Cloud Cost Optimization With DevOps

Organizations are harnessing the power of DevOps to accelerate software development and IT operations. It can help to enhance the speed and quality of software releases. With the rapid adoption of cloud-based service and innovation, managing the cost of running a DevOps environment has become a top priority. DevOps cost optimization is a strategy of using DevOps practices to reduce the cost of IT operations by automating tasks, improving efficiency, and eliminating waste.

Research and Markets has projected that global #DevOps market size to reach $24.71 billion in 2027 at a CAGR of 22.9%. AWS, Azure, and GCP are the top cloud providers that offer a range of DevOps tools and services that helps in optimizing cloud cost. For instance, Azure #Kubernetes Service (AKS) is a container orchestration platform that enables multiple applications to run on a single server.

DevOps Strategy for Cost Optimization

Cost optimization with DevOps can help in reducing expenses, enhancing efficiency, and boosting profitability. DevOps environments are complex, and cloud costs can rapidly surge.?

Here are some DevOps best practices for IT cost optimisation:

Infrastructure Automation

Organisations can automate tasks such as provisioning and configuring servers, scaling resources based on demand, and managing software deployments to reduce the need for manual intervention and minimise human errors. It improves operational efficiency and lowers labour costs. It enables organisations for better resource utilisation, reducing unnecessary over-provisioning. Organisations can leverage automated monitoring to identify and respond to performance issues in real-time, preventing costly downtime.?

Implementing CI/CD Pipeline

Organisations can leverage CI/CD pipelines to accelerate the software development lifecycle and deploy applications more frequently. It can help in cost reduction by early detection and resolution of bugs in the development lifecycle. CI/CD pipelines can assist organisations in automating numerous manual tasks within software development and delivery, ultimately cutting costs by allowing IT staff to redirect their efforts towards more strategic initiatives. Automated testing and continuous integration can speed up the integration of new features and resolve bugs in production, resulting in a quicker time to market and enhanced revenue.

Containerisation

Containers package applications that enable consistent deployment of applications on any computing environment, whether on-premises or cloud-based. Containers are lightweight and portable. Organisations can employ it to reduce resource usage, which can reduce cloud expenses, particularly for those managing multiple applications on the same infrastructure. Utilising containers to consolidate multiple applications onto a single server can enhance resource utilisation and reduce infrastructure expenses. Container orchestration tools like Kubernetes can automate the scaling of containers based on demand. It ensures that organisations only pay for resources that they use.

Incorporating Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC)

Infrastructure as Code (IaC) manages and provisions IT infrastructure using code instead of manually configuring each component. Instructions and configurations are written in code. IaC tools like AWS Cloud Formation handle this code to automatically provision and manage cloud infrastructure. It saves time, guarantees consistency, and enables seamless replication and modification of infrastructure setups. Embracing Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) can help businesses streamline IT operations, reuse configurations, scale up or down based on demand, eliminate manual error, and reduce spending on human resources.

Cloud Cost Management Tools

Businesses can leverage cloud cost management tools like CloudZero to monitor and analyse cloud usage, identify areas of cost reduction, optimise storage, and eliminate underutilised assets. Integrating these tools with DevOps workflow can render real-time visibility into spending patterns and provide alerts for budget overruns, allowing teams to make informed decisions during the application development and deployment. For example, Airbnb uses cloud cost management tools to track and analyse its cloud usage. It has helped the company to identify and reduce costs in several areas. Tools like AWS Cost Explorer can identify unusual spending, recognise cost patterns, and help reduce overspending.

Conclusion

DevOps cost optimisation is a critical strategy for businesses to develop and deploy applications. Organisations can leverage automation, containerisation, and cloud cost management tools to streamline software development, reduce unnecessary spending, and allocate resources efficiently. Businesses can save cloud costs without compromising performance or quality.?