DEV Community

From developer to (solutions) architect. A simple guide.

Natalia Venditto on July 21, 2021

So you don't have formal CS education and have been doing development for some years, or you are a junior but your manager has already asked you wh...
Collapse
 
crongm profile image
Carlos Garcia ★

Great read and guide. As a developer who's looking into the next steep in my career I had a rough idea of the skills needed for a position in both Software and Solutions Architect, but reading your article and the actual topics I should look into will be definitely helpful.

The topic that stresses me the most is on security, as I believe that's where most of the risk of implementing a new system comes from. How do you prepare to mitigate such risks, and how much do you need the assistance of someone who specializes in security?

Collapse
 
anfibiacreativa profile image
Natalia Venditto • Edited

Hello Carlos, thank you for your comment! Security is indeed one of the most important aspects of system design, but you should not stress. First of all, you need to separate concerns. Security implementation is different at every level (ie: application, vs data on the wire.) And every one of those layers have their own mechanisms. Some are protocol dependent, and some are internet standards (like TLS/SSL) that you don't need to worry about anymore, because it is a de-facto. If your infra is on the cloud, providers already offer security oriented options to seal your system. The most dangerous and difficult to mitigate are the vulnerabilities that use the supply chain as vector. Start by taking a look at owasp.org/ but also keep in mind that as an Architect, you're not alone: there are infosec experts to cover this topic. And many offer resources online for free, to advise on how to secure specific components: ie: containers, etc.

Collapse
 
mteheran profile image
Miguel Teheran

I am solutions architect and I need to learn some additional things.
I suggest to add some other topics:

  • Cost optimization (cloud)
  • Design patterns (specially cloud docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/arc... )
  • Cost and time estimation
  • Sometimes Scrum and agile to lead teams is important as well

Thanks for this article.

Collapse
 
olivia578 profile image
Olivia Anderson

Fantastic read! Your journey from developer to solutions architect is truly insightful, and your emphasis on continuous learning and soft skills resonates. Could you delve deeper into what does a solutions architect do, and perhaps share a specific challenge you encountered in your transition that others can learn from?

Collapse
 
connect2satyam profile image
SATYANARAYANA DEVI

This is awesome 😎

Collapse
 
arung86 profile image
Arun Kumar G

nice article, expect more like this.

Collapse
 
anfibiacreativa profile image
Natalia Venditto

Thank you!

Collapse
 
zachjonesnoel profile image
Jones Zachariah Noel

Beautiful read. Very inspiring and very much a "roadmap" for aspiring SAs.

Collapse
 
anfibiacreativa profile image
Natalia Venditto

Thank you, Jones! <3

Collapse
 
divine1 profile image
Divine C

Very informative, thank you

Collapse
 
jhasme profile image
Jerry

Great article! Thanks.