560 lines
18 KiB
Markdown
560 lines
18 KiB
Markdown
---
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stage: Verify
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group: Pipeline Execution
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info: To determine the technical writer assigned to the Stage/Group associated with this page, see https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/engineering/ux/technical-writing/#assignments
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type: index, concepts, howto
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---
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# Caching in GitLab CI/CD
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A cache is one or more files that a job downloads and saves. Subsequent jobs that use
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the same cache don't have to download the files again, so they execute more quickly.
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To learn how to define the cache in your `.gitlab-ci.yml` file,
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see the [`cache` reference](../yaml/README.md#cache).
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## How cache is different from artifacts
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Use cache for dependencies, like packages you download from the internet.
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Cache is stored where GitLab Runner is installed and uploaded to S3 if
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[distributed cache is enabled](https://docs.gitlab.com/runner/configuration/autoscale.html#distributed-runners-caching).
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Use artifacts to pass intermediate build results between stages.
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Artifacts are generated by a job, stored in GitLab, and can be downloaded.
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Both artifacts and caches define their paths relative to the project directory, and
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can't link to files outside it.
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### Cache
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- Define cache per job by using the `cache:` keyword. Otherwise it is disabled.
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- Subsequent pipelines can use the cache.
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- Subsequent jobs in the same pipeline can use the cache, if the dependencies are identical.
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- Different projects cannot share the cache.
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### Artifacts
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- Define artifacts per job.
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- Subsequent jobs in later stages of the same pipeline can use artifacts.
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- Different projects cannot share artifacts.
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Artifacts expire after 30 days unless you define an [expiration time](../yaml/README.md#artifactsexpire_in).
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Use [dependencies](../yaml/README.md#dependencies) to control which jobs fetch the artifacts.
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## Good caching practices
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To ensure maximum availability of the cache, do one or more of the following:
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- [Tag your runners](../runners/configure_runners.md#use-tags-to-limit-the-number-of-jobs-using-the-runner) and use the tag on jobs
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that share the cache.
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- [Use runners that are only available to a particular project](../runners/runners_scope.md#prevent-a-specific-runner-from-being-enabled-for-other-projects).
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- [Use a `key`](../yaml/README.md#cachekey) that fits your workflow. For example,
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you can configure a different cache for each branch.
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For runners to work with caches efficiently, you must do one of the following:
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- Use a single runner for all your jobs.
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- Use multiple runners that have
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[distributed caching](https://docs.gitlab.com/runner/configuration/autoscale.html#distributed-runners-caching),
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where the cache is stored in S3 buckets. Shared runners on GitLab.com behave this way. These runners can be in autoscale mode,
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but they don't have to be.
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- Use multiple runners with the same architecture and have these runners
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share a common network-mounted directory to store the cache. This directory should use NFS or something similar.
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These runners must be in autoscale mode.
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### Share caches between jobs in the same branch
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To have jobs for each branch use the same cache, define a cache with the `key: ${CI_COMMIT_REF_SLUG}`:
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```yaml
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cache:
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key: ${CI_COMMIT_REF_SLUG}
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```
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This configuration prevents you from accidentally overwriting the cache. However, the
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first pipeline for a merge request is slow. The next time a commit is pushed to the branch, the
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cache is re-used and jobs run faster.
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To enable per-job and per-branch caching:
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```yaml
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cache:
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key: "$CI_JOB_NAME-$CI_COMMIT_REF_SLUG"
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```
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To enable per-stage and per-branch caching:
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```yaml
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cache:
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key: "$CI_JOB_STAGE-$CI_COMMIT_REF_SLUG"
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```
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### Share caches across jobs in different branches
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To share a cache across all branches and all jobs, use the same key for everything:
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```yaml
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cache:
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key: one-key-to-rule-them-all
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```
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To share caches between branches, but have a unique cache for each job:
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```yaml
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cache:
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key: ${CI_JOB_NAME}
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```
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### Disable cache for specific jobs
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If you have defined the cache globally, it means that each job uses the
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same definition. You can override this behavior per-job, and if you want to
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disable it completely, use an empty hash:
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```yaml
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job:
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cache: {}
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```
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### Inherit global configuration, but override specific settings per job
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You can override cache settings without overwriting the global cache by using
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[anchors](../yaml/README.md#anchors). For example, if you want to override the
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`policy` for one job:
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```yaml
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cache: &global_cache
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key: ${CI_COMMIT_REF_SLUG}
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paths:
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- node_modules/
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- public/
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- vendor/
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policy: pull-push
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job:
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cache:
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# inherit all global cache settings
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<<: *global_cache
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# override the policy
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policy: pull
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```
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For more fine tuning, read also about the
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[`cache: policy`](../yaml/README.md#cachepolicy).
