Environments
============

For most projects, every branch / commit is automatically deployed to our :ref:`Docker` servers.
However, each Git ref (branch, tag) has its own environment.
The environments will be displayed within a GitLab project on certain places:

- In the corresponding :ref:`GitLab CI` pipeline job
- In the merge requests
- Via *Deployments* > *Environments*

To deploy something on the development server and route the HTTP(S) requests according to this naming scheme, have a look at the :ref:`routing requests` chapter.

Review environment
------------------

Review environments are created for each **feature / hotfix branch**.
They are available under the following URL scheme:

.. code-block::

    {branch}-{project}.review.confirm.ch

.. important::

    Review environments are ephemeral and they will automatically be undeployed when the associated branch is deleted.

Testing environment
-------------------

The testing environments is created from the ``master`` branch.
It is available under the following URL scheme:

.. code-block::

    {project}.testing.confirm.ch

.. important::

    The testing environment is an eternal environment and will never be undeployed.
    When the ``master`` branch is updated, the old testing environment will be replaced.

.. hint::

    In case you're setting ``DEFAULT_BRANCH_AS_LIVE`` in the :ref:`Docker CI File`, ``master`` is deployed as :ref:`Live Environment` instead of Testing Environment.

Release environment
-------------------

The release environment is created from a ``release-*`` branch.
It is available under the following URL scheme:

.. code-block::

    {project}.release.confirm.ch

.. important::

    The release environment is ephemeral and will automatically be undeployed when the associated release branch is deleted.
    There's also only one release environment, thus having multiple concurrent ``release-*`` branches will not work.

Live environment
----------------

The live environment is created from a tag.
It is available under the following URL scheme:

.. code-block::

    {project}.confirm.ch

.. important::

    The live environment is an eternal environment and will never be undeployed.
    When a new tag is pushed, the old live environment will be replaced.

.. hint::

    In case you're setting ``DEFAULT_BRANCH_AS_LIVE`` in the :ref:`Docker CI File`, ``master`` is deployed as Live Environment instead of :ref:`Testing Environment`.