The Ultimate Guide to Site Reliability Engineers

Prior to the emergence of the discipline of Site Reliability Engineering (SRE), teams of software developers and IT operators worked together to manage and maintain digital operations for enterprises. System management, problem-solving, and operational tasks had to be manually programmed. The process required high numbers of personnel and elicited a somewhat cumbersome workflow. 

What are Site Reliability Engineers?

Site Reliability Engineers streamline and enhance the management and maintenance of digital operations through the use of automation and software. With backgrounds in software development, software operations, sysadmin, and/or IT, Site Reliability Engineers transform traditional skills for dynamic future growth. Site Reliability Engineers are able to automate many operational tasks that previously had to occur through manual instruction. Sophisticated software is the primary tool for system management, problem-solving, and operational procedures. Site Reliability Engineers create, deploy, and manage code and the resulting services. Site Reliability Engineers are experts in balancing excitement for innovation with the need for usability, functionality, and reliability. They split their time equally between operations and development. They are engineers and pioneers that specialize in automation and standardization. Site Reliability Engineers are experts in finding and creating ways to automate and improve operations. They reference service-level agreements (SLAs), service-level indications (SLI), and service-level objectives (SLO) to maintain high standards. SLAs describe the terms agreed upon by the service provider and client. SLIs describe request latency, error rates, availability, and system output. SLOs describe the desired goal or range for service according to the SLI. From the SLO, an error budget is determined. An error budget describes the acceptable amount of system downtime. Site Reliability Engineers are expert strategies, and they consider all aspects of system functioning. This includes planning for inevitable failure and determining how to best utilize downtime. Repeat problems necessitate automated solutions. In a multitude of ways, SRE sets businesses up for both present and future success. 

Why is Site Reliability Engineering Important?

There are many reasons why site reliability engineering is important. SRE allows for software systems to be reliable and scalable. The systems can be managed with specific coding language that is sustainable and appropriate for communicating with thousands of machines. With SRE, sysadmins can easily oversee large numbers of devices. SRE is critical in this age that is increasingly dominated by the Internet of Things (IoT), and it is well-suited for chaos engineering. SRE improves systems today and prepares systems to grow overtime. Code can be easily expanded or enhanced to accommodate all types of business growth. All leading enterprises are transitioning from traditional IT departments to cloud-based operations. SRE is an ideal vehicle for this growth and profit strategy. 

What is the difference between SRE and DevOps?

To explore the difference between SRE and DevOps, DevOps must first be defined. DevOps is a revolutionary strategy of intertwining multiple methodologies, skills, and philosophies to expedite system development and attain the highest quality software for an enterprise. The term “DevOps” is derived from combining the shorthand for software development, “Dev,” and the shorthand for IT operations, “Ops.” DevOps navigates culture and contemporary philosophies. As service delivery strategies, both SRE and DevOps value collaboration and teamwork, connect development and IT teams, and expedite application development. SRE is a way of applying DevOps. DevOps is compatible with Agile software Development which is a versatile and advanced software development strategy that prioritizes discovery, creativity, innovation, and collaboration. DevOps prioritizes efficient development processes, and SRE prioritizes site reliability and new features. Site Reliability Engineers can use their operational skills to support DevOps teams in meeting their efficiency goals. 

Where do you go to find a software provider?

The best software providers intertwine SRE and DevOps strategies for exceptional flexibility and reliability, and real-time responses to market demands. For these critical processes and systems, it is imperative that businesses partner with trusted providers. Encora offers both DevOps and Continuous Engineering services that skillfully support and augment infrastructure, maintain servers, oversee products, expedite development, ramp up deployment so that every application achieves optimal visibility and growth. Encora collaborates with Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) to bring strategic business decisions to life. Big impacts are supported by leading expertise, rigorous quality testing, and advanced automation strategies. In the 2021 Zinnov Zones Report, an annual ranking of global digital service providers, Encora was rated an Industry Leader in these 9 categories: Digital Engineering Services, Engineering Research, and Development Services, U.S. Client ER&D Services, Consumer Software Engineering, Enterprise Software Engineering, Software Platform Engineering, Cybersecurity Software Engineering, Telehealth Software Engineering, and AI and ML within multiple industries. For the top analytics, development, and programming contact Encora today! 

 

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