Tools: Running a Mini Sprint in Jira + Deploying a Website Update to AWS EC2 with Nginx (DevOps Workflow)

Project Summary ## What I shipped ## Tools Used ## Sprint Planning in Jira ## 1. Jira Workflow Setup ## Steps taken ## Sprint Goal ## 2. Creating Story + Subtasks ## Jira Story Created ## Subtasks Created (Day 1–Day 5) ## Sprint Execution (Day-by-Day Breakdown) ## Day 1 — Implement Footer & Deploy ## Git Workflow ## Footer Added (Static Version) ## Commit ## Day 2 — Make Deploy Date Dynamic ## Updated Footer Code ## JavaScript Logic ## Commit ## README Evidence Update ## Day 3 — Polish & Accessibility Improvements ## Improvements Made ## Example CSS Improvement ## Commit ## Day 4 — Homepage Tagline Update ## Updated HTML ## Commit ## Day 5 — Sprint Demo + Retro + Burndown ## Demo Evidence ## Retrospective Notes ## Sprint Reporting ## Daily Scrum Updates (Jira Comments) ## Example ## Git Commit History Tracking ## Commit Pattern Used ## Example History ## Deployment to AWS EC2 (Using SCP + Nginx) ## Step 1: Copy Files to EC2 ## Step 2: SSH into the Server ## Step 3: Replace Website Files in Nginx Web Root ## Step 4: Validate Nginx Configuration ## Step 5: Reload Nginx ## Verification Steps (Production-Style Checks) ## Checklist ## Burndown Report (Sprint Evidence) ## What the burndown helped me validate ## Lessons Learned ## Key takeaways ## Quick Recap (Summary) ## Final Thoughts In this article, I’ll walk you through how I executed a mini Agile sprint using Jira and shipped a real website improvement deployed to AWS EC2 using Nginx. This was a practical DevOps workflow that covered sprint planning, daily execution, Git version control, deployment, verification, and sprint reporting. 🔗 Repo: https://github.com/vivianokose/project-management-using-Jira.git 🌍 Live URL: http://54.91.12.141/ Goal: Deliver a visible website update and track the entire workflow using Jira Sprint management. I created a Jira project and ran a sprint using a structured Agile workflow: Ship a visible website footer (version + deploy date + author) and document progress daily. Summary: Add footer with version and deploy date Description: Footer should show version, deploy date, and author attribution. This helped me track progress like a real engineering sprint. bash git add . git commit -m "feat(footer): add version, deploy date, and author" Instead of hardcoding the date, I made the deploy date update automatically using JavaScript. bash git add . git commit -m "feat(footer): generate deploy date automatically" I updated README.md to include: This stage was focused on usability and accessibility. css footer { padding: 15px; font-size: 14px; text-align: center; color: #ffffff; background-color: #111; } bash git add . git commit -m "style(footer): improve spacing and accessibility" On the homepage, I replaced the existing tagline text with a Discord onboarding link. Join DMI Cohort 3 on Discord and start your DevOps journey bash git add . git commit -m "feat(homepage): update tagline with discord link" I recorded a short demo video showing: I generated the Burndown Report in Jira: Each day I updated the Jira story using the Daily Scrum format: text Yesterday: ... Today: ... Blockers: ... text Yesterday: Implemented footer and deployed to EC2. Today: Make deploy date dynamic and update README evidence. Blockers: None. This improved sprint clarity and made progress traceable. A key part of proof-based delivery is maintaining clear commit messages. bash git log --oneline Example output format: text a1b2c3d feat(footer): add version, deploy date, and author d4e5f6g feat(footer): generate deploy date automatically h7i8j9k style(footer): improve spacing and accessibility l0m1n2o feat(homepage): update tagline with discord link After each daily improvement, I deployed changes to EC2. bash scp -i your-key.pem -r . [email protected]:/tmp/portfolio bash ssh -i your-key.pem [email protected] bash sudo rm -rf /var/www/html/* sudo cp -r /tmp/portfolio/* /var/www/html/ bash sudo systemctl reload nginx After every deployment, I verified the changes like a production release. The