GitLab CI Pipeline for Go Projects

Go CI Pipeline in GitLab

Go projects benefit from module caching and the ability to produce static binaries that can be deployed as single-file artifacts.

Pipeline Configuration

stages:
  - lint
  - test
  - build

variables:
  GOPATH: "$CI_PROJECT_DIR/.go"
  GOFLAGS: "-mod=readonly"

vet:
  stage: lint
  image: golang:1.22-alpine
  script:
    - go vet ./...
  cache:
    key: go-modules
    paths:
      - .go/pkg/mod/
    policy: pull-push

test:
  stage: test
  image: golang:1.22-alpine
  script:
    - go test -race -coverprofile=coverage.out ./...
    - go tool cover -func=coverage.out
  cache:
    key: go-modules
    paths:
      - .go/pkg/mod/
    policy: pull-push
  artifacts:
    paths:
      - coverage.out
    expire_in: 30 days

build:
  stage: build
  image: golang:1.22-alpine
  script:
    - CGO_ENABLED=0 GOOS=linux go build -ldflags="-s -w" -o app ./cmd/server
  cache:
    key: go-modules
    paths:
      - .go/pkg/mod/
    policy: pull
  artifacts:
    paths:
      - app
    expire_in: 1 week

Key Points

GOPATH redirection: Like Python's pip cache, setting GOPATH inside the project directory allows module caching across pipeline runs.

-race flag: The race detector catches concurrent access bugs at test time. It adds overhead but is essential for CI pipelines.

Static binary: CGO_ENABLED=0 produces a fully static binary with no C library dependencies, perfect for scratch or distroless Docker images.

-ldflags="-s -w": Strips debug symbols and DWARF information, reducing binary size by 20-30%.