SaltStack: Why You Should Be Using This Server Automation Tool
SaltStack is a popular open source software for automating the management of computer servers and services in data centers. We hear about new software tools for automating server management all the time. And there are so many different options that it can be tricky to know which one might be best for you. This blog will help you understand why you should use SaltStack as part of your DevOps toolkit by covering topics like:
What is SaltStack?
SaltStack is a software platform for configuration management and remote execution. SaltStack allows you to model your infrastructure, automate the execution of those modeled processes and track progress with real-time visibility. It runs on the most popular Linux distributions, such as Ubuntu and CentOS, and works with Windows too.
Below is a quick snapshot of what SaltStack can do for you.
- Model your infrastructure: Create a model of your production environment by specifying the systems that make up your infrastructure, the versions of the software installed on each system, credentials required to log into each system, and which other systems are connected to each system.
- Automate the execution of those modeled processes: As you deploy new software or make configuration changes, use SaltStack to automate the execution of those processes.
- Track progress with real-time visibility: With real-time visibility into what is happening on your infrastructure, you can track the progress of each server and service as it completes its assigned tasks.
- Remote execution: Use SaltStack to remotely execute commands and scripts on remote systems.
- Compliance and auditing: Create rules that track system compliance with common auditing standards, such as PCI DSS.
- High availability: Use SaltStack to create a highly available architecture that can withstand failures in critical systems and services.
- Configuration management: Use SaltStack as a configuration management system to manage software package installation and updates across your entire infrastructure.
- Orchestration: Use SaltStack to orchestrate the creation of new systems and the migration of existing systems to a new location.
- Scalability: Use SaltStack to add capacity to your existing systems by scaling out your infrastructure across multiple systems.
Why You Should Be Using SaltStack
One of the biggest advantages of using SaltStack is that it can help you retain your skilled IT staff. If you need to scale up your operations and bring in new hires, it can be very expensive to find staff that have the necessary skills in software configuration management and remote execution. With SaltStack, you can hire people with a broader skill set. They can learn how to use SaltStack to do their job, which means you can build a more sustainable team with a lower initial investment. SaltStack is a platform for automation. It’s designed to help you manage your entire environment from the moment a server is provisioned. You can use it to automate your software deployment, configuration management, system monitoring, and more. SaltStack is not just a configuration management system. It’s a full-blown server automation platform with a rich ecosystem of tools and integrations built around it.
Benefits of Using SaltStack
As we’ve just discussed, using SaltStack can help you retain your skilled IT staff and transition your organization to DevOps by increasing your team’s productivity, visibility, and scalability. Here are some other benefits of using SaltStack. SaltStack is not just a configuration management system. It’s a full-blown server automation platform with a rich ecosystem of tools and integrations built around it. Using SaltStack can transition your organization to DevOps by increasing your team’s productivity, visibility, and scalability.
