Transcript
Page 1: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Puppet the Foreman and YOU

Page 2: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Disclaimer

• This is how I do it.

• This is my experience.

• This has a lot to do with people.

• This has a lot to do with design & thinking.

• This has a lot to do with before you run “install.sh”

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 3: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Enterprise

• Lots of interconnected stuff..

• Oracle…• Linux..• Windows.• Weblogic…• ERP / CRM / Financials…• VMware..• Cots.. • Not much in “cloud” for me with the exception of SaaS (sales platform)

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 4: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

BHAG: Configuration Management

• Start here – puppet – its your big hairy audacious goal.

• Start Simple – ntp, provisioning (yes, it’s easy), sysctl..

• Source Control everything – gitlab/github

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 5: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Achieve our goal

• Brainstorm about your smaller goals

• Iterate

• Test/Experiment

• Think

• Experiment/test

• Pilot Programs

• Think

• iterate

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 6: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Define your goal

• Write down your goals

• Write down the context of your goals

• Write down the priority of your goals

• Think of value

• Think of service

• Think of utility

• Lets brainstorm some here..

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 7: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

In case you didn’t notice

• Implementing puppet in my environment has been less about learning the technology. Puppet is “easy” to learn, Puppet Enterprise even more so. It’s more about applying puppet to solve complex problems.

• Problems are never completely solved – don’t automate & forget

• We iterate and iterate to improve ourselves (do some A/B)

• Puppet enables continuous improvement

• Puppet enables “lean” & “agile”

• Puppet enables our design and systems goal(s)

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 8: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Easy goals: Configuration Drift

• Establish and maintain consistency

• Foreman ENC, Parameterized classes, hierarchal parameter storage.

• Dashboards!

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 9: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Foreman

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 10: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Host Groups – CM management

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 11: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Easy Goal: Reporting / Auditing (monitoring)

• PuppetDB

• Puppet Reports / Dashboard

• Foreman Reports, Metrics & Trends

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 12: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Foreman Reporting

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 13: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Reports

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 14: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Easy Goal: Provisioning

twitter: @byron_miller

• Repetitive Process

• Needs standards – Easy “wins” often live here, especially in legacy enterprise

• difficult place to have drift

• Yes, RHEL/OEL all the way

Page 15: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Foreman Provisioning

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 16: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Hard Goal: Automating other stuff

• By automation, I don’t mean basic configuration.. I mean, building & deploying a process and automating that pesky stuff such as databases, deployments, pipelines et all.

• This other stuff is where you should really begin to think about your work and how to appropriately “attack” it.

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 17: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

How to do hard stuff? Build patterns

• Flow – describe the process flow & state of flow

• Complexity - Apply puppet to knowledge, derive your knowledge before you try and automate

• Think of your complexity in terms of contexts – remember when I asked you to write down the context of your work?

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 18: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Sense Making: Hard stuff is hard

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 19: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Complex – Retrospective

• Probe -> Sense -> Respond

• This is where you operate in “retrospect” – relation between cause & effect perceived in retrospect.

• Sense “emergent” practice – what to do next (This is where experimentation pays off)

• Safe to fail experimentation - amplify what works, suppress what doesn’t. Innovation happens here.

• Collaborative Leadership

• Not the best to automate. Build “rails” to guide / influence but remember, that what happens here, may not be repeatable.

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 20: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Complicated – Expert Knowledge

• Sense -> Analyze -> Respond

• Respond and apply good practice.

• Relationship between cause & effect requires some form of investigation / expert knowledge.

• Analytical Leadership

• Fairly automatable, your “rails” can be more restrictive here as your building on good practices.

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 21: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Chaotic – Novel

• Act -> Sense -> Respond

• NOVEL solutions

• NO relationship between cause and effect at systems level

• No automation here. (usually a symptom of automation failure)

• “Take Control” leadership – Lead and get out

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 22: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Simple - Bureaucratic

• Sense -> Categorize -> Respond

• Apply best practice

• Bureaucracy lives here• Warning: When bureaucracy / simple dies, it immediately goes CHAOTIC• Complacency leads to failure

• Bureaucratic Leadership

• Automation LIVES here.

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 23: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Disorder – I’m not making any sense

• This is where we start..

• State of not knowing what type of causality exists. People will revert to their own comfort zone in making a decision here.

• Biases.. Biases everywhere..