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## Common use cases
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The most common use case of caching is to avoid downloading content like dependencies
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or libraries repeatedly between subsequent runs of jobs. Node.js packages,
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PHP packages, Ruby gems, Python libraries, and others can all be cached.
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For more examples, check out our [GitLab CI/CD templates](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/tree/master/lib/gitlab/ci/templates).
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### Cache Node.js dependencies
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If your project is using [npm](https://www.npmjs.com/) to install the Node.js
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dependencies, the following example defines `cache` globally so that all jobs inherit it.
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By default, npm stores cache data in the home folder `~/.npm` but you
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[can't cache things outside of the project directory](../yaml/README.md#cachepaths).
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Instead, we tell npm to use `./.npm`, and cache it per-branch:
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```yaml
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#
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# https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/tree/master/lib/gitlab/ci/templates/Nodejs.gitlab-ci.yml
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#
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image: node:latest
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# Cache modules in between jobs
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cache:
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key: ${CI_COMMIT_REF_SLUG}
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paths:
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- .npm/
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before_script:
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- npm ci --cache .npm --prefer-offline
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test_async:
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script:
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- node ./specs/start.js ./specs/async.spec.js
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```
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### Cache PHP dependencies
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Assuming your project is using [Composer](https://getcomposer.org/) to install
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the PHP dependencies, the following example defines `cache` globally so that
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all jobs inherit it. PHP libraries modules are installed in `vendor/` and
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are cached per-branch:
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```yaml
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#
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# https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/tree/master/lib/gitlab/ci/templates/PHP.gitlab-ci.yml
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#
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image: php:7.2
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# Cache libraries in between jobs
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cache:
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key: ${CI_COMMIT_REF_SLUG}
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paths:
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- vendor/
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before_script:
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# Install and run Composer
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- curl --show-error --silent "https://getcomposer.org/installer" | php
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- php composer.phar install
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test:
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script:
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- vendor/bin/phpunit --configuration phpunit.xml --coverage-text --colors=never
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```
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### Cache Python dependencies
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Assuming your project is using [pip](https://pip.pypa.io/en/stable/) to install
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the Python dependencies, the following example defines `cache` globally so that
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all jobs inherit it. Python libraries are installed in a virtual environment under `venv/`,
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pip's cache is defined under `.cache/pip/` and both are cached per-branch:
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```yaml
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#
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# https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/tree/master/lib/gitlab/ci/templates/Python.gitlab-ci.yml
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#
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image: python:latest
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# Change pip's cache directory to be inside the project directory since we can
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# only cache local items.
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variables:
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PIP_CACHE_DIR: "$CI_PROJECT_DIR/.cache/pip"
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# Pip's cache doesn't store the python packages
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# https://pip.pypa.io/en/stable/reference/pip_install/#caching
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#
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# If you want to also cache the installed packages, you have to install
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# them in a virtualenv and cache it as well.
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cache:
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paths:
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- .cache/pip
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- venv/
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before_script:
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- python -V # Print out python version for debugging
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- pip install virtualenv
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- virtualenv venv
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- source venv/bin/activate
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test:
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script:
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- python setup.py test
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- pip install flake8
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- flake8 .
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```
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### Cache Ruby dependencies
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Assuming your project is using [Bundler](https://bundler.io) to install the
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gem dependencies, the following example defines `cache` globally so that all
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jobs inherit it. Gems are installed in `vendor/ruby/` and are cached per-branch:
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```yaml
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#
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# https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/tree/master/lib/gitlab/ci/templates/Ruby.gitlab-ci.yml
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#
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image: ruby:2.6
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# Cache gems in between builds
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cache:
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key: ${CI_COMMIT_REF_SLUG}
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paths:
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- vendor/ruby
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before_script:
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- ruby -v # Print out ruby version for debugging
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- bundle install -j $(nproc) --path vendor/ruby # Install dependencies into ./vendor/ruby
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rspec:
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script:
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- rspec spec
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```
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If you have jobs that each need a different selection of gems, use the `prefix`
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keyword in the global `cache` definition. This configuration generates a different
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cache for each job.
