Get Started with Azure DevOps Pipelines and Transform Software Delivery

Quick Overview: Creating an efficient CI/CD pipeline heavily relies on implementing modern automation techniques with the right tools. Microsoft Azure offers a robust solution to this need by introducing Azure DevOps pipelines to the development world. This blog presents practical insights into delivery pipelines in Azure DevOps, including its features, benefits, implementation, and more.

Technology adaptation is a continuous process. The primary reason to discover new and innovative ways of working is to reduce human efforts. Human beings strive for excellence that increases productivity and makes the process easier. Different tools, applications, and software help us achieve those goals.

However, even app development and deployment require some toolchain to keep pace with the break-neck speed of technology. Releases that used to roll out twice or thrice a year now take place every week, every day, even at a stretch.

This is where the concept of DevOps and CI/CD pipelines come into the picture. Together, a DevOps pipeline provides software engineering teams with a set of tools and services to automatically build, test, and deploy software systems.

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Over time, the tech giant Microsoft recognized the need for a streamlined software development process and came up with Azure pipelines, bringing a whole new level of automation to the development world.

As a pioneer of Azure DevOps services, we’ve created this article to help you gain a comprehensive overview of the Azure DevOps CI/CD pipeline, including its features, benefits, and most importantly, how to create one!

What is Azure DevOps?

We can define Azure DevOps as an all-inclusive platform that offers various tools and services covering the entire SDLC (Software development life cycle). It enables teams to seamlessly work together, optimize workflows, and consistently deliver high-quality software.

As a feature-rich and mature model, Microsoft Azure DevOps aims to help businesses manage multiple development tasks simultaneously and efficiently.

What is Azure Pipeline?

Azure Pipeline is a Continuous Integration and Continuous Development (CI/CD) platform that developers can use to build, compile, and deploy their codes on different platforms.

It’s a consistent delivery tool, just like open-source CodeShip or Jenkins CI/CD.

The sole purpose of Azure or az pipelines is to eliminate manual intervention. When human beings handle the process, the possibility of error increases. However, with automation, everything works seamlessly once configured.

The key elements of Azure pipelines are:

• Source control
• Build tools
• Package creation
• Configuration management
• Monitoring

What is Azure DevOps Pipeline?

Azure DevOps pipeline or Azure CI/CD pipeline is a powerful and versatile cloud-based tool that helps development teams automatically write, test, and ship code to production.

It usually involves a series of activities and workflows, such as compiling source code, packaging artifacts, running unit tests, etc., throughout the DevOps lifecycle.

Key Components of an Azure CI/CD Pipeline

The Azure pipeline consists of a set of critical components that make up the overall CI/CD process.

• Azure Boards permit agile planning, work item tracking, power BI visualization, and other standard reporting tools.
• Azure Pipelines define Continuous Integration (CI) and Continuous Deployment (CD) processes with support for Kubernetes and containers.
• Azure Repos provide complete support to cloud-hosted private storage.
• Azure Artifacts offers package management support to npm, Maven, NuGet, Python, and other package feeds from public and private sources.
• Azure Test Plans provide integrated planning as well as investigation of various testing solutions.

Azure DevOps Pipeline Terminologies You Must Know

Take a look at some of the most important terminologies of an Azure DevOps build pipeline:

1. Continuous Integration

Continuous Integration in software development is the practice of automating the integration of new code changes on a frequent basis. CI helps catch issues and bugs in the preliminary stages of the development lifecycle.

The primary benefits include:

• Minor tweaks make it simpler to merge large codes
• Easy for large teams to check what each one is working on
• Locate errors and quickly fix them
• Continuous compilation of codes and testing
• Smooth integration process to ensure improved productivity

2. Continuous Delivery

Continuous Delivery or Continuous Deployment in the Azure CI/CD pipeline is the consecutive practice of CI that enables developers to deliver new features, configure changes, and fix bugs reliably and faster.

The key benefits of CD include:

• Reduced release risks with faster bug fixes
• Higher-quality and more stable code
• Software delivery is feasible at all scale
• Easier to change smaller packets
• Quicker mean time to resolve (MTTR)

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3. Continuous Testing

Continuous Testing (CT) in the Azure DevOps release pipeline is the process of conducting tests at every stage of DevOps software development.

Whether the app is on-premises or on the cloud, it would be possible to automate the build-deploy-test workflows, choose frameworks and technologies, then test the changes consistently. This results in:

• More speed, scalability, and efficiency
• Maintaining quality and detecting problems
• Seeing issues before running automatic tests

4. Version Control System

In Azure DevOps pipelines, you must keep your source code in a version control system.

