AWS CodeBuild vs AWS CodeDeploy: What are the differences?

AWS CodeBuild and AWS CodeDeploy are two popular services provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS) that serve different purposes in the software development and deployment process. Here are the key differences between them.

1. Purpose: AWS CodeBuild is a fully managed continuous integration service that compiles source code, runs tests, and produces ready-to-deploy software packages. It is primarily used to build and test code as part of the continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) process. On the other hand, AWS CodeDeploy is a fully managed deployment service that automates the deployment of applications to a variety of compute services such as Amazon EC2 instances, Lambda functions, and ECS tasks. It focuses on the deployment aspect of the software development lifecycle.

2. Build and Deployment Process: CodeBuild is primarily used for build and test processes. It can be triggered by events such as code commits to a version control repository, allowing developers to automate the build process whenever changes are made to the source code. CodeDeploy, on the other hand, takes over after the build process is complete and focuses on deploying the built artifacts to the target environment. It provides control over the deployment lifecycle, allowing for blue-green deployments, in-place deployments, and other deployment strategies.

3. Supported Platforms: CodeBuild supports a wide range of programming languages, build tools, and operating systems. It provides a flexible environment for building and testing code across various platforms. CodeDeploy, on the other hand, supports a variety of compute services such as EC2 instances, Lambda functions, and ECS tasks. It provides the ability to deploy applications to these services, making it suitable for diverse deployment scenarios.

4. Deployment Strategies: CodeBuild does not provide built-in deployment strategies and focuses solely on the build and test processes. On the other hand, CodeDeploy offers a range of deployment strategies such as blue-green deployments, canary deployments, and in-place deployments. These deployment strategies enable organizations to minimize downtime and gradually roll out changes to their applications.

5. Integration and Third-party Tools: CodeBuild integrates well with version control systems like AWS CodeCommit, GitHub, and Bitbucket, allowing it to trigger builds on code changes. It can also be integrated with other AWS services like AWS CodePipeline and AWS CloudFormation. CodeDeploy also integrates with CodePipeline, making it easier to create end-to-end CI/CD pipelines. Additionally, CodeDeploy provides integration with third-party tools like Jenkins, TeamCity, and Octopus Deploy, allowing organizations to leverage their existing deployment tools.

6. Pricing Structure: CodeBuild is priced based on the number of build minutes used, and the type and size of the compute environment used for building. CodeDeploy, on the other hand, is priced based on the number of instances deployed, making it suitable for organizations that have a large number of instances to manage.

In summary, AWS CodeBuild is primarily used for building and testing code, while AWS CodeDeploy focuses on the deployment aspect of software development. CodeBuild supports a wide range of programming languages and build tools, while CodeDeploy supports various compute services for deployment. CodeDeploy provides flexible deployment strategies, integration with third-party tools, and pricing based on the number of deployed instances.