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Learn about BlueXP workload factory for Builders

Contributors netapp-mwallis
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BlueXP workload factory for Builders is a rapid build environment creation tool for software builders. It enables fast setup of personal development environments, saving time and enabling self-service for developers while empowering DevOps teams to retain control of the infrastructure. Using Builders, software developers can quickly create workspaces without needing specialized data storage or understanding of the development infrastructure.

What is BlueXP workload factory for Builders?

BlueXP workload factory for Builders is designed to streamline the way developers manage and interact with different versions of their software. Builders integrates seamlessly with Perforce Helix Core to provide instant clones of software versions, creating ready-to-use workspaces for development, QA, and CI/CD processes.

With Builders, you can easily create a project and assign a volume that represents your software environment and its artifacts. As you update your software, you can take snapshots of the volume, capturing the state of your software at that moment. This means you can access any version of your software instantly without the need to resync with the version control system, saving valuable time and resources.

By leveraging ONTAP's snapshot and clone capabilities, Builders enhances your development workflow, allowing for rapid access to multiple versions of your software, accelerating development cycles, and helping to reduce time to market.

For more information about workload factory, refer to the workload factory overview.

BlueXP workload factory for Builders features

BlueXP workload factory for Builders offers the following features:

  • Create, edit, and remove projects

  • Create snapshots of defined software versions

  • Create, and delete workspaces (based on clones)

  • Create access policies to control access to a project

  • Analyze the capacity usage of each project

  • Control clone size limits and clone retention for each project

  • Integrate with version control systems such as Perforce

Projects and workspaces in Builders

When you use Builders, you create a project and assign a volume that represents your software environment and its artifacts. Each time that you create a new version of the software, you need resync the volume data and create a project snapshot to mark the volume state as a known version. The project source volume might get rolling updates and have multiple snapshots to mark multiple versions. You can use each snapshot immediately as an instant clone, a dedicated or shared editable repository available to developers, QA or build processes. A clone in the context of a specific software version is a workspace.

Operational modes in workload factory

Three different operational modes - basic, read and automate - offer flexible options for deployment inside and outside of workload factory. Gain immediate value at zero-trust in basic mode with code snippets for use outside workload factory. Get incremental value with incremental trust in read and automate modes.

Learn more about operational modes in workload factory.

Automation with workload factory Codebox

Workload factory introduces built-in automation with the Codebox. The Codebox offers the following automation benefits:

  • Code snippet generation: Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) snippets are generated during resource creation, enabling seamless integration with existing orchestration workflows.

  • Infrastructure-as-code co-pilot: the Codebox is an Infrastructure-as-code (IaC) co-pilot that helps developers and DevOps generate code to execute any operation supported by workload factory.

  • Code viewer and automation catalog: the Codebox provides a code viewer for quick analysis of automation and an automation catalog for quick future re-use.

Cost

There is no cost for using the Builders capability of workload factory.

Licensing

No special licenses are needed from NetApp to use the Builders capabilities of workload factory.

Supported regions

Builders is supported in all commercial regions where FSx for ONTAP is supported. View supported Amazon regions.

The following AWS regions aren't supported:

  • China regions

  • GovCloud (US) regions

  • Secret Cloud

  • Top Secret Cloud

Getting help

Amazon FSx for NetApp ONTAP is an AWS first-party solution. For questions or technical support issues associated with your FSx for ONTAP file system, infrastructure, or any solution using this service, use the Support Center in your AWS Management Console to open a support case with AWS. Select the “FSx for ONTAP” service and appropriate category. Provide the remaining information required to create your AWS support case.

For general questions about workload factory or workload factory applications and services, refer to Get help for Builders for workload factory.