How many of you thought that Chick-fil-A would have a tech blog? And how many of you thought that they would be clustering edge nodes at every store? When I read this article, I was surprised – and quite excited.
The basic use case is that every Chick-fil-A store needs to run certain basic management apps. These apps run at the edge but are connected to the central office. These apps include network and IT management stuff. But they also include some of the “mundane” back-office apps that keep a company going.
Routine stuff, right? But in the Chick-fil-A case, these apps/systems need to be remote and resilient. The hardware must be installed and maintained by non-technical (or semi-technical) employees (and/or contractors). If a node fails, the recovery must be as simple as unplugging the failed device and plugging in a replacement device. Similarly, the node enrollment, software distribution, and system recovery capabilities have to be automated – and flawless.
Here is where containers and Kubernetes enters the picture.
The secret to Chick-Fil-A’s success is the recipe that they use to assemble all of the parts into a yummy solution. The servers (i.e., Intel NUC devices) power up, download the relevant software, and join the local cluster. The most exciting part of this solution is its dependence upon commodity components and open source software to build a resilient platform for the company’s “secret sauce” (i.e., their proprietary apps).
The next time you go into a Chick-fil-A, remember that they are using leading-edge tech to ensure that you get the sandwich that you so desperately want to eat.