HomeDevelopmentGitLab believes the platform approach is key to DevSecOps success

GitLab believes the platform approach is key to DevSecOps success

In recent times, DevSecOps has been moving away from the multi-tool setup. While each tool had its strengths, it also meant each team had its tools for different stages of the software development lifecycle. This ultimately created siloes in the process, causing development inefficiencies and increasing the cost of the toolchain. IT managers had to rely on digital transformation to solve fundamental problems such as developer onboarding, slow-performing teams, and security discrepancies without a unified solution. 

This is where GitLab comes into play. The CI/CD software company understands the challenges and offers a single platform to help DevOps teams perform everyday tasks without security gaps. 

Challenges in DevOps 

One of the biggest struggles for DevOps professionals is the need to use multiple tools. According to the GitLab 2022 Global DevSecOps Survey, 44% of DevOps teams use nearly five tools to manage everything from code review to deployment automation. The growing number of tools inadvertently becomes counterproductive, thus affecting software production, thereby undermining the company’s ability to stay relevant in the competition. 

Some typical development lifecycle challenges almost every organization faces, irrespective of size, are listed below.

  • Complex or multiple tools to handle various DevOps processes
  • Inefficient development environments due to the presence of multiple tools 
  • Lack of security skills to mitigate threats from these homegrown or open-source tools 
  • Rushed development cycles as developers have limited time to test and debug codes
  • No single source of truth or single code repository due to the presence of multiple vendors or tools 
  • Poor software testing practices as there is no standard integration option available 

Automation and DevOps

Automation has been one of the biggest reasons for the growth of technology across industries and usage. In DevOps, automation has proven valuable as it has become an integral component in the software lifecycle. From reducing cost and time spent on repetitive tasks, automation also helps eliminate human errors while streamlining the DevOps process. Broadly, DevSecOps uses automation in six crucial areas – security, compliance, configuration, continuous integration (CI), and continuous delivery (CD). 

According to the GitLab 2022 Global DevSecOps Survey, 47% of DevSecOps professionals report their testing is fully automated today. This is a 22% jump from the previous year. The reason why security professionals choose automation is simple – each task is performed identically, thus increasing the reliability, consistency, and accuracy of security testing. 

DevSecOps must consider the most considerable advantages automation offers – complete visibility, better team collaboration, and the ability to automate various aspects of the process, from security alerts to monitoring.

Single, end-to-end DevSecOps platform from GitLabs 

With the growing number of tools used, most teams spend time on toolchain maintenance and face difficulty monitoring these tools. These tools also add to an increased cost, slow development, and a frustrated workforce who need help handling these tools on top of the actual work. 

Understanding the drawbacks of a multi-tool setup, GitLab offers a single, end-to-end DevSecOps platform that helps companies reduce the time and effort put into tool integration while allowing organizations to create and release software faster without compromising on security and compliance. GitLabs aims to shorten cycle times and increase workforce productivity with velocity, trust, and visibility.

The most significant advantage of switching to GitLab’s one platform is the effort from the DevOps team to establish connection and configuration. When a single platform replaces the barrage of tools used for various activities, the need to stitch multiple tools reduces. DevOps can limit their configuration to single authentication, setup, data store, and overview, thus leading to a single source of truth. The tools available on the platform align with the ISO quality management system and help create efficiencies, replace most repetitive hands-on tasks with automation, improve security, reduce toolchain tax, reduce aggravations, and allows both DevOps teams and the overall business.

Findings from Forrester Study

The 2022 Forrester Consulting Total Economic Impact of GitLab’s Ultimate Plan focused on Gitlab’s Ultimate Plan. The study helped us understand the single platform developed to meet software development needs across the DevOps lifecycle. The study concluded that GitLab Ultimate offers various benefits to DevOps teams in organizations, regardless of size. Some of them are. 

  • Security is a top priority for all DevOps organizations. According to a Forrester study, GitLab Ultimate helps with this concern by managing vulnerabilities. The one platform integrates and automates vulnerability management within the development lifecycle. Now, developers can address real-time vulnerabilities and avoid delays in a software release. 
  • Customer retention is the ultimate aim of every company. With guaranteed high-quality codes, companies can meet security standards and offer better products to their customers. The single application offering from GitLab streamlines processes, redirecting the DevOps team’s time and energy into coding and development. This ensures they have enough time to test, scan, and verify codes before the application is released to the market. 
  • Since the employees are not spending their time on repetitive tasks or maintaining multiple tools, employee retention improves, and they feel motivated to work in the office environment. These satisfied employees are more productive and can contribute better to their projects, enhancing release quality, frequency, and market innovation. 
  • With GitLab Ultimate, DevOps team members have better developer experience through a highly efficient development process. This directly impacts efficiency, processes, collaboration, and code quality. 

Read more about the study here. 

While moving to a DevOps platform, preparing IT teams for the migration is vital to make the transition efficient and smooth. When it comes to tooling, it’s better to choose a platform that does more on its own than disparate tools can do together. That’s the approach GitLab is taking, and it does sound interesting.

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