The term cloud native already shows a willingness to give up adaptations. Can you imagine the agility, productivity, and competitiveness gained in adopting a model that suggests it was born for the cloud environment?
You don’t even have to try! We detailed gains and revealed practices for you to understand the model and know how to use it to the fullest potential it offers. So as not to be contradictory, let’s not waste time; let’s get to the development of the idea. Follow the thread!
What Is Cloud-Native?
Cloud-native is a dynamic development model optimized for cloud computing and centered on experimentation — with no possibility of negotiating that focus.
These architectures are focused on task automation and microservices with dynamic management models. Contrary to appearances, this structure does not need to operate in the cloud. The same practices can be adopted in an on-premises data center with great results.
What Are The Main Features Of Cloud-Native?
Instead of detailing the concept, it is easier to understand cloud-native from its characteristics. Let’s go.
Microservices
Services that can run independently from applications can run without interruption while developers program microservices.
Containers
These services are contained in “compartments,” making accessing them easy. It is also easier to scale, delete, create, or migrate them to other environments.
Continuous Delivery
Application creation is streamlined with continuous deliveries of these services. The development time and cost are also lower, in the same way that scalability can be done according to the size of the project and the adoption of automation.
DevOps
Can you identify how much cloud native is aligned with DevOps? It helps maximize collaboration between developers and IT staff, speeding up software testing and release. Cloud-native works in a more organic way. This is a model closer to biology than physics, like Bio-IoT.
How To Use Cloud-Native In Your Business?
The practices we suggest to do cloud-native work are also great clues to understanding how it operates. So let’s talk about them soon.
Make A Transition Plan
Chances are good that something will go wrong when migrating to cloud-native without planning, so it pays to start with a plan. New technologies are exciting, but it’s good to put the brakes on if the temptation to skip steps is too much. A good list of objectives for your plan is as follows:
- create a purpose capable of aligning the team;
- involve leaders, partners, and customers ;
- assemble a team prepared to carry out the project;
- define the development phases, sprints, and actions;
- clearly define expectations ;
- collect feedback frequently;
- work on the organizational culture ;
- experience continuously.
Adopt DevOps
The results of the DevOps model are familiar. The constant exchange of feedback with IT teams, periodic deliveries, and recurring improvements help to overcome organizational silos to deliver superior value.
Invest In Service Architecture
This topic may seem like just a technical pointer, but it also involves the culture of developers. Even if they understand that cloud-native is based on services, the tendency to develop coupled systems must be considered.
Otherwise, you risk seeing a not-so-cloud native model that doesn’t allow independent access to the application’s functions.
Decompose The Data
Streamlining the application’s operation by decomposing the system into microservices will only do a little good if they all need to access the same database.
This condition will create limitations and hinder smooth functioning in the cloud. Separating data will increase storage and processing capacity in any cloud instance.
Why Is Cloud Native Important?
Cloud computing efficiently deals with changes, offering elasticity to add or remove resources autonomously and allocating resources on demand. This is all the result of a different work dynamic, which is more flexible and less bureaucratic.
As the application needs to change during use, the system automatically resizes resources. These flexibility features make cloud-native naturally adaptable to needs as they arise.
The installation environment of applications that operate in cloud-native can also rely on the automatic provisioning of resources. In addition, they must be controlled, as they store relevant hardware and software performance information.
I suggest defining monitoring metrics for the services. They will make it possible to monitor the use of resources, which facilitates the execution of analyses to optimize them to the maximum and continuously. Not to mention the ability to anticipate problems and make strategically important decisions.
What Are The Benefits Of Using Cloud-Native?
We have already directly and indirectly mentioned several gains without making too much noise about them. So, instead of detailing each, a list of gains is more interesting. Thus, it is possible to have a synthetic view of the viability of cloud-native. Look:
- high level of cooperation between those involved;
- the greater commitment of the team in the responsibility for deliveries;
- detailed monitoring of systems and hardware performance;
- continuous improvement ;
- stimulus to innovation ;
- increasing automation of repetitive and manual tasks;
- multidisciplinary performance ;
- greater autonomy, dynamism, and flexibility ;
- simplification and less bureaucracy of the adopted models;
- versatility in creating innovative business models, favoring the adoption of XaaS ;
- increased productivity ;
- possibility of simulating scenarios ;
- validation of small-scale solutions as a way of minimizing and controlling risks;
- reliable deliveries and improved user perception of service quality.
Although we talk about several important details, we can only finish by mentioning more clearly the effect of models like this on the customer’s perception.
Also Read: Discover 6 Benefits Of Adopting An ERP In The Cloud!
