Canary Deployments

Canary deployments are a technique used in software development and operations to reduce risk when introducing a new version of an application. This method allows a small subset of users to experience the new version while the majority continue to use the stable version.

• **Canary Release**: A small, incremental release of a version to a subset of users.
• **Traffic Routing**: The method of directing a portion of user traffic to the new version.
• **Monitoring**: Observing the performance and user feedback during the deployment.

Below is a general workflow for executing a canary deployment:

graph TD;
    A[Start Canary Deployment] --> B[Deploy New Version to Small Subset];
    B --> C[Route Traffic to New Version];
    C --> D[Monitor Performance and Feedback];
    D -->|If Successful| E[Roll Out to More Users];
    D -->|If Issues Detected| F[Roll Back Changes];
            

• Limit the percentage of users exposed to the new version initially (e.g., 5-10%).
• Implement robust monitoring to catch issues quickly.
• Have a rollback plan ready in case of failure.
• Gradually increase traffic to the new version based on performance metrics.
• Collect user feedback to assess satisfaction.