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For example, a testing job might not need the same gems as a job that deploys to
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production:
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```yaml
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cache:
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key:
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files:
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- Gemfile.lock
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prefix: ${CI_JOB_NAME}
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paths:
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- vendor/ruby
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test_job:
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stage: test
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before_script:
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- bundle install --without production --path vendor/ruby
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script:
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- bundle exec rspec
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deploy_job:
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stage: production
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before_script:
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- bundle install --without test --path vendor/ruby
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script:
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- bundle exec deploy
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```
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### Cache Go dependencies
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Assuming your project is using [Go Modules](https://github.com/golang/go/wiki/Modules) to install
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Go dependencies, the following example defines `cache` in a `go-cache` template, that
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any job can extend. Go modules are installed in `${GOPATH}/pkg/mod/` and
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are cached for all of the `go` projects:
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```yaml
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.go-cache:
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variables:
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GOPATH: $CI_PROJECT_DIR/.go
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before_script:
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- mkdir -p .go
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cache:
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paths:
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- .go/pkg/mod/
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test:
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image: golang:1.13
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extends: .go-cache
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script:
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- go test ./... -v -short
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```
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## Availability of the cache
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Caching is an optimization, but it isn't guaranteed to always work. You need to
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be prepared to regenerate any cached files in each job that needs them.
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After you have defined a [cache in `.gitlab-ci.yml`](../yaml/README.md#cache),
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the availability of the cache depends on:
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- The runner's executor type
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- Whether different runners are used to pass the cache between jobs.
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### Where the caches are stored
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The runner is responsible for storing the cache, so it's essential
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to know **where** it's stored. All the cache paths defined under a job in
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`.gitlab-ci.yml` are archived in a single `cache.zip` file and stored in the
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runner's configured cache location. By default, they are stored locally in the
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machine where the runner is installed and depends on the type of the executor.
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| GitLab Runner executor | Default path of the cache |
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| ---------------------- | ------------------------- |
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| [Shell](https://docs.gitlab.com/runner/executors/shell.html) | Locally, stored under the `gitlab-runner` user's home directory: `/home/gitlab-runner/cache/<user>/<project>/<cache-key>/cache.zip`. |
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| [Docker](https://docs.gitlab.com/runner/executors/docker.html) | Locally, stored under [Docker volumes](https://docs.gitlab.com/runner/executors/docker.html#the-builds-and-cache-storage): `/var/lib/docker/volumes/<volume-id>/_data/<user>/<project>/<cache-key>/cache.zip`. |
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| [Docker machine](https://docs.gitlab.com/runner/executors/docker_machine.html) (autoscale runners) | Behaves the same as the Docker executor. |
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If you use cache and artifacts to store the same path in your jobs, the cache might
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be overwritten because caches are restored before artifacts.
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### How archiving and extracting works
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This example has two jobs that belong to two consecutive stages:
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```yaml
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stages:
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- build
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- test
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before_script:
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- echo "Hello"
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job A:
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stage: build
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script:
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- mkdir vendor/
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- echo "build" > vendor/hello.txt
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cache:
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key: build-cache
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paths:
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- vendor/
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after_script:
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- echo "World"
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job B:
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stage: test
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script:
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- cat vendor/hello.txt
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cache:
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key: build-cache
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paths:
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- vendor/
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```
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If you have one machine with one runner installed, and all jobs for your project
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run on the same host:
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1. Pipeline starts.
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1. `job A` runs.
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1. `before_script` is executed.
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1. `script` is executed.
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1. `after_script` is executed.
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1. `cache` runs and the `vendor/` directory is zipped into `cache.zip`.
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This file is then saved in the directory based on the
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[runner's setting](#where-the-caches-are-stored) and the `cache: key`.
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1. `job B` runs.
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1. The cache is extracted (if found).
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1. `before_script` is executed.
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1. `script` is executed.
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1. Pipeline finishes.
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By using a single runner on a single machine, you don't have the issue where
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`job B` might execute on a runner different from `job A`. This setup guarantees the
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cache can be reused between stages. It only works if the execution goes from the `build` stage
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to the `test` stage in the same runner/machine. Otherwise, the cache [might not be available](#cache-mismatch).
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During the caching process, there's also a couple of things to consider:
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- If some other job, with another cache configuration had saved its
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cache in the same zip file, it is overwritten. If the S3 based shared cache is
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used, the file is additionally uploaded to S3 to an object based on the cache
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key. So, two jobs with different paths, but the same cache key, overwrites
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their cache.
