CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment)
CI/CD automates the process of integrating code changes, running tests, and deploying to production. Continuous Integration automatically builds and tests code every time a developer pushes changes. C…
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Definition
CI/CD automates the process of integrating code changes, running tests, and deploying to production. Continuous Integration automatically builds and tests code every time a developer pushes changes. Continuous Deployment automatically releases tested code to production. This automation catches bugs early, speeds up delivery, and reduces the risk of deployments.
Key Points
- CI: automatically build and test on every code push
- CD: automatically deploy tested code to staging/production
- Tools: GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins, CircleCI
- Essential for teams practising Agile — enables frequent, reliable releases
Related Terms
Frequently Asked Questions
GitHub Actions is the recommended starting point — it's built into GitHub, free for open-source and generous for private repos, and handles most needs. GitLab CI is excellent if you use GitLab. Jenkins is powerful but requires self-hosting and maintenance. For most Indian teams, GitHub Actions provides the best balance of features, simplicity, and cost.
CI/CD catches bugs in three ways: (1) automated tests run on every code push, catching regressions immediately, (2) consistent build environments eliminate "works on my machine" issues, (3) small, frequent deployments are easier to debug than large releases. Teams with CI/CD typically deploy 200x more frequently with 24x faster recovery from failures.
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