DORA metrics, also known as DevOps Research and Assessment metrics, are a set of key performance indicators (KPIs) used to measure the effectiveness of DevOps practices within an organization. These metrics were developed by the DevOps Research and Assessment (DORA) team, now part of Google Cloud, based on extensive research and empirical studies.
The four primary DORA metrics are:
Lead Time for Changes: This metric measures the time it takes for code changes to be implemented and deployed into production. It starts from the moment a developer commits a change to version control and ends when the change is successfully deployed and running in the production environment.
Deployment Frequency: Deployment frequency measures how often code changes are deployed to production. It provides insight into the speed and agility of the development and deployment processes.
Mean Time to Restore (MTTR): MTTR measures the average time it takes to recover from incidents or outages in the production environment. It reflects the organization’s ability to detect and respond to issues quickly, minimizing downtime and impact on users.
Change Failure Rate: This metric quantifies the percentage of code changes that result in a failure or require remediation after deployment to production. It helps assess the stability and reliability of the deployment process and the quality of the changes being introduced.
These DORA metrics are widely used by organizations to assess their DevOps maturity, identify areas for improvement, and track progress over time. By focusing on these key indicators, teams can optimize their software delivery processes, increase efficiency, and ultimately deliver more value to customers.