Running deployments

You complete a deployment by resolving its tasks. Resolve tasks by starting them and then applying various statuses to them.

Before you begin

Schedule a deployment and associate the applications with the release to use. Ensure that the target release environment is reserved for the scheduled date and time.

About this task

The Execution and Deployment Plan view shows the deployment's tasks and provides feedback about the deployment's progress. From this view, you can run deployments by modifying and completing tasks. You can also create tasks, which then become part of the deployment plan. While tasks remain unresolved, the progress bar displays the deployment's progress. When all tasks are resolved, the deployment is complete.

Procedure

  1. To open the Deployments view, click Releases and Deployments > Deployments. The Deployments view lists scheduled deployments. You can filter the list by using search criteria, such as environment or release.
  2. To select a deployment, click the Execution Date for the scheduled deployment. The Execution and Deployment Plan view shows the deployments segments and tasks and provides status information about the deployment's progress.
    The Execution and Deployment Plan tab
    When a deployment starts, use the following information to track the deployment's progress and determine its status:
    • The deployment progress bar displays the deployment's overall progress. The percentage is calculated by comparing the duration of resolved tasks to the total duration for all tasks. A task is considered resolved if it has a status of Completed, Skipped, Not Applicable, or Failed. The bar's color is green when all tasks have a status of Completed, Skipped, or Not Applicable. The bar's color is orange if tasks have a status of Waiting, In progress, or Failed. When the progress is 100%, the deployment is complete.
    • The deployment start value displays the expected start day and time. After the deployment begins, the actual start time is displayed.
    • The deployment end value displays the expected end time, which is calculated by adding segment durations. Before the deployment starts, you can override this value. When all tasks are resolved, the deployment is considered complete and the actual end date and time are displayed.
    • The Plan Duration area displays the deployment's expected duration. The value is determined by totaling the duration of all segments. After the deployment starts, the remaining time is displayed instead. The amount of time that the deployment is ahead or behind schedule is also displayed.
    • The Waiting Tasks area lists the tasks that are eligible to start. Tasks are eligible to start when their parent segment starts.
    • The Late Tasks area displays tasks that are past their expected start times. The amount of time each task is late is also displayed.

    The Task Count area provides the number of tasks in the following categories:

    • The Planned Planned icon value is the number of tasks that are included in the deployment. When you start the deployment, applications that are not applicable are no longer included in the total.
    • The Waiting Waiting icon value is the number of tasks that are eligible to start.
    • The In Progress In Progress icon value is the number of started tasks that are yet to be resolved.
    • The Total Remaining Total Remaining icon value is the number of unresolved tasks.
    • The Not Applicable Not Applicable icon value is the number of automatic tasks that are not applicable for the current deployment. A task can be NA if it is without designated application versions. A task might also be NA if it is not set to run in the current environment, or if it is set to run once per environment and it already ran. Tasks with this status do not prevent the deployment from being completed successfully.
    • The Skipped Skipped icon value represents the number of skipped tasks. Tasks with this status do not prevent the deployment from being completed successfully.
    • The Complete Complete icon value represents the number of tasks that are resolved successfully.
    • The Failed Failed icon value is the number failed tasks. Tasks with this status prevent the deployment from successful completion. Typically, failed tasks are reopened.
  3. Optional: If you did not configure the deployment to automatically select application versions and you want to use applications, you can select versions anytime before the deployment starts. To select application versions, complete the following steps for each version to add to the deployment:
    1. Click the Content & Notifications tab.
    2. On the Deployment Contents page, click the Edit icon edit icon for the application. All applications that are associated with the release are available.
    3. Select the application version from the Version list.
    4. Click Save.
    Note: Automatic tasks without designated application versions cannot run and have the Not Applicable status. Application versions cannot be added to the deployment after the deployment starts.
  4. Optional: Hide tasks that are not applicable by clicking Hide not applicable tasks. This action hides automatic tasks without designated versions. You can redisplay hidden tasks by clicking Show not applicable tasks.
  5. To start the deployment, click Start Deployment.

