In this post I want to cover reasons to learn GitHub if using Azure DevOps. Because I think it is an important topic to cover.
I want to give people food for thought in this post. However, I do have other reasons as well. One of which I will cover later in this post.
Those wondering if they need to know anything about either can read my post about the increase in demand for Data Platform automation first.
Because the expectations for a lot of technical professionals to have some knowledge of either product is growing. Even if it’s just knowledge about working with Git repositories, which you can do in both.
Reasons to learn GitHub if using Azure DevOps
A lot of people tend to view Azure DevOps as a popular solution to use within the enterprise. Whereas a lot of people view GitHub as a popular offering for open-source solutions. For example, the popular dbatools PowerShell module.
However, there is a lot more to GitHub then just somewhere to store Git repositories. Which is visible for anybody who has seen the recent announcements for new features. Such as GitHub Codespaces and GitHub Issues.
Some of these features are similar to what you can do in Azure DevOps. For example, GitHub Actions allows you to do CI/CD deployments using YAML. So, if you have been using Azure Pipelines you can transfer your knowledge over to GitHub Actions.
Knowing both can prove to be very useful. Especially if you have clients that use one product or the other. Plus, it allows you to use the skills you gained using Azure DevOps to share open-source solutions with others in GitHub.
I found this a very useful thing to do and because I have done this I am able to share templates publicly with others. Like the one below that contains a template people can use to do Azure SQL Database deployments using GitHub Actions, called GitHub-AzureSQLDatabase.
Even if you only transfer your knowledge over now for personal use it can be useful in the future. Because GitHub products are now becoming more popular within companies.
GitHub in the enterprise
A while ago I wrote post about the increase in demand for Data Platform automation. Which caused a bit of excitement with some people because I highlighted the increase in demand for CI/CD practices. Like the example below for database updates.
Due to this increase in demand more companies are investing in offerings like Azure DevOps and GitHub at scale. Some of you have probably just read that and are wondering how companies can invest in the same GitHub that people use to share open-source solutions?
Well, the reality is that even though a lot of people use a free version of GitHub there are other GitHub products available that are classed as enterprise ready. Such as GitHub Enterprise, which is becoming a popular choice for companies.
Which brings me to one very important reason why you might want to learn GitHub if you are already using Azure DevOps. Because at some stage you may decide to make a career choice to move elsewhere that is using GitHub instead.
PASS Data Community Summit
One other reason I want to cover this post now is because this week you can watch a pre-recorded session that myself and Sander Stad did for PASS Data Community Summit.
It is called ‘Duet About Which Parts of Azure DevOps and GitHub to Use Together’. Where we show some Azure DevOps and GitHub features. Because this too can happen in companies for various reasons.
We are also doing a live Q & A about it on Wednesday November 10 at 15:30 Central European Time (CET). So, you can attend and ask us questions there as well. In addition, there are also other sessions relating to this post shown during the event as well.
Final words about reasons to learn GitHub if using Azure DevOps
I hope my reasons to learn GitHub if using Azure DevOps has given some of you food for thought.
I realize a lot of people use Azure DevOps. However, I really do think it is useful to learn GitHub features as well.
Of course, if you have any comments or queries about this post feel free to reach out to me.
Be First to Comment