It’s an update: GitLab 14.2 hits servers in bid to simplify pipeline building

It’s an update: GitLab 14.2 hits servers in bid to simplify pipeline building
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CI/CD platform plus repo management tool GitLab has seen its usual monthly update and is now available in version 14.2. 

Among other things, the feature release looks to help teams reduce duplicate code by letting them use variables in their .gitlab-ci.yml files’ include statements. Version 14.2 is also the first to allow the definition of a needs relationship between all jobs in a pipeline. Like this, users can skip the stages definition and just let the platform know which jobs have to be finished in order for a given job to be ready to go. 

Teams who have been wanting to use the deployment_tier in their pipeline gain access to a pipeline events webhook with the release. It is also able to show a pipeline’s internal ID instead of the regular one for more clarity, and has learned to accept deploy tokens for authenticating to use the GitLab Dependency Proxy. Another addition can be found on the Usage Quotas page, which now displays charts of past CI minutes by month and by project — all of which could be quite useful for planning purposes. 

GitLab’s integrated Web IDE as well as the single file editor have been fitted with a live preview for Markdown content, which can be activated via the context menu or pressing Command/Control-Shift-P. When writing into the wiki, common formatting options now appear in a floating menu for easy access once text has been selected. In addition to that, users can upload and attach things like pdf or zip files, which brings the new wiki editor a bit closer to what its predecessor used to offer.

GitLab Runner now comes with support for Windows build pods in the Kubernetes executor, and a Kubernetes PreStop lifecycle hook. Once updated, users should be able to use a single runner for running different VMs as well, as the CI image option is now allowed to override a base image name.

Other changes available to users on all tiers include the capability to launch a preconfigured Gitpod workspace directly from a merge request page, a display of all workflow items in each stage of a value stream, and the option to edit an issue title from an issue board.

Meanwhile, paying GitLab customers gain a user interface and registration form for using the Kubernetes Agent as well as the option to generate a list of all members and their permissions of a given group. On top of that, Ultimate subscribers can find out which groups in an organisation are using the security features of dependency scanning and fuzz testing.

With the release of GitLab 14.2, selected users get access to a beta version of GitLab Build Cloud for macOS. The preview is integrated with the company’s cloud CI/CD product and promises developers a way of building applications for the Apple ecosystem. This is realised through macOS VMs, which are initially fitted with four vCPUs, 10GB RAM, and 14GB storage for builds.

Teams interested in giving the new feature a try can try to request access, though places on the beta program are limited and applicants need to have been a GitLab SaaS customer on 22 August, 2021. Currently GitLab plans to have Build Cloud for macOS generally available by November — however the company informs users that this is subject to change should feedback suggest bigger changes to be necessary.