GitLab has released new incremental versions of its DevOps software suite, with versions 15.3 through 15.9 appearing on a monthly basis. Some highlights from these releases include GitLab’s first feature using machine learning that improves merge request approvals, as well as other significant improvements and fixes ranging from enhancements to GitOps, to improvements to IdP, to new functionality for DAST, Infoq wrote on the topic.

Blocking merges until they pass external checks

Many organizations use external health checks – for example, to check code and artifacts against external compliance and security tools – and it’s now possible to block a merge until those checks pass.

SCIM support in self-managed GitLab

System for Cross-domain Identity Management (SCIM) – used to automate the exchange of user identity information between identity domains – was previously available in GitLab.com, and version 15.8 introduces this functionality in self-managed instances.

Direct Transfer Project Migration

In GitLab.com, it is now possible to migrate projects directly between instances or within the same instance without having to manually export and import the data.

A browser-based DAST analyzer is now available

Moving away from a proxy-based approach that proved extremely difficult to work with, GitLab 15.7 provides a browser-based DAST parser that enables in-depth DAST of websites that make significant use of JavaScript.

GitOps free and in multiple branches

The GitOps functionality used to perform pull-based deployment is now available for free – previously it was only available in the paid tiers of the product. This allows smaller teams to get started with the GitOps deployment model at no additional cost.

More flexible approval rules

GitLab allows you to set approval rules for merge requests, but previously these had to be applied to all branches. This meant that developers working on less important branches (e.g., those created for a feature request) were subject to the same approval rules as for protected branches, such as the main branch. This has now been relaxed, with administrators able to apply the rules selectively to branches.

More powerful operating systems for Linux

Medium and large instance sizes are now available in GitLab’s SaaS product. This allows users to choose faster servers on which to run their CI/CD jobs – reducing the time it takes to validate changes.