tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4957646248778099442.post2875681261709699597..comments2023-06-30T07:51:45.252-07:00Comments on dev2ops: delivering application change: Are sys admins soon to be relics?Alex Honorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13700437911627383122noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4957646248778099442.post-51948062489543335572009-09-02T05:00:33.039-07:002009-09-02T05:00:33.039-07:00Apologies if I misunderstood, the idea that automa...Apologies if I misunderstood, the idea that automated infrastructure will simply wipe sysadmins off the earth is a common one, and seeing the word 'relic' in your post got me moving in that direction. <br /><br />Adam (as usual) clarified the point I was trying to make: 'The thing is, those skills (software development) have always been a part of the required skill-set of every Unix/Linux sysadmin.'<br /><br />I suspect that the reason you saw those titles/skills at Velocity is because that community has for the most part always described themselves like that. Sysadmins writing code to manage their infrastructure isn't new at any stretch, at least not in web operations.<br /><br />What the infrastructure-as-code people describe is a reality that has always existed, skills wise. It's the much-needed refresh on tools that has brought the focus to light.John Allspawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04293806915830316610noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4957646248778099442.post-19258889972366501052009-09-02T01:37:50.616-07:002009-09-02T01:37:50.616-07:00Adam, good point about focusing on the things that...Adam, good point about focusing on the things that require a human (which are arguably the things that make the difference between operations being either a hindrance or a strategic asset).<br /><br />I would go one step further and say that when a workforce is given a chance to focus, it naturally leads to demands for specialization... which further diminishes the need for the current jack of all trades type roles that are common in operations teams today (and what I was referring to in my original post as "sys admins")<br /><br />Not less people... focused people. The smart people stop "building the cars" by hand and start "focusing on building the factory" (if you'll allow my overused manufacturing metaphor).Damon Edwardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08075446611632722802noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4957646248778099442.post-87112007393862089432009-09-01T21:42:42.519-07:002009-09-01T21:42:42.519-07:00The thing is, those skills (software development) ...The thing is, those skills (software development) have always been a part of the required skill-set of every Unix/Linux sysadmin. <br /><br />What's changing is the *focus*, the idea that having the ability to rack and stack servers well is your a prime part of your job description as a systems administrator. It *might* be, but it certainly doesn't have to be any more. <br /><br />When I reflect on what's happening, I feel like we're at the stage where what "infrastructure as code" really means to systems administrators is that all the work you never liked doing anyway is gone. <br /><br />The stuff that really made you a systems administrator, and that made you a real Ops ninja, that stuff is now *more* critical. Capacity planning? Needs a human. Performance tuning? Gotta have a human. Production troubleshooting? Gotta have a human. Hopefully, the results of all of the above are easier (no more ".. and now repeat yourself a hundred times".)Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05702244919428760259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4957646248778099442.post-47152615198375988242009-09-01T20:54:08.906-07:002009-09-01T20:54:08.906-07:00John, of course Operations isn't going away. I...John, of course Operations isn't going away. I never said that.<br /><br />I'm simply commenting on the <i>skills</i> of those people who fill the operations roles you list in your post.<br /><br />In high-performing operations organizations the skill set of the frontline engineers is starting to look more like that of a developer than a traditional systems administrator.<br /><br />Ops isn't going anywhere, but how it is being performed is changing for the better. Treating infrastructure as code and using development techniques (like source control and release management procedures) doesn't threaten Ops in any way.Damon Edwardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08075446611632722802noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4957646248778099442.post-4953105070160194512009-09-01T19:14:38.941-07:002009-09-01T19:14:38.941-07:00Ugh. The answer is (again) no, sysadmins are not g...Ugh. The answer is (again) no, sysadmins are not going to become relics. Not going away. For some of these same reasons:<br /><br />http://www.kitchensoap.com/2009/05/22/annoying-to-me/John Allspawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04293806915830316610noreply@blogger.com