gitlab-org / gitlab-ce

This document provides a detailed step-by-step guide for scaling the GitLab CE project in a Production environment. The focus is on configuration, Docker image building, and deployment strategies to ensure optimal performance.

Scaling GitLab CE

Scaling GitLab involves a combination of optimizing application performance, resource allocation, and utilizing container orchestration to handle increased load effectively. Below are key configurations and examples relevant to achieving a scalable Production environment.

1. Docker Configuration

The first step in scaling involves configuring the Docker setup. The docker-compose.yml file specifies the image and its settings.

version: '3.7'

services:
  app:
    image: gitlab/gitlab-ce:latest
    restart: always
    ports:
      - '80:80'
      - '443:443'
    environment:
      - GITLAB_HTTPS=true
      - GITLAB_HOST=gitlab.example.com
      - GITLAB_PORT=443
      - GITLAB_SHELL_SSH_PORT=22
    volumes:
      - gitlab-config:/etc/gitlab
      - gitlab-logs:/var/log/gitlab
      - gitlab-data:/var/opt/gitlab

volumes:
  gitlab-config:
  gitlab-logs:
  gitlab-data:

In this configuration, the application image is set to the latest version of GitLab CE. Environment variables are defined for HTTPS, host, and ports, ensuring the application runs in a secure context.

2. Multi-Stage Docker Builds

The Dockerfile supports multi-stage builds, which contributes to better resource management and performance optimization when deploying in Production.

ARG BUILD_OS=debian
ARG RUBY_VERSION=3.2.4
FROM registry.gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab-build-images/${BUILD_OS}-bookworm-ruby-${RUBY_VERSION} AS foss

# System library installation
RUN apt-get update && \
    apt-get install -y xvfb unzip google-cloud-sdk-gke-gcloud-auth-plugin && \
    apt-get clean -yqq && \
    rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*

# Install dependencies for Quality Assurance
COPY qa/Gemfile* /home/gitlab/qa/
COPY vendor/gems/ /home/gitlab/vendor/gems/
COPY gems/gitlab-utils /home/gitlab/gems/gitlab-utils
RUN bundle install --retry=3

ENTRYPOINT ["bin/test"]

# Additional build stages for enterprise and joint health QA
FROM foss AS ee
ONBUILD COPY VERSION ./ee/config/feature_flag[s] /home/gitlab/ee/config/feature_flags/

FROM ee AS jhqa
ONBUILD COPY ./jh/qa /home/gitlab/jh/qa

This multi-stage setup allows developers to create lighter images, which can be used to reduce the resource footprint and improve deployment speed.

3. Optimizing GitLab Performance

Performance optimization can be achieved through tuning various components of the GitLab application, particularly PostgreSQL and Redis. Providing dedicated resources and configuring these services appropriately will ensure better performance under load.

PostgreSQL Configuration

Ensure PostgreSQL is tuned in accordance with your hardware specifications. An example configuration might be:

# Example settings to improve PostgreSQL performance
max_connections = 200
shared_buffers = 2GB
work_mem = 64MB
maintenance_work_mem = 512MB
effective_cache_size = 4GB

Redis Configuration

For Redis, the following configurations can help scale performance:

# Example settings for Redis
maxmemory 256mb
maxmemory-policy allkeys-lru

For effective scaling, it is advisable to utilize distributed Redis for caching and session storage, allowing for load distribution.

4. Using Container Orchestration

When deploying GitLab on a larger scale, consider utilizing Kubernetes or Docker Swarm. This allows automatic scaling, redundancy, and better resource management.

apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: gitlab
spec:
  replicas: 3
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: gitlab
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        app: gitlab
    spec:
      containers:
        - name: gitlab
          image: gitlab/gitlab-ce:latest
          ports:
            - containerPort: 80

In this configuration, the Deployment is defined with scalabilities, such as replicas, to ensure high availability and redundancy.

Conclusion

Scaling GitLab CE in a production environment requires thoughtful configuration of Docker, optimization of services like PostgreSQL and Redis, and the use of orchestration tools to manage resources effectively. By following these guidelines, expert developers can ensure that the application remains performant and reliable under increasing loads.

Source of Information:

  • Files and configurations referenced from the GitLab CE repository.