Absar Shaik - PeerSpot reviewer
DevOps Engineer at a financial services firm with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Open-source and reliable but needs better documentation
Pros and Cons
  • "It can scale easily."
  • "They need to improve their documentation."

What is our primary use case?

We are using the solution for integration purposes. We have our own DevOps pipeline. Jenkins is the key tool that is being used in the entire DevOps journey. It's like an automation build tool. It's a CI/CD: continuous integration and continuous deployment

What is most valuable?

We mostly enjoy the multi-branch pipeline support. We have multiple branches regarding, for example, the production environments. In this environment, we can use Jenkins for the deployment and integration of multiple branches.

The deploying and assessing of the development of our code and our application has been really useful. 

It's getting a bit easier for us to use Jenkins, and it is really helping us.

The solution is stable.

It can scale easily.

Jenkins is pretty flexible and integrates with many products. As of now in the market, there is no vendor dependency. They are providing a lot of plugins, so it's not very difficult to integrate with others.

What needs improvement?

If they could provide some release management and integrated security like JFrog Xray and JFrog SonarQube, that would be ideal. If they could have a built-in security assessment, like a run times security assessment, or some engine within Jenkins, that would be great. We are expecting a collaborative solution. We'd prefer not to have to go through third parties. We want everything in a single place and without having to deal with extra applications and expenses.

I would want to see if they can add some security engines or security modules within the Jenkins portal so people wouldn't have to buy or go for some other outside products. As of now, security is the biggest concern. That should be the first priority after any technology.

They need to improve their documentation. When you compare it to Red Hat documentation which is very nice, you find that Jenkins does not provide much helpful documentation.

The product needs to showcase more use cases. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used the solution for eight to ten years.

Buyer's Guide
Jenkins
March 2024
Learn what your peers think about Jenkins. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2024.
768,578 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability is good. it's reliable. I'd rate the stability four out of five. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution can scale quite well. 

We only have 20 to 30 users on the product right now. It's something our development team uses daily.

How are customer service and support?

The other people handle support cases. I'm not quite sure how quickly they respond since we have different infra teams, so they handle all these cases.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

The only competitor to Jenkins is Argo CD for Jenkins. We are not using it yet.

The approach is now changing to GitOps. People are moving towards the GitOps rather than the old DevOps model. That's where the Argo CD or Flex comes in as alternative tools that are picking up interest in the market.

How was the initial setup?

It would be easier to set up the solution if they offered better documentation. With more direction, it would be easier to deploy the solution. The steps shown in the documentation are not very clear. 

It shouldn't be like a puzzle. I have to search everywhere, every time, and Google what I need. Rather than going to blogs and some open-source community blogs, it's better to have its own documentation. It should be very straightforward and clearly show the steps, the minimum requirements, and the bottlenecks. It should all be centralized as well.

I'd rate the setup process a three out of five in terms of ease of implementation.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I'm not sure of the exact pricing of the product. My understanding is that it is not very expensive. It's an open-source tool. They do also have an enterprise version, which is what we use. It's the same tool whichever you use, however, with enterprise, you get support.

What other advice do I have?

We are customers of Jenkins.

I'd rate the solution seven out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Andrew Caya - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Consultant and Trainer at Foreach Code Factory
Real User
Top 10
Open source information server with multiple features including providing a comprehensive history of deployments
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable aspect of this solution is that there are multiple features. We can abstract certain variables and then build our deployment routine while being able to do some abstraction onto the SSH connections."
  • "This solution could be improved by removing the storage of unnecessary data such as the history of test deployments that were unsuccessful."

How has it helped my organization?

We use Jenkins to remove human error when completing multiple deployments. 

What is most valuable?

The most valuable aspect of this solution is that there are multiple features. We can abstract certain variables and then build our deployment routine while being able to do some abstraction onto the SSH connections. 

We can access a history of the different deployments so that we know whenever we have an issue. Problems are well documented so we can actually go back into your deployment history when necessary.

What needs improvement?

This solution could be improved by removing the storage of unnecessary data such as the history of test deployments that were unsuccessful. 

In a future release, we would like to have access to more third party plugins and would like to integrate with tools like Kubernetes.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using this solution since 2014. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

This is generally a stable solution. Sometimes we have experienced some issues but they have been minor. 

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We have previously used an FTP server and we would copy and paste the files manually. I still prefer to use Bash scripts directly and deploy using SSH, or there are situations where we will not use an application because it would be overkill for such a simple deployment. We continue to use alternatives alongside Jenkins because sometimes it is pointless to build an entire Jenkins job just for deploying a website.

How was the initial setup?