Now, there are two types of version control systems that Azure DevOps supports – Git and Azure Repos. It automatically builds and validates any change you push to the repository.

5. Language and Application Types

Azure DevOps CI/CD gives you the flexibility to develop and deploy a wide range of applications in various programming languages such as Java, Python, PHP, Ruby, XCode, C#, C++, Go, .NET, Node.js, Android, and iOS.

These apps can run simultaneously on Windows, macOS, and Linux operating systems.

On top of this, it provides a comprehensive set of tasks specifically designed for building and testing apps. There are also tasks available for running tests using different testing frameworks and services. You can execute Shell scripts, PowerShell, or command lines to automate various processes.

6. Deployment Targets

When it comes to deployment, Azure CI/CD offers a versatile solution.

You can deploy your code to multiple targets, including cloud platforms, containers, virtual machines, PaaS services, environments, or on-premises systems. Furthermore, if you have a mobile application, you can publish it to an app store.

Once you have implemented continuous integration, you can create a release definition, comprising a collection of tasks, to automate app deployment to one or more environments.

7. Package Formats

To share your packages with others, Azure CI/CD pipelines allow you to publish npm, NuGet, or Maven packages to their built-in package management repository.

Alternatively, you have the flexibility to use any other package management repository that suits your needs.

Important Azure DevOps Pipeline Concepts

Before you start working with a pipeline Azure DevOps, it’s important to understand the key concepts associated with it. Take a look:

• Pipeline

A pipeline is a series of steps that determine how we run our tests, build our code, and deploy our applications.

• Job

A job is a component within a stage and represents a specific execution boundary. It can encompass multiple steps and runs on an agent.

• Stage

A stage is a logical division within the pipeline that helps separate different aspects of the workflow. Each stage can consist of one or more tasks or processes.

• Step

A step is the smallest unit of the pipeline, either in the form of a script or a task. Tasks are pre-existing scripts provided for convenience.

• Agent and Agent pools

An agent refers to an installable software system responsible for executing one job at a time. Instead of managing each agent individually, agents are organized into groups known as agent pools.

• Artifact

An artifact is a collection of files or packages that are published as a result of a pipeline run. Developers can access and use these artifacts for subsequent tasks, such as distribution or deployment processes.

• Environment

An environment is a collection of resources where an application is deployed. It can include containers, web apps, virtual machines, and other relevant components necessary for hosting the application.

• Runs

A run represents a single instance of executing a pipeline. It captures the associated logs from the steps performed and the outcomes of running tests and processes.

• Trigger

A trigger is a mechanism configured within the pipeline to determine when it should be executed. This can include events like a push to the repository or scheduled time intervals.

• Checks

Checks refer to a set of validations that need to be successfully completed before a deployment can take place. These checks ensure the readiness and stability of the deployment environment.

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How Does the Azure DevOps Pipeline Work?

Now that you’re familiar with the concepts, it’s time to go through some of the key phases of the CI/CD pipeline Azure:

• Azure DevOps pipeline requires a trigger to initiate and run.
• The pipeline has several stages. It can deploy to single as well as multiple environments.
• Each stage is specified to handle jobs in the pipeline, and different stages have multiple jobs.
• Each job runs on a particular agent. The job may not have an agent.
• Each run shall run a job that could have multiple steps.
• The step could be anything such as a task or script, which is a compact pipeline part.
• The task is in the form of a pre-bundled script, which acts as publishing a typical build artifact.
• Run published files in bunches or bundles called artifacts in Azure pipelines.

Essential Features of Azure DevOps Pipelines

Here comes the most interesting part – the robust features of the Azure build pipeline that make it an essential tool for software deployment. Check them out:

1. Language and Platform Compatibility

As we mentioned before, Azure allows you to build, test, and deploy apps written in various languages using the DevOps CI/CD pipeline. You can also run those apps parallelly in different operating systems.

2. Kubernetes and Containers

Easily develop and push all images to container registries like Azure Container Registry and Docker Hub. Deploy, scale, and manage containers to respective hosts using a Container as a Service platform.

3. Extensibility and Customization

Explore and implement various community-built development, test, and deployment tasks, together with hundreds of SonarCloud or Slack extensions.

4. Multicloud Deployment

Implement continuous integration and delivery of the software to the cloud platform of your choice, including AWS, Azure, and GCP.

