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Introduction to Pipelines as Code

Pipelines as Code is an opinionated CI/CD solution for Tekton and OpenShift Pipelines that allows you to define and manage your pipelines directly from your source code repository.

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What is Pipelines as Code?

Pipelines as Code brings the Pipelines-as-Code methodology to Tekton. It provides a simple and declarative way to define your pipelines in your Git repository and have them automatically executed on your Kubernetes cluster. It integrates seamlessly with Git providers like GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and Forgejo, and provides feedback directly on your pull requests and commits.

Quickstart

Get your first pipeline running in 5 minutes with the tkn pac CLI

Core concepts

Understand the architecture and key components of Pipelines as Code

Repository CRD

Learn how to configure repositories using the Repository custom resource

CLI reference

Explore tkn pac commands for managing pipelines and repositories

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Why Pipelines as Code?

Traditional CI/CD systems often require you to configure pipelines through web interfaces or separate configuration repositories. Pipelines as Code changes this by:

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Version control

Your pipeline definitions live alongside your code, so they’re versioned, reviewed, and evolved together.

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GitOps native

Perfect fit for GitOps workflows where everything is defined as code and managed through Git.

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Developer experience

Developers can modify pipelines using familiar Git workflows instead of learning separate CI/CD interfaces.

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Review process

Pipeline changes go through the same pull request review process as your application code.

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Branch-specific pipelines

Different branches can have different pipeline configurations for feature development.

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No vendor lock-in

Portable Tekton-based pipelines that work across any Kubernetes cluster.

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How it works

Pipelines as Code follows a simple event-driven workflow:
1

Git event

A developer pushes code, opens a pull request, or creates a tag
2

Event detection

Pipelines as Code receives the webhook from your Git provider (GitHub, GitLab, etc.)
3

Repository scan

PAC looks for a .tekton/ directory in your repository
4

Pipeline resolution

Found pipeline definitions are processed and resolved, including remote tasks from Tekton Hub
5

Execution

PipelineRuns are created and executed on your Kubernetes cluster
6

Feedback

Results are reported back to your Git provider as status checks, PR comments, or commit statuses

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Key features

Git-based workflow

Define your Tekton pipelines in your Git repository and have them automatically triggered on Git events like push, pull request, and comments.

Multi-provider support

Works with GitHub (via GitHub App & Webhook), GitLab, Forgejo (Tech Preview), and Bitbucket Data Center & Cloud via webhooks.

Annotation-driven

Target specific events, branches, or CEL expressions and gate untrusted PRs with /ok-to-test and OWNERS files.

ChatOps control

Use /test, /retest, /cancel commands and branch or tag selectors to rerun or stop PipelineRuns from PR comments or commit messages.

Skip CI support

Use [skip ci], [ci skip], [skip tkn], or [tkn skip] in commit messages to skip automatic PipelineRun execution for documentation updates or minor changes.

Rich feedback

GitHub Checks capture per-task timing, log snippets, and optional error annotations while redacting secrets.

Inline resolution

The resolver bundles .tekton/ resources, inlines remote tasks from Artifact Hub or Tekton Hub, and validates YAML before cluster submission.

Powerful CLI

tkn pac bootstraps installs, manages Repository CRDs, inspects logs, and resolves runs locally.

Automated housekeeping

Keep namespaces tidy with automatic cleanup of completed PipelineRuns and cancellation of running PipelineRuns when new commits are pushed.

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Use cases

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Application CI/CD

  • Multi-language support: Build and test Go, Python, Node.js, Java applications
  • Container workflows: Build, scan, and push container images
  • Multi-environment deployments: Deploy to dev, staging, and production environments

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GitOps workflows

  • Infrastructure as Code: Validate and apply Terraform, Helm charts, or Kubernetes manifests
  • Configuration management: Sync application configs across environments
  • Compliance checking: Run security scans and policy validation

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Developer experience

  • Pull request validation: Run comprehensive test suites on every PR
  • Branch-specific builds: Different pipeline configurations for feature branches
  • Dependency management: Automated security scanning and dependency updates

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Advanced scenarios

  • Monorepo support: Trigger specific pipelines based on changed paths
  • Integration testing: Multi-service testing with databases and external services
  • Release automation: Automated tagging, changelog generation, and artifact publishing

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Quick example

Here’s a simple example of a Tekton pipeline triggered by pull requests using Pipelines as Code:
.tekton/pull-request.yaml
apiVersion: tekton.dev/v1beta1
kind: PipelineRun
metadata:
  name: pr-build
  annotations:
    pipelinesascode.tekton.dev/on-event: "[pull_request]"
    pipelinesascode.tekton.dev/on-target-branch: "[main]"
spec:
  pipelineSpec:
    tasks:
    - name: fetch-repository
      taskRef:
        name: git-clone
        resolver: hub
      workspaces:
      - name: output
        workspace: source
      params:
      - name: url
        value: "{{ repo_url }}"
      - name: revision
        value: "{{ revision }}"
    - name: run-tests
      runAfter: [fetch-repository]
      taskRef:
        name: golang-test
        resolver: hub
      workspaces:
      - name: source
        workspace: source
  workspaces:
  - name: source
    emptyDir: {}
This pipeline will automatically run on every pull request to the main branch, fetch the code, and run tests.
You can generate complete PipelineRun YAML using the tkn pac generate CLI command, which will prompt you for the event type and target branch.

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Prerequisites

Before getting started with Pipelines as Code, ensure you have:
  • Kubernetes cluster: Version 1.27+ recommended
  • Tekton Pipelines: Version 0.50.0+ (latest stable recommended)
  • Git provider: One of:
    • GitHub (GitHub App or Webhook)
    • GitLab (Webhook)
    • Forgejo (Webhook) - Tech Preview
    • Bitbucket Cloud/Data Center (Webhook)
  • CLI tool: kubectl for cluster access
  • Optional: tkn CLI for Tekton operations

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What’s next?

Get started

Follow the quickstart guide to get your first pipeline running

Learn concepts

Understand the architecture and components of Pipelines as Code

Install

Detailed installation instructions for production environments

Configure providers

Set up GitHub, GitLab, or other Git providers

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