Kubernetes Cron Jobs: Dreams Really Do Come True

Abstract I worked for a large company with several hundred cron jobs running on two systems. Managing these jobs was cumbersome. Resource use during peak times brought things to a halt. Imagine what it was like when systems were down! In this talk, we discuss Kubernetes’ killer feature: Cron Jobs. Description Kubernetes, Jobs, and Cron Jobs What is Kubernetes? Kubernetes has the concept of Jobs Kubernetes Cron Jobs are a relatively new thing Use Case Former employer had several hundred cron jobs running on two systems Resource contention during peak times brought the systems to a halt If one cron job didn’t run it was hard to determine what task failed or didn’t run based on user tickets Chaos if the systems were offline for one reason or another Using minikube and Docker running locally… ...

March 1, 2018 · Chris Short

DevOps 101

This talk has been deprecated and remains for reference Abstract With the need to build, test and release software more rapidly, frequently and reliably the concept of DevOps has never been more popular, and to a degree, more misunderstood. DevOps skills are consistently highly sought after and in huge demand, yet at the same time little education and training is available in both the professional world and in higher education. ...

February 28, 2018 · Chris Short

Go to the rescue: Saving DevOps from TLS turmoil

Abstract Find out about a use case that created a need for testing certificate chains, appropriate web server security settings, and the Go code used for testing. Description Talk would be based on this article: https://opensource.com/article/17/4/testing-certificate-chains-34-line-go-program If you ever need to validate certificates or certificate chains before deploying them, Go provides a near foolproof test method. A 3rd party developed a tool that was then handed off to our DevOps team to manage and maintain. Before I could do any re-engineering work, I had to resolve a critical issue—the certificates on the ELBs were about to expire and needed updating. ...

February 23, 2018 · Chris Short

Go: Enabling DevOps to Go Faster

Abstract What is Go? It’s not just another programming language. Go was made with very specific goals in mind by very experienced people. Go’s ideals align quite well with DevOps principles. In this talk we explore why DevOps professionals should be learning and utilizing Go in their organizations. Description What is Go? What wasn’t good enough with other languages? Who made Go? The Go/Google Connection as it Stands Today What is Go Good At? Go is easy to use and fast to learn Very well thought out design philosophy (Russ Cox GopherCon 2017 talk) Where Go is Used Today (The obvious: Docker, Kubernetes, CloudFlare, etc.) The not so obvious (and why): Container runtimes, Etereum, Dropbox Dev Opinions (quotes from Kris Nova, Liz Fong-Jones, Carlisia Pinto, and Julia Ferraioli) How Go Bailed Me Out “Who here thinks cryptography is easy?” TLS is hard enough to implement It only gets harder when you are given a two-day deadline to rekey a convoluted application by a third party developer you don’t have a relationship with anymore I’m not a coder (AT ALL) Building a tool with Go on the fly to verify certificate chains, TLS configuration, etc. was super easy Notes I have worked in IT since 1995. Experience in the public and private sector has given me a wide range of DevOps perspectives. My lack of pedigree as a developer is one of my biggest selling points of Go. You don’t have to be a coder to write Go and more people need to know that. ...

February 23, 2018 · Chris Short

The Dark Side of DevOps

Abstract People think that DevOps, Cloud Native, Agile, GROWS, etc. are all rainbows and roses. You start small, work your way up or you decide as an organizational unit to change. These are two patterns associated with a Jedi-type maturation process of DevOps. Like in Star Wars, DevOps has a dark side. This talk provides examples of successful and failed DevOps transformations as well as some lessons learned along the way. ...

February 23, 2018 · Chris Short