VRO Engineer Overview

Technology Stack

VRO software leverages a wide range of tools and technologies, categorized by their purpose within the stack:

Programming Languages

• Java: Most of the project is built using the Spring Framework.
• Python: Domain services (partner team projects) are primarily written in Python.
• Ruby: One domain service is currently written in Ruby.

Infrastructure & Services

• RabbitMQ: Serves as the primary communication bus between microservices, using AMQP architecture.
• Gradle: Utilized for build automation. Refer to the buildSrc folder for details.
• Docker: Extensively used for local development and deployments.
  • Note: In most cases, Docker Desktop is not provided. Colima is recommended as an alternative container runtime.
• Postgres: AWS RDS Postgres is employed for database services, managed through Helm charts.
• Redis: Currently in the process of being removed from the stack.
• Kubernetes: VRO’s DevOps operations are supported by LHDI infrastructure.
• ArgoCD: Used for deployment management (see this issue).

Key Repositories

VRO also utilizes these key repositories for project management and deployments:

• VRO Public Repo: Main repository for the VRO project.
• VRO Internal Repo: Used for running SecRel scans.
• ArgoCD Repo: Contains the ArgoCD URL for viewing deployments.

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Key Resources

• VRO Local Dev Environment Setup: How to get the VRO dev environment working locally.
• VRO Architecture Design Diagram: An overview of VRO's architecture.
• VRO Engineering Onboarding: Onboarding guidelines for new engineers.
• On-Call Responsibilities: Guidelines for on-call duties.
  • Datadog Monitoring: Instructions for setting up and using Datadog for monitoring.
  • VRO Dependency Escalation: When issues occur, use this document for escalation.

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VA.gov Partner Teams

As of June 2024, VRO currently supports two VA.gov partner teams:

1. Contention Classification (CC)
2. Employee Experience (EE)

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Projects Overview

The following are the primary projects that make up the VRO system:

Contention Classification (CC)

• Repository: cc-app
• Description: Maps VA.gov disability form contentions to classifications defined in the Benefits Reference Data API.
• Language: Python
• Point of Contact: Contention Classification team

End Product Merge (EP Merge)

• Repository: ep-merge-app
• Description: Automates claim merging to minimize manual intervention.
• Language: Python
• Point of Contact: Employee Experience team

Max Claim For Increase (Max CFI)

• Repository: max-cfi-app
• Description: Provides an API for retrieving the maximum disability rating for a condition.
• Language: Python
• Point of Contact: Employee Experience team

Benefits Integration Events (BIE)

• Repository: svc-bie-kafka
• Description: Handles event streams for contention changes on disability compensation forms (526).
• Language: Java (Spring Framework)
• Point of Contact: Virtual Regional Office team

Benefits Integration Platform (BIP)

• Repository: svc-bip-api
• Description: Exposes APIs to retrieve claim information, update statuses, and route claims.
• Language: Java (Spring Framework)
• Point of Contact: Virtual Regional Office team

Benefits Gateway Services (BGS)

• Repository: svc-bgs-api
• Description: Enables partner teams to create notes on veteran files.
• Language: Ruby
• Point of Contact: Virtual Regional Office team