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 ? It will become hidden in your post, but will still be visible via the comment's permalink. as well , this person and/or 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 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