Atlassian Managed Services: Complete Guide for Teams

Guides Home / Page Atlassian Managed Services: Complete Guide for Teams Table of Contents In today’s fast-paced digital work environment, development and operations teams face increasing pressure to deliver faster, with fewer errors, and at scale. As businesses grow, so does the complexity of their tooling environments. For teams using Jira, Confluence, Bitbucket, and other Atlassian products, the need for consistent performance, security, and customizability becomes essential. This is where Atlassian Managed Services come into play.  This comprehensive guide explores what Atlassian Managed Services are, why they matter, and how they support everything from Jira Service Management and Jira Work Management, to Jira Software Project Management and advanced ITSM practices.  What Are Atlassian Managed Services? Definition Atlassian Managed Services refer to the expert-led support and administration of Atlassian tools by certified partners or internal DevOps teams. These services encompass a range of offerings including tool configuration, upgrades, user support, integration management, performance tuning, and security.  Scope of Services – Atlassian Managed Services 1. Jira Software Administration We provide complete administrative support for Jira Software, ensuring your projects, boards, sprints, and configurations align with your business objectives. From setting up agile boards to managing custom issue types and fields, we handle every backend task so your teams can focus on delivery.  Key capabilities: Project setup (Scrum, Kanban, hybrid)  Custom issue type schemes  Screen and field configuration  Release and version tracking  Project archiving and cleanup  2. Jira Service Management (JSM) Configuration Our experts configure Jira Service Management to suit ITSM, HR, facilities, and customer support use cases. We implement service projects, request types, SLAs, queues, and approval workflows that enhance response times and service reliability.  Deliverables include: Portal and knowledge base setup  SLA rules, escalation policies  ITIL process alignment (Incident, Change, Problem)  Request type customization  Automation of ticket routing and prioritization  3. Workflow Automation and Customization We design and automate workflows tailored to your business logic using Jira’s native automation rules or tools like ScriptRunner and Automation for Jira. Our approach helps reduce manual tasks and ensures consistent process execution.  Services include: State transition customization  Auto-assignments and notifications  Multi-step approvals and conditional logic  Post-functions and validators  Custom triggers and webhooks  4. User and Permission Management Ensure the right access for the right users with our role-based permission configurations. We manage user provisioning, group policies, and access controls across projects and tools.  What we handle: User onboarding/offboarding  Role mapping and group configurations  Global vs project-level permissions  Admin permissions audit and cleanup  5. Security & Compliance Management We align your Atlassian environment with security standards and compliance requirements (ISO 27001, GDPR, HIPAA, etc.) to mitigate risks and protect sensitive data.  Key areas covered: Data access control policies  Audit trail setup and logging  Encryption and authentication enforcement  Role-based security policies  Compliance reporting  6. Performance Optimization We monitor and fine-tune your Jira and Confluence instances to ensure fast load times, minimal downtime, and scalable configurations — especially for growing teams.  Performance services include: Index health checks and reindexing  Custom field and scheme optimization  Cleanup of unused workflows, filters, and dashboards  Archiving old projects and tickets  Database and application tuning (for Data Center)  7. Marketplace App Integration We help you select, install, and configure trusted apps from the Atlassian Marketplace to extend your instance’s capabilities, while ensuring compatibility and performance.  Typical integrations: ScriptRunner, Insight/Assets, Xray, BigPicture, Tempo, Automation  App risk analysis and usage tracking  Licensing support and renewals  Custom integration via APIs/webhooks  8. Reporting & Dashboards We build custom dashboards and reports to give real-time visibility into team performance, project progress, and SLA compliance using built-in tools and third-party apps.  We deliver: Project health and sprint velocity reports  SLA and customer satisfaction dashboards (JSM)  Agile burndown/burnup reports  Executive and team-level dashboards  Custom JQL-based filters  9. Ongoing Support and Maintenance We offer proactive support and long-term maintenance of your Atlassian tools, including patching, license management, user training, and continuous improvement.  Support scope includes: L1–L3 admin and functional support  Backup and recovery management  Upgrade planning and testing  Regular health checks and usage reports  User enablement sessions and documentation  Why Choose Atlassian Managed Services? 