    When the deployment starts, the deployment's progress is calculated and status information is displayed. You can stop a started deployment by clicking Abort Deployment. Aborting a deployment frees its reserved release environment. Typically, notifications are configured to alert users when a deployment is aborted. Finally, you can reopen an aborted deployment by clicking Reopen Deployment. The time between when the deployment was aborted and reopened is reflected in the deployment's progress.

  6. Optional: You can add new tasks and segments and modify existing ones. To add or change segments and tasks, do any of these activities: To modify a resolved task, first reopen it. Changes and additions become part of the current deployment and become part of the deployment plan. Deployments that are created from the current release-plan combination contain the changes.
  7. The tasks in a segment cannot be started until the segment itself is started. To start a segment, click Start for the segment. More than one segment can be started and be in progress at the same time. If a segment has prerequisites, it cannot be started until all prerequisite segments are complete. When a segment starts, its duration counter starts and its progress bar displays the progress of the segment's tasks. Automatic tasks automatically start when the parent segment starts but you can add comments to them and override their status. Manual tasks are considered waiting until they are individually resolved.
  8. Resolve tasks in started segments by doing these steps:
    1. Before a task can be started, it must be claimed by a user with the role that is assigned to the task. To claim a task, click Claim. Typically, any user with the role that is designated for the task can claim it. But a task can be restricted to specific user.
    2. Start a waiting manual task by clicking Start .
    3. Optional: You can review comments that are associated with the task. To review comments, click the Edit icon edit icon for the task. The Execution Details area displays comments that are organized by application environment. Comments are automatically generated for automatic tasks, as shown in this figure:
      The Execution Details area
    4. Optional: You can add comments to a task. To add a comment, click the Edit icon edit icon for the task, and click Add Comment, and then enter your comment. When you are done, click Save. You can add comments before, during, or after a task runs
    5. Optional: You can view information about automatic tasks in IBM® UrbanCode Deploy. To view execution details, click View Execution for a comment. This action displays the IBM UrbanCode Deploy Application Process Request view for the application process. From the Application Process Request view, you can view the deployment request, and return to IBM UrbanCode Release.
    6. Resolve a started task by changing its status. To change the status of a manual task, select a new status:
      • Finish means the task is completed.
      • Skip means that the task is not used in the current deployment and its expected duration is no longer included in the segment’s total. Skipped tasks do not prevent a segment from being completed or a deployment from being completed.
      • Fail means that the task was not completed. A failed task prevents its parent segment from being complete. If a segment with a failed task is a prerequisite for other segments, the dependent segments cannot start until failed tasks are finished or skipped. Failed tasks also prevent a deployment from completing successfully.
    7. To change the status of an automatic task, click Override Status, and then select a status:
      • Finish means that the task is completed.
      • Skip means that the task is not used.
      • Fail means that the task was not completed successfully.
  9. Optional: You can reopen or restart resolved tasks any time even after the deployment is complete.
    • To reopen a resolved manual task, click Reopen. Reopened tasks are resolved like any started task.
    • To restart a resolved automatic task, click Override Status, and then select Restart.
    When you reopen or restart a task, the deployment's progress changes to reflect the task's duration. If you reopen a task in a completed deployment, the deployment is no longer considered complete.
    Note: A started segment with prerequisites does not close even if a task in its prerequisite segment is reopened and fails. When a segment starts, it is no longer affected by reopened prerequisite segments.

Results

When all tasks are resolved, the progress bar indicates 100%, and the deployment is considered complete. A successfully completed deployment is one in which all tasks are resolved with one of the following statuses: Complete, Skipped, or Not Applicable. An unsuccessful deployment is one in which at least one task has the Failed status.

What to do next

An unsuccessful deployment continues to have the In Progress status. Typically unsuccessful deployments are reopened. You can also reopen successfully completed deployments. Changes that are made during a deployment become part of the deployment plan and are included in new deployments that are created with the release-plan combination.

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