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Structured CI/CD learning — GitHub Actions, ArgoCD, pipeline patterns. 8 offline tools, 100-question quiz, visual pipeline builder, cheatsheet & error encyclopedia. Built by a Platform Engineer.

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cicdlab ~ github actions + argocd
# GitHub Actions job fails — diagnosing eknatha@cicdlab $ gh run view 7283910 --log-failed Run docker build -t myapp:${{ github.sha }} . Error: failed to solve: failed to read dockerfile: open Dockerfile: no such file eknatha@cicdlab $ ls -la | grep -i docker -rw-r--r-- 1 eknatha staff 412 dockerfile # Case mismatch — Linux is case-sensitive eknatha@cicdlab $ mv dockerfile Dockerfile && git add . && git push ✓ Run #7283911 · All jobs passed · Duration 2m 14s ✓ ArgoCD sync triggered · myapp deployed to production
8
Modules
8
Offline Tools
120+
Commands
100
Quiz Q&A
40+
Snippets
50+
Error Codes
Free
Always
// Learning Path

Structured Modules

8 modules from pipeline fundamentals to GitOps security. Click any module to deep dive.

⚡
Beginner
GitHub Actions Foundations
Triggers, jobs, steps, runners, contexts, expressions, env vars.
triggersjobsrunnerscontexts

Key Concepts

  • Workflow anatomy: on:, jobs:, steps: — how they nest
  • Event triggers: push, pull_request, schedule, workflow_dispatch
  • GitHub-hosted vs self-hosted runners and runner labels
  • Contexts: github, env, secrets, steps, runner
  • Expressions: ${{ }} syntax, operators, functions like contains(), startsWith()
  • Environment variables: env: at workflow, job, and step scope
  • Job dependencies with needs: and conditional if:
🔐
Beginner
Secrets & Environments
Secrets management, environment protection rules, OIDC auth to cloud providers.
secretsOIDCenvironments

Key Concepts

  • Repository, organization, and environment secrets — scope and precedence
  • OIDC authentication to AWS, GCP, Azure — no long-lived credentials
  • Environment protection rules: required reviewers, wait timers, branch filters
  • Using ${{ secrets.MY_SECRET }} safely — masking in logs
  • Secret scanning and push protection in GitHub Advanced Security
  • Avoid echo $SECRET anti-pattern — use --password-stdin
♻
Intermediate
Reusable Workflows & Actions
Composite actions, workflow_call, action.yml, sharing across repos.
workflow_callcompositeactions

Key Concepts

  • Composite actions vs reusable workflows — when to use each
  • workflow_call trigger: inputs, outputs, secrets inheritance
  • Creating a custom action with action.yml: runs.using: composite
  • Calling reusable workflows with uses: org/repo/.github/workflows/ci.yml@main
  • Matrix strategy: strategy.matrix for multi-OS, multi-version testing
  • Caching dependencies: actions/cache with restore/save keys
🏃
Intermediate
Self-hosted Runners
Runner setup, security hardening, ephemeral runners, runner groups.
runnerssecurityephemeral

Key Concepts

  • When to self-host: private network access, GPU workloads, cost at scale
  • Runner registration: config.sh + run.sh, systemd service setup
  • Ephemeral runners with --ephemeral flag — fresh environment every job
  • Runner groups: restrict to specific repos or orgs
  • Security: never run untrusted PRs on self-hosted runners
  • Kubernetes-based runners with Actions Runner Controller (ARC)
🐙
Intermediate
ArgoCD Core Concepts
Applications, sync policies, health checks, resource hooks, App of Apps.
Applicationsynchealth

Key Concepts

  • ArgoCD Application CRD: source, destination, syncPolicy
  • Sync phases: PreSync → Sync → PostSync hooks with argocd.argoproj.io/hook
  • Health checks: Healthy, Progressing, Degraded, Missing, Suspended
  • App of Apps pattern for managing multiple applications
  • ApplicationSet: generate apps from git directories, clusters, or lists
  • Sync waves with argocd.argoproj.io/sync-wave annotation
  • Rollback: argocd app rollback myapp <revision>
🌿
Intermediate
GitOps Patterns
Push vs pull model, image updater, multi-env promotion, branching strategies.
GitOpspromotionimage-updater

Key Concepts

  • Push-based (CI deploys) vs pull-based (ArgoCD pulls) — tradeoffs
  • Separate app repo and config repo — why and how
  • ArgoCD Image Updater: auto-update image tags in Git on new registry push
  • Multi-environment promotion: dev → staging → prod via PR or branch
  • Environment branching vs directory-per-env vs Kustomize overlays
  • Secrets in GitOps: Sealed Secrets, External Secrets Operator, SOPS
📦
Advanced
Pipeline Deployment Patterns
Blue-green, canary, rolling updates, rollback strategies in CI/CD pipelines.
blue-greencanaryrollback

Key Concepts

  • Blue-green with ArgoCD: two Deployments, switch Service selector
  • Canary with Argo Rollouts: steps, pause, traffic weights
  • Rolling update defaults vs maxSurge/maxUnavailable tuning
  • Automated rollback on metric failure with Argo Rollouts + Prometheus
  • Feature flags as an alternative to branching deployments
  • Gate checks between environments: integration tests, smoke tests
🔒
Advanced
Security & Supply Chain
SLSA, Sigstore/cosign, SBOM, dependency scanning, workflow hardening.
SLSAcosignSBOM

Key Concepts

  • SLSA levels: provenance, build integrity, hermetic builds
  • Sign container images with cosign sign using keyless OIDC
  • Generate SBOM with syft, attach with cosign attach sbom
  • Verify signatures in ArgoCD before sync with admission webhooks
  • Workflow hardening: pin actions to SHA, permissions: block, GITHUB_TOKEN minimal scope
  • Dependency scanning: Dependabot, trivy in CI, grype for SBOMs
// Offline Interactive Tools

Built-in CI/CD Tools

8 fully offline tools — no API, no internet required. Works anywhere.

⚙
Workflow Generator
GENERATOR
🕐
Schedule Expression Builder
BUILDER
🐙
ArgoCD App Generator
GENERATOR
🔍
Workflow Linter
LINTER
🔒
Secret Pattern Scanner
SECURITY
🌐
OIDC Auth Snippet Builder
GENERATOR
📦
Matrix Strategy Builder
BUILDER
↩
Rollback Command Builder
REFERENCE
// Interactive

Pipeline Visualizer

Visualize a GitHub Actions pipeline with job dependencies, stages, and status.

⚡ Pipeline Run View

Success
Running
Failed
Pending
// Quick Reference

CI/CD Cheatsheet

120+ commands — searchable, click any row to copy to clipboard.

CommandDescriptionCategory
// Practice Questions

CI/CD & GitOps Quiz — 100 Questions

Scenario-based questions mapped to Platform Engineer interview domains.

Score: 0 / 0
0/0

Quiz complete!

// Copy-Paste Library

Snippet Library

40+ production-ready GitHub Actions workflows and ArgoCD manifests.

// Error Encyclopedia

CI/CD Error Reference

50+ pipeline errors — root cause, exact fix commands, and prevention tips.

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