Background: A leading fintech company in Switzerland aimed to digitalize Swiss assets through a blockchain-like method while enhancing its cloud infrastructure. The objective was to establish advanced OpenShift environments on Azure, leveraging cutting-edge technologies to support the company’s innovative blockchain initiatives.
Project Objectives:
- Establish multiple staged OpenShift environments on Azure.
- Implement a smart, high-performance CI/CD pipeline to support blockchain-based digitalization of Swiss assets.
- Ensure high performance, flexibility, error reconciliation, and secure secret management.
- Adhere to agile SaFE methodology for efficient project management.
Tools and Technologies Used:
- CI/CD Setup: GitLab Ultimate tier, JFrog Artifactory, HashiCorp Vault
- Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Terraform, Ansible
- Configuration Management: Puppet, Ansible
- Operating System: Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) UBI containers
- Blockchain Framework: Kotlin/Corda
- Web Development: Node.js, Angular
- Continuous Delivery: ArgoCD
- Cloud Platform: Azure
- Project Management: Jira
- Documentation: Confluence
- Additional Tools: Custom smart GitLab runners, other relevant technologies
Project Execution: The project commenced with a core team of two experts, who were later joined by an additional engineer employed by the client. This initial team meticulously built the environments from scratch using Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools, Terraform, and Ansible. Custom smart GitLab runners were crafted to address the client’s specific requirements for high performance, flexibility, error reconciliation, and secure secret management.
Running on RHEL UBI containers and leveraging the Kotlin/Corda blockchain framework, the project emphasized the digitalization of Swiss assets. The smart and high-performance CI/CD pipeline was designed to support the heavy DevSecOps nature of the initiative, incorporating performance (non-functional) metrics to ensure optimal operation.
During the project, the team expanded to include two more architects/engineers/experts, with the total team eventually growing to about 10 people from various companies. The combined team blended seamlessly with the client’s engineers and personnel, maintaining leading roles in the production structures. The initial team transitioned from a tiger team to structured Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) and IT platform teams, ensuring ongoing support and maintenance of the environments.
Project Management: The project adhered strictly to the agile SaFE methodology, utilizing Jira for project management and Confluence for documentation. Regular sprints, continuous feedback, and iterative improvements were key to the project’s success.
Outcomes and Benefits:
- The project achieved complete success, enhancing the company’s infrastructure and operational capabilities.
- The established environments continue to thrive, supporting blockchain-based digitalization projects and exchange markets in Switzerland and Spain.