Integration of Jenkins with cloud computing a problem?

[judywatson]

Hello everyone,

I am currently facing some issues integrating Jenkins with cloud computing and would appreciate any help or advice on the matter.

To provide some background, Jenkins is an open-source automation server that helps in continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) of software applications. It provides various plugins and integrations that help in building, testing, and deploying applications. On the other hand, cloud computing [https://www.lenovo.com/ca/en/servers-storage/solutions/cloud-computing] is a technology that provides on-demand access to shared computing resources such as servers, storage, and applications over the internet.

Now, coming to the issue at hand, I am trying to integrate Jenkins with cloud computing to enable faster and more efficient software delivery. However, I am facing some challenges in the process. Here are some of the issues that I am encountering:

Difficulty in setting up Jenkins on cloud computing platforms: Jenkins needs to be installed on a server or a virtual machine to function. While some cloud computing platforms provide pre-configured Jenkins images, others require manual installation, which can be challenging.

Network connectivity issues: As Jenkins is hosted on a cloud platform, there can be network connectivity issues that can cause disruptions in the build and deployment process.

Security concerns: Jenkins integrates with various tools and plugins, which can create security vulnerabilities if not properly configured. Also, cloud computing involves sharing computing resources with other users, which can lead to security risks if not adequately addressed.

Scalability challenges: As the number of build and deployment jobs increase, there can be challenges in scaling up the Jenkins infrastructure to meet the growing demand.

In summary, integrating Jenkins with cloud computing can be a complex process that requires careful planning and execution. To overcome these challenges, it is essential to have a clear understanding of the requirements, choose the right cloud computing platform, configure the necessary security measures, and ensure proper network connectivity.

If anyone has faced similar challenges or has experience in integrating Jenkins with cloud computing, I would appreciate your insights and advice.

Thank you for your time.

[DamianS]

Hello Judy,

If I understood correctly, you have already Jenkins in place and want to use GCE as a worknodes pool, right ? Did you maybe considered set up Jenkins instance at GC via Marketplace ( there are many of click-and-deploy options there) and migrate Jenkins config and jobs into newly provisioned ? 

"Difficulty in setting up Jenkins on cloud computing platforms: Jenkins needs to be installed on a server or a virtual machine to function. While some cloud computing platforms provide pre-configured Jenkins images, others require manual installation, which can be challenging." - Use Marketplace. If you search by "Jenkins" you will see planty options with also click-and-deploy solution ( this will use Deployment Manager service btw)

"Scalability challenges: As the number of build and deployment jobs increase, there can be challenges in scaling up the Jenkins infrastructure to meet the growing demand." - You can use GKE and deploy Jenkins at GKE ( kubernetes ) with autoscaling option enabled. It will add nodes each time autoscaling condition will be met. 
https://devopscube.com/setup-jenkins-on-kubernetes-cluster/

"Security concerns: Jenkins integrates with various tools and plugins, which can create security vulnerabilities if not properly configured. Also, cloud computing involves sharing computing resources with other users, which can lead to security risks if not adequately addressed." - You can create dedicated project for Jenkins and his load and grant granular permissions via IAM to restrict access. GC has service called Security Center which can help with monitoring security related stuff. Also, you can limit access to jenkins instances via osLogin policy or force 2FA at instance level.  
https://cloud.google.com/compute/docs/oslogin/set-up-oslogin

cheers,
DamianS