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GitLab Week 1: Fundamentals + MR Workflow

Goal

Master GitLab basics and advanced Merge Request features.

Topics

Day 1-2: GitLab Architecture

What you'll learn: - GitLab CE vs EE (Community vs Enterprise) - Projects, Groups, Namespaces - Permissions model (Guest, Reporter, Developer, Maintainer, Owner) - Company GitLab structure

Hands-on: 

# Explore app-interface structure
https://gitlab.company.com/service/app-interface

Group: service
Project: app-interface
Namespace: service/app-interface

Key concepts: - Project: Single repo (e.g., app-interface) - Group: Collection of projects (e.g., service, app-sre) - Namespace: Unique path (group/project)

Day 3-4: Merge Request Workflow

What you'll learn: - Creating MRs (draft vs ready) - MR templates - Labels, milestones, assignees - Approval rules - Merge strategies (merge commit, squash, rebase)

Hands-on: 

# Create an MR (review your previous one)
git checkout -b feature/test-mr
# Make changes
git add .
git commit -m "Test MR"
git push origin feature/test-mr

# In GitLab UI:
1. Create MR
2. Use template (.gitlab/merge_request_templates/Default.md)
3. Fill: What, Why, Tickets, Validation
4. Add labels
5. Assign reviewers

MR Templates (app-interface): 

#### What
- Bullet points of changes

#### Why
- Context and justification

#### Tickets
- JIRA links (Closes: INFRA-XXXX)

#### Validation
- How did you test?

#### Dependency
- Dependent MRs (optional)

Day 5-6: Code Review Best Practices

What you'll learn: - Reviewing MRs effectively - Comment types (general, specific line, suggestion) - Resolving discussions - Approval workflow

How to review:

  1. Check Description:
  2. What/Why clear?
  3. Tickets linked?

  4. Validation done?

  5. Review Code:

  6. Click "Changes" tab
  7. Add comments on specific lines

  8. Use "Start a review" (batch comments)

  9. Use Suggestions: 

    # Suggest code change (reviewer can apply directly)
cluster:
$ref: /openshift/appsres09ue1/cluster.yml

  10. Resolve Discussions:

  11. Address all comments

  12. Mark as resolved when fixed

  13. Approve:

  14. Click "Approve" button
  15. Or request changes

Day 7: Branch Protection & Merge Strategies

What you'll learn: - Protected branches (master) - Merge checks (CI must pass) - Merge strategies - Squash vs merge commit

Protected branches: 

In app-interface:
- master branch is protected
- Required: Approvals from code owners
- Required: CI pipeline must pass
- No force push allowed

Merge strategies:

Strategy Result When to use
Merge commit Preserves all commits Default, full history
Squash Single commit Clean history, small MRs
Rebase Linear history Advanced, no merge commits

App-interface uses: Merge commit (preserves full history)

Exercises

Exercise 1: Explore app-interface

# 1. Browse the project
https://gitlab.company.com/service/app-interface

# 2. Check settings
Settings → General → Visibility (Internal)
Settings → Repository → Protected branches

# 3. Check members
Settings → Members
- See who has access
- Understand roles

Exercise 2: Create a Test MR

# 1. Create branch
git checkout -b test/my-first-gitlab-mr

# 2. Make a small change (e.g., add comment to README)
echo "# Test comment" >> README.md

# 3. Commit
git add README.md
git commit -m "Test: my first GitLab MR"

# 4. Push
git push origin test/my-first-gitlab-mr

# 5. Create MR in UI
- Use template
- Add label: test
- Mark as Draft
- Close without merging

Exercise 3: Review an Existing MR

# Find a merged MR in app-interface
https://gitlab.company.com/service/app-interface/-/merge_requests?scope=all&state=merged

# Pick one, review:
1. Read description
2. Check "Changes" tab
3. Look for patterns:
- How did they structure commits?
- What kind of validation?
- How many approvals needed?

Week 1 Checklist

  • Understand GitLab project structure
  • Know the difference between CE and EE
  • Created at least 1 MR
  • Used MR template correctly
  • Reviewed code with comments
  • Understand approval workflow
  • Know merge strategies

Resources

  • GitLab MR Docs: https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/user/project/merge_requests/
  • Code Review Guidelines: https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/development/code_review.html
  • Protected Branches: https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/user/project/protected_branches.html

Next: Week 2: GitLab CI/CD →