| name | ci-cd-principles |
| description | CI/CD pipeline patterns: stages, Dockerfile, GitHub Actions, artifact management, environment promotion, rollback. Layered by deployment complexity. |
| user-invocable | false |
CI/CD Principles
Applies when writing CI/CD manifests (Dockerfile, docker-compose, GH Actions, GitLab CI).
Layered by complexity — apply only relevant levels.
Complexity Levels
| Level | When | Additions |
|---|
| 0 — All | Always | Lint, test, security scan, secrets |
| 1 — Containerized | Docker image = artifact | Multi-stage build, image scan, SBOM |
| 2 — Orchestrated | K8s or managed platform | Deploy strategies, GitOps |
Level 2: load @.gemini/skills/ci-cd-gitops-kubernetes/SKILL.md
Level 0 — Pipeline Stages (in order)
- Lint → 2. Build → 3. Unit Test → 4. Integration Test → 5. Security Scan → 6. Deploy
Rules: fail fast (cheapest first). Deterministic. Under 15 min. Never skip failures. Build once, deploy many.
Level 0 — Deploy Targets
docker compose up --build
gcloud run deploy myapp \
--image gcr.io/project/myapp:$GIT_SHA \
--region us-central1
vercel deploy --prod
K8s: use GitOps — @.gemini/skills/ci-cd-gitops-kubernetes/SKILL.md
Level 0 — GitHub Actions
name: CI
on:
push:
branches: [main]
pull_request:
branches: [main]
jobs:
lint:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- uses: actions/checkout@v4
- uses: actions/setup-go@v5
with:
go-version-file: go.mod
cache: true
- run: gofumpt -l -e -d .
- run: go vet ./...
- run: staticcheck ./...
test:
needs: lint
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- uses: actions/checkout@v4
- uses: actions/setup-go@v5
with:
go-version-file: go.mod
cache: true
- run: go test -race -cover ./...
security:
needs: test
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- uses: actions/checkout@v4
- name: Scan for secrets
uses: trufflesecurity/trufflehog@v3
- name: Audit dependencies
run: go run golang.org/x/vuln/cmd/govulncheck@latest ./...
Rules: pin action versions (@v4). needs: for ordering. Cache deps. go-version-file over hardcoded. Secrets via ${{ secrets.NAME }}.
Level 1 — Dockerfile
FROM golang:1.22-alpine AS builder
WORKDIR /app
COPY go.mod go.sum ./
RUN go mod download
COPY . .
RUN CGO_ENABLED=0 go build -o /bin/api ./cmd/api
FROM gcr.io/distroless/static-debian12
COPY --from=builder /bin/api /bin/api
EXPOSE 8080
CMD ["/bin/api"]
Rules: multi-stage. Pin versions (never :latest). Copy deps first (layer cache). Minimal runtime. Never copy .env/secrets/.git.
Level 1 — Docker Compose
services:
backend:
build:
context: ./apps/backend
ports:
- "8080:8080"
env_file: .env
depends_on:
postgres:
condition: service_healthy
postgres:
image: postgres:16-alpine
environment:
POSTGRES_DB: ${DB_NAME}
POSTGRES_USER: ${DB_USER}
POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD}
healthcheck:
test: ["CMD-SHELL", "pg_isready -U ${DB_USER}"]
interval: 5s
timeout: 5s
retries: 5
volumes:
- pgdata:/var/lib/postgresql/data
volumes:
pgdata:
Rules: health checks for deps. service_healthy condition. Pin versions. Volumes for persistence. No hardcoded creds.
Level 1 — Image Scan + SBOM
Cosign keyless signing (OIDC, no key management):
build:
needs: security
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
permissions:
contents: read
packages: write
id-token: write
steps:
- uses: actions/checkout@v4
- name: Install Cosign
uses: sigstore/cosign-installer@v3
- name: Build and push image
id: build
run: |
docker build -t ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}:${{ github.sha }} .
docker push ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}:${{ github.sha }}
- name: Scan container image
run: |
trivy image \
--severity HIGH,CRITICAL \
--exit-code 1 \
ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}:${{ github.sha }}
- name: Generate SBOM
run: |
syft ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}:${{ github.sha }} \
-o cyclonedx-json > sbom.json
- name: Attest SBOM to image (keyless)
run: |
cosign attest \
--predicate sbom.json \
--type cyclonedx \
ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}:${{ github.sha }}
Verify: cosign verify-attestation --type cyclonedx ghcr.io/org/app@sha256:<digest>
ORAS for arbitrary artifacts beyond Cosign attestation model. Non-containerized apps: npm audit/yarn audit instead.
Environment Promotion
dev → staging → production. Same artifacts promote. Config via env vars, not build flags. Never deploy direct to prod without staging.
Feature Flags
Do NOT implement unless PRD/arch requires. See @.gemini/skills/feature-flags-principles/SKILL.md.
Checklist
Always:
Container (L1):
K8s (L2):
Related
- Code Completion Mandate GEMINI.md § Code Completion Mandate
- Security Mandate GEMINI.md § Security Mandate
- Security Principles GEMINI.md § Security Principles
- Git Workflow @.gemini/skills/git-workflow/SKILL.md
- Project Structure GEMINI.md § Project Structure
- Testing Strategy GEMINI.md § Testing Strategy
- GitOps + K8s @.gemini/skills/ci-cd-gitops-kubernetes/SKILL.md
- Feature Flags @.gemini/skills/feature-flags-principles/SKILL.md
