With the continuous development of IT industry, automation is an increasingly popular topic. The scope of IT automation ranges from single actions to discrete sequences and, ultimately, to an autonomous IT deployment that takes actions based on user behaviour and other event triggers simplifying the workload.
Automation in the IT industry will require constant housekeeping, so the outcome needed is achieved. Scripts require proper testing when deploying in a Command Line Interface (CLI). Â It is important to keep scripts in revision control, performing rigorous testing upon deployment, refactoring scripts into a library and performing a code review.
Heres how automation will benefit businesses:
Productivity: IT operations requires a considerable number of distinct, routine and at times repetitive tasks which can be quite tedious and IT staff are required to respond quickly to needs across large, complex infrastructures. By automating these tasks, it frees IT administrators from time spent on routine tasks so that they can apply themselves to value-added projects for the business, such as IT infrastructure optimization and experimentation with promising new technologies and products.
Flexibility: Processes change over time as the IT infrastructure grows and changes, and technologies and best practices evolve. Automated processes remain static until a person decides to change them. Organizations must have a set workflow to update and revalidate automation processes, including disciplined automation versioning that tracks how tasks change over time.
Outcome: IT administrators are accountable when making an error typing in CLI, choose the wrong configuration setting for a server, overlook a key step in a complex task or make other mistakes. Errors lead admins to take additional time to troubleshoot and repeat the work process to get it right. IT automation enables an IT professional to construct a proven, accurate sequence of operations that can be run countless times in the same manner.
IT automation is hardly a new idea, but the technology is still in its formative stages. Even the most full-featured tools depend on an IT professional or team to develop and maintain discrete automation elements, such as scripts, templates, policies and workflows.
If you’re interested in implementing automation to your business, get in touch today to see how we can help.
If you’re looking for consultancy services to help design your own IT business processes, contact Starboard IT to find out what we can do for you.
