Overview
Together, DevOps and CI/CD are a set of practices and principles that narrow the gap between software development and IT operations. This knowledge-base article describes, in a neutral encyclopaedic style, what DevOps is, what CI/CD means and how the two concepts relate to one another.
This article covers, among other things, the following topics:
Definition and background of DevOps
Explanation of continuous integration, continuous delivery and continuous deployment
Structure of a typical CI/CD pipeline
Relationship between DevOps, CI/CD, the cloud and containerisation
Common benefits and challenges
Definitions and background
DevOps, a contraction of development and operations, describes a blend of culture, processes and tooling aimed at shortening the software development life cycle. The goal is to deliver reliable releases at high frequency, usually through automation and close collaboration between development and operations teams. The term DevOps gained popularity around 2009, partly thanks to conferences and publications about collaboration between these disciplines.
Where traditional IT environments often featured a clear separation between developers, testers and administrators, DevOps encourages multidisciplinary teams. Within such teams, roles like software engineer, tester, security specialist and operations engineer work on the same product, sharing responsibility for both functionality and stability. This affects the way software is designed, tested, deployed and monitored.
CI/CD stands for continuous integration and continuous delivery or continuous deployment. It is a practical implementation of DevOps principles with a strong focus on automating build, test and release processes. CI/CD is not the same as DevOps, but in many organisations it forms a core component of a DevOps approach.
DevOps principles
DevOps is often described through a number of recurring principles. One key principle is shortening feedback loops so that teams can quickly see the impact a change has on users and systems. This is achieved through automated tests, monitoring and logging. A second principle is standardising infrastructure and processes, for example with infrastructure as code, so that environments are reproducible and controllable.
In addition, there is a strong focus on continuous improvement. Teams regularly analyse incidents and performance data and use this information to adjust their processes and tools. DevOps therefore is not only about tooling, but also about organisational culture, knowledge sharing and reducing silos.
CI and CD as part of DevOps
Continuous integration and continuous delivery originated as practices within agile and extreme programming, but have been more widely adopted through DevOps. Continuous integration focuses on automatically integrating and testing code changes so that integration issues are detected early. Continuous delivery and continuous deployment focus on continuously preparing and, if desired, automatically releasing software to production environments.
In practice, DevOps and CI/CD are often mentioned in the same breath. DevOps provides the overarching framework of collaboration and culture, while CI/CD is the concrete technical implementation in pipelines, scripts and automated processes.
Continuous integration, delivery and deployment
Continuous integration, often shortened to CI, is a working method in which developers integrate their code into a shared main or trunk branch several times a day. Every change triggers an automated build and a set of tests, such as unit tests and static code analysis. The aim is to detect errors early and keep the codebase in an always-integrable state.
Continuous delivery (CD, in the sense of continuous delivery) builds on continuous integration. With continuous delivery, software is automatically ready for deployment to production after every successful build and test. The actual deployment usually still happens manually, often through a controlled action such as clicking a release button after a review. The emphasis is on making releases reliable and repeatable so that a new release moment is a manageable, often routine step.
Continuous deployment is the variant in which every successful change after the CI phase is almost automatically rolled out to production. This means there is no manual step between a successful pipeline and the software going live. Continuous deployment is mainly used in environments where small, frequent changes are desirable and where extensive automated testing and monitoring are in place.
A typical CI/CD pipeline consists of successive stages such as fetching source code, installing dependencies, building code, running tests, publishing artefacts, preparing infrastructure and the actual deployment. In modern environments, these pipelines are often described in configuration files in YAML or similar formats that are stored in version control alongside the application code.
Example of a simple CI pipeline
The code below illustrates a simplified CI configuration in YAML format. This example is generic and not tied to a specific provider, but it does show the key steps.
stages:
- build
- test
build_job:
stage: build
script:
- composer install --no-interaction --prefer-dist
- php artisan config:cache
test_job:
stage: test
script:
- ./vendor/bin/phpunit --testdox
artifacts:
when: always
paths:
- storage/logs
In this example, dependencies are installed and configuration files are compiled in the build phase. During the test phase, automated tests are executed. A similar extension with deploy stages is common for continuous delivery and continuous deployment.
Relationship with versions, branches and feature flags
CI/CD requires clear agreements on version control. Many teams use a trunk-based development model in which developers push small changes directly to a main branch, optionally supplemented with short-lived feature branches. Feature flags or toggles are used to switch features on and off without new deployments. This makes it possible to roll out code while a feature is not yet active for all users.
The combination of CI/CD with feature flags and short release cycles ensures that changes are smaller and more manageable. If problems arise, a flag can be rolled back instead of reverting an entire release.
Technical building blocks of DevOps and CI/CD
Implementations of DevOps and CI/CD make intensive use of modern infrastructure concepts. Containerisation with technologies such as Docker, for instance, has made it easier to package applications and their dependencies as uniform units. Orchestration platforms such as Kubernetes are often used to manage containers in production environments, including scalability and self-healing properties.
Configuration management and infrastructure as code form a second key building block. Infrastructure as code means that infrastructure configurations, such as servers, networks and storage, are defined in machine-readable files. These files are stored in version control and can be rolled out via pipelines. This ensures environments are reproducible, changes are traceable and the provisioning of new environments can be largely automated.
Cloud platforms also provide hosted CI/CD services and integrate them with source control systems. Typical features include automatic pipelines on every commit, artefact repositories for builds, integrated security scanning and options to deploy directly to cloud environments. The trend is that more and more functionality, from test infrastructure to observability, is becoming available within the same platforms.
Monitoring and logging constitute a fourth building block. In a DevOps context, attention is paid not only to technical metrics such as CPU and memory usage, but also to application-specific indicators such as error rates and response times. Combined with log aggregation and distributed tracing, teams can quickly analyse which code change or deployment caused a particular issue. This supports the continuous improvement cycle and enables rapid incident response.
