TeamCity (CI/CD)

Overview

TeamCity is a CI/CD server by JetBrains that supports pipelines configured via the UI or Kotlin DSL (configuration-as-code). It integrates with Git providers (GitLab, GitHub, Azure Repos), offers rich test/artifact reporting, and scales horizontally with build agents.

• Great for .NET, Java, and Node monorepos
• Kotlin DSL makes changes reviewable and reproducible
• Strong caching, test history, and build chains

Key concepts

• Server: orchestrates projects and build configurations
• Build Agents: workers that execute jobs; match via agent requirements
• Projects & Build Configurations: pipeline hierarchy and steps
• VCS Roots: connections to repositories
• Parameters: build-time variables (env.*) and references (%param%)

Architecture

1. VCS change triggers a build on the server
2. Server assigns work to an available agent matching requirements
3. Steps run (e.g., npm ci; npm run build) and artifacts are published
4. Status is reported back (e.g., to GitLab MRs)

Getting started

1. Create a Project and set a VCS Root (GitLab/GitHub)
2. Add a Build Configuration
3. Choose UI steps or enable Kotlin DSL and commit settings
4. Install build agents; tag agents (e.g., windows, linux) for targeted jobs

Kotlin DSL example (settings.kts)

version = "2024.03"

project {
  vcsRoot(GitVcsRoot {
    id("BankyBlueprintsRepo")
    name = "bankyblueprints"
    url = "https://git.example.com/BankyTech/bankyblueprints.git"
    branch = "refs/heads/main"
  })

  buildType(BuildType {
    id("Build_Site")
    name = "Build Astro Site"

    vcs {
      root(DslContext.settingsRoot)
      root("BankyBlueprintsRepo")
      cleanCheckout = true
    }

    steps {
      script {
        name = "Install"
        scriptContent = "npm ci"
      }
      script {
        name = "Build"
        scriptContent = "npm run build"
      }
    }

    triggers { vcs {} }

    artifactRules = "dist=>site"
  })
}

Tips:

• Cache Node.js and package manager caches between builds
• Use agent requirements to target OS/tooling
• Use parameters for secrets; prefer secure parameters where possible

GitLab integration

• Use VCS Root to connect to GitLab
• Add Commit Status Publisher to report pass/fail to Merge Requests
• Optionally mirror pipelines by triggering from GitLab webhooks

See: ./teamcity/gitlab-integration

Subpages

• Introduction: ./teamcity/introduction
• Build configurations: ./teamcity/build-configurations
• GitLab integration: ./teamcity/gitlab-integration
• Parameters: ./teamcity/parameters
• Templates: ./teamcity/templates
• VCS Roots: ./teamcity/vcs-roots

Best practices

• Prefer Kotlin DSL for maintainability and code review
• Pin tool and runner versions; leverage caches
• Use snapshot dependencies to orchestrate multi-project builds
• Keep build steps idempotent and fast