Jenkins

There's a certain level of zen that comes with software development. Writing code and seeing how it functions can be a satisfying process that's best facilitated when developers can focus on the tasks at hand, but it's a level of meditation often broken down by the need for non-human processes. Jenkins puts some of the most tedious aspects of the development process in the hands of an automated server, meaning developers can focus more on the implementation of their code and spend less time focusing on the intricacies of building, deploying, and automating the software. While Jenkins is a simple CI server at its core, it can scale up to serve the needs of your project. Jenkins can be converted simply into a continuous delivery hub, responding intuitively to changes and keeping everyone in the loop. Through the use of a web interface, Jenkins offers a variety of diverse customization options for development administrators. Jenkins works effectively for small development teams, but it really starts to show its advantages when working on larger and more complex projects. Regardless of how many teams you're working with and how segregated they are in the development pipeline, they'll be a part of the system. That's because Jenkins can distribute information across multiple machines. The more computational power you have, the quicker you can test your software, and the faster you can deploy to multiple systems or drive builds. One of the newest, and most helpful, features of Jenkins is the Blue Ocean framework. This user experience facilitates constant delivery, meaning you'll always be in the know about new changes to your framework and automation process and able to react responsively to any potential complications along the way. Through the use of a simple flow chart, you can track any errors in the system, run server tests with the simple click of a button, and access the change log to identify where errors may be coming from. Jenkins is built off of Java, and that comes with distinct advantages. As one of the most versatile and commonly used languages around, that means Jenkins can deploy as an independent piece of software and run reliably on most major operating systems. There's less worry of conflicts with your software, and the open source nature means there's a steady stream of plugins and features available through the helpful and healthy Jenkins user community. Over a thousand free plugins are available through the Jenkins web site, and the library of compatible plugins is constantly growing. Since it relies on a modular, user created structure, you can customize a Jenkins build that's catered to your specific needs, and if there's a feature you need that isn't available, a confident Java developer can build it themselves. The high compatibility of Java means that it works well with plugins written in other languages as well, further increasing the versatility of its server environment.