Development teams write code to solve problems and deliver value to customers. However, a new version of software does not provide value until it is released and available for use. This is why development teams need CI/CD tooling to automate the software delivery process, ensure new versions of software can be tested and deployed quickly and easily, and ensure the process is secure and reliable.
These are the principles that govern continuous delivery or continuous deployment. An effective CI/CD pipeline uses automation and efficient workflows to build, compile, test and release applications with low effort and high frequency. The pipeline automates as many of these steps as possible to minimize manual effort and errors and provide a fast feedback loop throughout the software development lifecycle.