixes or tiny modifications may be required in a modern program, which might lead to config drifts. Users using GitOps can do the following:
- Recognize such deviations from the defined infrastructure with ease
- Reduce their impact as soon as possible
4. Standardization
Infrastructure deployments benefit from standardization thanks to GitOps. Infrastructure may be verified and validated in much the same way that application code is.
- Workflows from start to finish
- Coding structures that are consistent throughout the board
- Documentation
- Methods of testing
This introduces a common and fully reproducible infrastructure configuration.
5. Increased Protection
Incorporating the GitOps strategy makes it easier for companies to enforce security standards and keep track of all infrastructure modifications and their accompanying states. As a result, adequate audit trails can be established for infrastructure changes, such as the addition of new services.
- Responsibilities of the users
- Deployment date and time
- Resources that are impacted
Integrating the GitOps methodology also makes it easier to manage authentication and authorization for infrastructure changes. Individual developers do not require credentials to access resources because infrastructure is part of the CI/CD pipeline.
This also necessitates that users only provide their credentials once the pipeline has been executed. As a result, the infrastructure is further protected from assault by stricter access controls.
The aforesaid benefits can only be realized if we properly use GitOps as a component of our delivery pipeline. After that, we'll look at a proper GitOps workflow implementation.
Examples of GitOps
An example of a real-world scenario of GitOps deployment is shown below.
Assume there is a sudden increase in traffic to the program, resulting in performance concerns and an unhappy user experience.
The delivery team intends to enhance the web application's resource allotment in order to remedy this problem. Users can define resource increments and push the changes to the Git repository with GitOps, according to the company. Afterwards, additional team members can rapidly verify and approve the changes for production deployment.
The GitOps CI/CD pipeline is activated and the git operator is initialized. An operator compares the current states of both repositories. It will recognize this as a change in state and take action to adjust the infrastructure beneath it to reflect the new state.
There is no need for the delivery team to intervene in the CI/CD pipeline, which will automatically notify them of any issues. If there are no problems with the underlying infrastructure, fresh resource allocations can be implemented to fulfill the needs of the user.
However, what if the deployment fails or a configuration error causes a networking problem?
Using a GitOps strategy, it is possible to go back to a previous state of the infrastructure fast and smoothly. The CI/CD pipeline may then be used to automatically deploy infrastructure modifications that address all of these issues.
In order to restore a previous configuration state without GitOps, a complex operation that becomes almost impossible if the changes are not well documented becomes virtually impossible.
The Takeaway: Automated Pipelines are the Future of Business
To simplify and automate infrastructure management, GitOps takes all of the time-consuming manual processes and turns them into a streamlined pipeline. While boosting the system's visibility, dependability, and stability, this declarative version-controlled approach makes infrastructure management tedious and overwhelming.