Zero-Touch Delivery: Coupling CI/CD Pipelines with Mobile Device Management for Fleet-Scale Enterprise App Rollouts
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15680/IJCTECE.2020.0303006Keywords:
Zero-Touch Delivery, CI/CD Pipelines, Mobile Device Management (MDM), Enterprise App Deployment, Automated Rollback, Staged Rollout, Fleet-Scale AutomationAbstract
Enterprise organizations operating device fleets numbering in the thousands or tens of thousands face a persistent operational gap between how quickly software can be built and tested through a continuous integration and continuous delivery pipeline and how slowly that same software historically reaches end user devices once mobile device management enrollment, compliance policy evaluation, and staged distribution are taken into account. This research article examines zero touch delivery, an architectural pattern that couples CI/CD pipelines directly with mobile device management platforms so that an approved application build can flow from source control commit to fleet wide device availability with minimal or no manual intervention at any handoff point.
The article reviews the enrollment mechanisms that make zero touch device provisioning possible, the pipeline stages required to build, sign, and package enterprise mobile applications, the integration points between pipeline orchestration tools and mobile device management application push mechanisms, and the staged rollout ring strategies used to contain risk during fleet scale distribution. It presents illustrative benchmark data on pipeline stage timing, rollout ring sizing, and rollback response, and discusses governance, security, and change management considerations relevant to organizations adopting this pattern.
· Illustrative benchmark fleets discussed in this article range from approximately 2,000 to 50,000 managed devices, representative of large retail, healthcare, and field service deployments.
· Manual app distribution processes have historically required 3 to 10 business days from build approval to full fleet availability in comparable enterprise environments.
· Zero touch delivery pipelines discussed in this article target full fleet availability within 24 to 72 hours of build approval, depending on ring configuration and compliance gate strictness.
· Typical CI/CD pipeline build and test stages for a midsized enterprise mobile application complete in 8 to 25 minutes per build under normal load.
References
1. Duvall, P.M., Matyas, S., and Glover, A. Continuous Integration: Improving Software Quality and Reducing Risk. Addison-Wesley, 2007.
2. Forsgren, N., Humble, J., and Kim, G. Accelerate: The Science of Lean Software and DevOps: Building and Scaling High Performing Technology Organizations. IT Revolution Press, 2018.
3. Fowler, M. Continuous Integration. ThoughtWorks Technical Articles, 2006.
4. Gartner. Magic Quadrant for Unified Endpoint Management Tools. Gartner Inc., 2019.
5. Google. Building Secure and Reliable Systems: Best Practices for Designing, Implementing, and Maintaining Systems. O'Reilly Media, 2020.
6. Humble, J., and Farley, D. Continuous Delivery: Reliable Software Releases through Build, Test, and Deployment Automation. Addison-Wesley, 2010.
7. IDC. Worldwide Unified Endpoint Management Software Market Shares. International Data Corporation, 2019.
8. Kim, G., Humble, J., Debois, P., and Willis, J. The DevOps Handbook: How to Create World-Class Agility, Reliability, and Security in Technology Organizations. IT Revolution Press, 2016.
9. National Institute of Standards and Technology. Guidelines for Managing the Security of Mobile Devices in the Enterprise. NIST Special Publication 800-124 Revision 1, 2013.
10. National Institute of Standards and Technology. Mobile Device Security: Bring Your Own Device. NIST Special Publication 1800-4, 2019.
11. Open Web Application Security Project. Mobile Security Testing Guide. OWASP Foundation, 2019.
12. Ponemon Institute. The Cost of Insecure Mobile Devices in the Workplace. Ponemon Institute Research Report, 2019.
13. Research and Markets. Enterprise Mobility Management Market: Global Forecast. Industry Market Analysis Report, 2019.
