Build Automation
And the open-source build tool, Gradle
When practicing DevOps one of the most important goals we strive for is CI(Continuous Integration) and CD(Continuous Delivery). If we, as software engineers, want to spend less time idling on repetitive tasks, so that we can focus on innovation and faster delivery, we must automate whenever useful. In this writing, we’ll focus on the DevOps lifecycle build stage and automate it.
What is build automation?
In the build stage, of software development, the code is compiled and packaged to be ready for deployment. Back then this would normally include a lot of tedious manual processes, but build automation automates all the tasks needed. Compiling and assembling source code, updating database schema, package management, dependency handling, and more will be streamlined and optimized using scripts and tools. Build automation is essentially the first real step to achieving a CI/CD life cycle in one's projects. This benefits the overall project in both speed and reliability as it also eliminates the chance of human error. One such tool used for build automation is Gradle.
Gradle
Gradle is an open-source, multi-language, automated build tool that handles dependencies, testing, and packaging for deployment. It is currently the most popular build tool for open-source JVM projects on GitHub and for good reason. In most cases, it is just faster than the competition. The creators of Gradle had optimization and reliability in mind when creating it. Such optimizations include its incremental build caching feature that reduces needed recompilation when changes are not made. This is a huge time saver for a developer by reducing idle time. Gradle also has a script, build.gradle, to house your dependencies, testing options, and other configurations that would be specific to the project. This is necessary to make sure of no errors or inconsistencies when sharing the project from teammate to teammate. This script file is written in Groovy, which is of relatively simple syntax allowing for a gentle learning curve, so it’s worth including in your project. All these pros of using Gradle enable developers to practice CI/CD in the DevOps pipeline. Many big companies are using Gradle more and more every day, such as Lyft, Netflix, Udemy, and more.
Conclusion
The build stage is the first critical stage of including automation in your CI/CD pipeline and build automation tools help immensely with streamlining that. Gradle is a powerful, yet simple build automation tool to help optimize the build of your project. Learning to use its management dependency system, and plugins and overall getting familiar with it has a big payoff in your journey to adding CI/CD to your development team's next project and getting your deliverables done quicker and more reliably.