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 24: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

With these sense making skills

• Think about your work

• Think about your tools

• Think about your systems

• Think about your goals

• Think about design

• Think about THE goal

• Think about value

• Think about appropriate leadership

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 25: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Sometimes the best tool

• Is a human being• Software is great at repetition

• Software is great at repetition

• Software is great with bureaucracy

• Novel processes require specific leadership

• Complex/Complicated systems require humans

• Simple systems still need people

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 26: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Systems thinking & design

twitter: @byron_miller

• Think of intelligent orchestration – mcollective perhaps?• Think of a “city” system

• Garbage pickup at 7 a.m.• Newspaper at 6 a.m.• Schools from 7:30 to 3:30

• What is your intent of work? What is the goal of your automation? How will you achieve it?

• Orchestrate wisely – tracking drift? Applying change? Auditing? Ephemeral instances? Do you need 30 minute checkins?

Page 27: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

More “wins”

• System cloning

• sudoers

• RPM / Package management (katello is being integrated soon)

• SSHd config

• Iptables..

• Logstash/collectl/statsd (good packages here)

• Augeus all the things

• List goes on forever.. Just do yourself a favor and finish one before starting another

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 28: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Collaborate

• It takes a village yaddy yaddy yadda

• Collaborative Leadership is a very effective way to lead your puppet pipeline.

• I have a story I read.. You may have too

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 29: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

So I read this book…

• It got me thinking..

It was written about me..

I’ve lived this story..

But it felt like a “manager” story..

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 30: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

What if Erik gave ME (Brent) that advice?

• Have I heard it?

• Would I listen?

• Would I care?

• Some of us trying to do puppet are techies• What if we’re not management?

• Not “decision makers”?

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 31: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

What defines Brent?

• Driven by thinking logically

• “Applied DevOps” … help me DevOps, you’re my only hope

• Our Management manages expectations

• Management relies on me.

• Self made..

• Product of environment..

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 32: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Leading like a Brent

• No one listens!

• I’m Overloaded

• I don’t want to burnout

• I’m sort of a BOFH

• Excuses.. Excuses.. Excuses..

• Just automate it!

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 33: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

We’re here because we see improvement…

• DevOps

• Puppet

• Foreman

• Virtualization

• Agile

• Lean

• Philosophy

• Systems Thinking

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 34: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

The hard way

• Logical

• Strongly Stated Position

• Assertive

• “Closing the deal”

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 35: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Strongly Stated Position

• Only speaking to “Facts”

• Mimicking success of others

• Strong / Defensive Views

• Applied Thinking – Applied Lean, Applied DevOps, Applied Agile

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 36: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Assertive Supporting Arguments

• My way or else..

• Logic makes us feel assertive

• We expect everyone to “obey” our logic

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 37: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Closing Deal

• Resist Compromise

• Using only logic / extreme passion to speak

• Assert as if everything is Objective

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 38: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Stop!

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 39: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

A new way: The Collaborative Way!

• Work together

• Break down silos

• Build bridges

• Trust & be trusted

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 40: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Establish Credibility

• Don’t overestimate oneself!

• Experiment! Experiment!

• Don’t jump to applying

• Recognize “small wins” as a catalyst

• Positive action

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 41: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Frame for common ground

• Lead to positive results

• Steer the story to align to your org

• Make it yours

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 42: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Connect Emotionally

• Work through gatekeepers

• Put on their shoes

• Strategize to reach broader audience

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 43: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Evidence

• Stories

• Examples

• Metaphors

• Experimentations

• Pilots

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 44: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Brent Transformation

• Don’t need to be “manager” to lead

• GROW into leadership

• GROW yourself!

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 45: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Patterns, not ideologies.

• Skills

• People

• Ideas

• Experiments

• Make it YOURS

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 46: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Now you can begin

• Tools to think

• Tools to collaborate

• Tools to make sense of your work

• Tools to manage your work

• Tools to automate all the things

• I’ve given you lots of hammers, use wisely.

• If you’re a “Spock” trying to automate with puppet, make sure you find a Captain Kirk who knows this!

twitter: @byron_miller

Page 47: Puppet Camp Dallas 2014: Configuration Management in the Enterprise

Thanks

• Automate wisely

• Collaborate all the time

• Think about your work

• Think about your systems

• Hope this helps you “enable” your Puppet/DevOps journey

• Email: [email protected]

• Twitter @Byron_miller

twitter: @byron_miller


Top Related