Azure DevOps Pipelines

Build, test, and deploy applications using Azure Pipelines with YAML or classic editor.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when:

• Creating CI/CD pipelines in Azure DevOps

• Configuring build and release stages

• Managing Azure DevOps service connections

• Deploying to Azure or other cloud platforms

• Setting up multi-stage YAML pipelines

Prerequisites

• Azure DevOps organization and project

• Service connections for target environments

• Basic YAML understanding

• Azure subscription (for Azure deployments)

YAML Pipeline Structure

Create azure-pipelines.yml in repository root:

trigger: branches: include: - main - develop paths: include: - src/*

pool: vmImage: 'ubuntu-latest'

variables: buildConfiguration: 'Release' nodeVersion: '20.x'

stages:

• stage: Build jobs:

  • job: BuildJob steps:
    • task: NodeTool@0 inputs: versionSpec: $(nodeVersion)
    • script: | npm ci npm run build displayName: 'Build application'
    • publish: $(Build.ArtifactStagingDirectory) artifact: drop

• stage: Deploy dependsOn: Build condition: and(succeeded(), eq(variables['Build.SourceBranch'], 'refs/heads/main')) jobs:

  • deployment: DeployWeb environment: 'production' strategy: runOnce: deploy: steps: - script: echo Deploying to production

Triggers

Branch Triggers

trigger: branches: include: - main - release/* exclude: - feature/* tags: include: - v*

Pull Request Triggers

pr: branches: include: - main paths: include: - src/* exclude: - docs/*

Scheduled Triggers

schedules:

• cron: '0 2 * * *' displayName: 'Nightly build' branches: include: - main always: true

Jobs and Stages

Parallel Jobs

stages:

• stage: Test jobs:

  • job: UnitTests pool: vmImage: 'ubuntu-latest' steps:

    • script: npm run test:unit

  • job: IntegrationTests pool: vmImage: 'ubuntu-latest' steps:

    • script: npm run test:integration

Matrix Strategy

jobs:

• job: Build strategy: matrix: linux: vmImage: 'ubuntu-latest' windows: vmImage: 'windows-latest' mac: vmImage: 'macos-latest' pool: vmImage: $(vmImage) steps:
  • script: npm test

Job Dependencies

stages:

• stage: Build jobs:
  • job: A steps:
    • script: echo Job A
  • job: B dependsOn: A steps:
    • script: echo Job B

Variables and Parameters

Variable Groups

variables:

• group: 'production-secrets'
• name: buildConfiguration value: 'Release'

Runtime Parameters

parameters:

• name: environment displayName: 'Environment' type: string default: 'dev' values:
  • dev
  • staging
  • prod

stages:

• stage: Deploy variables: env: ${{ parameters.environment }} jobs:
  • job: Deploy steps:
    • script: echo "Deploying to $(env)"

Secret Variables

variables:

• name: mySecret value: $(SECRET_FROM_PIPELINE) # Set in pipeline settings

steps:

• script: | echo "Using secret" ./deploy.sh env: API_KEY: $(mySecret)

Templates

Job Template

templates/build-job.yml

parameters:

• name: nodeVersion default: '20'

jobs:

• job: Build steps:
  • task: NodeTool@0 inputs: versionSpec: ${{ parameters.nodeVersion }}
  • script: npm ci && npm run build

Using Templates

azure-pipelines.yml

stages:

• stage: Build jobs:
  • template: templates/build-job.yml parameters: nodeVersion: '20'

Stage Template

templates/deploy-stage.yml

parameters:

• name: environment type: string
• name: serviceConnection type: string

stages:

• stage: Deploy_${{ parameters.environment }} jobs:
  • deployment: Deploy environment: ${{ parameters.environment }} strategy: runOnce: deploy: steps: - task: AzureWebApp@1 inputs: azureSubscription: ${{ parameters.serviceConnection }} appName: 'myapp-${{ parameters.environment }}'

Deployments

Environment Deployments

stages:

• stage: DeployStaging jobs:
  • deployment: DeployWeb environment: 'staging' strategy: runOnce: deploy: steps: - download: current artifact: drop - script: ./deploy.sh staging

Approval Gates

Configure in Azure DevOps UI:

• Go to Environments

• Select environment

• Add approval check

• Configure approvers

Rolling Deployment

jobs:

• deployment: Deploy environment: 'production' strategy: rolling: maxParallel: 2 deploy: steps: - script: ./deploy.sh

Azure Service Tasks

Azure Web App Deployment

• task: AzureWebApp@1 inputs: azureSubscription: 'my-azure-connection' appType: 'webAppLinux' appName: 'my-web-app' package: '$(Pipeline.Workspace)/drop/*.zip'

Azure Container Apps

• task: AzureContainerApps@1 inputs: azureSubscription: 'my-azure-connection' containerAppName: 'my-container-app' resourceGroup: 'my-rg' imageToDeploy: 'myregistry.azurecr.io/myapp:$(Build.BuildId)'

Azure Kubernetes Service

• task: KubernetesManifest@0 inputs: action: 'deploy' kubernetesServiceConnection: 'my-aks-connection' namespace: 'default' manifests: | $(Pipeline.Workspace)/manifests/deployment.yml $(Pipeline.Workspace)/manifests/service.yml containers: | myregistry.azurecr.io/myapp:$(Build.BuildId)

Docker Builds

• task: Docker@2 inputs: containerRegistry: 'my-acr-connection' repository: 'myapp' command: 'buildAndPush' Dockerfile: '**/Dockerfile' tags: | $(Build.BuildId) latest

Self-Hosted Agents

Install Agent

Download agent

mkdir myagent && cd myagent curl -o vsts-agent.tar.gz https://vstsagentpackage.azureedge.net/agent/3.227.2/vsts-agent-linux-x64-3.227.2.tar.gz tar zxvf vsts-agent.tar.gz

Configure

./config.sh --url https://dev.azure.com/myorg --auth pat --token PAT_TOKEN --pool default

Run as service

sudo ./svc.sh install sudo ./svc.sh start

Use Self-Hosted Pool

pool: name: 'my-self-hosted-pool' demands: - docker - Agent.OS -equals Linux

Common Issues

Issue: Service Connection Fails

Problem: Cannot authenticate to Azure Solution: Verify service principal permissions, check connection in project settings

Issue: Artifact Not Found

Problem: Download artifact fails Solution: Ensure publish task ran successfully, check artifact name matches

Issue: Environment Not Found

Problem: Deployment to environment fails Solution: Create environment in Pipelines > Environments first

Best Practices

• Use YAML pipelines over classic editor

• Implement templates for reusable components

• Use variable groups for shared configuration

• Configure environment approvals for production

• Use service connections with minimal permissions

• Implement artifact versioning

• Cache dependencies for faster builds

Related Skills

• github-actions - GitHub CI/CD alternative

• terraform-azure - Azure IaC

• azure-aks - AKS deployments