Guide · DevOps & Platform
DevOps for Solo Developers Checklist
Solo dev? You still need backups, logging, alerts, and rate limiting. Here's the minimum viable production checklist.
Solo delivery still needs Change Management and Platform Engineering minimums before production AI. Primary control: Platform Engineering
Solo doesn't mean "no ops"
Without a platform team you still need backups that restore, logs you can search, uptime and billing alerts, and rate limits. One solo founder shipped without all four; corruption, a bill spike, and a user bug each became a multi-week fire. The checklist below is the minimum that prevents that combo.
Five non-negotiables before paying users
1. Automated DB backups + a restore you've actually run
2. Structured logs with `request_id` → CloudWatch (or similar)
3. Budget alerts (50/80/100) + a 5-minute uptime check
4. Edge or Gateway rate limits (~100–500 req/min/IP)
5. Secrets only on the server—never in frontend JS
AWS RDS/CloudWatch/Budgets, UptimeRobot, and Cloudflare cover most of this on a solo budget. Run APRF Core Profile when you want gated confirmation you're not inventing a vanity score.
Platform habits without a platform team
APRF Change Management and Platform Engineering describe the same bar in framework language. Ship the five items first; polish CI later.
Next: Platform Engineering
Open the related pillar specification for mandatory checks, artifacts, and pass conditions. Self-attest is optional.
Related
Frequently asked questions
- What DevOps does a solo developer need?
- Minimum: backups, logging, billing alerts, uptime monitoring, rate limiting, keys in backend. Test restore quarterly. Confirm with Core Profile gates—not a vanity score.
- How do I do DevOps as a solo developer?
- Use managed services: AWS RDS backups, CloudWatch, Budgets, UptimeRobot, Cloudflare. Focus on automation. Pair with the free APRF Core Profile assessment for gated blockers.
- What is the minimum DevOps setup for SaaS?
- Backups, logging, billing alerts, uptime monitoring, rate limiting, keys in backend. Test restore quarterly. Confirm with Core Profile gates—not a vanity score.