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AWS CodePipeline

What is it

A fully managed continuous delivery service that automates the build, test, and deployment phases of your software release process.

What it's for

Modeling, visualizing, and automating the software release workflow, from code commit to production deployment, ensuring fast and reliable deliveries.

Use cases

  • Automating CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery) pipelines
  • Automated deployment of applications to development, testing, and production environments
  • Orchestrating different development tools (e.g., CodeCommit, CodeBuild, CodeDeploy, Lambda)
  • Managing complex release workflows with manual or automatic approvals
  • Continuous delivery of microservices and containerized applications

Key points

  • Fully managed: No servers to provision or manage
  • Visual workflow: Allows modeling your pipeline as a visual graph, making it easier to understand and monitor
  • Integration: Integrates with a wide range of AWS services (CodeCommit, CodeBuild, CodeDeploy, S3, Lambda, ECS, EKS) and third-party tools
  • Automation: Automates each step of the release process, reducing manual effort and errors
  • Approvals: Allows configuring manual approvals at any stage of the pipeline
  • Traceability: Provides detailed history of each pipeline execution

Comparison with self-managed CI/CD pipelines

  • AWS CodePipeline: Offers a fully managed continuous delivery service integrated with the AWS ecosystem, simplifying the setup and management of CI/CD pipelines. Reduces operational overhead and allows teams to focus on software development.
  • Self-managed CI/CD pipelines (e.g., Jenkins): Require installation, configuration, and maintenance of servers, plugins, and integrations, which can be complex and time-consuming. Offer more flexibility and control but with greater operational responsibility.