GitLab Template

The GitLab repo template provides a ready-to-use starting point for DevRail-compliant projects hosted on GitLab.

Creating a Project

From the GitLab Web UI

1. Navigate to New Project > Create from template
2. Select the Custom tab
3. Choose the DevRail GitLab template
4. Enter your project name and settings
5. Click Create project
6. Clone the new project to your machine

Manual Clone

If the template is not available in your GitLab instance’s template list:

# Clone the DevRail GitLab template
git clone https://gitlab.com/devrail-dev/gitlab-repo-template.git my-project
cd my-project

# Reset git history for a clean start
rm -rf .git
git init
git add .
git commit -m "feat: initialize project with DevRail standards"

# Add your GitLab remote
git remote add origin https://gitlab.com/your-group/my-project.git
git push -u origin main

File Inventory

The template includes the following files:

DevRail Configuration

Documentation

Agent Instruction Files

CI/CD

GitLab CI Pipeline

The .gitlab-ci.yml pipeline runs each make target as a separate job inside the dev-toolchain container:

# .gitlab-ci.yml -- parallel jobs for each check category
image: ghcr.io/devrail-dev/dev-toolchain:v1

stages:
  - check

lint:
  stage: check
  script:
    - make _lint

format:
  stage: check
  script:
    - make _format

security:
  stage: check
  script:
    - make _security

test:
  stage: check
  script:
    - make _test

docs:
  stage: check
  script:
    - make _docs

Jobs run in parallel within the check stage for fast feedback.

Customization

Step 1: Configure Languages

Edit .devrail.yml to match your project:

# .devrail.yml -- configure for your project
languages:
  - python
  - terraform

Step 2: Update README

Replace the template README content with your project’s description, following the same structure as the GitHub template.

Step 3: Set Up Code Owners

Edit .gitlab/CODEOWNERS to reflect your team’s ownership structure:

# .gitlab/CODEOWNERS
* @your-group/your-team

Common Customization Patterns

Adding a Language

Edit .devrail.yml and add the language:

languages:
  - python
  - bash
  - ansible  # Added ansible

No other file changes are needed. The Makefile and CI pipeline automatically adjust.

Changing the Container Version

Override the container image in .gitlab-ci.yml:

# Pin to a specific version
image: ghcr.io/devrail-dev/dev-toolchain:v1.3.2

Also update the DEVRAIL_IMAGE variable in your Makefile for local development consistency.

Adjusting CI Triggers

By default, the pipeline runs on merge requests to main. To change this:

# .gitlab-ci.yml
workflow:
  rules:
    - if: '$CI_PIPELINE_SOURCE == "merge_request_event"'
    - if: '$CI_COMMIT_BRANCH == "main"'
    - if: '$CI_COMMIT_BRANCH == "develop"'  # Add additional branches

Differences from GitHub Template

The GitHub and GitLab templates are functionally equivalent. The differences are limited to platform-specific CI configuration:

All DevRail configuration files (Makefile, .devrail.yml, .editorconfig, agent files, etc.) are identical across both templates.