zhongwei/gh-lucacri-claude-gitlab-documentation-gitlab-documentation-skill

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Zhongwei Li ce53f43c3e Initial commit

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GitLab Runners Reference

Overview

GitLab Runner is an application that works with GitLab CI/CD to run jobs in a pipeline. Runners can be installed on various platforms and execute jobs in different executors (Docker, Shell, Kubernetes, etc.).

Runner Types

Shared Runners

Available to all projects in a GitLab instance
Configured by administrators
Uses shared resources

Group Runners

Available to all projects in a group
Configured at the group level
Shared within an organization

Project Runners (Specific Runners)

Dedicated to a single project
Complete control over configuration
Isolated execution environment

Installation

Linux

# Download the binary
sudo curl -L --output /usr/local/bin/gitlab-runner https://gitlab-runner-downloads.s3.amazonaws.com/latest/binaries/gitlab-runner-linux-amd64

# Give it permissions to execute
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/gitlab-runner

# Create a GitLab CI user
sudo useradd --comment 'GitLab Runner' --create-home gitlab-runner --shell /bin/bash

# Install and run as service
sudo gitlab-runner install --user=gitlab-runner --working-directory=/home/gitlab-runner
sudo gitlab-runner start

macOS

# Download
sudo curl --output /usr/local/bin/gitlab-runner https://gitlab-runner-downloads.s3.amazonaws.com/latest/binaries/gitlab-runner-darwin-amd64

# Give permissions
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/gitlab-runner

# Install
cd ~
gitlab-runner install
gitlab-runner start

Windows

# Create a folder
New-Item -Path 'C:\GitLab-Runner' -ItemType Directory

# Download binary
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://gitlab-runner-downloads.s3.amazonaws.com/latest/binaries/gitlab-runner-windows-amd64.exe" -OutFile "C:\GitLab-Runner\gitlab-runner.exe"

# Install as service
cd C:\GitLab-Runner
.\gitlab-runner.exe install
.\gitlab-runner.exe start

Docker

docker run -d --name gitlab-runner --restart always \
  -v /srv/gitlab-runner/config:/etc/gitlab-runner \
  -v /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock \
  gitlab/gitlab-runner:latest

Kubernetes (Helm)

# Add GitLab Helm repository
helm repo add gitlab https://charts.gitlab.io

# Update
helm repo update

# Install
helm install --namespace gitlab-runner gitlab-runner \
  -f values.yaml \
  gitlab/gitlab-runner

Registration

Register Runner

gitlab-runner register \
  --non-interactive \
  --url "https://gitlab.com/" \
  --registration-token "PROJECT_REGISTRATION_TOKEN" \
  --executor "docker" \
  --docker-image alpine:latest \
  --description "docker-runner" \
  --maintenance-note "Free-form maintainer notes about this runner" \
  --tag-list "docker,aws" \
  --run-untagged="true" \
  --locked="false" \
  --access-level="not_protected"

Interactive Registration

gitlab-runner register

# Follow prompts:
# 1. GitLab instance URL
# 2. Registration token
# 3. Description
# 4. Tags
# 5. Executor type
# 6. Executor-specific questions

Get Registration Token

Project Runners:

Navigate to: Settings > CI/CD > Runners
Copy registration token

Group Runners:

Navigate to: Group > Settings > CI/CD > Runners
Copy registration token

Instance Runners (Admin):

Navigate to: Admin Area > Overview > Runners
Copy registration token

Unregister Runner

# By URL and token
gitlab-runner unregister --url "https://gitlab.com/" --token "RUNNER_TOKEN"

# By name
gitlab-runner unregister --name "test-runner"

# Unregister all
gitlab-runner unregister --all-runners

Executors

Shell Executor

Runs jobs directly on the host machine.

[[runners]]
  name = "shell-runner"
  url = "https://gitlab.com/"
  token = "RUNNER_TOKEN"
  executor = "shell"

Pros:

Simple setup
Fast execution
Easy debugging

Cons:

Less isolation
Environment pollution
Security concerns

Docker Executor

Runs jobs in Docker containers (recommended).

[[runners]]
  name = "docker-runner"
  url = "https://gitlab.com/"
  token = "RUNNER_TOKEN"
  executor = "docker"
  [runners.docker]
    tls_verify = false
    image = "alpine:latest"
    privileged = false
    disable_cache = false
    volumes = ["/cache"]
    shm_size = 0

Pros:

Clean environment per job
Isolated execution
Consistent builds
Easy image management

Cons:

Requires Docker
Slight overhead

Docker Machine Executor

Auto-scales runners using Docker Machine.

[[runners]]
  name = "docker-machine-runner"
  url = "https://gitlab.com/"
  token = "RUNNER_TOKEN"
  executor = "docker+machine"
  [runners.docker]
    image = "alpine:latest"
  [runners.machine]
    IdleCount = 2
    IdleTime = 1800
    MaxBuilds = 100
    MachineDriver = "amazonec2"
    MachineName = "gitlab-runner-%s"
    MachineOptions = [
      "amazonec2-access-key=XXXX",
      "amazonec2-secret-key=XXXX",
      "amazonec2-region=us-east-1",
      "amazonec2-vpc-id=vpc-xxxxx",
      "amazonec2-subnet-id=subnet-xxxxx",
      "amazonec2-use-private-address=true",
      "amazonec2-instance-type=t2.micro"
    ]

Kubernetes Executor

Runs jobs in Kubernetes pods.

