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Paying Technical Debt at Scale: Migrations @ Stripe

Will Larson

@lethain

QCon SF

11/6/2018

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Tech debt:

core constraint on your velocity.

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Migration:

fully replacing a tool, system or library.

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Approach:

treat every migration like a product.

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What is a migration?

Do migrations matter?

Effective migrations!

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CC image courtesy of harshilshah on Flickr

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Migration:

fully replacing a tool, system or library.

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Migration:

fully replacing a tool, system or library.

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What is a migration?

Do migrations matter?

Effective migrations!

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So now you’re busy...

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...and it gets worse!

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Hyperbahn.

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Teams bet on migrations.

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Digg v4.

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So... do migrations matter?

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Yes.

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Quick aside: interfaces!

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What is a migration?

Do migrations matter?

Effective migrations!

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Every migration is a product.

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Effective migrations!

Derisk.

Enable.

Finish.

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Place good bets.

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1) Is this worth doing?

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Find sponsor.

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Opportunity cost.

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Not invented here.

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Not invented here.

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Hammer looking for a nail.

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Hammer looking for a nail.

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2) Will it work?

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Design document.

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Prototype.

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Embed with early adopters.

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One easy, then hard.

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Effective migrations!

Derisk.

Enable.

Finish.

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User testing.

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User testing: interfaces.

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User testing: documentation.

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User testing: operations.

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User testing: debugging.

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Slow down to go fast.

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Self-service.

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Automate the migration.

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Incremental and reversible tools.

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Dark launch.

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Interfaces.

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Effective migrations!

Derisk.

Enable.

Finish.

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100%

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Stop the bleeding.

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µContainer.

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Tracking.

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Tracking: tickets.

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Tracking: reports.

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Tracking: nudges.

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Finish it yourself.

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Celebrate when it’s over.

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What is a migration?

Do migrations matter?

Effective migrations!

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Tech debt:

core constraint on your velocity.

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Migration:

only way to pay tech debt at scale.

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Approach:

treat every migration like a product.

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Q&A

@lethain

https://lethain.com