Changes in our GitLab

[girish]

Last few months, we have been working on automating the building and testing of the app packages. Even when the number was around 150 packages, they were built and tested manually in our laptops! Yes, as you can imagine this took a lot of time. Now that the package count is getting close is 200, we finally had a look into getting this automated.

With help from Milian (are you on this forum?) from GzEvD, we have set up the GitLab pipeline for all our projects. Since, we have to put secrets in our GitLab, the access has also become more restrictive.

• We had 5k users of so our GitLab. Quite insane, 99% are bots. I purged most of them by making some guesses if it was a bot or not. If your account was purged in this process, sorry about that!

• All package repos are now at https://git.cloudron.io/packages/ .

• There is a package group and I have put all people who contributed into that group. Looks like around 54 people there now. All have dev role and can submit MRs. When you submit MR a pipeline will run to build and test packages automatically.

• Cloudron code has moved to https://git.cloudron.io/platform/ . https://git.cloudron.io/platform/box is new location of box code.

• We use "renovate" to check updates. It opens MRs in app repos and those app repos build and run tests . For example, https://git.cloudron.io/packages/immich-app/-/merge_requests?state=merged to see immich update requests from renovate.

• You can also click through and see the build and test pipeline results. * Here's a cool thing - you can go in to the test result and see the screenshots of what it tested - https://git.cloudron.io/packages/immich-app/-/merge_requests/18#note_18330 (Click on screenshots to expand).

• The pipeline automation code itself is at https://git.cloudron.io/packages/pipeline but you need to join the packages group to get access to the code.

• Our opensource app projects are now at https://git.cloudron.io/apps/ (like Cubby, Surfer, VPN app)

Right now, GitLab registration is closed. I am still figuring a way to block the bots. It seems captcha/hcaptcha/2fa requirement is all of no use. In the meantime, if you mail support@cloudron.io, we will manually create the account .

[girish]

We already had a requirement that apps in the Apps Store needs tests. It goes without saying that tests are now 100% needed for app packages with the automated builds and tests.

Also, while the build is automated, the approval into appstore is still manual. We take a second look at the MR , upstream changelog, what changed upstream before approving the app . For this, we developed an internal app called Ampelman

[jdaviescoates]

@girish said in Changes in our GitLab:

Now that the package count is getting close is 200

Shall we have a little online party to celebrate getting to 200 apps when that happens? (or at least an announcement about it)

[girish]

@jdaviescoates Good idea I think I might have exaggerated the count a bit. It seems we are currently at 170 (with around 40 unlisted over 10 years).

But that shouldn't stop us from celebrating I can plan a call after the new years ! Will put details in the forum.

[girish]

Edited the original post. We are making an effort to make some of the apps we developed independent of Cloudron packaging. The idea is that the apps are possibly useful as standalone projects and not tie them too much into Cloudron code base / build system. Maybe they will find more contributors as well if they are standalone opensource projects.

They are located at https://git.cloudron.io/apps/ .

Already Cubby, Surfer have moved there. The packaging is separate under packages/cubby-app and packages/surfer-app . The VPN app will also move there.

[Lanhild]

@girish thank you for the clarification. As a maintainer of apps, I had seen the changes but didn't fully understand all of them.