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diff --git a/doc/ci/chatops/index.md b/doc/ci/chatops/index.md new file mode 100644 index 00000000000..48f8e595df6 --- /dev/null +++ b/doc/ci/chatops/index.md @@ -0,0 +1,116 @@ +--- +stage: Configure +group: Configure +info: To determine the technical writer assigned to the Stage/Group associated with this page, see https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/engineering/ux/technical-writing/#assignments +type: index, concepts, howto +--- + +# GitLab ChatOps **(FREE)** + +> - [Introduced](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/4466) in [GitLab Ultimate](https://about.gitlab.com/pricing/) 10.6. +> - [Moved](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab-foss/-/merge_requests/24780) to [GitLab Free](https://about.gitlab.com/pricing/) in 11.9. + +GitLab ChatOps provides a method to interact with CI/CD jobs through chat services +like Slack. Many organizations' discussion, collaboration, and troubleshooting takes +place in chat services. Having a method to run CI/CD jobs with output +posted back to the channel can significantly augment your team's workflow. + +## How GitLab ChatOps works + +GitLab ChatOps is built upon [GitLab CI/CD](../README.md) and +[Slack Slash Commands](../../user/project/integrations/slack_slash_commands.md). +ChatOps provides a `run` action for [slash commands](../../integration/slash_commands.md) +with the following arguments: + +- A `<job name>` to execute. +- The `<job arguments>`. + +ChatOps passes the following [CI/CD variables](../variables/README.md#predefined-cicd-variables) +to the job: + +- `CHAT_INPUT` contains any additional arguments. +- `CHAT_CHANNEL` is set to the name of channel the action was triggered in. + +When executed, ChatOps looks up the specified job name and attempts to match it +to a corresponding job in [`.gitlab-ci.yml`](../yaml/README.md). If a matching job +is found on `master`, a pipeline containing only that job is scheduled. After the +job completes: + +- If the job completes in *less than 30 minutes*, the ChatOps sends the job's output to Slack. +- If the job completes in *more than 30 minutes*, the job must use the + [Slack API](https://api.slack.com/) to send data to the channel. + +To use the `run` command, you must have +[Developer access or above](../../user/permissions.md#project-members-permissions). +If a job shouldn't be able to be triggered from chat, you can set the job to `except: [chat]`. + +## Best practices for ChatOps CI jobs + +Since ChatOps is built upon GitLab CI/CD, the job has all the same features and +functions available. Consider these best practices when creating ChatOps jobs: + +- GitLab strongly recommends you set `only: [chat]` so the job does not run as part + of the standard CI pipeline. +- If the job is set to `when: manual`, ChatOps creates the pipeline, but the job waits to be started. +- ChatOps provides limited support for access control. If the user triggering the + slash command has [Developer access or above](../../user/permissions.md#project-members-permissions) + in the project, the job runs. The job itself can use existing + [CI/CD variables](../variables/README.md#predefined-cicd-variables) like + `GITLAB_USER_ID` to perform additional rights validation, but + these variables can be [overridden](../variables/README.md#priority-of-cicd-variables). + +### Controlling the ChatOps reply + +The output for jobs with a single command is sent to the channel as a reply. For +example, the chat reply of the following job is `Hello World` in the channel: + +```yaml +hello-world: + stage: chatops + only: [chat] + script: + - echo "Hello World" +``` + +Jobs that contain multiple commands (or `before_script`) return additional +content in the chat reply. In these cases, both the commands and their output are +included, with the commands wrapped in ANSI color codes. + +To selectively reply with the output of one command, its output must be bounded by +the `chat_reply` section. For example, the following job lists the files in the +current directory: + +```yaml +ls: + stage: chatops + only: [chat] + script: + - echo "This command will not be shown." + - echo -e "section_start:$( date +%s ):chat_reply\r\033[0K\n$( ls -la )\nsection_end:$( date +%s ):chat_reply\r\033[0K" +``` + +## GitLab ChatOps examples + +The GitLab.com team created a repository of [common ChatOps scripts](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-com/chatops) +they use to interact with our Production instance of GitLab. Administrators of +other GitLab instances may find them useful. They can serve as inspiration for ChatOps +scripts you can write to interact with your own applications. + +## GitLab ChatOps icon + +The [official GitLab ChatOps icon](img/gitlab-chatops-icon.png) is available for download. +You can find and download the official GitLab ChatOps icon here. + + + +<!-- ## Troubleshooting + +Include any troubleshooting steps that you can foresee. If you know beforehand what issues +one might have when setting this up, or when something is changed, or on upgrading, it's +important to describe those, too. Think of things that may go wrong and include them here. +This is important to minimize requests for support, and to avoid doc comments with +questions that you know someone might ask. + +Each scenario can be a third-level heading, e.g. `### Getting error message X`. +If you have none to add when creating a doc, leave this section in place +but commented out to help encourage others to add to it in the future. --> |