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Learn CI/CD: GitHub Actions, Jenkins and GitOps Delivery, Step by Step

Learn CI/CD by building one GitHub Actions pipeline and then making it fast, secure and safe to deploy from. The later stages compare platforms (GitLab CI, Jenkins, Buildkite) and move deployment to GitOps with Argo CD.

Each step links a guide with a complete workflow file you can copy into a repository and run.

  1. Stage 1: Foundations

    A working pipeline on every push.

    1. 1Your first CI/CD pipeline with GitHub ActionsLint, test and build on every push.
    2. 2GitHub Actions conditional jobsRun jobs only on the branches and events you mean.
    3. 3Build and push Docker images in GitHub ActionsPublish tagged images to a registry.

  2. Stage 2: Fast pipelines

    Cut minutes and cost.

    1. 4Cache dependencies in GitHub ActionsStop reinstalling packages on every run.
    2. 5Matrix buildsTest across versions without copy-paste.
    3. 6Reusable workflows at org scaleShare one pipeline across many repos.
    4. 7Speed up a slow CI pipelineFind and remove the slowest steps.
    5. 8GitHub Actions pricingEstimate the bill before it arrives.

  3. Stage 3: Secure pipelines

    Secrets, OIDC and supply-chain controls.

    1. 9GitHub Actions secrets guideScope secrets per environment.
    2. 10OIDC federation from GitHub Actions to AWSDeploy without long-lived keys.
    3. 11GitHub Actions security hardeningPin actions and restrict token permissions.
    4. 12Building a secure CI/CD pipelineAdd scanning and signing gates.

  4. Stage 4: Platforms and delivery

    Choose a CI platform and deploy progressively.

    1. 13Best CI/CD platformsCompare GitHub Actions, GitLab, Jenkins and more.
    2. 14Jenkins vs GitHub ActionsDecide whether to migrate off Jenkins.
    3. 15GitOps with Argo CDDeploy by merging to Git.
    4. 16Progressive delivery with Argo RolloutsShip canaries that abort on bad metrics.

Keep these open

Every guide on this path names the versions and docs it was checked against and lists its sources at the end. Browse all ci/cd guides or another learning path.