Continuous Integration

Terminology:

• Build Type can be: DEBUG, RELEASE
• Run Mode can be: TEST, LIVE
• Environment can be:

ENVIRONMENT	FOLDER	DESCRIPTION	BUILD TYPE	RUN MODE
DEV	myrepo	where code is (mostly) written and tested	DEBUG, RELEASE	TEST, LIVE
BARE	myrepo.git	where code is gathered and synced; no visible code	NONE	NONE
CI	myrepo-ci	where app is automatically run and tested on any commit	RELEASE	TEST
PROD	myrepo-prod	where live app runs available to others	RELEASE	LIVE

Goals:

• on code save in DEV env: automatically build RELEASE, run TEST
• on code commit: automatically build, do any custom build steps, run any unit tests, run any end-to-end tests, and report results dynamically
• on app production release: compile artifacts, assist in automatic versioning

Tools:

• git
  • use a centralized bare repository as the origin target for all the client development environments; master will be the workhorse branch
  • git hooks, especially post-receive on the server, which triggers when a new push arrives from any client; this is the entry point for CI server builds
• Node.js
  • This allows us to write cross-platform CI scripts in a language that is fundamental to web development
  • Base Node.js provides many important cross-platform functions; it is also fundamentally asynchronous
  • Use modules and you get command-line support from any path on any platform's shell
• Windows
  • window management via AutoHotKey; see various sync ahk scripts for examples
  • Powershell; make sure to set it up to get debug output:

$global:DebugPreference = "Continue"

• Ubuntu i3
  • Use i3 scripting to manage windows placement; see various keyboard shortcuts in config file for examples

• Commit to Continuous Integration with constant automated testing
• apps should have live and test modes, made as similar as possible
• live mode: no tests, lean and mean; usually only one runs at a time in a PROD env (esp for web-driven or service-oriented apps); but you can also debug it in a DEV env
• test mode: always run automated tests on startup, but then function exactly like live mode as much as possible
• test mode: write smart tests - assert-driven development means we don't need blanket unit-testing on everything - spend time on big domain-specific tests that MATTER
• test mode: multiple simultaneous instances should be allowed, so CI can run on dev box during debugging
• live mode and test mode should be able to run simultaneously, so prod box can always be quickly tested
• dev box needs ci loop that automatically reruns release in test mode on code changes
• NOTE that during initial design/development/refactor of basic architecture, CI has less value and may actually get in the way; better to build a functioning app first.