Overview
Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) are fundamental practices in modern software development that enable teams to deliver code changes more frequently and reliably. This training covers the principles, tools, and best practices for implementing robust CI/CD pipelines that automate testing, building, and deployment processes.
CI/CD Fundamentals
Understanding the core concepts and principles that drive successful CI/CD implementations is essential before diving into specific tools.
- Version Control Integration - Git workflows, branching strategies, and merge policies
- Automated Testing - Unit tests, integration tests, and end-to-end testing
- Build Automation - Compiling, packaging, and artifact management
- Deployment Strategies - Blue-green, canary, rolling updates
Jenkins
Jenkins is the most widely adopted open-source automation server, providing hundreds of plugins to support building, deploying, and automating any project.
- Jenkins Installation - Master/agent architecture, distributed builds
- Pipeline as Code - Declarative and scripted Jenkinsfiles
- Plugin Management - Essential plugins, security scanning, artifact storage
- Security & Credentials - Secrets management, RBAC, audit logging
// Declarative Jenkins Pipeline Example
pipeline {
agent any
stages {
stage('Build') {
steps {
sh 'npm install'
sh 'npm run build'
}
}
stage('Test') {
steps {
sh 'npm test'
}
post {
always {
junit 'reports/**/*.xml'
}
}
}
stage('Deploy') {
when {
branch 'main'
}
steps {
sh './deploy.sh'
}
}
}
}
GitHub Actions
GitHub Actions provides native CI/CD capabilities directly integrated with your GitHub repositories, enabling workflow automation with minimal setup.
- Workflow Syntax - Events, jobs, steps, and expressions
- Actions Marketplace - Using and creating reusable actions
- Secrets Management - Environment secrets and OIDC authentication
- Matrix Builds - Testing across multiple environments simultaneously
# GitHub Actions Workflow Example
name: CI/CD Pipeline
on:
push:
branches: [main, develop]
pull_request:
branches: [main]
jobs:
build-and-test:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- uses: actions/checkout@v4
- name: Setup Node.js
uses: actions/setup-node@v4
with:
node-version: '20'
cache: 'npm'
- name: Install dependencies
run: npm ci
- name: Run tests
run: npm test
- name: Build
run: npm run build
deploy:
needs: build-and-test
if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main'
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- name: Deploy to Production
run: echo "Deploying..."
GitLab CI/CD
GitLab provides a comprehensive DevOps platform with built-in CI/CD capabilities, container registry, and security scanning.
- .gitlab-ci.yml - Pipeline configuration and syntax
- GitLab Runners - Shared vs. specific runners, Docker executors
- Multi-Project Pipelines - Parent-child and cross-project triggers
- Security Scanning - SAST, DAST, dependency scanning
Azure DevOps
Azure DevOps provides developer services for teams to plan work, collaborate on code development, and build and deploy applications.
- Azure Pipelines - YAML pipelines and classic editor
- Azure Boards Integration - Work item linking and traceability
- Azure Artifacts - Package management for npm, NuGet, Maven
- Azure Integration - Seamless deployment to Azure services
AWS CodePipeline
AWS CodePipeline is a fully managed continuous delivery service that helps automate release pipelines for fast and reliable application updates.
- CodeBuild - Managed build service with custom build environments
- CodeCommit - Managed source control service
- CodeDeploy - Automated deployments to EC2, Lambda, ECS
- Pipeline Orchestration - Multi-stage pipelines with approvals
Best Practices
Implement these best practices to build reliable, secure, and efficient CI/CD pipelines.
- Fast Feedback - Keep build times under 10 minutes with parallelization
- Trunk-Based Development - Short-lived branches and frequent merges
- Security Integration - Shift-left security scanning in pipelines
- Infrastructure as Code - Pipeline definitions in version control
Want this training for your team?
I deliver hands-on sessions tailored to your stack, level and goals.