Do you find yourself doing big releases to try and fit in more feature work into your SaaS LMS? Perhaps your developers are working out of office hours to accommodate Moodle being offline? Or do you find bug fixes time-consuming? Did you know Continuous Integration as a Service (CIaaS) can help you overcome these issues? Learn more about what CIaaS is below.
What is Continuous Integration (CI)?
Continuous Integration (CI) is a method in software development that makes testing, building, and deploying easier. CIaaS allows smaller releases, so there are quicker fixes or feature rollouts to your SaaS LMS. Developers get fast feedback on their work from their automated tests which speeds up the development process.
Why would you use CIaaS?
Going back to those questions we asked at the start of the blog post, if you answered yes to them. CIaaS will help. Because it allows you to make the smaller releases, quicker fixes and faster rollouts your learners aren’t interrupted in class due to ongoing maintenance, as updates only take a matter of seconds.
Additionally, partnering with Catalyst who provides CIaaS means your in-house technical team no longer needs to be on call. So say goodbye to your developers working long nights. Basically, we can allow automatic deployments at any time. This means our developers will complete patches, releases, and maintenance, and be ready to get to the root cause of problems when they creep up. Plus, due to the automated tests in CIaaS, bugs are picked up quicker, so if a bug is found, it’s not released. This means your learners don’t have to work around any bugs that otherwise may have fallen through the cracks. And they don’t need to wait until another big release for the bug to be resolved. Because of the small regular changes to the code, it’s easier for our developers to work on fixing bugs as they don’t need to dig through irrelevant parts of code. With the added benefit of the bug not being live in your SaaS LMS.
CIaaS works across a number of platforms including SaaS LMSs Moodle and Tōtara, as well as Mahara.
Why is a CI system an essential part of SaaS (software as a service)?
Now, let’s look at why a CI system and SaaS (software as a service) connect with each other. SaaS is a cloud-based subscription that is accessible online without having to download anything. Beginning in 1991, only small start-ups used SaaS. Today, everyone from start-ups to tech giants use SaaS. Plus, a lot of our everyday software is SaaS, including Moodle and Tōtara which are examples of a SaaS LMS.
So, how does CI link to SaaS? A CI system is an essential part of SaaS software because:
- It helps developers, security, and operations to be efficient and effective.
- It decreases manual and time-consuming work.
Essentially, a CI system increases productivity and workflows by freeing you up from manual and chunky tasks in your software.
Who hosts your LMS when you use CIaaS?
The ball is in your court. Whether you’re self hosting your LMS or using a cloud provider CIaaS is equally effective wherever your LMS is hosted. For example, you might host on cloud providers, like Catalyst Cloud or it could be Data Centre, or even on prem.
If you don’t have the in-house expertise to host and maintain your Moodle, we can host your LMS for you.
Expert support for your LMS
Catalyst has over 20 years of experience with LMSs, and in 2023, our team earned the Moodle ‘Global Partner of the Year’ and ‘LMS Partner of the Year'. Additionally, we are a Tōtara platinum partner so, you can trust your LMS is in safe hands with our service. We partner with some of the largest and most renowned tertiary institutes globally, so we know how important it is to deliver quality to your LMS updates. Contact us to learn more about Continuous Integration as a Service and how we can support your LMS today.