What is Configuration Drift and How to Solve It

Studying time 6 minutes

Background

Delivering new software program requires contributions from a number of groups delivering modifications throughout a number of purposes. For instance, let’s say you’re an insurance coverage firm and need to add two-factor authentication to your resolution. This implies altering the iOS cell app, Android cell app, web site, APIs, database, logging, monitoring, and extra. These totally different purposes want to come back collectively for built-in testing with different parts to make sure the brand new function is practical from an end-to-end standpoint. Typically groups might be remoted. They perceive their software however can’t converse to the efficiency of the whole resolution. So it’s essential to have check environments prepared with all of the parts for this goal. 

Software program typically progresses by a collection of more and more advanced environments. As an example, the event setting that’s typically on the developer’s laptop computer might merely be exercising APIs reasonably than connecting to the opposite parts. Upon success, the software program is promoted to an integration setting that incorporates most parts however is simplified from a scale standpoint. As soon as the mixing is full, the software program is promoted to extra advanced environments with scale and redundancy for efficiency and penetration testing. The software program is then promoted to a staging setting that replicates manufacturing as carefully as doable. The staging setting can play twin functions of testing new options in addition to being the platform for testing patches for essential defects in manufacturing. Lastly, the software program is promoted to manufacturing.

Drawback – Take a look at Environments are a Bottleneck

Take a look at environments could be a bottleneck for a lot of causes. Is there one out there? Is another person utilizing it? Is it up and working? Does it have the correct parts? Are the purposes and microservices the correct model? Is the check information applicable? Are the infrastructure, working system, and safety profile right? All of those potential issues take time to resolve, sluggish the groups down, and affect the standard of the software program delivered. 

What’s Configuration Drift?

When there’s variation between the model of parts throughout check environments, that is named Configuration Drift. 

This drift might be good when it’s deliberate and visual, exhibiting how options and defect fixes are continuing by the pipelines. This drift might be dangerous when it’s poorly deliberate and never seen to the groups and testing happens on inappropriately configured environments. In the perfect case state of affairs, this testing have to be redone – losing time not solely on the testing assets but additionally impacting the whole group who want the outcomes earlier than shifting on to different duties. Within the worst case, a defect escapes into manufacturing inflicting an incident that impacts clients or the enterprise. 

Most corporations are utilizing handbook, ad-hoc options like spreadsheets, e-mail, or wiki pages for managing their check environments. That is time-consuming in addition to error-prone.

I recall working with a big financial institution the place they’d a strong safety method to manufacturing. There was a vulnerability present in manufacturing and a repair was rapidly examined and deployed. The issue was the safety patch was not back-ported to the underneath environments. All testing for the following launch was achieved on an outdated model of the working system and when the discharge was promoted to manufacturing, essential customer-facing companies wouldn’t come up. They lacked visibility into their setting drift in addition to processes for back-porting.

Resolution – Take a look at Setting Administration for Configuration Visibility

The answer is to have a correct check setting administration resolution that captures the configuration in addition to manages and tracks configuration modifications. Such options should additionally have the ability to deal with bookings, assist resolve conflicts, present visibility into schedules, assist perceive dependencies in addition to present all of the analytics for understanding utilization, uptime, and many others. 

Plutora Take a look at Setting Administration captures and tracks setting configuration in a multi-tier mannequin. This info is greatest captured by way of automation leveraging the Plutora integration layer to keep away from any duplicate information entry. The next are the important thing components of the configuration and the sources:

• Seize an inventory of the purposes/microservices which generally come from a CMDB instrument like ServiceNow or Treatment.
• Seize the occasion of every software. Ideally, this info comes from an integration to the CI/CD pipeline like Jenkins, Azure, and many others. during which each construct and the related scope is captured in addition to every deployment. This information can then be used to “enrich” the CMDB so it correctly displays the underneath environments if desired.
  Facet Observe: I labored with a big utility supplier the place we built-in with Splunk for configuration info. Splunk commonly scans all of the check environments and that info is fed to Plutora such that they’ve good visibility into all of the configurations.
• Prepare the appliance situations into built-in environments. 
• Seize any configuration merchandise that’s wanted for a high quality end result.

All modifications to the check environments needs to be managed with an applicable workflow course of which might be handbook, automated, or a mixture of each. This isn’t meant to be a heavy course of however not meant to be a lightweight course of both. It’s essential to perceive all modifications to the check environments as every one must be thought-about for manufacturing.

Now we now have real-time visibility of each setting together with all their parts and variations.

Profit – Take a look at Setting for Pace, High quality, and Effectivity

There are three most important advantages to correctly managing setting configuration and offering visibility into drift. 

• Pace – The velocity of software program supply will improve when environments are prepared when wanted with the correct parts at their correct variations. The EMA report “The ROI of Plutora Setting Administration” discovered elevated software improvement to be the primary profit within the vary of $454,000 to $3,734,000 over 4 years.
• Effectivity – The groups will probably be extra environment friendly saving time by decreasing troubleshooting, decreasing rework, and with the ability to concentrate on testing. EMA discovered that eliminating the handbook and time-consuming processes can save between $681,000 to $1,048,000 over 4 years.
• High quality – The standard of software program delivered will enhance as there’s clear visibility into the configuration of check environments in addition to manufacturing. EMA discovered that eliminating misconfigurations can save between $190,000 and $2,226,000 over 4 years.

To study extra about tips on how to tackle configuration drift and check setting points:

Wealthy Winslow

Richard is the Director of Resolution Structure at Plutora managing a group of pre-sales professionals liable for the technical win for the Worth Stream Administration resolution focused on the World 2000.