GitLab Continuous Integration (GitLab CI/CD)

Continuous Integration can automatically plays an integral part of workflow. GitLab comes with built-in Continuous Integration, Continuous Deployment, and Continuous Delivery support to build, test, and deploy applications.

Getting started

• Getting started with GitLab CI/CD: understand how GitLab CI/CD works.
• GitLab CI/CD configuration file: .gitlab-ci.yml - Learn all about the ins and outs of .gitlab-ci.yml
• Pipelines and jobs: configure GitLab CI/CD pipelines to build, test, and deploy applications.
• Runners: The GitLab Runner is responsible by running the jobs in CI/CD pipeline. On GitLab.com, shared Runners are enabled by default, so no need to set up anything to start to use them with GitLab CI/CD.

Introduction to GitLab CI/CD

• Article (2016-08-05): Continuous Integration, Delivery, and Deployment with GitLab - Intro to CI/CD

• Article (2015-12-14): Getting started with GitLab and GitLab CI - Intro to CI

• Article (2017-07-13): Making CI Easier with GitLab

• Article (2017-05-22): Fast and Natural Continuous Integration with GitLab CI

• Videos:

  • Demo (Streamed live on Jul 17, 2017): GitLab CI/CD Deep Dive

  • Demo (March, 2017): How to get started using CI/CD with GitLab

  • Webcast (April, 2016): Getting started with CI in GitLab

Exploring GitLab CI/CD

• CI/CD variables - Learn how to use variables defined in .gitlab-ci.yml or secured ones defined in project's settings
• The permissions model - The access levelsa user can have for performing certain CI actions
  • User permissions
  • Job permissions
• Configure a Runner, the application that runs jobs
• Article (2016-03-01): Setting up GitLab Runner for Continuous Integration
• Article (2016-07-29): GitLab CI: Run jobs sequentially, in parallel, or build a custom pipeline
• Article (2016-08-26): GitLab CI: Deployment & environments
• Article (2016-05-23): Introduction to GitLab Container Registry

Advanced use

After familiar with the basics of GitLab CI/CD, dive in and learn more.

• Environments and deployments: Separate jobs into environments and use them for different purposes like testing, building and deploying
• Job artifacts
• Git submodules: How to run CI jobs when Git submodules are involved
• Use SSH keys in build environment and status of each CI environment running on Kubernetes
• Trigger pipelines through th GitLab API
• Trigger pipelines on a schedule
• Deploy Boards - Check the current health
• Kubernetes clusters - Integrate one or more Kubernetes clusters to project

GitLab CI/CD for Docker

Docker to run CI pipelines.

• Use Docker images with GitLab Runner
• Use CI to build Docker images

• CI services (linked Docker containers)

• Article (2016-03-01): Setting up GitLab Runner for Continuous Integration

Auto DevOps

• Auto DevOps: Auto DevOps automatically detects, builds, tests, deploys, and monitors applications.

Examples

Check the GitLab CI/CD examples for a collection of tutorials and guides on setting up CI/CD pipeline, for various programming languages, frameworks, and operating system.

Special configuration (GitLab admin)

As a GitLab administrator, can change the default behavior of GitLab CI/CD in whole GitLab instance, as well as in each project.

• Continuous Integration admin settings
• Project specific:
  • Pipelines settings
  • Learn how to enable or disable GitLab CI
• Affecting the whole GitLab instance:
  • Continuous Integration admin settings