1. Save Time and Resources Managing complex Atlassian environments internally can drain valuable time from IT and development teams. By outsourcing to managed service providers, your team can focus on innovation, product development, and customer success, while certified experts take care of tool maintenance, upgrades, and support.  2. Expert Support & Governance Atlassian partners and certified administrators have deep product expertise and experience across industries. They follow proven governance frameworks to manage workflows, permissions, and compliance. This leads to more reliable tool performance, fewer incidents, and better user adoption across teams.  3. Scalability Whether you’re onboarding 10 users or 10,000, Atlassian Managed Services offer the flexibility and infrastructure needed to grow without performance issues or mismanagement. Managed providers ensure your Jira, Confluence, and Bitbucket instances evolve in line with your business expansion.  4. Compliance & Security Managed providers follow strict protocols to ensure your Atlassian environment complies with industry-specific regulations such as ISO 27001, SOC 2, HIPAA, and GDPR. They proactively manage user access, data protection, encryption, and audit trails, reducing risk and building trust with stakeholders.  5. Cost Efficiency Maintaining an in-house team for tool administration can be expensive, especially when spread across multiple tools and projects. Atlassian Managed Services offer predictable pricing, reduce the need for on-site expertise, and prevent costly errors from misconfigurations or downtime. The result: lower total cost of ownership and higher ROI.**  Reduce the overhead of maintaining full-time tool admins or dealing with avoidable misconfigurations.  Jira Management – Central to Atlassian Services Jira Software Management Jira Software is the backbone of agile project tracking. Through Atlassian Managed Services, teams receive hands-on support in configuring and optimizing Scrum and Kanban boards, managing backlogs, setting up sprints, and establishing best practices for Agile delivery. Service providers ensure alignment between business goals and tool usage.  Key offerings include: Custom project templates and workflows for different departments  Sprint planning configuration using story points or time estimates  Real-time Agile board setup with filters and… Continue reading Atlassian Managed Services: Complete Guide for Teams

Embedded DevOps: Streamlining Embedded Software Development with CI/CD and Automation

Guides Home / Page Embedded DevOps: Streamlining Embedded Software Development with CI/CD and Automation Table of Contents What is Embedded DevOps? Embedded DevOps brings DevOps principles—automation, continuous integration/deployment (CI/CD), version control, and collaboration—to embedded systems that combine hardware, firmware, and software components. It enables teams to treat embedded firmware, drivers, OS patches, and board support packages (BSP) with the same agility and reliability as cloud-native applications.  By adopting Embedded DevOps, organizations can reduce time to market, improve traceability, and manage compliance, all while maintaining hardware-software synergy.  Why Embedded DevOps is Different (Hardware + Software + Compliance) Embedded DevOps introduces unique challenges and complexities that set it apart from traditional DevOps implementations. Unlike cloud-native or enterprise software, embedded systems must interact tightly with physical hardware, follow stringent compliance protocols, and handle software that’s often coupled with firmware or real-time systems.  Here’s a deeper look into what makes Embedded DevOps different:  1. Hardware Variation and Physical Dependencies Unlike traditional applications that run in virtualized or containerized environments, embedded systems operate on diverse hardware platforms—ranging from custom boards and sensors to SoCs and microcontrollers. This introduces critical challenges:  Device-specific testing: Each hardware variant may require its own test configuration or build environment.  Simulators vs real hardware: While simulators can support early testing, real hardware is required for validation, especially for performance, power usage, and integration testing.  Long hardware procurement cycles: Hardware availability and lead times can delay automation efforts and CI/CD pipeline stability.  👉 Impact: Automation must handle hardware availability, version differences, and physical lab integration, often requiring hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) setups.  2. Firmware and Software Coupling Embedded software is tightly coupled with firmware, bootloaders, real-time operating systems (RTOS), and hardware abstraction layers. Any change in one component can impact multiple layers.  Dependency management: Updates to firmware or hardware drivers require regression testing across the stack.  Real-time constraints: Timing issues or latency changes due to DevOps automation can cause functional errors in production systems.  Binary compatibility: Different compilers, toolchains, or cross-compilation settings must produce optimized code that runs reliably on constrained hardware.  