cicd-setup

name

cicd-setup

description

Set up CI/CD pipelines for Flutter app builds and releases using Codemagic (priority) or GitHub Actions. Use this skill when the user asks about Flutter CI/CD, automated builds, Codemagic setup, GitHub Actions for Flutter, code signing automation, build pipelines, or deploying Flutter apps through CI. Also triggers on: 'automate my builds', 'set up continuous integration', 'pipeline for Flutter', 'codemagic.yaml', 'workflow for Flutter', or any mention of automating Flutter app distribution.

CI/CD Pipeline Setup for Flutter

This skill configures automated build, test, and deployment pipelines for Flutter mobile apps. It produces three workflows that cover the full release lifecycle.

Three Workflows

Every Flutter CI/CD setup needs these three workflows, regardless of platform:

1. PR Quality Gate — runs on pull requests, blocks merge if quality checks fail
2. Android Pipeline — builds, signs, and distributes Android artifacts per environment
3. iOS Pipeline — builds, signs, and distributes iOS artifacts per environment

Platform Selection

GitHub Actions + Custom Runners (recommended when you already have CI/CD infra):

• Read references/github-actions.md for complete workflow files
• If your org already uses custom runners (Blacksmith, Buildjet, self-hosted), use them for Flutter too
• Add Flutter via subosito/flutter-action@v2 — works on any Ubuntu runner
• Path filtering for monorepo setups
• Same dashboard, secrets, and billing as your existing CI/CD
• Signing: manual (keystore in secrets, key.properties generated in CI)

GitHub Actions + GitHub-hosted runners (starting from scratch, budget-conscious):

• Read references/github-actions.md for complete workflow files
• 2000 free Linux minutes/month, 200 macOS minutes
• Larger action ecosystem but slower than custom runners
• Good for small projects without existing CI infra

Codemagic (recommended for iOS releases or teams without CI/CD):

• Read references/codemagic.md for the complete codemagic.yaml configuration
• Native Flutter support — no Docker images or custom setup
• Built-in code signing UI for both Android and iOS
• Mac Mini M2 instances for iOS builds — no macOS runner management
• 500 free build minutes/month on the free tier
• Best value when you need iOS builds without managing macOS infrastructure

Common Architecture

Both platforms share the same logical architecture. The differences are in YAML syntax and platform-specific features.

Environment Detection

Pipelines detect the target environment from the branch name:

Branch	Environment	Distribution	Signing	Obfuscation
develop	dev	Firebase App Distribution	Debug or unsigned	No
staging	staging	Firebase App Distribution / TestFlight	Release signed	No
production	production	Google Play / App Store	Release signed	Yes

Config Injection Pattern

Never commit secrets to the repository. Use template-based injection:

Template file (committed): lib/core/env/env_ci.dart

class EnvConfig {
  static const String baseUrl = '<<BASE_URL>>';
  static const String apiKey = '<<API_KEY>>';
  static const String environment = '<<ENV_NAME>>';
}

Generator script (committed): scripts/generate_config.sh

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail

ENV_NAME=${1:?Usage: $0 <env> <base-url> <api-key>}
BASE_URL=${2:?}
API_KEY=${3:?}

TEMPLATE="lib/core/env/env_ci.dart"
OUT="lib/core/env/env_ci.g.dart"

sed -e "s|<<BASE_URL>>|$BASE_URL|g" \
    -e "s|<<API_KEY>>|$API_KEY|g" \
    -e "s|<<ENV_NAME>>|$ENV_NAME|g" \
    "$TEMPLATE" > "$OUT"

echo "Config generated for $ENV_NAME"

Generated file (in .gitignore): lib/core/env/env_ci.g.dart

Quality Checks Script

Reusable across both CI platforms: scripts/quality_checks.sh

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail

echo "=== Formatting ==="
dart format --output=none --set-exit-if-changed .

echo "=== Static analysis ==="
flutter analyze --fatal-infos

echo "=== Tests ==="
flutter test --no-pub --coverage

echo "=== Coverage threshold ==="
THRESHOLD=${COVERAGE_THRESHOLD:-70}
if command -v lcov >/dev/null 2>&1; then
  COVERAGE=$(lcov --summary coverage/lcov.info 2>&1 | grep 'lines' | awk '{print $2}' | sed 's/%//')
  if [ "$(echo "$COVERAGE < $THRESHOLD" | bc)" -eq 1 ]; then
    echo "Coverage $COVERAGE% is below threshold $THRESHOLD%"
    exit 1
  fi
  echo "Coverage: $COVERAGE% (threshold: $THRESHOLD%)"
fi

Sentry Symbol Upload Script

For production builds with obfuscation: scripts/upload_symbols.sh

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail

RELEASE=${1:?Usage: $0 <release-id>}

if ! command -v sentry-cli >/dev/null 2>&1; then
  echo "sentry-cli not found, skipping symbol upload"
  exit 0
fi

sentry-cli releases new "$RELEASE" || true
sentry-cli upload-dif build/symbols || true
sentry-cli releases finalize "$RELEASE" || true

echo "Symbols uploaded for $RELEASE"

Build Variations by Environment

Dev builds:

flutter build appbundle --release          # Android
flutter build ios --release --no-codesign  # iOS

Staging builds:

flutter build appbundle --release          # Android (signed via key.properties)
flutter build ipa --release                # iOS (signed via profile)

Production builds:

flutter build appbundle --release \
  --obfuscate \
  --split-debug-info=build/symbols         # Android

flutter build ipa --release \
  --obfuscate \
  --split-debug-info=build/symbols         # iOS

Distribution Channels

Environment	Android	iOS
Dev	Firebase App Distribution	TestFlight (internal) or none
Staging	Firebase App Distribution	TestFlight (external)
Production	Google Play Store	App Store Connect

Required Secrets

Organize secrets into logical groups in your CI platform:

Signing:

• ANDROID_KEYSTORE_BASE64 — base64-encoded .jks file
• KEYSTORE_PASSWORD — keystore password
• KEY_ALIAS — key alias name
• KEY_PASSWORD — key password
• IOS_CERTIFICATE_BASE64 — base64-encoded .p12 distribution certificate
• IOS_CERTIFICATE_PASSWORD — certificate password
• IOS_PROVISIONING_PROFILE_BASE64 — base64-encoded .mobileprovision

Distribution:

• FIREBASE_TOKEN — from firebase login:ci
• FIREBASE_ANDROID_APP_ID — Firebase console app ID
• FIREBASE_IOS_APP_ID — Firebase console app ID
• FIREBASE_GROUPS — comma-separated tester group names
• GOOGLE_PLAY_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_JSON — Play Console service account
• APP_STORE_CONNECT_API_KEY_ID — App Store Connect key ID
• APP_STORE_CONNECT_API_ISSUER_ID — issuer ID
• APP_STORE_CONNECT_API_KEY_CONTENT — .p8 key content

Environment:

• STAGING_BASE_URL, STAGING_API_KEY
• PROD_BASE_URL, PROD_API_KEY

Monitoring:

• SENTRY_AUTH_TOKEN, SENTRY_ORG, SENTRY_PROJECT

Implementation

After understanding the architecture above, read the reference file for the chosen platform:

• Codemagic: references/codemagic.md — complete codemagic.yaml with all three workflows
• GitHub Actions: references/github-actions.md — complete .github/workflows/*.yml files

Both references produce the same outcome: signed artifacts distributed to the right channel per environment.