Effective DevOps

Chapter 13. Tools: Misconceptions and Troubleshooting

In this chapter, we will cover misconceptions and troubleshooting that can arise around various scenarios related to selecting and utilizing tools in a more general sense. This does not include troubleshooting of specific tools or technologies, as that would be far beyond the scope of this book, but rather the decision-making processes and various tooling workflow problems.

Tools Misconceptions

Many misconceptions on devops-related tooling comes down to the importance of particular tools to a devops solution.

We Use Technology X, but Everyone Else Is Using Technology Y; We Must Change to Technology Y as Soon as Possible

As mentioned in Part I, devops is a cultural movement. Culture includes the technology stack, and wholesale changes—especially when driven by mandates from management—have a cost that decelerates the organization as a whole. Prior to retiring a particular technology, recognize the tools in the environment that have been part of the existing culture, understand individuals’ experiences with those tools, and observe what is similar and different between others’ experiences. This examination and assessment helps clarify what changes need to be made and whether they need to be made right now.

The one exception to this is upgrades. Upgrades to technology are necessary. The longer you hold off on upgrading, the more debt you incur based on the reliability and testing of compatible upgrade paths. Upgrade too soon, ...