DevOps Adoption Guidelines, Challenges and Benefits: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

The DevOps methodology in software engineering is currently trending and many software development organisations are adopting it to stay competitive. However, these organisations face difficulties in adopting DevOps due to a lack of common standard guidelines and methodology. We argued that guidelines across multiple platforms are needed to succeed in DevOps implementation. This paper aims to identify the benefits, challenges, and guidelines associated with DevOps adoption using a systematic literature review. The search spanned over ten digital libraries such as ACM Digital Library, ScienceDirect, EBSCOhost, SAGE Journals, Wiley Online Library, and so on. The review also included keyword searches in relevant studies i.e DevOps guidelines, DevOps and guidelines, DevOps benefits, DevOps and benefits, DevOps challenges, DevOps and challenges. Papers written in English and published from 2011 through July 2020 were considered. 33 studies passed the two-step quality assessment. Finally, the data were extracted and analysed based on the themes and research questions, revealing the benefits and challenges of DevOps adoption guidelines. The findings show that improved software delivery speed increases code quality and application quality with frequent releases. It also shows that there was no transparent scientific approach to determining the DevOps capabilities regarding the process, practice, tools, and implementations, cost implications, and insufficient knowledge of the automation process. Finally, the reviewed studies indicated that software quality increases whenever DevOps best practices are adopted. DevOps is about continuous software delivery. Previous studies have not considered the guidelines for scientifically adopting DevOps for organisations that want to migrate. The present review identified the DevOps adoption guideline model represented in a cyclic format that indicates an infinite process representing continuous integration, continuous delivery, and continuous deployment, with an understanding of benefits and challenges.