With the tasks that are now available, developers in GitLab version management should now be able to better break down problems into smaller work parts. At the same time, with Release 15.3 you can now also use various GitOps features in the free version.
Smaller, discrete units of work through the tasks
Although the update is not a major release from GitLab, the team behind the version control can report in a blog post about 63 improvements and enhancements in version 15.3, which were made possible by 348 contributions.
GitLab users have previously been able to break down an issue into smaller parts using Markdown checklists in the description. However, it was not possible to easily assign, label, or manage these checklist items outside of the description field. The tasks that are now available should make it much easier to break down a problem into smaller, discrete work units.
Developers can create these tasks within issues directly from the Child Items widget. They can then open the task directly in the output, for example to update the title, set the weight, or add a description. Tasks break down work within projects for GitLab Free and elevate the planning hierarchy to three levels (Epic, Issue, and Task) for GitLab Premium customers. In the next version, programmers should also be able to add labels, milestones and iterations to each task.
Free GitOps Features
Those who use GitOps to update their Kubernetes cluster, also known as pull-based deployment, get an improved security model, better scalability and stability. The GitLab agent for Kubernetes has supported GitOps workflows since the first version. However, this function was previously only available if users had taken out a GitLab Premium or Ultimate subscription. With a free subscription, they now also get support for pull-based deployment. The functions available in GitLab Free should be particularly suitable for small teams or for testing the agent before upgrading to a higher level.
There are also improvements to the general work with versioning: for example, after users have completed reviewing a merge request, they usually want to do things like summarize the review for others or approve the changes if they see them as good keep. You can now submit such a review in a summary comment using quick actions like /approve Add.
Improvements for Premium and Ultimate version
Other enhancements include the ability to programmatically administer SAML group links through the API, thereby automating the management of SAML groups, and expanded password complexity requirements. However, these features require a premium or ultimate version of GitLab. Detailed explanations of all changes and improvements of version 15.3 can be found in the detailed blog post.
