Application lifecycle management (ALM) with Microsoft Power Platform

What is ALM?

Imagine this scenario: You're in the driver's seat, creating a top-notch business app using the Microsoft Power Platform. Your customizations are on point, but just as you rev up for deployment, a curveball appears. Your tester spots a functionality gap, or worse, a vital feature is missing in production. The journey between these environments is anything but smooth sailing.

If this story resonates, you're not alone. For Power Platform developers, nailing down a robust Application Lifecycle Management (ALM) process is the key to mastering app creation and deployment. Let's unravel the Power Platform ALM saga and explore how it can transform your app development journey.

Decoding ALM in Power Platform

Application Lifecycle Management, (ALM) isn't just a tech buzzword—it's your roadmap for the entire lifecycle of a custom app. While ALM is a term thrown around in various domains, its true essence thrives within the Power Platform ecosystem.

In plain language, Power Platform ALM encapsulates all the moves, shakes, and tweaks involved in managing an app from inception to deployment and beyond. 

As Microsoft puts it "ALM is the lifecycle management of applications, including governance, development, and maintenance. Moreover, it includes these disciplines: requirements management, software architecture, development, testing, maintenance, change management, support, continuous integration, project management, deployment, release management, and governance."

Key Areas of ALM

1. Governance: Navigating the App Ecosystem
   
   • Encompasses requirements management, resource management, and system administration.
   • Safeguards data security, controls user access, and ensures airtight change tracking and deployment controls.
2. Application Development: Crafting Solutions That Shine
   
   • Identifies challenges and strategizes solutions for a seamless app experience.
   • Involves planning, design, building, and the continuous enhancement of your application.
3. Maintenance: Ensuring the App's Longevity
   
   • Focuses on deploying the app and managing optional and dependent technologies.
   • Guarantees the continuous health and adaptability of your application.

Why ALM Matters

• Client Satisfaction on Point:
  
  • ALM ensures promises are not just made but consistently delivered, resulting in applications clients adore.
• Team Harmony:
  
  • Acts as the maestro in collaboration between developers and decision-makers, yielding solutions perfectly aligned with client needs.
• Applications That Stand the Test of Time:
  
  • Guards ongoing maintenance, ensuring applications shine not just on the first day but throughout their lifecycle.

ALM in the Power Platform Realm

Concepts for a Deeper Understanding:

1. Solutions:
   
   • Solutions act as the linchpin for ALM, facilitating the distribution of components across environments through export and import.
   • Components, representing application artifacts, include tables, columns, canvas, and model-driven apps, Power Automate flows, chatbots, charts, and plug-ins.
2. Dataverse:
   
   • Dataverse serves as the secure repository for storing and managing data and processes crucial for business applications.
   • A Dataverse database becomes a prerequisite for all environments participating in ALM within the Power Platform.
3. Source Control:
   
   • Stands as the unerring source of truth for storing and collaborating on application components.
      
4. CI/CD Platform Integration:
   
   • Continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) platforms, such as Azure DevOps, become the heartbeat of ALM.
   • These platforms automate the build, test, and deployment pipeline, seamlessly integrating with in-product pipelines.

In this article, we've brushed on the overview of ALM. Stay tuned for our future articles, where we delve deeper into the basics of ALM, unlocking its full potential in your Power Platform endeavors. Your journey to mastering ALM has just begun!