Deployment in XM cloud from Gitlab

Question

We are moving code repo from Github to Gitlab. It was just simple project without any much customization. So we were using github connecttion in xm cloud i.e out of the box setup provided in xm cloud deploy app.

Since xm cloud allows only a connection form Github, is there a way if I can do the deployment from gitlab.

I know we can customize it with help of Sitecore cli but could not find an example to set it up with gitlab without a complex ci/cd pipeline.

Does anybody already have experience with deployment with gitlab in xmcloud or is there a document online which I can refer?

Answer 1

Firstly, as of the current information available, Sitecore XM Cloud officially supports GitHub and Azure DevOps source control providers.

If you are using a GitLab source control and wish to deploy code to Sitecore XM Cloud, you'll need to leverage Sitecore CLI and set up pipelines in GitLab.

Here's a general outline of the process:

1. Build Pipeline: Set up a build pipeline in GitLab that builds your solution and creates the necessary artifacts (e.g., a ZIP file).

2. Release Pipeline: In the release pipeline, use inline PowerShell scripting to handle the deployment to Sitecore XM Cloud. Below is an example script:

   cd "_PROJECT - XM Cloud-.NET Desktop-CI/drop/"
   
   Get-ChildItem -Path ".\*.zip" | ForEach-Object {
       Write-Host "Zip found and extracting ... " + $_.Name
       Expand-Archive -Path $_.Name -Force
   
       cd $_.BaseName
       cd s
       Write-Host "Run release script ... "
   
       $ErrorActionPreference = "Stop";
   
       if (!-not $(Get-PackageSource -Name Sitecore -ProviderName NuGet -ErrorAction Ignore)) {
           Write-Host "Adding Sitecore NuGet Source" -ForegroundColor Green
           dotnet nuget add source -n Sitecore https://sitecore.myget.org/F/sc-packages/api/v3/index.json
       }
   
       Write-Host "Installing Sitecore dotnet CLI" -ForegroundColor Green
       dotnet tool update Sitecore.CLI 
   
       Write-Host "Logging into XM Cloud" -ForegroundColor Green
       dotnet sitecore cloud login --client-credentials --client-id $env:ClientId --client-secret $env:ClientSecret
   
       Write-Host "Creating the deployment" -ForegroundColor Green
       dotnet sitecore cloud deployment create --environment-id $env:EnvironmentId --upload
   }
   

3. Environment Variables: Define the necessary environment variables in your GitLab pipeline, which will be referenced by the PowerShell script. These variables may include ClientId, ClientSecret, EnvironmentId, etc.

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You can refer to the below resources for detailed information: https://doc.sitecore.com/xmc/en/developers/xm-cloud/the-cloud-deployment-command.html

https://www.getfishtank.com/blog/deploy-sitecore-xm-cloud-from-devops-release-pipeline-using-the-cli