Best programming & scripting languages for DevOps engineers
DevOps is a practice that requires programming and scripting skills for infrastructure automation, error-prone tasks associated with software development (such as deploying apps to various environments), infrastructure management (monitoring and scaling out servers, responsiveness under high load), and testing (managing virtualization infrastructure for performing regression tests).
Programming languages are one of the most important tools in the DevOps arsenal. Choosing the right programming language or languages for your application is essential for succeeding at DevOps and achieving continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD).
If you want to succeed at DevOps, you should be concerned with achieving the following characteristics in your applications and software delivery processes:
Scalability, so that you can meet fluctuating user demand.
Efficiency, in terms of both application performance and in staff members' time.
Modularity, which makes programming more efficient and can help to build microservices-oriented applications.
High performance, because DevOps should encourage quality and an excellent user experience.
Familiarity, because, ideally, you want your engineers to be accustomed to using the technology you work with before they join your team, so that they don't have to learn everything from the ground up.
Portability, since the deployment environment or operating system you target today may change in the future.
When selecting a programming language, look for a language that makes it easy to achieve these characteristics.
Before we enumarate the main languajes for DevOps there is some interesting facts that 2021 Stack Overflow Developers Survey indicates, this are the most commonly used programming language by professional developers.
Although the programming languages currently used in any DevOps environment are not limited to the above list, as there are different demands for different cycles and organizations using DevOps. This is a good initial reference to get started.
DevOps is becoming more and more popular and learning the right programming languages can boost your career. Here are some of the best Programming & scripting languages for DevOps Engineers.
GoLang
Emerging from Google’s own open-source kitchen – and it’s been taking the DevOps world by storm since its inception in 2009. Its syntax draws inspiration from other popular languages such as Python and C++, making it relatively easier for new programmers to pick up on.
Also, Golang developed for speed, the language emphasizes on lean, network-efficient runtimes means great things for DevOps.
It may quite interest you to know that DevOps tools like Docker (for containerization of apps), Juju (for orchestration), Terraform (Infrastructure as Code), and Kubernetes (Container orchestration) are written using Golang.
And this is simply because it is easy to compile standalone, static binaries for all major operating systems. No libraries, no dependencies, nothing.
As there is wide adoption of GitOps practice with Kubernetes operators, GoLang is a sought-after skill for Kubernetes Operator development.
Python
Python has emerged as the most popular programming language for DevOps. It is easy to learn for beginners and has a vast library of modules for performing various tasks in DevOps.
Popularly known as an all-purpose language, Python is crowned by GitHub as its second-most popular programming language and fastest-growing major programming language by Stack Overflow.
Python is a great language for automation because of its readability, comprehensibility, and concise syntax. It’s also an interpreted language, which makes it relatively fast to execute compared to compiled languages like Java.
Python scripts can be run directly on the server, making deployment easy. Additionally, Python has libraries for managing infrastructure (such as Puppet or Chef), automating testing (Selenium, WebDriver), and building web applications (Django, Flask).
Python is used by many organizations for its infrastructure development. It could be a platform development, automation script, or utilities for CI/CD.
Ruby
If you like Python, chances are good that you'll also like Ruby. Although infrastructure management is perhaps the top use case for Ruby, it is similar to Python in that it lends itself to a wide variety of use cases. And it's cross-platform.
Also like Python, Ruby benefits from a large collection of community-produced modules that anyone can incorporate into applications to add functionality without having to write new code themselves.
Finally, Ruby enables a very flexible approach to programming. Unlike some other languages, Ruby doesn't expect developers to take a particular approach to writing code. You can use it for procedural programming if you want, but you can also write Ruby threads to be executed via an interpreter. It's an object-oriented language, but you don't have to use it that way if you don't want.
Bash
Bash scripts (Linux Shell Scripting) are used for performing a variety of DevOps tasks, including automated installations and configuration management. For example, devOps engineers use Bash to create deployment scripts that do the heavy lifting involved in new app releases.
Even though we have several open-source tools to perform configuration and deployments, many companies use bash scripts for their automation work.
Also, bash scripts are extensively used in building Docker base images and CI/CD pipelines.
Powershell
If you are a DevOps engineer working on windows servers, Powershell is your go-to scripting language.
Powershell is a task automation, scripting, and configuration management framework from Microsoft, built on top of the .NET Framework. It provides a command-line shell and scripting environment for managing Windows systems.
Powershell scripts can be used for automating common tasks such as system administration, app deployment, and infrastructure management. It also offers powerful features for data manipulation and analysis.
When it comes to windows server management, Powershell is the language of choice. It offers a robust scripting environment for automating common tasks, as well as powerful data manipulation and analysis features. Additionally, Powershell scripts can be run directly on the server, making deployment easy.
Groovy
Groovy is based on Java, making it easy to learn for developers with some programming knowledge. It’s typically used for automating software development tasks such as building files, compiling code, and running tests.
But when it comes to Devops, groovy is heavily used in Jenkins. With good knowledge of Groovy scripting, you can easily write Jenkins pipeline as code and Jenkins shared libraries.
JavaScript
It is a safe bet to say that the world of the internet runs on JavaScript as well as HTML. Many of the most popular frameworks and libraries are written in JavaScript, from Angular to React and Node.
Server-side implementations aren’t the only thing this language has to offer: the massive community of developers means that there’s always help available on GitHub or Stack Overflow.
JavaScript is a safe bet for developers. However, JavaScript is a bit more complicated when it comes to DevOps but it doesn’t mean that they don’t work together. IaaC tools like Pulumi support Javascript and Typescript for building infrastructure as code.
Also, NodeJS is a server-side implementation of Javascript, which allows node developers to create APIs for backend applications, as well as command-line scripts.
NodeJS has many modules available for performing various DevOps activities such as streamlining the processes involved in app deployments. It also provides libraries for working with continuous integration tools like Jenkins CI or TravisCI.
You don't have to learn all the languages mentioned here, but having a modern skill set is important. If you're a current "ops" pro looking to make a shift, simply picking up Python is a great starting point. From there, it might make sense to refine your skills a bit before picking your next language. In any case, remember the key is to never stop learning.
DevOps requires some programming and scripting skills, and as the DevOps trend continues to grow, so does the demand for DevOps engineers with programming and scripting knowledge. So if you have a programming or scripting background, it’s time to seriously consider a career in DevOps, otherwise if your organization needs DevOps services or staff augmentation you can contact us by clicking the button below.
Source: devopscube.com, www.itprotoday.com
