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Guide - CaaS Deployment Process
1 Introduction
Deployments of productive Intershop Commerce Management (ICM), Intershop Order Management (IOM), and Progressive Web App (PWA) systems are more or less complex procedures. This guide explains the various aspects and how the deployment process usually takes place. Additionally general rules and guidelines are listed to ensure a common understanding of rights and responsibilities.
The target group of this document are project managers, release managers and developers of the implementation partner, as well as project managers and DevOps engineers of Intershop who come into contact with deployment processes.
Note
The focus lies on post-go-live deployments. Deployments during the project phase are briefly mentioned at the end of this guide.
1.1 Glossary
| Environments | INT | ICM Integration environment |
|---|---|---|
| UAT | ICM User Acceptance Test environment | |
| PRD | ICM Production environment | |
| Software | ICM | Intershop Commerce Management |
| PWA | Progressive Web App (new storefront of ICM) | |
| IOM | Intershop Order Management | |
Persons in the Process | Roles | The following documentation will call the persons by their role in the process. Depending on the partner, the size of the project and other factors, one person can cover one role or several roles. |
| Implementation Partner (DEV) | DEV | Development team |
| Release Manager | Person who decides when and how a deployment should take place | |
| Deployment Attendant | Member of the project team who can evaluate the success of the deployment | |
| Deployment Mailing List | During a deployment several e-mail notifications are sent. A list of recipients is required for this. It should include the people responsible for the technical and the business side of the deployment, i.e. the release manager and the deployment attendant(s). This list will be defined with the first e-mail to the Service Desk, which includes the deployment instructions and the relevant recipients. | |
| Intershop Operations (OPS) | OPS | Intershop Engineering Operations team |
| OPS Engineer | Member of the Engineering Operations team who is assigned to a scheduled deployment | |
| Project Manager (PM) | Responsible person for the project progress on Intershop side and for the daily communication with customers and partners. Organizer of the Weekly Jour Fixe (WJF) meeting. | |
| Deployment Manager | Person who is in charge of the deployment schedule. Knows OPS team capacity and replies to deployment requests from the release manager. | |
| Other Abbreviations | DB | Database |
| DPL | Deployment of a new software version on one of the environments | |
| DPL block | Deployment of a new software version on INT, UAT, and PRD (including SYN, if needed) | |
| Rollback | The database backup is restored and the previous version is deployed again. | |
| SLA | Service Level Agreements | |
| SYN | Synchronization process of database and file system. Usually between PRD to UAT, but also from PRD/UAT to INT. | |
| VM | Virtual machine | |
| WJF | Weekly Jour Fixe, a recurring meeting between implementation partner (DEV) and Intershop Operations (OPS). |
1.2 References
- Overview - CaaS DevOps
- Concept - CaaS Synchronization Process
- Reference - CaaS Technical FAQ
- Recipe: Custom Fix Deployment
2 Process
The process consists of different steps:
- Scheduling
- Provide deployment instructions
- Perform the deployment
For more details, refer to Deployment Steps.
Note
Generally all communication goes through Service Desk. Tickets can be opened and managed via Support Portal or via e-mail.
2.1 Scheduling a Date
- The release manager requests a deployment via Service Desk ticket.
- The lead time differs for the deployment types. Refer to Deployment Types and Scheduling and Lead Time further down on the page. Generally: The sooner, the better.
- The following information must be included in the ticket:
- Type of deployment
- Desired date and time
- Expected special activities (ICM upgrade, new channel, etc..)
- The deployment manager (OPS) will respond to the ticket with either confirmation of the date and time, or suggest another time slot.
- When a consent is reached, the deployment is added to the deployment schedule and the reservation is complete.
2.2 Providing Instructions
2-3 days before the deployment day, the release manager sends detailed instructions to OPS team via the Service Desk.
The following information must be included:
| Item | Example |
|---|---|
| Type of deployment | full DPL |
Current (custom) ICM release version | RELEASE/0.0.1-prod29 |
Target (custom) ICM release version | 7.10.10.0 |
Additional options |
|
Custom release notes | |
| Short description of the changes (mandatory for hotfix) |
Recommendation
Please provide a deployment mailing list with the provision of the DPL instructions. It should contain the release manager and the deployment attendant(s) from the implementation partner and customer.
The mailing list will be used for communication during the deployment process, keeping all relevant persons up-to-date. Ideally, all participants are already included in the e-mail that provides the deployment instructions.
