8 Important features on Azure DevOps
There are many factors which are important when choosing the proper service provider which is needed for hosting developer work. Azure DevOps is a tool which allows teams to plan their work, and host their code sets along with the deployment of their applications. This tool brings together the developers, project managers & other team members to develop software.
Azure DevOps services can be utilized by using its on-premise version through Azure DevOps Server or the cloud version through Azure DevOps Services.
Azure DevOps shows an interesting look when we first try to access it.
On the left-hand side, we will have the Azure DevOps logo which shows the account we have logged in to right now. If we are part of multiple organizations then it will be visible one by one in the drop-down.
Feature
- Organization : A single user can be part of multiple organizations and can use any one of the organizations to store the artefacts and code sets related to their application. An organization owner can assign various roles and permissions to anyone in the organization as per the requirements. Organization owners can also modify the permissions related to Azure Active Directory and check the billing aspects related to the account as well. Security policies and permissions can be implemented by the owner at the organization level.
- WorkFlow : Azure DevOps lets the users use different processes based on Scrum or Agile ways to suit the needs of the end-user or the team handling different sets of Projects across the organization. The below snippet shows Agile workflow at the top and Scrum one at the bottom.
- Pipeline templates: Azure DevOps provides pipeline templates which can be executed by the user using local hosted agents or Azure cloud-hosted agents. They all can be customized in the form of YAML templates depending on the requirements of the project.
Below are the key concepts which are taken care of during pipeline execution in Azure DevOps.
Azure DevOps also allows the users to store artefacts and test results on the location of their choice and it can be cloud or data centre hosted servers. There is a cost and limit associated with the storage if we use the Azure Cloud hosted services. - Fine-grained access : Individual Project settings inside the organization can be customized depending on the requirements of the Project team and fine-grained access can be also implemented through the permission policy here.
- Integration of Azure DevOps : Azure DevOps lets us integrate the application with many external applications like JIRA, Github or any other tool sets using service connection. Azure DevOps also supports direct integration with Azure Cloud for deploying any application on it. The same functionality is also provided for AWS & GCP and various other cloud services through it using the service connections.
- Azure Boards & Repo : Azure Boards helps the software development teams with the help of interactive and customised tools they require to manage their software projects. It has native support regarding Agile, Scrum & Kanban processes for software development. They also help the development team create customised dashboards as per their requirements. Azure Repo is a set of version control tools which can be used by development teams to manage their code sets. Version Control systems are the software which helps developers track changes in their code over time.
- Azure Test Plan : Azure test plans are tool sets which are being used by a development team to drive the quality of the code sets going through the development cycle. These test plans can be easily used and can be managed directly from the browser itself and provide all kinds of testing frameworks along with the required feedback which can be implemented by various stakeholders for the entire development team.
- Stand-Alone Installation : Azure DevOps can also be installed on a server hosted on a local data centre to implement the similar features which are available with Azure DevOps service on Azure Cloud.
Microsoft Azure DevOps can be termed as an asset for the organisations that needs a quality DevOps framework for their users and external customers. It promotes among the entire organisation a work culture which enhances collaboration to the next level.
