Setting Up a Modern CI/CD Pipeline with GitHub Actions

Automate everything! Let's build a production-ready CI/CD pipeline.

Why CI/CD?

• Automated testing on every commit
• Consistent builds
• Fast, reliable deployments
• Reduced human error

Basic Workflow

Create .github/workflows/deploy.yml:

name: Deploy

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]
  pull_request:
    branches: [main]

jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - name: Install dependencies
        run: npm install
      - name: Run tests
        run: npm test
      
  build:
    needs: test
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - name: Build
        run: npm run build
      - name: Upload artifacts
        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v3
        with:
          name: dist
          path: dist/
  
  deploy:
    needs: build
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main'
    steps:
      - name: Deploy to production
        run: |
          echo "Deploying to prod..."

Best Practices

1. Test First: Always run tests before deployment
2. Environment Variables: Use GitHub Secrets
3. Conditional Deploys: Only deploy from main branch
4. Rollback Strategy: Keep previous versions

Conclusion

GitHub Actions makes CI/CD accessible to everyone. Start simple and iterate!