2.3 Synchronization of Database
see Concept - CaaS Synchronization Process
2.4 Performing the Deployment
On the deployment day an Intershop DevOps engineer will perform the deployment, according to the instructions in the Service Desk ticket.
A deployment attendant from the implementation partner must be available for the whole duration of the deployment, even if the deployment happens during the night.
A close collaboration between Intershop and implementation partner is key to a successful deployment. If anything goes wrong, DEV and OPS need to decide if a rollback should take place or not.
- Directly before starting the deployment process, the DevOps engineer sends a short notification (reply to the the Service Desk ticket).
If, for any reason, the deployment cannot be started on time, the DevOps engineer will inform accordingly - if necessary jointly with the deployment attendant (DEV).
- The DevOps engineer starts the deployment.
- The DevOps engineer sends a notification if any issues occur during the process and starts fixing the problem, if necessary together with the deployment attendant.
- If necessary, the DevOps engineer gives an update during the deployment, for instance in case of delay.
- As soon as the deployment is completed the DevOps engineer sends a completion notification.
The deployment attendant performs some basic tests to evaluate the deployment was successful.
Note
The test has to be completed within 30 minutes. If it needs more time, this has to be addressed in advance and must be considered in the deployment scheduling (time).
- If the tests were successful, the deployment attendant confirms this via the Service Desk ticket. In this case the deployment process is considered complete.
- If there are any blocking issues, the deployment attendant informs the DevOps engineer via the same Service Desk ticket. Depending on the issue, a rollback can take place:
- Rollback: The database backup will be restored and the previous version will be deployed again. Afterwards the deployment attendant performs the tests and confirms the successful deployment. The current deployment process is considered finished, even though not successfully completed. A new date must be scheduled to execute the deployment again.
- No rollback: The deployment attendant decides the next steps to be taken, for instance, if a hotfix has to be performed in the following days.
3 Information, Guidelines, Rules
The following section describes some general and specific information around deployments.
It also contains some rules and guidelines which are required for a smooth process.
3.1 Environments
CaaS systems are usually set up with an ICM application like this:
- There are three environments: INT, UAT and PRD.
- Each environment consists of a live and an edit cluster.
- INT and UAT are also called PrePRD or NonPRD.
- Both environments share a DB infrastructure (VM). The data is separated for each cluster by schema (Oracle) or database (Microsoft SQL Server).
3.2 Deployment Types
There are three different DPL types:
Full deployment | Changes in functionality are made on the code side (web and app tier) and the database side. The increased testing effort on the operational side is ensured by a complete deployment block (consisting of SYN, UAT and PRD deployment), which is implemented by the OPS team. In addition, due to the necessary downtime, the work is usually carried out outside regular business hours (related to the chosen SLA) for PRD environments. |
|---|---|
| Code deployment | Changes in functionality are made on code side (web and app tier) only. No database changes are included. With a code DPL, the OPS team only takes over the DPL of the PRD environment. Prerequisite is that all function and performance tests have been successfully performed by the implementation partner (DEV) - the release needs to be deployed on INT and UAT - and a DPL can be carried out without manual activities if possible, but in any case without manual intervention in the system. |
| Hotfix deployment | A hotfix is used to repair a faulty release, usually one (or few) errors on web, app server and/or Solr server. The code changes should be minor and successfully tested beforehand. No change on database side is possible. The release has to be deployed successfully on UAT and INT before. A hotfix can be installed at the push of a button without additional manual steps - so this can be done on short notice. Note Hotfixes should only include small code changes to fix critical / show stopper bugs in the current PRD release. The hotfix release should only change at third position of the release number (e.g. 11.0. 2 ). |
The software to deploy also has an influence on the type of DPL. The previous classification applies primarily to ICM with classic storefront. For other cases:
- PWA deployments are always code deployments.
- IOM deployments are always full deployments.
3.3 Deployment Steps
- Scheduling a deployment date depends on the deployment type: full = UAT and PRD, Code = PRD only
- (OPTIONAL) UAT DPL - Deployment of new release version on UAT environment
- (OPTIONAL) SYN - Synchronization of database and file system from PRD to UAT (see Concept - CaaS Synchronization Process)
- Provide DPL instructions for UAT
- Performing the DPL on UAT
- PRD DPL - Deployment of new release version on PRD environment
- Provide DPL instructions for PRD
- Performing the DPL on PRD
- (OPTIONAL) UAT DPL - Deployment of new release version on UAT environment
Overview of code DPL and hotfix:
Overview of full DPL:
The start of each individual step needs to be requested explicitly via Service Desk ticket (separate deployment instructions for UAT and PRD), along with deployment instructions. (See also Deployment Instructions.)
