Deployment vs Release: What’s The Difference?

When we talk about deployment vs release in software development, the terms often get mixed up. However, understanding the distinction is key to mastering release and deployment management. So, let’s explore what each term means and why they matter.

What is Deployment?

Deployment refers to the technical aspects of moving software from one environment to another, such as from development to testing or from testing to production. Think of it as setting the stage for your software to be used. The software might be in production, but it isn’t available to users yet. This step is important because it ensures that the software is correctly installed and configured in its new environment.

Deployment involves several steps:   

1. Preparation: Ensuring the environment is ready for the new software.
2. Installation: Copying the software to the target environment.
3. Configuration: Setting up the software to work in its new environment.
4. Verification: Testing to make sure everything is working as expected (smoke tests).

Consistent and well-managed deployment is vital because it ensures that each environment (development, testing, production) has the software configured correctly. This consistency helps to avoid issues that might arise from different setups.

Understanding deployment is essential, but it’s equally important to know why we do it.

Why is Deployment Important?

You might be wondering why deployment matters so much. Here are a few reasons:

• Consistency: Ensures that the software behaves the same in every environment.
• Error Reduction: Minimizes errors by automating repetitive tasks.
• Efficiency: Speeds up the process of moving software through different environments.

Now that we understand why deployment is important, it’s time to move on to the concept of releasing software.

What is Releasing?

Releasing is about making the deployed software available to users. It's the final step in the software delivery process where the software goes live. Release management includes planning, scheduling, and controlling the movement of releases to test and live environments.

Releasing involves:

1. Planning: Deciding what will be released and when.
2. Communication: Informing stakeholders about the release.
3. Monitoring: Ensuring the release goes smoothly and addressing any issues that arise.

Effective release management ensures that users get the features and fixes they need without disrupting their experience.

We’ve defined deployment and release, you might be wondering how they differ from each other.

Deployment vs Release: The Key Differences

The main difference between deployment vs release is the focus and timing. Deployment is about setting up the software in the correct environment and technically ensuring it is ready to be used. While the release is about making it available to end-users. In this sense, deployment on the different test and production environments comes first, and release is the final step in the process.

Here’s a simple way to remember:

• Deployment: The software is ready but not yet available to users.
• Release: The software is now available to users.

This distinction is important because you can deploy multiple times without releasing. For instance, you might deploy to a staging environment for testing several times before you release the final version to users.

Understanding the key differences is just the beginning. Next, let’s look at how deployment and release processes work together to deliver software effectively.

How Deployment and Release Work Together

Deployment and release are closely linked in the software development environment. Effective deployment makes releasing smoother and more predictable. By automating deployment processes, you reduce the risk of errors and make the release process more reliable.

Imagine you’re a chef preparing a meal (deployment). You set up your kitchen, get all the ingredients ready, and cook the dishes. However, the meal isn’t served to the guests until everything is perfect and ready to go (release). The better you prepare (deploy), the smoother the serving process (release) will be.

Having a smooth deployment and release process is great, but how do you ensure it stays that way?

Best Practices for Deployment and Release Management

To make sure your deployment and release processes are effective, here are some best practices to follow:

Following these best practices is essential, but advanced strategies can further enhance your deployment and release processes.

Advanced Strategies for Deployment and Release

To further improve your deployment and release management, consider implementing these advanced strategies:

Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CI/CD)

CI/CD automates the deployment process, ensuring that code changes are automatically tested and deployed to production. This approach reduces manual errors and speeds up the delivery process.

Feature Toggles

Feature toggles allow you to deploy new features to production but control their availability to users. This way, you can test new features in a live environment without affecting all users.

Canary Releases

A canary release is a strategy where you deploy a new software version to a small subset of users before rolling it out to the entire user base. This approach helps identify any issues in the new release before it affects all users.

Having the right tools can make these strategies even more effective. Let’s look at a tool that can help streamline your deployment and release processes.

To learn about all deployment strategies, read our dedicated article.

Using Apwide Golive for Deployment and Release Management

Managing deployment and release processes can be complex, but tools like Apwide Golive make it easier. Apwide Golive is a powerful app for Jira that helps streamline release and deployment management. Following ITIL best practices, it provides features like environment booking, deployment tracking, and automated notifications, ensuring that your software delivery is efficient and reliable.

With Apwide Golive, you can:

• Track Deployments: Keep an eye on what’s deployed where and when.
• Automate Environment Booking: Reserve environments for deployments with just a few clicks in Jira. Your deployment requests are approved or rejected automatically based on custom conflict detection rules. Dependent environments can also be booked by the engine.
• Send Automated Notifications: Keep your team informed about deployment and release statuses.

Apwide Golive helps bridge the gap between deployment vs release by providing tools for effective management, visualization, and control. It ensures that deployments are executed smoothly and that releases are well-coordinated, leading to a better understanding and handling of both processes.

Next steps

Distinguishing between deployment vs release helps you manage the software delivery lifecycle more effectively, improve risk management, and enhance operational efficiency. It ensures that code changes are introduced in a controlled manner and that new features meet user expectations and business goals.

Managing both processes well helps enhance consistency, reduce errors, and improve the user experience. Tools like Apwide Golive can assist by optimizing the efficiency of deployment and release management.