Lesson 4 / 21

What is a Pipeline?

An automated sequence of steps that turns a commit into a running change.

Definition

A pipeline is an automated, ordered sequence of steps a code change passes through — from source code to a tested, deployable (or deployed) result — triggered by an event like a push or a pull request.

The conveyor belt

Think of a factory conveyor belt: a raw part enters, and each station along the belt does one job — cut, weld, paint, inspect. A pipeline runs your code past the same kind of automated stations every single time.

Optimize for speed

A pipeline developers wait 20 minutes for gets ignored or bypassed. Run steps in parallel where possible and cache dependencies to keep feedback fast.