The instructions must be sent (the very) latest on the day before the deployment, until the end of the German business day. Otherwise the deployment step is considered cancelled and has to be re-scheduled.
Receiving deployment instructions is considered as final and binding deployment request. Only send instructions when the deployment is completely agreed upon/authorized on the implementation partner's (DEV) side. The requested release version has to be successfully deployed on UAT (with same tag).
3.4 Scheduling and Lead Time
Deployments which are done by Intershop must be scheduled in advance with the Intershop deployment manager.
The necessary lead time depends on the deployment type.
| Deployment Type | Lead Time | Performed by OPS |
|---|---|---|
| Full | minimum 1 week | Monday - Thursday, regular business hours |
| Code | minimum 3 days | Monday - Thursday, regular business hours |
| Hotfix | short notice | Monday - Friday, regular business hours Depending on the available team capacity, a hotfix deployment is executed on the same day, or at the latest on the following day. Short-term deployment appointments cannot be guaranteed for reasons of team capacity. |
Generally at least one working day must follow after the deployment. The aim is to be able to solve any problems that may arise during regular working hours. No employee from the implementation partner (DEV), Intershop (OPS) or other related person is available at the weekend. Also public holidays must be taken into account.
Recommendations:
- If you are planning to do continuous updates to your shop, we strongly recommend you define a fixed deployment rhythm.
This can be e.g. "every 2nd Tuesday of the month", or "every 2 weeks", following the development sprints of the implementation partner.
This allows the implementation partner (DEV) to have a recurring reservation in the deployment schedule. It also helps the Intershop deployment manager (OPS) to plan ahead team-wise. This can be arranged easiest in the Weekly Jour Fixe (WJF) with the Intershop project manager (OPS). - Make sure to request your deployments early to ensure you get the slot you desire, especially if you plan deployments in generally busy times (before Black Friday, before Christmas, ...).
Note
3.5 Who Performs the Deployment?
For an ICM production live cluster (PRD-LV), Intershop Operations team performs all deployments on production, since we are also responsible for fulfilling the SLAs.
The implementation partner is able to perform DPLs via Jenkins jobs on INT and UAT.
See the following responsibility matrix:
Deployment Type* / Environment | INT | UAT | PRD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full | DEV | DEV/OPS** | OPS |
| Code | DEV | DEV | OPS |
| Hotfix | DEV | DEV | OPS |
* This includes the SYN process (if in place).
** In the case of ICM deployment, the last UAT DPL will be performed by OPS to reduce the risk during the following PRD DPL.
In the case of IOM deployment the last UAT DPL will be performed by Intershop iOM-development team.
If implementation partners (DEV) execute a SYN or DPL job, they are responsible for error monitoring.
- Occurring errors must be fixed immediately.
If this is not possible, the OPS team must be informed about this per Service Desk ticket.
3.6 Downtime
In a full deployment changes are made on the database side (in the form of DBMigrate) which are always accompanied by a downtime of the web shop. This is necessary to ensure data consistency as far as possible.
This is why full deployments are usually done outside business hours of the web shop.
With a code deployment no changes are made on the database and, as a rule, no downtime is necessary.
Hotfix deployments (=small code deployment) do not require any changes on the database and, therefore, have no downtime either.
3.7 Deployments During the Setup Phase
Deployments during the project phase, before a shop is live, are a) much more frequent and b) a lot less critical. So the process is less strict and the responsibilities are distributed differently.
- Deployments on INT and UAT are generally done by the implementation partner. No arrangements have to be done with Intershop.
- During the setup phase implementation partners are able to do the initial deployment on PRD themselves.
- Subsequent deployments are done by the implementation partner.
- Once the shop is live, Intershop resumes responsibility for deployments on PRD, since Intershop has to fulfill the SLAs.
Disclaimer
The information provided in the Knowledge Base may not be applicable to all systems and situations. Intershop Communications will not be liable to any party for any direct or indirect damages resulting from the use of the Customer Support section of the Intershop Corporate Web site, including, without limitation, any lost profits, business interruption, loss of programs or other data on your information handling system.