CI/CD
Definition
CI/CD is a set of practices for software development that automates and streamlines the process of delivering code changes.
CI stands for Continuous Integration, which is the practice of frequently merging code changes from multiple developers into a central repository. Automated tests are then run to detect integration issues early. CD, or Continuous Delivery/Deployment, extends this by automatically preparing code changes for release to production. Continuous Delivery ensures that code is always in a deployable state, while Continuous Deployment goes a step further by automatically deploying every change that passes the automated tests.
For example, a team might use CI/CD to automatically build, test, and deploy a new feature every time a developer commits code.
This methodology is predominantly utilized in software engineering, particularly within agile development environments and DevOps cultures.