Mastering DevOps: The Tao, Fa, Shu, Qi Framework for Efficient Delivery

Introduction

The article presents a systematic DevOps implementation framework called “Tao, Fa, Shu, Qi”, jointly released by the Efficient Operations Community and DevOps Era Community. Its goal is to help practitioners adopt and practice DevOps more effectively.

VUCA and Software Delivery

Modern software delivery operates in a VUCA environment—Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity. User needs are often unclear before a product is released, and only after release do users realize what they do not want. Therefore, continuous iteration in an uncertain environment is essential.

Four Dimensions of Software Architecture

Three technical dimensions shape software delivery:

Application Architecture : From monolithic to N‑tier to micro‑services, emphasizing single responsibility and independent development, testing, deployment, and release.

Deployment & Packaging Model : Evolution from physical machines to virtual machines to containers, moving from delivering a runnable program to delivering a fully operational system.

Infrastructure Foundations : From data‑center focus to host hosting to cloud migration.

Correspondingly, software delivery management has evolved from heavyweight, process‑centric methods of the 1960s‑70s to agile, iterative, incremental delivery in the internet era.

DevOps Overview

DevOps aims to fuse development and operations to improve delivery efficiency while maintaining quality. Data from Gartner and a 2017 DevOps State Survey show that DevOps has moved from a concept to a widely accepted practice, with adoption rates rising from 16% in 2014 to 27% in recent years.

High‑performance organizations achieve multiple‑fold improvements in productivity and stability, such as dozens‑times faster release frequency and dramatically lower failure rates.

DevOps “Tao, Fa, Shu, Qi” Framework

The framework defines four hierarchical layers:

“Tao” (Purpose) : Deliver value quickly and respond flexibly to change. Emphasize end‑to‑end value delivery and break down the entire IT delivery chain. “Fa” (Strategy) : Integrate agile development and efficient operations through a combination of methods—agile, continuous delivery, lean, ITSM—and align them with overall business goals. “Shu” (Tactics) : Apply concrete technologies and best practices across management and engineering dimensions, such as user story mapping, agile metrics (burn‑down, cumulative flow, scatter plots), continuous integration, automated testing, infrastructure‑as‑code, and immutable servers. “Qi” (Tools) : Consolidate the above methods and practices into toolchains that automate, monitor, and orchestrate the entire delivery pipeline.

“Tao” Details

Focus on rapid value delivery, end‑to‑end automation, and building a highly automated IT service supply chain.

“Fa” Details

Emphasize global integration of agile and operations, leveraging methods such as lean, continuous delivery, and ITSM, and highlight the importance of change leadership.

“Shu” Details

Systematically apply management and engineering practices, including user story mapping, agile metrics, continuous integration, automated testing, and infrastructure automation.

“Qi” Details

Implement an open‑source end‑to‑end delivery pipeline (V1.0 and V2.0) that integrates tools such as GitLab, Jenkins/Blue Ocean, Maven, Sonar, Selenium, JMeter, Harbor, Ansible/SaltStack, and Kubernetes/Mesos, supporting multi‑language apps, automated configuration, and one‑click tool integration.