The Importance and Impact of CI and CD

DevOps is a great tool any successful business needs to grow. With DevOps, business operations become very easy to accomplish and results are gotten on time. Well, for DevOps to be more efficient the need for CI and CD pipeline is paramount because CI and CD and DevOps work hand in hand. CI and CD simply mean Continuous integration and continuous delivery. What CI and CD do is convert all manual efforts by humans to automation for testing, building, and using codes. With errors being minimized, there will be a non-stop flow of software releases.

Continuous Integration explained

It is defined as a way of implementing any of your code changes to the main branch of a shared source code, this automatically tests the codes at every change resulting in a build. This process helps to identify errors and fix them easily and immediately. When code changes are combined often, it triggers automatic validation and testing which results in a quick fixing and reduces code conflict. Also, answers are not delayed; bugs and Security bridges are fixed immediately.

According to Longji Vwamhi CI and CD help to reduce error because as humans, we tend to make errors or mistakes and this can debar the organization.

Continuous delivery explained

Continuous integration and continuous delivery work hand in hand, once continuous integration make code test and changes, continuous delivery automates it and helps with the process of releasing the applications. What it does is that it makes sure it takes over at the final stage by delivering the package to any surroundings or domain. Software is built during the continuous delivery process and production takes over at any time.

Basics of CI and CD

The following basics of CI and CD can help improve the development cycle, workflow, and delivery of software in an organization. 

Visibility of changes in the repository

Every developer should be able to see any changes and information in the repository. Also, they should all have access to every new update to help them keep track of the development process. Measures should also be put in place to help developers identify or differentiate the older version from the new one. 

Test in a secure environment

Proper testing of new code should be done to help identify or detect any errors that could have occurred during the development process. Therefore there is a need for a secure environment where code can be tested. An identical environment should be created that will look the same as the actual environment. It is also important to test code in an identical version of the production environment. 

One repository source

Everything that is needed to build applications should be in the repository. It means the libraries, version control, source code, properties files, database structure, and all the necessary scripts should be in the repository. 

Frequent but small changes

Frequently checking the repository and making gradual changes help to reduce mistakes. According to Longji Vwamhi, instead of making major changes in the repository, it is better to make frequent but small changes. The reason being you can easily undo any changes in case of any error or problem. 

Advantages of CI and CD in the development of software

Reduce cost

Delivering quality software that addresses customers’ needs requires substantial resources, time and money. But thanks to CI and CD the cost of developing software can be reduced through the elimination of costs that could be incurred during the building and testing period. CI and CD can help reduce the project time and development cycles which means they help a business and development team to spend less. 

Authentic code

Since the developers are not working in isolation but rather in collaboration with another team, builds are shared among teams often. Also, bugs are identified and detected on time and fixed to avoid them from going to production. With CI/CD, results from the team are free from bugs hence encouraging growth. 

Increased cycle release

CI and CD make you view the cycle from beginning to the end, enable you to join codes, and also detect and fix errors. The software can also be released many times for production and at the same time quality parameters are not compromised, but this should be done after proper testing of the software. 

Builds your integrity with Customers

90% of customers always want quick delivery of projects, and this sometimes puts pressure on the teams. When this happens, the tendency for errors and bugs is high. However, with CI and CD, a request for on-time delivery and less or no error is certain. An environment with fast productivity and accelerated results build your integrity with customers, thereby establishing trust and loyalty with customers. 

Identification and separation

In CI/CD, integration of codes is done in batches, this enables you to detect errors on time. If an entire application is integrated, there can be many errors, and fixing them can be difficult. And this might result in starting the process all over again. But with CI and CD, errors are detected on time and fixed immediately. Bugs are separated before if they cause application failure. 

Conclusion

The importance of CI and CD cannot be over-emphasized as it helps to improve the development process. When it comes to the development and delivery of software the role of CI and CD cannot be neglected. It helps both the development and operation teams to work effectively and reduce the chances of any errors or mistakes, says Longji Vwamhi. Overall the implementation of CI and CD can help your business save time, resources, and money when developing a new project or maintaining old ones.