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- When extracting the cache from `cache.zip`, everything in the zip file is
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extracted in the job's working directory (usually the repository which is
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pulled down), and the runner doesn't mind if the archive of `job A` overwrites
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things in the archive of `job B`.
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It works this way because the cache created for one runner
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often isn't valid when used by a different one. A different runner may run on a
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different architecture (for example, when the cache includes binary files). Also,
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because the different steps might be executed by runners running on different
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machines, it is a safe default.
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### Cache mismatch
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In the following table, you can see some reasons where you might hit a cache
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mismatch and a few ideas how to fix it.
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| Reason of a cache mismatch | How to fix it |
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| -------------------------- | ------------- |
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| You use multiple standalone runners (not in autoscale mode) attached to one project without a shared cache | Use only one runner for your project or use multiple runners with distributed cache enabled |
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| You use runners in autoscale mode without a distributed cache enabled | Configure the autoscale runner to use a distributed cache |
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| The machine the runner is installed on is low on disk space or, if you've set up distributed cache, the S3 bucket where the cache is stored doesn't have enough space | Make sure you clear some space to allow new caches to be stored. There's no automatic way to do this. |
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| You use the same `key` for jobs where they cache different paths. | Use different cache keys to that the cache archive is stored to a different location and doesn't overwrite wrong caches. |
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Let's explore some examples.
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#### Examples
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Let's assume you have only one runner assigned to your project, so the cache
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is stored in the runner's machine by default.
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Two jobs could cause caches to be overwritten if they have the same cache key, but
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they cache a different path:
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```yaml
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stages:
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- build
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- test
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job A:
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stage: build
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script: make build
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cache:
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key: same-key
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paths:
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- public/
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job B:
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stage: test
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script: make test
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cache:
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key: same-key
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paths:
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- vendor/
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```
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1. `job A` runs.
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1. `public/` is cached as cache.zip.
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1. `job B` runs.
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1. The previous cache, if any, is unzipped.
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1. `vendor/` is cached as cache.zip and overwrites the previous one.
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1. The next time `job A` runs it uses the cache of `job B` which is different
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and thus isn't effective.
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To fix that, use different `keys` for each job.
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In another case, let's assume you have more than one runner assigned to your
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project, but the distributed cache is not enabled. The second time the
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pipeline is run, we want `job A` and `job B` to re-use their cache (which in this case
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is different):
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```yaml
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stages:
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- build
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- test
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job A:
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stage: build
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script: build
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cache:
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key: keyA
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paths:
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- vendor/
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job B:
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stage: test
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script: test
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cache:
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key: keyB
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paths:
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- vendor/
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```
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Even if the `key` is different, the cached files might get "cleaned" before each
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stage if the jobs run on different runners in the subsequent pipelines.
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|
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## Clearing the cache
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|
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Runners use [cache](../yaml/README.md#cache) to speed up the execution
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of your jobs by reusing existing data. This however, can sometimes lead to an
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inconsistent behavior.
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To start with a fresh copy of the cache, there are two ways to do that.
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|
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### Clearing the cache by changing `cache:key`
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|
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All you have to do is set a new `cache: key` in your `.gitlab-ci.yml`. In the
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next run of the pipeline, the cache is stored in a different location.
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### Clearing the cache manually
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> [Introduced](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab-foss/-/issues/41249) in GitLab 10.4.
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If you want to avoid editing `.gitlab-ci.yml`, you can clear the cache
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via the GitLab UI:
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1. Navigate to your project's **CI/CD > Pipelines** page.
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1. Click on the **Clear runner caches** button to clean up the cache.
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![Clear runner caches](img/clear_runners_cache.png)
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1. On the next push, your CI/CD job uses a new cache.
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NOTE:
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Each time you clear the cache manually, the [internal cache name](#where-the-caches-are-stored) is updated. The name uses the format `cache-<index>`, and the index increments by one each time. The old cache is not deleted. You can manually delete these files from the runner storage.
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<!-- ## Troubleshooting
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Include any troubleshooting steps that you can foresee. If you know beforehand what issues
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one might have when setting this up, or when something is changed, or on upgrading, it's
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important to describe those, too. Think of things that may go wrong and include them here.
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This is important to minimize requests for support, and to avoid doc comments with
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questions that you know someone might ask.
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Each scenario can be a third-level heading, e.g. `### Getting error message X`.
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If you have none to add when creating a doc, leave this section in place
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but commented out to help encourage others to add to it in the future. -->
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