CI/CD Pipelines, or Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment pipelines, are automated processes that enable developers to build, test, and deploy software changes quickly and reliably.
Imagine a factory assembly line where each station represents a step in the software development process. As a product moves through the assembly line, it gets tested, assembled, and packaged. CI/CD pipelines work in a similar fashion, with each step in the pipeline representing a stage in the software development process, such as building, testing, and deploying.
CI/CD pipelines streamline the software development process by automating key stages, allowing for faster and more reliable deployment of changes.
It's one thing to know what CI/CD Pipelines is, but that is worthless if you don't know why you should know what CI/CD pipelines are in the first place. Let's break down the importance of this tech term based on two high-level categories. We'll walk through an explanation as well as provide a score, 1-10, that shows you how much you should care about CI/CD Pipelines.
If you do not have a product yet, CI/CD pipelines may not be as crucial. However, it's still beneficial to understand the concept, as it will become increasingly important as your product moves through development stages. Familiarizing yourself with CI/CD pipelines early on can help you better plan your development process and set up a strong foundation for future growth.
For businesses with a live product, CI/CD pipelines are essential. They enable faster deployment of changes, reduce the risk of bugs and errors, and improve overall product quality. By automating key stages in the development process, CI/CD pipelines can save your team time and effort, allowing them to focus on other important tasks.
So you know what CI/CD Pipelines is, by definition. You know if you should care about it or not depending on your situation as a business/company/product. To dig in deeper, we will walk through some tools and processes so we can make sure you really have a solid grasp on CI/CD Pipelines.