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Distributed Builds

Updated May 13, 2020 ·

Overview​

Distributed builds allow build jobs to run on separate agents (nodes), while the master controls and assigns specific builds to specific agents, enhancing parallelism and supporting multiconfiguration setups.

  • Nodes can be tagged for specific configurations.
  • Relevant pipeline steps can be directed to the right node.

Note that atifacts and reports are sent back to the master, so storage for the master must be carefully planned.

As an example, you need to run 5 tests on 3 software versions requires 15 runs.

  • Running all tests on the master takes longer.
  • Running them in parallel on agents speeds up the process.

Reminders:

  • Use SSH or JNLP (TCP or HTTP) for communication.
  • Agents should be replaceable (fungible).
  • Configure globally on the master, not locally on agents.

Starting the Slave Agent​

There are different ways to start the slave agent:

  • The master starts the slave agents via SSH
  • Manually start the slave agent using Java Web Start
  • Install the slave agent as a Windows service
  • Start the slave agent from the command line on the slave node.