There is a learning curve at the beginning. Jenkins could have setup wizards that could help you start off instead of having to rely on someone, reading a manual or completing an online tutorial.

What about the implementation team?

We've done everything in-house. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

We use the open source solution.

What other advice do I have?

There might be unnecessary overheads if you're trying to use Jenkins for very simple deployments. I would say make sure that you actually need to use Jenkins for specific actions.

I would rate this solution a ten out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Jenkins
March 2024
Learn what your peers think about Jenkins. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2024.
768,578 professionals have used our research since 2012.
AnkurGupta9 - PeerSpot reviewer
Principal DevOps Engineer at Guavus
Real User
Top 5
There is a large user base to provide community support, which I find very valuable.
Pros and Cons
  • "Jenkins is the most widely used development tool, so there are many plugins and it's easy to integrate. There is a large user base to provide community support, which I find very valuable. If I need to find a better way to do something, I can always get help from the community. Automation is about thinking outside of the box, and other users are constantly adding new plugins."
  • "I would like them to provide space for people to have a central node that stores all the logs of workspace information in a distributed fashion to facilitate backup and restoration. Currently, everything is stored on one node, so you need to set up distributed storage or an endpoint that you can use for backing up your information."

What is our primary use case?

We use Jenkins for CI/CD application. It helps us develop and push out applications. 

What is most valuable?

Jenkins is the most widely used development tool, so there are many plugins and it's easy to integrate. There is a large user base to provide community support, which I find very valuable. If I need to find a better way to do something, I can always get help from the community. Automation is about thinking outside of the box, and other users are constantly adding new plugins.

What needs improvement?

I would like them to provide space for people to have a central node that stores all the logs of workspace information in a distributed fashion to facilitate backup and restoration. Currently, everything is stored on one node, so you need to set up distributed storage or an endpoint that you can use for backing up your information. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have used Jenkins for five or six years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Jenkins is highly stable. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Jenkins can scale up. We have about 100-150 users working with it now. 

How are customer service and support?

The documentation is extensive and community support is excellent.

How was the initial setup?

I rate Jenkins eight out of 10 for ease of setup. Jenkins evolved from running on a virtual machine to deploying inside Kubernetes, which has simplified the setup. Running Jenkins inside Kubernetes is straightforward. The only challenge is configuring the backup. We have two people maintaining Jenkins by updating the plugins and server about once every other month. 

What about the implementation team?

We deployed Jenkins in-house.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Jenkins is an open-source product, but you have the option to buy an enterprise license.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Senior Operations Engineer at Wells Fargo
Real User
Excellent pipeline feature
Pros and Cons
  • "Jenkins' most valuable feature is Pipeline."
  • "Jenkins takes a long time to create archive files."

What is our primary use case?

I mainly use Jenkins to create automatic triggers for pushing code.

What is most valuable?

Jenkins' most valuable feature is Pipeline.

What needs improvement?

Jenkins takes a long time to create archive files.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Jenkins' stability is good, and we haven't had any issues with downtime.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Jenkins is scalable in the sense that we can develop as many jobs as necessary. 

How are customer service and support?

Jenkins' technical support team is small but helpful.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup isn't very complex, though it may take some time to create end scripts because it lies in the backend and needs to work during free integration time.

What about the implementation team?

We used a uDeploy IBM product and team.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate Jenkins eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
DevOps engineer at HSBC
Real User
A very powerful integration tool that runs automatically
Pros and Cons
  • "This is a great integration tool and very powerful."
  • "A more user-friendly UI for creating pipelines would be helpful."

What is our primary use case?

Our main use cases are for restarting applications and monitoring system health. We instal the solution for companies and once it's up and running, we do all the health checks. We are customers of Jenkins and I'm a DevOps engineer. 

How has it helped my organization?

Jenkins has helped us to become more efficient and saves us a lot of time.

What is most valuable?

The solution is an integration tool and that is its value; we are able to integrate a lot of tools, whether it's Nexus for building automation, for plugins or repositories. This is what makes it a powerful tool. The most beneficial thing is being able to do everything with just one click, which was not possible previously when any changes needed to be carried out manually. Jenkins enables you to log in to multiple servers and it runs automatically on all your servers. 

What needs improvement?

I'd like to see some more features for scriptwriting and a more user-friendly UI for creating pipelines.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using this solution for five years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We haven't had any problems with stability, even when we're running multiple builds. We use the product on a daily basis and although it doesn't require maintenance, there are some regular activities carried out by Jenkins every few months. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

If you're deploying on-premise, then scalability requires introducing new nodes and deploying application instances on two servers. We have multiple teams and they all have access to Jenkins so we currently have around 60 to 70 users.

