Item: Octopus Deploy
Rating: 8
Author: Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with Octopus Deploy

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Octopus Deploy for Automated deployments of new releases through different lifecycles and environments.

We receive a signed off version update of the application which is packaged into a release. This release can be deployed then to all the relevant DEV/QA/TEST/PRE/PROD Environments.
The version cannot move from one environment to the next until approved and signed off.
Due to the nature of our product it is important the release remains consistent throughout the release lifecycle - Dev to Prod. Octopus Deploy ensures this consistency by removing manual steps such as packaging the release and the installation steps for each.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Creates Repositories of files - The Release package
Automated steps process that can be configured for different tenants
The integration to our existing setup was seamless
Consistency across environments and lifecycles

Cons

The UI is good there are some instances where a scrollbar or lock could be beneficial - For example the project processes page - clicking a lower process but the information displays at the top of the page - Locking the display page would help.
A bulk upload operation for manual packages - at times, I need to apply hotfixes that are not part of a release
Cloning of projects, step templates and variables between spaces could be easier

Return on Investment

Time saved on deploying new releases
Fewer human errors with a consistent automated process
Octopus Deploy has replaced a number of scripts with an interface that is easier to understand and debug

Usability

Octopus Deploy is fairly easy to use once setup. The interface is user friendly and the release and deployment process is intuitive. Some of the configuration can be daunting at first but once understood it is relatively easy to use. The Audit logs are extensive which is good for tracking changes and deployments. The Variables setup allows for the multi environment deployments to be completed with ease.

Alternatives Considered

Azure DevOps

Octopus Deploy was deemed to be the most user friendly at the time.
The demo environment we set up as a test seemed to tick all the boxes in terms of requirements.
DevOps may be a longer term solution for our company but the initial setup time was too high for our needs.
Octopus Deploy worked and integrated far quicker for us.

Key Insights

Do you think Octopus Deploy delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Octopus Deploy's feature set?

Yes

Did Octopus Deploy live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Octopus Deploy go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Octopus Deploy again?

Yes

Likelihood to Recommend

Octopus Deploy is well suited for our requirements of deploying across multiple environments with one consistent release.
We are saving a lot of time by not having to package and move release files around. Our release process is more efficient and consistent with automation.
There are some parts that we could probably perform with existing tools such as DevOps and there are one or two features we have to workaround to fit for our setup such as the step templates to install websites. These are minor in our opinion.

Comments

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Octopus Deploy - Time Saving and consistent releases