[PATCH 0/3] kci-gitlab: Introducing GitLab-CI Pipeline for Kernel Testing

[Nikolai Kondrashov]

On 2/29/24 2:20 PM, Guillaume Tucker wrote:
> Hello,
> 
> On 28/02/2024 23:55, Helen Koike wrote:
>> Dear Kernel Community,
>>
>> This patch introduces a `.gitlab-ci` file along with a `ci/` folder, defining a
>> basic test pipeline triggered by code pushes to a GitLab-CI instance. This
>> initial version includes static checks (checkpatch and smatch for now) and build
>> tests across various architectures and configurations. It leverages an
>> integrated cache for efficient build times and introduces a flexible 'scenarios'
>> mechanism for subsystem-specific extensions.
> 
> This sounds like a nice starting point to me as an additional way
> to run tests upstream.  I have one particular question as I see a
> pattern through the rest of the email, please see below.
> 
> [...]
> 
>> 4. **Collaborative Testing Environment:** The kernel community is already
>> engaged in numerous testing efforts, including various GitLab-CI pipelines such
>> as DRM-CI, which I maintain, along with other solutions like KernelCI and
>> BPF-CI. This proposal is designed to further stimulate contributions to the
>> evolving testing landscape. Our goal is to establish a comprehensive suite of
>> common tools and files.
> 
> [...]
> 
>> **Leveraging External Test Labs:**
>> We can extend our testing to external labs, similar to what DRM-CI currently
>> does. This includes:
>> - Lava labs
>> - Bare metal labs
>> - Using KernelCI-provided labs
>>
>> **Other integrations**
>> - Submit results to KCIDB
> 
> [...]
> 
>> **Join Our Slack Channel:**
>> We have a Slack channel, #gitlab-ci, on the KernelCI Slack instance https://kernelci.slack.com/ .
>> Feel free to join and contribute to the conversation. The KernelCI team has
>> weekly calls where we also discuss the GitLab-CI pipeline.
>>
>> **Acknowledgments:**
>> A special thanks to Nikolai Kondrashov, Tales da Aparecida - both from Red Hat -
>> and KernelCI community for their valuable feedback and support in this proposal.
> 
> Where does this fit on the KernelCI roadmap?
> 
> I see it mentioned a few times but it's not entirely clear
> whether this initiative is an independent one or in some way
> linked to KernelCI.  Say, are you planning to use the kci tool,
> new API, compiler toolchains, user-space and Docker images etc?
> Or, are KernelCI plans evolving to follow this move?

I would say this is an important part of KernelCI the project, considering its 
aim to improve testing and CI in the kernel. It's not a part of KernelCI the 
service as it is right now, although I would say it would be good to have 
ability to submit KernelCI jobs from GitLab CI and pull results in the same 
pipeline, as we discussed earlier.

Nick