5. Integration with Other Tools

Azure DevOps pipeline integrates with a wide range of popular development and deployment tools, such as Azure services, third-party platforms, and open-source tools.

6. Testing and Quality Assurance

With Azure pipeline deployment, you get seamless testing and QA solutions. Teams are able to define test cases, run unit tests, and perform other types of automated testing to validate the app’s functionality and quality.

7. Monitoring and Feedback

Pipelines in Azure DevOps provide built-in monitoring and feedback mechanisms. You can integrate them with monitoring tools to track the health and performance of your apps and receive alerts on critical issues.

The Most Obvious Benefits of Azure DevOps Pipelines

The key reason to learn Azure DevOps is that it blends the magnitude of the online cloud and the power of the DevOps architecture. When you know this tool and use it to build applications efficiently, you play a significant role.

Given below are some of the greatest benefits of the Azure DevOps release pipeline:

Speed: DevOps microservice combined with continuous integration and delivery allows teams to take service ownership and release updates faster.

Rapid Delivery: Azure DevOps helps dev teams build apps, test them, and deploy immediately as the code commit takes place using various automated tools.

Reliability: Logging and monitoring practices help developers in staying informed about real-time performances.

Scalability: Infrastructure as Code helps in managing development, production environments, and testing repeatedly and more efficiently.

Security: Automated compliance policies, configuration management techniques, and fine-grained control can define and track compliance at scale.

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Azure DevOps Pipelines: Classic UI vs. YAML

There are two ways to define a CI/CD pipeline in Azure DevOps – using a classic interface or YAML syntax.

Setting up classic pipelines involves using a user interface where you go through various tabs and select options provided by the UI. Contrastingly, YAML pipelines rely on code written in a YAML file for their setup.

The classic method is common for building apps. Developers specifically design release pipelines for deploying applications. On the other hand, In Azure DevOps, there is a task assistant available to assist you in finding the required tasks and adding them to the YAML file.

Both classic and YAML pipelines are efficient for building and deploying applications. However, release pipelines offer additional features for managing deployments across different environments. These features include triggers,pre and post-deployment conditions, and more.

What are the Requirements for Using Azure Pipelines?

There are a few components that you’ll need to integrate a release pipeline in Azure and ensure a smooth deployment process.

• An Azure DevOps organization
• Version control system to store source codes
• Build agents to execute build and deployment tasks
• YAML pipeline configuration
• Monitoring and analysis tools

How to Build a Microsoft Azure DevOps Pipeline?

First of all, ensure that you have a GitHub repository and an Azure DevOps organization set up. If you don't have them yet, create them before proceeding.

Now let’s get to the process of creating robust Microsoft Azure DevOps pipelines:

Step 1: Fork the Pipelines Java repository and add it to your GitHub account. This repository serves as an example pipeline that will help you understand how to begin with Azure DevOps.

Step 2: After that, sign into Azure DevOps and select your project. Go to the Pipelines screen and click on "Create new pipeline".

Step 3: In the process of creating the pipeline, choose GitHub as the source code location and follow the provided steps to connect your GitHub account.

Step 4: Once you have connected your GitHub account, a list of repositories associated with your account will appear. Select the Pipelines Java sample repository from the list.

Step 5: Azure Pipelines will automatically generate a Maven pipeline template for you. Select "Save and run" to save the pipeline configuration and initiate the run.

Step 6: When prompted, choose to commit the changes directly to the master branch, and then click on "Save and run" again.

Step 7: Azure DevOps will begin executing the pipeline run. It may take some time, so wait for it to complete.

To work with your pipeline using the command line, ensure that you have the Azure CLI installed on your machine. With it, you can run, update, or obtain details about your pipeline. Use the provided commands in the command line interface for these operations.

For additional information and more detailed instructions, refer to the documentation, which explains the available flags and provides further guidance on using these commands.

Pricing of Azure DevOps CI/CD

Azure mainly features two types of pricing:

• Individual Services

Individual services require users to have one CI/CD hosted by Microsoft of up to 1800 minutes and a CI/CD that is free and self-hosted with no time limitations. Users can take up to 2GB of storage of Azure artifacts.

However, in post-free parallel roles, users must pay a certain sum of money to Microsoft for hosted jobs and self-hosted jobs.

• User License Services

User licenses have two types of plans – a basic plan and another basic plan plus testing.

The former includes major basic features, and it’s free for the first five users. After that, you must pay approximately $6 per month.

For the latter, you must pay $52 per month from the beginning.

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