Jira Burndown Chart helped confirm the sprint execution was realistic. This is a strong Agile reporting artifact and is useful for recruiters and project stakeholders. This sprint reinforced several important DevOps principles: ✅ What I accomplished 🔗 Repo: https://github.com/vivianokose/project-management-using-Jira.git 🌍 Live URL: http://54.91.12.141/ This mini sprint gave me hands-on exposure to how real Agile + DevOps delivery works: plan → execute → commit → deploy → verify → report. It was a small project, but it followed the same workflow used in professional engineering teams. If you’re learning DevOps, I highly recommend practicing this approach because it builds real delivery confidence. Templates let you quickly answer FAQs or store snippets for re-use. Are you sure you want to hide this comment? It will become hidden in your post, but will still be visible via the comment's permalink. Hide child comments as well For further actions, you may consider blocking this person and/or reporting abuse COMMAND_BLOCK: git clone https://github.com/pravinmishraaws/Pravin-Mishra-Portfolio-Template.git cd Pravin-Mishra-Portfolio-Template git checkout -b feature/footer-v1 Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode COMMAND_BLOCK: git clone https://github.com/pravinmishraaws/Pravin-Mishra-Portfolio-Template.git cd Pravin-Mishra-Portfolio-Template git checkout -b feature/footer-v1 COMMAND_BLOCK: git clone https://github.com/pravinmishraaws/Pravin-Mishra-Portfolio-Template.git cd Pravin-Mishra-Portfolio-Template git checkout -b feature/footer-v1 - Footer displaying: > Pravin Mishra Portfolio v1.0 — Deployed on — By Vivian Chiamaka Okose - Deploy date made dynamic using JavaScript - Footer styling improvements for accessibility and responsiveness - Homepage tagline replaced with a Discord onboarding link - Verified deployment on live AWS EC2 URL - Jira Software (Sprint planning, backlog, subtasks, burndown) - Git & GitHub (branching, commits, version control) - AWS EC2 (Ubuntu Server) - HTML, CSS, JavaScript - SSH & SCP for deployment - Opened Jira project dashboard - Went to Backlog - Clicked Create Sprint - Created Sprint 1 - Added a story to the sprint backlog - Set sprint goal and started sprint - Day 1 — Implement footer & deploy - Day 2 — Make deploy date dynamic - Day 3 — Polish & accessibility - Day 4 — Provenance / health signal - Day 5 — Demo + retro + burndown - Footer requirement explanation - How the date is generated - Code snippet evidence - Increased padding for spacing - Adjusted font size for readability - Improved contrast for visibility - Tested on desktop + mobile using Chrome DevTools - Live EC2 URL - Footer version + dynamic deploy date - Tagline update - Jira sprint completion - What went well - What I can improve - DevOps principle demonstrated (continuous delivery & verification) - Jira → Reports → Burndown Chart - Verified that tasks were completed progressively over sprint duration - feat(...) for new features - style(...) for UI improvements - Clear messages tied to sprint deliverables - Opened live URL in browser: http://54.91.12.141/ - Confirmed footer appears correctly - Confirmed dynamic deploy date displays - Confirmed link is clickable - Checked mobile responsiveness using DevTools - Ensured page loads without broken styling - Sprint progress was consistent - Tasks were completed daily - No scope creep was introduced - Sprint was completed within planned timeline - Small incremental changes are easier to deploy and validate than large changes - Jira sprint tracking provides strong visibility and accountability - Deploying manually improves understanding of production processes - Verification is as important as deployment - Documentation is a key part of professional engineering delivery - Planned a sprint in Jira (Sprint Goal + Story + Subtasks) - Executed daily tasks with Daily Scrum updates - Used Git branching and clean commit history - Deployed changes repeatedly to AWS EC2 - Served website via Nginx - Verified deployment using live URL checks - Generated burndown report and sprint evidence