10 DevOps Tools Beginners of the Industry Can Start Using Now

DevOps is magic for many users (or meme material). Yet, we often miss that DevOps is a whole culture that facilitates our journey toward technological advancement. Its emphasis on solid collaboration and process automation helps us get the business and life-changing solutions we need right now.

But AI, technical SEO instruments, machine learning, IoT, and other innovations also contribute to this culture, letting us get more advantages immediately.

Are you a DevOps beginner with innovative ideas who wants to bring them to life? Do not fear challenges because many tools can become your best helpers during this journey. And the list begins!

Also Read: Linux & Devops books you should read

1. Git for Ultimate Code Control

Version control is vital for every developer who wants to organize and save the codebase securely. Of course, you might need an additional SEO spider tool for it to check if your scripts and codes remain functional. Git is a free, open-source, distributed version control system that every DevOps member should know. It lets you track changes in the source code, revert to previous versions if needed, and enhance projects with other developers. 

2. Jenkins for Building, Testing, and Deploying Code

Jenkins is a self-contained open-source automation server that can automate all sorts of tasks. These include:

• Building
• Testing
• Deploying software

It is written in Java and supports multiple platforms such as Windows, macOS, Linux, etc. Moreover, you may extend it with zero trouble via its hundreds of plugins.

3. Terraform for Resource Orchestration

Terraform is a popular open-source tool used for provisioning and managing cloud infrastructure. It declaratively describes your resources and lets you version them, so you can roll back changes if needed. The codebase is reusable, meaning you do not need to start from scratch each time you need to provision a new environment.

4. Nagios for Monitoring

Nagios is a golden-classic open-source monitoring tool that lets you monitor systems, applications, services, and infrastructure in real-time. If something does not function as intended, Nagios is the herald that confers an alert to you immediately. So, you are in 100% control of what is happening, and there is a helper to ensure you do not miss anything project-changing.

5. Slack for Collaboration

Slack is a cloud-based set of proprietary tools and services to sustain effective collaboration. It is popular among remote teams as it lets members communicate via channels or direct messages, share files, search through an archive of past messages, and more. The service integrates with a variety of tools to increase its functionality. Moreover, recent updates simplified document tracking and file sharing, enhanced communication channels, and added some convenient note-taking tools. So, if your team is used to Trello or some resembling organization apps, Slack will most likely be a perfect fit for your existing toolkit.

6. AppDynamics for Incident Management

Appdynamics is a software intelligence platform that helps you proactively monitor, manage, and optimize the performance of your applications. It automatically detects and diagnoses complex application problems to help you avoid major incidents. The platform is available in SaaS and on-premise versions.

7. Ansible for Configuration Management

Ansible is a handy configuration management tool used by DevOps engineers to automate various IT operations, such as:

• Deploying software;
• Provisioning infrastructure;
• Orchestrating changes.

It uses YAML files (playbooks) to describe these operations, making them easy to read and understand. Also, you do not need any special agent software to use Ansible because it uses existing SSH connections for communication.

8. Puppet for IT Automation

Puppet is another best-loved (and probably overused) open-source configuration management apparatus DevOps old-timers appreciate. It lets you automate all your routine system administration tasks, such as:

• Provisioning
• Configuration
• Management
• Orchestration
• Deployment

The platform runs on many Unix-like systems and Microsoft Windows and supports major Linux distributions, such as Debian, RHEL, CentOS, Ubuntu, etc.

9. Selenium for Rigorous Testing

Selenium is the #1 choice when you need to automate web browsers. It lets you test your code in various browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge) to ensure it functions as expected in all of them. Selenium can also simulate user interactions, such as clicks, typing, and mouse movements.

10. ServiceNow for Ticket Management

ServiceNow is a cloud-based ticket management tool that lets you track, prioritize, and resolve IT service requests quickly and efficiently. It also provides valuable insights into your Service Level Agreement (SLA) compliance. The platform integrates with many other DevOps tools to provide a comprehensive solution for ITSM.

But What if I Do Not Like Any of Them?

That is fine! DevOps teams might need a more narrowly-focused or, vice versa, more functionally diversified software. That is why here comes the checklist for DevOps beginners on choosing tools that will facilitate your workflows instead of complexifying them. So, choosing software independently, a DevOps pro would...

• Analyze how the software pick integrates with what is already in the toolkit. Of course, you will not work with a sole tool. You want all your DevOps apparatuses to function properly in unison without interruptions.
• See if there is an opportunity to customize the software. Many programs allow users to alter the system. Maybe some corrections will not hurt? And anyway, it is more practical to have a flexible tool.
• Check platform compatibility. It is a challenge to find software that will work on all systems. Consider this when choosing your tools.
• And cloud compatibility, too! 
• Test or assess ease of use. Basic instruments should not be too challenging to learn and master. Complicated ones would require some time, but eventually, you want to be able to quickly start working with the new tool without spending days reading manuals.
• Estimate security features. Data breaches are costly, so you want to ensure your tools have proper security protocols.
• Contrast pricings. Free software is not always a good bargain. Most likely, it will have minimum functionality and maximum lags. Still, there should be no overpricing.

Final Words

The world of DevOps is fascinating, and it is always developing. Every day, a new tool appears that promises to make your workflow smoother and more efficient. But as a beginner, you should not get lost in this variety. First of all, analyze what your team needs to optimize its performance. Afterward, select several basic tools you will use daily and master them. Over time, you can supplement your toolkit with more sophisticated software.

And do not forget that the most important thing in DevOps is not the apparatuses but the people who work with them. So, to achieve success in this field, surround yourself with talented enthusiasts. On that note, we hope that your new project will startle the Internet!