dev2ops on Twitter
DevOps Toolchain Project
Interested in DevOps?
Search dev2ops
Subscribe
« Built for operations | Main | Nick Carr's "The Big Switch" - Review of Part 2 »
Friday
Feb012008

CodeData Split: New OMC Design Pattern

One everyday source of confusion seen during the dev to ops handoff is the necessary modification of files during the installation and setup during deployment. Typically, there is one or more modifications to configuration files that enable the software to work in the context of the target environment. The process can be greatly improved if these files were split away from the executable software code itself. I describe this best practice as the CodeData Split:

Separate executable software files from environment specific deployment ones, identifying files that change during installation or operation, thereby facilitating cleaner upgrade process, and the ability to manage deployments independently and separate from each other.

The concept of splitting code from data in applications is nothing new and examples can be found ranging from OS filesystem structure and application servers. The pattern emerged in those places because the operation of the software was a clear requirement so this led to the data files (both configuration and variable data files) to have their own places. This best practice should be followed generally for any application. Doing so will avoid problems like the Service Monolith

Reader Comments

There are no comments for this journal entry. To create a new comment, use the form below.

PostPost a New Comment

Enter your information below to add a new comment.

My response is on my own website »
Author Email (optional):
Author URL (optional):
Post:
 
Some HTML allowed: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <code> <em> <i> <strike> <strong>