What is Continuous Integration (CI)?
Continuous Integration is a development practice where developers frequently integrate their code changes into a shared repository. This involves merging code from different team members or branches into a central branch. The main goal of CI is to catch integration issues early and ensure that the software is always in a deployable state.
Typically, developers use a CI server or tool that automatically builds and tests the application whenever new code changes are pushed to the repository. This ensures that all code changes are verified and integrated with the existing codebase, reducing the risk of integration conflicts and bugs down the line.
What is Continuous Deployment (CD)?
Continuous Deployment, or Continuous Delivery, is the next step after continuous integration. It focuses on automating the process of deploying applications to production environments quickly and frequently. The goal is to make software releases so efficient and reliable that they can be done at any time with a click of a button.
With CD, every change that passes the automated tests in the CI phase is automatically deployed to a staging or production environment. This allows developers to get immediate feedback on their changes, ensures a smooth and predictable release process, and reduces the time from development to deployment.
Benefits of CI/CD in Full Stack Development
- Early detection of integration issues and bugs, leading to faster bug fixes and better code quality.
- Continuous delivery of new features to users, allowing for quick iterations and valuable user feedback.
- Automated testing and deployment processes save time and effort, allowing the development team to focus on innovation and improving software.
- Lower deployment risks due to automated tests and controlled release processes.