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My GitOps Pipeline Strategy with Gitea, Docker, and Ansible

Automation Homelab Selfhosting Ci/Cd Devops Automation
Quentin Marques
Author
Quentin Marques
Future Architect in Cybersecurity
Table of Contents

Introduction
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Before automating with CI/CD and GitOps, I was running manual builds, copying files by hand, or SSHing into servers just to restart a service. It worked, but it was repetitive, error-prone, and honestly boring.

With my GitOps pipeline in my homelab, my goal is simple:

  • Automate what can be automated
  • Learn about pipelines and DevOps operations
  • Avoid relying on GitHub or external services
  • Maintain full control over deployments

Since I already use Gitea, Docker, and Ansible, these tools became the foundation of my GitOps workflow.

Diagram
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  graph TD
    A[[Code Push]] -->|trigger| B[Build Job]
    B -->|compile & build| C[Test Job]
    C -->|validate| D[Release Job]
    D -->|package image| E[Deployment Job]
    E -->|ansible-playbook| F[[Deployed]]

1. My Setup and Tools
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  • Gitea : A self-hosted Git service that replaces GitHub. Fast, lightweight, and mine.
  • Gitea Runner : Executes workflows (like GitHub Actions, but locally).
  • Docker : Packages my applications into images.
  • Ansible : Automates deployment to my servers.
  • Semaphore : A UI for Ansible that lets me trigger playbooks easily, from pipelines via webhooks.

2. Pipeline Design
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Here’s how my workflow looks in practice:

  1. Push code → A commit to main triggers a workflow in Gitea.
  2. Build → The runner compiles and builds the project.
  3. Test → Unit tests and linting ensure code quality.
  4. Release → A Docker image is built, tagged, and stored.
  5. Deploy → Semaphore triggers Ansible playbooks that pull the new image and restart services in my homelab.

Every commit goes through the same lifecycle, no more manual steps.

3. Implementation Details
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Some details that make the pipeline work smoothly:

  • Deployment logs → Semaphore keeps track of every deployment.
  • Notifications → Discord webhooks alert me after each job.
  • Cleanup → Old packages are cleaned to avoid wasting space.
  • Secrets → All credentials are stored in Gitea Secrets.

Conclusion
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Building my own CI/CD pipeline taught me a lot about automation and DevOps practices. More importantly, it gave me a workflow I trust : simple, reproducible, and entirely under my control.

Next, I want to add:

  • Advanced testing stages,
  • Staging environments,
  • Better notifications,
  • Full CI/CD for my Ansible repository.

In the end, this pipeline is not just about saving time. It’s about trusting the process.

More
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