ci-cd-patterns

name	ci-cd-patterns
description	CI/CD: Pipeline strategy, testing stages, deployment patterns, and release workflows.
triggers	{"extensions":[".yml",".yaml"],"filenames":[".github/workflows",".gitlab-ci.yml","Jenkinsfile",".circleci"],"keywords":["pipeline","deploy","CI","CD","workflow","release"]}
auto_load_when	Editing CI/CD pipeline files
agent	devops-engineer
tools	["Read","Write","Bash"]

CI/CD Pipeline Patterns

Focus: Build automation, testing strategy, deployment cadence

---

1. Pipeline Strategy

When to use what pipeline model:

├── Trunk-based (short-lived branches)
│   └── Use when: small teams, fast feedback needed
│   └── Avoid when: large teams, complex integration
│
├── GitFlow (long-lived branches)
│   └── Use when: scheduled releases, mature products
│   └── Avoid when: need rapid iteration
│
└── Release branches
    └── Use when: multiple versions in production
    └── Avoid when: single version, frequent releases

---

2. Testing Stages

Test pyramid (bottom to top):

├── Unit tests (70%)
│   ├── Run: every commit
│   ├── Fast (< 1min total)
│   └── Coverage: core business logic
│
├── Integration tests (20%)
│   ├── Run: every PR
│   ├── Medium (1-10min)
│   └── Coverage: API contracts, DB interactions
│
├── E2E tests (10%)
│   ├── Run: before deploy
│   ├── Slow (10-30min)
│   └── Coverage: critical user journeys
│
└── Performance tests
    ├── Run: weekly or before major releases
    └── Coverage: load handling, latency

---

3. Deployment Patterns

When to use deployment strategy:

├── Blue-green
│   └── Use when: zero-downtime required
│   └── Swap: instant traffic switch
│   └── Rollback: instant revert
│
├── Canary
│   └── Use when: testing new version with real traffic
│   └── Approach: 1% → 10% → 100%
│   └── Rollback: redirect traffic back
│
├── Rolling
│   └── Use when: simple deployments, no downtime needed
│   └── Approach: replace instances one by one
│   └── Risk: partial deployment state
│
└── Feature flags
    └── Use when: decoupling deploy from release
    └── Approach: toggle features without redeploy
    └── Benefit: gradual rollout, quick rollback

---

4. Build Optimization

How to speed up CI:

├── Caching
│   ├── Dependencies: npm, pip, maven cache
│   ├── Build artifacts: compiled binaries, Docker layers
│   └── Test results: only rerun changed tests
│
├── Parallelization
│   ├── Split test suites by type
│   ├── Run independent jobs concurrently
│   └── Use matrix builds for multiple configs
│
└── Optimization
    ├── Skip builds for docs-only changes
    ├── Use shallow clones (git clone --depth 1)
    └── Cache Docker layers between runs

---

5. Release Workflow

Version strategy:

├── Semantic versioning (recommended)
│   ├── MAJOR: breaking changes
│   ├── MINOR: new features (backward compatible)
│   └── PATCH: bug fixes
│
├── Continuous deployment
│   └── Use when: high test confidence, fast feedback needed
│   └── Requirement: comprehensive test suite
│
└── Scheduled releases
    └── Use when: business requires coordination
    └── Requirement: release notes, changelog

---

Key Patterns

1. Fail fast — Run fastest tests first
2. Environment parity — Dev, staging, prod as similar as possible
3. Immutable artifacts — Build once, deploy everywhere
4. Rollback-first — Always know how to revert
5. Secrets management — Never inject secrets in pipeline code

---

Anti-Patterns

❌ Deploying directly from developer laptops
✅ All deployments via CI/CD pipeline — never manual

❌ CI runs only on main branch
✅ Run CI on every PR — catch issues before merge

❌ No staging environment — dev → prod directly
✅ At minimum: dev → staging → prod with approval gates

❌ Secrets hardcoded in pipeline YAML
✅ Secrets from vault/secrets manager, injected as env vars

❌ Flaky tests causing random pipeline failures
✅ Quarantine flaky tests; fix or remove — never ignore

---

Quick Reference

Stage	What runs	Gate to next
Build	Compile, lint, typecheck	All pass
Test	Unit + integration tests	>80% coverage
Security	SAST, dependency audit	No criticals
Artifact	Docker build + push	Image tagged
Deploy staging	Helm/Terraform apply	Smoke tests pass
Deploy prod	Same image, prod values	Manual approval

🌍 Universal Language Support

• Turkish Native: This skill natively supports Turkish. If the user prompt is in Turkish, all analysis, formatting, and output MUST be entirely in Turkish. You do not need explicit "write in Turkish" instructions.