Instructive explainer videos on DevOps and CI/CD are available on platforms such as YouTube. One example is the video Azure DevOps Tutorial for Beginners | CI/CD with Azure Pipelines at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BibQ69MD8c. Such videos demonstrate in practical walkthroughs how pipelines are set up, how a commit automatically triggers a build and how releases are executed to different environments.
Security and compliance in the pipeline
In modern CI/CD environments, security is increasingly integrated into the pipeline. This is often referred to as DevSecOps. Examples include automatically scanning dependencies for known vulnerabilities, performing static code analysis against security rules and enforcing policies before a deployment is allowed.
Compliance requirements, such as change logging and access control, are incorporated into the automated processes. For instance, it may be required that every deployment is approved by a second person, or that only pipelines with successful security checks may deploy to production. By embedding these requirements in the pipeline, adhering to regulations becomes part of day-to-day practice rather than a separate check afterwards.
Benefits, challenges and development directions
DevOps and CI/CD deliver a range of benefits for organisations that develop or manage software. A key advantage is a shorter time to market. By automating build, test and deployment, teams can iterate on functionality more quickly. This makes it easier to roll out small, incremental changes instead of large, high-risk releases.
Quality and stability also benefit from this way of working. Continuously running tests and detecting regressions early ensures that faults are discovered sooner. Combined with monitoring and feedback from production environments, a continuous quality loop emerges in which data are used to improve code and infrastructure.
Introducing DevOps and CI/CD also comes with challenges. Organisationally, it requires a cultural change in which teams take more responsibility for the entire software life cycle. This can mean redefining roles, spreading knowledge of infrastructure and security more widely and adapting existing processes such as change management.
Technically, an effective CI/CD environment demands investments in tooling, infrastructure and test automation. Without sufficient automated tests, releasing frequently is risky. Complexity can also increase, for example through the management of multiple environments, pipelines and configurations. Setting up a robust observability landscape with metrics, logs and traces is therefore becoming ever more important.
Current trends in DevOps and CI/CD
A visible trend is the further integration of AI and automation in pipelines. Examples include intelligent test selection, where only relevant test sets are run based on the changed code, and automatic reconfiguration of infrastructure under varying load patterns. AI is also increasingly used to analyse logs and metrics, detecting anomalies faster than is possible with manual dashboards.
Another development is the use of platform engineering. In this approach, organisations design internal developer platforms that provide standardised CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure templates and self-service provisioning. This lowers the barrier for developers to start new services and reduces variation in the underlying technology, while preserving the DevOps principles of autonomy and responsibility.
Finally, there is growing attention for green DevOps, where energy consumption and sustainability are taken into account when designing and operating software and infrastructure. This can mean optimising pipelines to use less compute power, having scaling mechanisms consider energy profiles or adding monitoring reports that show the environmental impact of applications.
What is the main difference between DevOps and CI/CD?
DevOps is a broader concept that covers culture, collaboration, processes and tooling with the aim of narrowing the gap between development and operations. CI/CD is a concrete set of practices and techniques focused on continuously integrating, testing and releasing software. CI/CD can be seen as an important tool within a DevOps approach, but DevOps goes beyond pipelines and automation alone.
Does DevOps mean there are no separate operations teams any more?
Not necessarily. In practice the role of operations often shifts from manual maintenance activities to designing and maintaining platforms, infrastructure as code and observability tooling. Some organisations choose fully integrated teams where developers and operations share responsibility, others keep specialised teams but create closer collaboration and shared accountability. The key point is that the traditional strict separation diminishes and processes are set up more end-to-end.
Is continuous deployment always advisable?
Continuous deployment is particularly suitable for environments where small, frequent changes are possible and where extensive testing and monitoring capacity is available. In sectors with strict regulation, complex approval processes or high risks, continuous delivery with a deliberate manual go-live step may be more appropriate. In practice many organisations opt for a hybrid approach, using continuous deployment for certain services and a more controlled release cycle for others.
What role do tests play in a CI/CD pipeline?
Tests form the backbone of every CI/CD pipeline. Without sufficient test coverage, ranging from unit and integration tests to end-to-end tests, it is difficult to release frequently with confidence. In modern pipelines tests are executed automatically with every code change and often periodically as well. Results are used to detect regressions early and to decide whether a build may proceed to the next stage. Experience shows that investing in test automation is crucial for stable DevOps adoption.
How do DevOps and agile relate to each other?
Agile focuses primarily on how teams organise and prioritise work, for instance with sprints and iterative development. DevOps complements this by focusing on collaboration between development and operations, automation of the life cycle and continuous delivery. Many organisations combine agile methods, such as Scrum or Kanban, with DevOps practices. In such a combination, agile ceremonies provide product focus and stakeholder feedback, while DevOps and CI/CD make it technically possible to bring that feedback to production quickly.
Is a cloud environment necessary for DevOps and CI/CD?
A cloud environment is not strictly necessary but often makes implementing DevOps and CI/CD easier. Cloud platforms offer standard services for pipelines, monitoring, logging and scalable infrastructure. At the same time the same principles can be applied in on-premises or hybrid environments as long as automation, version control and monitoring are possible. The choice depends on existing systems, compliance requirements and the organisation's strategic decisions.
Which skills are important for professionals in a DevOps environment?
Key skills include knowledge of version control systems, scripting and automation, infrastructure as code and a basic understanding of networking and security. Soft skills are equally crucial, such as collaborating in multidisciplinary teams, communicating about incidents and continuously improving based on feedback. Experience shows that a learning culture, in which professionals are willing to broaden their knowledge and work with other disciplines, is at least as important as deep expertise in one specific domain.
