Getting Started
This guide will help you setup your first Buildkite pipeline. If you don’t have a Buildkite account you’ll first need to sign up. This guide uses GitHub but Buildkite can work with any version control system.
On this page:
Install and run your first agent
Buildkite agents are small, reliable and cross-platform build runners that run automated builds. Buildkite never accesses your code, and does not run any agents, so you need to install and run agents on your own infrastructure. You can do this on your local development machine, an existing CI machine, or a new server.
Follow the Agent installation instructions to install and start an agent
Make sure you’ve configured the agent token, as that is what connects the agent to your Buildkite account. Refer to Buildkite Agent Configuration for more information.
Add the sample pipeline
Pipelines are how Buildkite represents your CI workflow, a series of steps that will be run on your code.
We’ve created a bash-example test repository to use as your first pipeline. Click the “Add to Buildkite” button below to open a new pipeline page for the example pipeline:
Accept the pre-filled defaults, and click Create Pipeline.
Run your first build
Now that you’re running an agent and have created a pipeline you’re ready to run your first build. Click the New Build button in the top right corner:
Type in a build message (being sure to add some emojis) and click Create Build:
The build will run, and once it’s finished it’ll turn green!
Congratulations, you have run your first Buildkite build! 🎉
Invite your team to the organization
To invite your team so they can see your build, go to your organization’s Settings, and under Users you’ll be able to paste in their email addresses.
Using a private repository
When you create a new pipeline with a private repository URL you’ll be shown instructions for configuring your SCM’s webhooks (in GitHub, Bitbucket, etc). Once you’ve followed those instructions make sure your agent’s SSH keys are configured, and you’ll be good to run a build of your private pipeline.
For more advanced pipelines it can be a good idea to use your development machine as the agent for your first few builds. That way all the dependencies are ready and you’ll sooner be able to share a link to a green build with the rest of your team.