👉 Impact: Continuous integration pipelines must coordinate firmware builds, runtime validation, and dependency checks across interconnected layers.  3. Compliance and Certification Requirements Many embedded applications serve industries with strict safety, quality, and traceability requirements:  Automotive – ISO 26262 (Functional Safety)  Medical – IEC 62304, ISO 13485  Aerospace/Avionics – DO-178C, ARP4754  Industrial automation – IEC 61508  These standards require rigorous documentation, process traceability, and evidence of systematic testing.  Every commit must be traceable to a requirement or change request.  Testing artifacts must be version-controlled and linked to the release lifecycle.  Audit readiness must be maintained for external assessments or regulatory inspections.  👉 Impact: DevOps processes in embedded must include automated test evidence generation, change impact analysis, traceability matrices, and compliance audit support tools.  4. Toolchain and Environment Complexity The toolchains for embedded software are often heterogeneous and customized:  Cross-compilation is the norm, requiring compilers for specific chip architectures.  Flashing firmware or performing over-the-air (OTA) updates adds physical interaction to the deployment pipeline.  Hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testing involves running automated tests against real hardware in controlled conditions.  Version drift among IDEs, SDKs, and debugging tools can break pipeline reliability.  👉 Impact: DevOps pipelines must manage multiple SDKs, chip toolchains, emulator configurations, and test runners—often without standardization across teams.  5. Hybrid Nature of Embedded Systems (Hardware + Software) Embedded systems live at the intersection of software and physical behavior. This dual nature means:  Bugs may originate in mechanical, electronic, or software domains.  Test results may vary depending on environmental conditions (e.g., temperature, voltage fluctuations).  Monitoring and observability are more difficult than with cloud-native apps, due to limited logging/storage capabilities on devices.  👉 Impact: Embedded DevOps needs better observability, robust rollback mechanisms, and cross-disciplinary collaboration between hardware and software engineers.  The Embedded Software Lifecycle and DevOps Automation Embedded software development follows a more hardware-bound and regulated path compared to standard software lifecycles. However, integrating DevOps principles into this lifecycle enables faster delivery, fewer errors, and traceable compliance—while also improving quality and reliability.  Let’s explore how the embedded software lifecycle looks when DevOps is embedded into each phase:  1. Requirements Control & Traceability In regulated industries like automotive, medtech, and avionics, requirements management is critical.  Use version-controlled tools (e.g., Polarion, Jama, DOORS) to maintain requirements.  Link each requirement to specific commits, features, or test cases in your code repository.  Automate traceability reports that show how every requirement is implemented and verified.  ✅ DevOps Value: Full traceability ensures you can pass audits, reduce human error, and align development with safety or performance goals.  2. Code Integration for Embedded Firmware Embedded code typically includes a mix of:  C/C++ for firmware  RTOS configurations  Hardware Abstraction Layers (HALs)  Use Git-based workflows with:  Feature branching  Pull/merge requests  Peer code reviews  Static analysis integration (e.g., MISRA compliance checks)  ✅ DevOps Value: Ensures clean, secure, and standard-compliant codebases with collaborative development practices.  3. Automated Builds and Cross-Compilation Each change to the codebase can trigger automated builds for various hardware targets:  Use build automation tools like CMake, Yocto, or Bazel  Trigger CI pipelines (e.g., Jenkins, GitLab CI) on code commits  Cross-compile for different microcontroller architectures (ARM, RISC-V, etc.)  Include compiler warnings, memory maps, and build logs as pipeline artifacts  ✅ DevOps Value: Removes manual build steps, ensures repeatability, and speeds up feedback cycles.  4. Firmware Packaging and Versioning After a successful build:  Package firmware into formats like .bin, .hex, or OTA update files  Embed metadata such as firmware version, hardware target, build timestamp, and checksums  Store versioned artifacts in an artifact repository (e.g., Artifactory, S3, Nexus)  ✅ DevOps Value: Ensures reliable, traceable, and secure firmware distribution ready for deployment.  5. Automated Flashing on Devices or Simulators Rather than manually flashing boards:  Use test rigs with USB/serial/JTAG interfaces to deploy firmware automatically  Integrate with simulators/emulators for rapid firmware validation  Automate flashing as part of the CI/CD pipeline  ✅ DevOps Value: Speeds up deployment across hardware and removes manual intervention, reducing the risk of bricking devices.  6. Automated Testing: Unit to HIL Testing in embedded systems must… Continue reading Embedded DevOps: Streamlining Embedded Software Development with CI/CD and Automation