Likelihood to Recommend We started to use GitLab for hosting git source code repositories of our projects only but slowly we started to use it to store container images, packages, dependency proxy as well infrastucture registry and it is now well suited for Continuous Integration in our projects, It wasn't that good in Continuous Deployment before 12.0 version but after 12.0 it is amazingly good for Continuous Deployment as well since it keeps deployment information in a well organized manner which can be configure in ci yaml configuration.
Read full review As of current, the only artifactory management tool that I would recommend is ProGet. The free version is plentiful in features, supporting all feed types that the paid plans do. The paid plans also add even more capabilities on top of the free plan, such as data retention policies, which helps to minimize storage waste on my server and keep everything clean.
Read full review Pros GitLab excels in managing code versions, allowing easy tracking of changes, branch management, and merging contributions. It helps maintain code stability and reliability, saving time and effort in the development or research workflow. Powerful code review features, enabling collaboration and feedback among team members. Robust project management features, including issue tracking, kanban boards, and milestones. Read full review The Docker registry feature works great. Compared to Sonatype Nexus 3, I don't need to set up extra ports, as everything just works off the port ProGet itself is running on. Debian feeds support automatic GPG key generation, without me having to create or manage them myself. This is another spot where ProGet is better than Nexus, as you have to manually create and specify a key with Nexus, while ProGet simply handles it all for you. Read full review Cons CI variables management is sometimes hard to use, for example, with File type variables. The scope of each variable is also hard to guess. Access Token: there are too many types (Personal, Project, global..), and it is hard to identify the scope and where it comes from once created. Runners: auto-scaled runners are for the moment hard to put in place, and monitoring is not easy. Read full review When running ProGet inside of a Docker container, changes to some settings requires a manual restart of the container (i.e. with 'docker restart x'). Read full review Likelihood to Renew Gitlab is the best in its segment. They have a free version, they have open-source software, they provide a good service with their SaaS product, they are a fully-remote company since the beginning (which means they are fully distributed and have forward-thinking IMO). I would certainly recommend them to everyone.
Read full review Usability I find it easy to use, I haven't had to do the integration work, so that's why it is a 9/10, cause I can't speak to how easy that part was or the initial set up, but day to day use is great!
Read full review Support Rating At this point, I do not have much experience with Gitlab support as I have never had to engage them. They have documentation that is helpful, not quite as extensive as other documentation, but helpful nonetheless. They also seem to be relatively responsive on social media platforms (twitter) and really thrived when
GitHub was acquired by Microsoft
Read full review Alternatives Considered GitLab is easily the preferred tool when it comes to versioning and source control. With other tools the UI often feels outdated and clunky leading to inefficiency and confusion. With some of the sleeker tools such as
GitKraken , while the aesthetic is pleasing, the experience is plagued by a lack of support, lack of optional plugins, and a plethora of bugs that cause unnecessary legwork to resolve. GitLab is the best of both aesthetic and functionality
Read full review Both Sonatype Nexus 3 and ProGet support all the feed types I use, but ProGet simply does them better. The Docker feeds run on the same port as ProGet itself, while Nexus requires additional ports to be set up, which can be a burden when running in Docker. Debian feeds also support GPG key creation without having to manually specify one, again, reducing the burden for me to manually do things, allowing me to set up and distribute my programs even quicker.
Read full review Return on Investment We were able to streamline our project's codebase which made us very organised and laid out a proper plan for development. Our deployment and infra pipelines are well structured now making our process 10x faster. We are more focused into project building rather infra, as infra is totally on autopilot mode. Which has enabled us to grow our ROI by records. Read full review I don't need to develop custom solutions for distributing my software, as ProGet does it all for me. ProGet also integrates easily into my CI systems, with a fully-featured API that allows me to upload packages right after building. Read full review ScreenShots