We've long been advocates of continuous integration (CI), and we were pioneers in building CI server programs to automatically build projects on check-ins. Used well, these programs run as a daemon process on a shared project mainline that developers commit to daily. The CI server builds the project and runs comprehensive tests to ensure the whole software system is integrated and is in an always-releasable state, thus satisfying the principles of continuous delivery. Sadly, many developers simply set up a CI server and falsely assume they are "doing CI" when in reality they miss out on all the benefits. Common failure modes include: running CI against a shared mainline but with infrequent commits, so integration isn't really continuous; running a build with poor test coverage; allowing the build to stay red for long periods; or running CI against feature branches which results in continuous isolation. The ensuing " CI theatre" might make people feel good, but would fail any credible CI certification test.
We've long been advocates of continuous integration (CI), and we were pioneers in building CI server programs to automatically build projects on check-ins. Used well, these programs run as a daemon process on a shared project mainline that developers commit to daily. The CI server builds the project and runs comprehensive tests to ensure the whole software system is integrated and is in an always-releasable state, thus satisfying the principles of continuous delivery. Sadly, many developers simply set up a CI server and falsely assume they are "doing CI" when in reality they miss out on all the benefits. Common failure modes include: running CI against a shared mainline but with infrequent commits, so integration isn't really continuous; running a build with poor test coverage; allowing the build to stay red for long periods; or running CI against feature branches which results in continuous isolation. The ensuing " CI theatre" might make people feel good, but would fail any credible CI certification test.
