Effective source control management is crucial for modern software development. In this blog post, we will explore how Azure DevOps provides capabilities for source control management and focusing on Git repositories. We will go through the Git workflow, branching strategies, and how to handle source control using Azure DevOps and Repos.

1. Understanding Source Control Management:

Before diving into Azure DevOps, let’s explore the fundamentals of source control management and the Git workflow:

1.1 Git Source Repository Workflow:

A general Git repo developer workflow would have the below flow. This can also be viewed as a decentralized source control repository workflow.

• Developers create a repository on their Git hosting system.
• Developers copy/clone the repository on their local development machine.
• Developers work on their local repositories, making changes and committing them.
• They push their commits to the remote repository to share their changes with the team.
• Changes are reviewed through pull requests, allowing team members to provide feedback and discuss the proposed changes.
• Once the changes are approved, they are merged into the main branch, ensuring a clean and organized codebase.

1.2 Concepts:

Some key concepts of Git as a source control management are below.

• Commit: A commit represents a snapshot of changes made to files in a repository. It captures the changes along with a descriptive message.
• Repositories: Repositories are containers for storing code and related files. They can be local (on developers’ machines) or remote (hosted on a server).
• Cloning: Cloning creates a local copy of a remote repository on a developer’s machine. It establishes a connection between the local and remote repositories.
• Pulling: Pulling retrieves the latest changes from the remote repository and updates the local copy.
• Pushing: Pushing uploads local commits to the remote repository, making them available to other team members.
• Branches: Branches provide a way to work on different versions of the codebase simultaneously. They allow developers to isolate changes and collaborate effectively.

2. Branching Strategies:

There are various branching strategies in Git. Let’s explore three popular strategies:

2.1 GitHub Flow:

GitHub Flow is a simple and lightweight branching strategy that focuses on fast-paced, continuous delivery. It is commonly used for projects with frequent deployments or where feature development is less complex.

• Usage: Developers create feature branches for each new feature or bug fix. Changes are committed to the feature branch, and when ready, a pull request is opened to merge the changes into the main branch. Continuous integration and automated tests ensure code quality. Once the changes are approved, they are merged into the main branch and deployed to production.
• Advantages:
  • Simple and easy to understand.
  • Promotes small, focused feature branches and quick iterations.
  • Enables fast and frequent deployments.
• Disadvantages:
  • Limited support for long-lived or complex feature development.
  • May lead to issues with large teams or multiple concurrent features.

2.2 GitLab Flow:

GitLab Flow builds upon the principles of GitHub Flow and introduces an additional environment branch for testing and quality assurance. It is well-suited for projects that require rigorous testing before merging changes into the Main Branch.

• Usage: Developers create feature branches for new features or bug fixes. Changes are committed to the feature branch and then merged into the environment branch for testing. Once the changes pass the tests, they are merged into the main branch for deployment. According to this workflow, you should have at least three branches:
  • Master: Every developer has the code from Master Branch on their development environment.
  • Staging: This is the branch where the master branch is branched into for testing purposes. There can be more environments than staging and therefore a branch for each environment.
  • Production: This is the released production code where the code is merged from the testing/staging/pre-production branch.
• Advantages:
  • Supports rigorous testing and quality assurance.
  • Provides a separate environment branch for testing and validation.
  • Ensures a stable main branch for production deployments.
• Disadvantages:
  • Additional overhead and complexity introduced by the environment branch.
  • Requires a robust testing infrastructure and processes.

2.3 Git Flow:

Git Flow is a branching strategy designed for projects with longer release cycles, strict versioning, and extensive quality assurance processes. It provides a structured approach to managing multiple branches and Parallel Development Efforts.

• Usage: Git Flow introduces two main branches: the main branch and the develop branch. The develop branch is the working branch where the current work is in progress. Feature branches are created for new features or bug fixes and merged into the develop branch. Once the develop branch is considered stable, it is merged into the main branch for release. Code from any other branches is never live and are never released to any environment, they are created temporarily and once the release is completed it can be deleted.
• Advantages:
  • Provides a well-defined structure for parallel development efforts.
  • Supports long release cycles and version management.
  • Enables extensive quality assurance and testing before releases.
• Disadvantages:
  • Adds complexity with the use of multiple long-lived branches.
  • Requires strict adherence to the branching model.

Conclusion:

Choosing the appropriate branching strategy depends on the specific needs of your project, team size, release frequency, and the complexity of the development process. Agile projects with frequent deployments and small teams may benefit from GitHub Flow, which offers simplicity and rapid iterations. GitLab Flow is suitable for projects that require rigorous testing and quality assurance. Git Flow is well-suited for projects with longer release cycles and a need for version management and parallel development efforts.

It’s important to note that these branching strategies can be adapted and customized based on the unique requirements of your project. The key is to find a strategy that aligns with your development process, encourages collaboration, and ensures a stable and reliable codebase.