How are customer service and support?

We haven't had any problems with customer support. 

How was the initial setup?

Our implementation process depends on what type of deployment is needed. If it's a very small chain and the deployment process is not complex, steps will be limited. If it's a larger implementation, more steps are involved and it becomes more complex. When needed, we have a networks team and a database team. For a small build, deployment can take 15 minutes. For a more complex build that has a lot of changes, it can take several hours.

What other advice do I have?

It's important to know your requirements before implementing Jenkins. It's a good tool for integration and automation in an organization.

I rate the solution eight out of 10. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Hybrid Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Senior Developer at SmartStream Technologies ltd.
Real User
Top 5
Integrates with multiple tools like Bitbucket and makes life easier
Pros and Cons
  • "Jenkins integrates with multiple tools like Bitbucket and makes life easier. We don't have to write a lot of code since a lot of libraries are available."
  • "The product should provide more visualization as to how many pipelines are performing and how many builds are happening. It should also integrate with Kubernetes and OpenShift."

What is our primary use case?

We use Jenkins in CI/CD pipelines. 

What is most valuable?

Jenkins integrates with multiple tools like Bitbucket and makes life easier. We don't have to write a lot of code since a lot of libraries are available. 

What needs improvement?

The product should provide more visualization as to how many pipelines are performing and how many builds are happening. It should also integrate with Kubernetes and OpenShift. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with the solution for one and a half years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I would rate the product a nine out of ten. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Jenkins is pretty scalable and I would rate it an eight out of ten. My company has more than 100 users for it. We use the tool every day. 

How are customer service and support?

We report to our infrastructure team about the plugin issues. 

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We wrote our own custom scripts before Jenkins. 

How was the initial setup?

The tool requires maintenance whenever upgrades are available. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

We use the tool's open-source version which is free. There is an enterprise version which is expensive but comes with better support. 

What other advice do I have?

I would rate Jenkins a nine out of ten. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Ben Mbarek - PeerSpot reviewer
Embedded Software Engineer at a manufacturing company with 201-500 employees
Real User
Top 5
Flexible script customization, reliable, and scales well
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable features of Jenkins are the integration of automatic scripts for testing and the user's ability to use any script."
  • "Jenkins is not an easy solution to use and the configuration is not simple. They can improve the solution by adding a graphical interface that is more user-friendly."

What is our primary use case?

We are using Jenkins to automate the compilation and check the implementation from scripts for validation and testing. It's a useful tool for any developer.

If the code works fine in the company's development environment, it doesn't mean that it will be okay for other platforms. We're using Jenkins to test the server in platforms. It's very helpful.

How has it helped my organization?

Jenkins has improved our organization by allowing us to use automatic testing to cover all the various levels of software, which includes software embedded into hardware. It has been very difficult to be able to run tests in embedded software in the past.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features of Jenkins are the integration of automatic scripts for testing and the user's ability to use any script.

What needs improvement?

Jenkins is not an easy solution to use and the configuration is not simple. They can improve the solution by adding a graphical interface that is more user-friendly.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Jenkins for approximately one year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability of Jenkins is good.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Jenkins is scalable.

We have five people that are using this solution in my company.

How are customer service and support?

I have not used the support from Jenkins.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I did not use a solution other than Jenkins.

How was the initial setup?

Jenkins is complex to implement.

What about the implementation team?

The implementation of the solution was done in-house. We use two or three people for the deployment.

What was our ROI?

The solution has had good value for the money we spent.

What other advice do I have?

My advice to others is this is a tool that will help save time have good coverage for the validation environment and test more hardware capabilities. For example, it can handle an embedded system and it can run any type of script.

I rate Jenkins a nine out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
VASUDEVA UNGATI - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Director - Quality Engineering at Mobileum
Real User
Top 10
Easy to use and has a lot of integrations
Pros and Cons
  • "Jenkins is very easy to use."
  • "I would like to see even more integrations included in the next release."

What is our primary use case?

We use Jenkins to build and deploy our software.

What is most valuable?

Jenkins is very easy to use. It has a lot of integrations.

What needs improvement?

I would like to see more integrations included in the next release.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Jenkins for two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Jenkins is a stable solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Currently, we have 100 users working with Jenkins. We haven't had the need to scale the solution. We are satisfied with what we have.

How are customer service and support?

There hasn't been a need to contact technical support.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Prior to using Jenkins, we were using Maven. We decided to switch because of the cloud enablement and the continuous integration.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup of Jenkins is easy.

What about the implementation team?

We used an outside provider to install Jenkins.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend Jenkins to anyone thinking of implementing it into their organization.

Overall, I would rate Jenkins a nine out of 10.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user