CI/CD Pipeline Stages

What are the typical stages of a CI/CD pipeline and why is each stage important?

CI/CDbeginner

// interview question

What are the typical stages of a CI/CD pipeline and why is each stage important?

Sample answer

A typical CI/CD pipeline has four main stages: Build (compile code, install dependencies), Test (run unit, integration, and security tests), Deploy (release to staging/production), and Monitor (track application health). Each stage must pass before proceeding. Failed tests block deployment, preventing bugs from reaching production.

Why this matters

CI/CD pipelines automate the path from code commit to production. Each stage serves as a quality gate - if any step fails, the pipeline stops, ensuring only validated code reaches users. This automation reduces manual errors and enables faster, safer releases.

Code examples

GitHub Actions pipeline

yaml

name: CI/CD Pipeline
on: [push]

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - name: Install dependencies
        run: npm ci
      - name: Build
        run: npm run build

  test:
    needs: build
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - run: npm ci
      - run: npm test

  deploy:
    needs: test
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Deploy to production
        run: ./deploy.sh

Common mistakes to avoid

Skipping tests to deploy faster (technical debt)
Not having proper staging environments for pre-production testing
Missing rollback procedures when deployments fail

Likely follow-ups

What is the difference between continuous integration and continuous deployment?
How do you handle database migrations in a CI/CD pipeline?
What testing should be automated vs manual in a pipeline?

Answer out loud first, then check yourself against the model answer.

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