Learn DRONE-CI with Real Code Examples

Drone automates building, testing, and deploying applications using containerized steps.

Pipelines are defined in YAML and versioned alongside source code in SCM.

Supports parallel and sequential execution, conditional steps, and event-based triggers.

Container-native design isolates each pipeline step for reproducibility and security.

Integrates with GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and cloud platforms for end-to-end automation.

Pipeline - full workflow definition in YAML

Step - individual build/test/deploy containerized task

Service - sidecar containers available to steps

Trigger - events that start the pipeline

Secrets - securely injected into steps at runtime

Drone YAML - defines the pipeline

Step - a single containerized task

Service - sidecar container for steps

Trigger - events that invoke pipelines

Secret - sensitive data injected securely

.drone.yml - pipeline definition

Application source code

Dockerfiles for containerized builds

Scripts referenced in pipeline steps

Configuration files and secrets management

Create `.drone.yml` at repository root

Define steps and services with Docker images

Commit YAML to SCM

Trigger pipeline via push, pull request, tag, or cron

Monitor pipeline via Drone web UI or CLI

Beginner: Single-step build and test

Intermediate: Multi-step pipeline with notifications

Advanced: Parallel and conditional steps with services

Expert: Multi-branch pipelines with secrets and deployments

Architect: Multi-repo, multi-environment orchestrated pipelines

Drone CI vs Jenkins: Drone is container-native, lightweight, easier to maintain; Jenkins is plugin-heavy with GUI options

Drone CI vs GitHub Actions: Both YAML-based, Drone is self-hosted and container-first, GitHub Actions is SaaS

Drone CI vs GitLab CI: Similar YAML pipelines; Drone emphasizes Docker isolation

Drone CI vs Travis CI: Drone is faster, containerized, and easier to scale self-hosted

Drone CI vs CircleCI: Drone focuses on simplicity and containers, CircleCI adds SaaS convenience

2012 - Initial release of Drone CI

2014 - Docker-native execution introduced

2016–2017 - Plugin ecosystem expanded

2018–2020 - Kubernetes integration improved

2021–2025 - Enhanced scaling, security, and event triggers

.drone.yml - pipeline definition

Pipeline - sequence of steps for CI/CD

Step - containerized task

Service - sidecar container available to steps

Secret - secure environment variable for steps