BuildMaster
 | |
| Developer(s) | Inedo |
|---|---|
| Stable release | 4.9.5 / January 2016 |
| Operating system | Microsoft Windows and Linux |
| Type | Application release automation and Release management |
| License | Proprietary |
| Website | inedo.com/BuildMaster |
BuildMaster is an application release automation tool, designed by the software development team, Inedo. It combines build management and ARA capabilities to manage and automate processes primarily related to continuous integration, database change scripts, and production deployments. The tool is browser-based and able to be used “out-of-the-box”. Its feature set and scope puts it in line with the DevOps movement, and is marketed as “more than a release automation tool. It brings together the people, processes, and practices that allow teams to deliver software rapidly, reliably, and responsibly.” It’s a tool that embodies incremental DevOps adoption. [1]
BuildMaster is configured entirely through its UI, as opposed to scripts or XML-based configuration files. Although the primary web application is Windows-only, BuildMaster orchestrates Windows or Linux-based servers to perform various build and deploy actions.[2]
Main Features
The main features of BuildMaster are: [3]
- Approvals and Sign-Offs can be defined to ensure that the appropriate personnel approve a build prior to deployment.
- Auditing provides a comprehensive audit trail of user and system-initiated events covering every aspect of builds, promotions, executions, deployments, and administration.
- Configuration File Management enables configuration files to be defined with multiple instances (such as one per environment) in a version-controlled manner with file deployments logged.
- Continuous Integration allows builds to be created either manually or triggered automatically from an external source such as a source control check-in or schedule-based.
- Database Management keeps track of database change scripts (i.e., DDL/DML scripts) and manages the execution of change scripts against multiple instances of databases.
- Deployment Automation - BuildMaster can perform any flavor of deployment from a simple xcopy deployment to a complex multi-stage deployment involving many different operations
- Extensibility - users can extend BuildMaster's functionality with the .NET-based SDK or JSON API
- Notifications are used to alert users (often via e-mail) that events have occurred in the system, such as a completed deployment or an approval is required.
- Security can be scoped, allowing privileges to be defined at application and environment levels; BuildMaster also supports LDAP-based authentication.
- Unit Testing - BuildMaster integrates with many unit testing frameworks including NUnit, JUnit, PHPUnit, and MSTest
Highlights
Highlights include: [4]
- A simple, wizard-driven interface
- Intuitive UI that enables quick implementation
- Strong support for .NET application
Development Company Culture
Of interest also is the corporate culture where BuildMaster was developed.[5] Its producer Inedo were cited in the creation of the software development card game Release!, and have been cited in several sources that their products are developed as much by the coding work that went into them, as the sense of community that an office gaming culture has established.[6]
References
- ↑ Cool Vendors in DevOps, 2015 (Report). Gartner. 21 April 2015.
- ↑ "BuildMaster 4.0 Release Unveils a New UI and Features" (Press release). 22 January 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
- ↑ "A Quick Overview". inedo.com. inedo. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
- ↑ Market Guide for Application Release Automation Solutions (Report). Gartner. 20 July 2015.
- ↑ Papadimoulis, Alex (16 June 2014). "My Month with Release!". simple Talk.
- ↑ Roach, Patrick (3 June 2014). "DevOps card game a hit on Kickstarter". DevOps.com.