CloudBees Marries Jenkins X to Kubernetes
CloudBees has launched a continuous delivery platform designed specifically for deploying applications on top of Kubernetes. CloudBees Core for Kubernetes Continuous Delivery is based on Jenkins X, a modern instance of a continuous integration/continuous development (CI/CD) platform based on a microservices architecture.
In addition, CloudBees announced that Jenkins X is now officially being commercially supported by CloudBees, following the launch of that platform earlier this year.
Finally, CloudBees announced that CloudBees Core for Pivotal Cloud Foundry (PCF), which is based on the distribution of Kubernetes from Pivotal Software dubbed Pivotal Container Service (PKS), is now available on the Pivotal Services Marketplace.
James Strachan, distinguished engineer for CloudBees, says Jenkins X not only can be used not only to develop and deploy both microservices based and monolithic applications, but the modern Jenkins X CI/CD platform consumes about 20 percent less in the way of infrastructure than the existing Jenkins CI/CD platform.
In general, Strachan says Jenkins X is a more opinionated instance of a CI/CD platform that automates a much higher percentage of the CI/CD process using a GitOps methodology. For example, with one command DevOps teams can import source code and git repository and automatically deploy the application on Kubernetes. DevOps teams don’t have to spend time figuring out how to package software as docker images, create the Kubernetes YAML files, create Preview environments or even learn how to implement CI/CD pipelines.
Strachan says one of the best things about CloudBees Core for Kubernetes Delivery is that it provides out-of-the-box integration with best-of-breed tools in the Kubernetes ecosystem such as the Istio services mesh. That makes it easier for organizations to deploy new versions of those offerings as they become available alongside older versions of that software, as part of an extended rollout across an enterprise IT environment, notes Strachan.
CloudBees Core for Kubernetes Delivery also includes Quickstart language packs that enable users to build, configure and deploy applications with a command line interface (CLI) for managing pipelines, previews and promotions. CloudBees Core for Kubernetes Delivery also includes Serverless Jenkins, which makes use of open source Knative middleware to provide access to a highly available master copy of the Jenkins X running on a serverless computing framework.
It remains to be seen the degree and rate to which organizations that have deployed Jenkins will migrate to Jenkins X to take advantage of a more automated CI/CD framework. But as organizations continue to struggle with the continuous delivery aspects of DevOps, there’s plenty of room for additional automation. In fact, as microservices proliferate across the enterprise, the automation issue is likely to be forced—most DevOps teams will not be able to keep pace with deploying and updating microservices without relying more on automation. Microservices may even push more organizations to adopt CI/CD platforms for the first time as they embrace best DevOps practices to build, manage and deploy them.
As the most widely employed CI/CD platform, CloudBees intends to continue to play a major role in advancing DevOps in the age of microservices. The only real issue is whether the company’s current dominance of CI/CD will provide an advantage over a rival vendors that see the same opportunity.
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