[[runners]]
  name = "kubernetes-runner"
  url = "https://gitlab.com/"
  token = "RUNNER_TOKEN"
  executor = "kubernetes"
  [runners.kubernetes]
    host = ""
    namespace = "gitlab-runner"
    privileged = false
    cpu_limit = "1"
    memory_limit = "1Gi"
    service_cpu_limit = "200m"
    service_memory_limit = "256Mi"
    helper_cpu_limit = "200m"
    helper_memory_limit = "256Mi"
    poll_interval = 3
    poll_timeout = 180
    [runners.kubernetes.pod_labels]
      "app" = "gitlab-runner"

VirtualBox Executor

[[runners]]
  name = "virtualbox-runner"
  url = "https://gitlab.com/"
  token = "RUNNER_TOKEN"
  executor = "virtualbox"
  [runners.virtualbox]
    base_name = "my-vm"
    base_snapshot = "my-snapshot"

SSH Executor

[[runners]]
  name = "ssh-runner"
  url = "https://gitlab.com/"
  token = "RUNNER_TOKEN"
  executor = "ssh"
  [runners.ssh]
    host = "example.com"
    port = "22"
    user = "gitlab-runner"
    password = "password"
    identity_file = "/home/user/.ssh/id_rsa"

Configuration

Configuration File Location

Linux: /etc/gitlab-runner/config.toml
macOS: ~/.gitlab-runner/config.toml
Windows: C:\GitLab-Runner\config.toml
Docker: /etc/gitlab-runner/config.toml (inside container)

Basic Configuration

concurrent = 4  # Max concurrent jobs
check_interval = 0  # Check for new jobs (0 = default 3s)

[session_server]
  session_timeout = 1800

[[runners]]
  name = "my-runner"
  url = "https://gitlab.com/"
  token = "RUNNER_TOKEN"
  executor = "docker"
  [runners.custom_build_dir]
    enabled = true
  [runners.cache]
    Type = "s3"
    Path = "runner"
    Shared = true
    [runners.cache.s3]
      ServerAddress = "s3.amazonaws.com"
      AccessKey = "XXXX"
      SecretKey = "XXXX"
      BucketName = "runners-cache"
      BucketLocation = "us-east-1"
  [runners.docker]
    image = "alpine:latest"
    privileged = false
    disable_entrypoint_overwrite = false
    oom_kill_disable = false
    disable_cache = false
    volumes = ["/cache"]
    shm_size = 0

Docker Executor Configuration

[[runners]]
  name = "docker-runner"
  url = "https://gitlab.com/"
  token = "RUNNER_TOKEN"
  executor = "docker"
  [runners.docker]
    # Default Docker image
    image = "alpine:latest"

    # Run containers in privileged mode
    privileged = false

    # Disable cache
    disable_cache = false

    # Volumes to mount
    volumes = ["/cache", "/var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock"]

    # Shared memory size
    shm_size = 0

    # Pull policy
    pull_policy = ["if-not-present"]

    # Network mode
    network_mode = "bridge"

    # DNS servers
    dns = ["8.8.8.8"]

    # CPU limit
    cpus = "2"

    # Memory limit
    memory = "2g"

    # Memory swap limit
    memory_swap = "4g"

    # OOM kill disable
    oom_kill_disable = false

    # Extra hosts
    extra_hosts = ["gitlab.example.com:192.168.1.1"]

    # Helper image
    helper_image = "gitlab/gitlab-runner-helper:latest"

    # Allow services
    allowed_images = ["ruby:*", "python:*"]
    allowed_services = ["postgres:*", "redis:*"]

Runner Management

Commands

# Start runner
gitlab-runner start

# Stop runner
gitlab-runner stop

# Restart runner
gitlab-runner restart

# Status
gitlab-runner status

# Verify configuration
gitlab-runner verify

# List runners
gitlab-runner list

# Run single job
gitlab-runner run-single

# View version
gitlab-runner --version

Update Runner

# Linux
sudo gitlab-runner stop
sudo curl -L --output /usr/local/bin/gitlab-runner https://gitlab-runner-downloads.s3.amazonaws.com/latest/binaries/gitlab-runner-linux-amd64
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/gitlab-runner
sudo gitlab-runner start

# Docker
docker pull gitlab/gitlab-runner:latest
docker stop gitlab-runner && docker rm gitlab-runner
# Re-create container with same configuration

Runner API Management

List runners:

curl --header "PRIVATE-TOKEN: <token>" "https://gitlab.com/api/v4/runners"

Get runner details:

curl --header "PRIVATE-TOKEN: <token>" "https://gitlab.com/api/v4/runners/:id"

Update runner:

curl --request PUT --header "PRIVATE-TOKEN: <token>" \
  "https://gitlab.com/api/v4/runners/:id" \
  --form "description=new-description" \
  --form "active=true" \
  --form "tag_list=docker,aws"

Delete runner:

curl --request DELETE --header "PRIVATE-TOKEN: <token>" \
  "https://gitlab.com/api/v4/runners/:id"

Caching

Local Cache

[[runners]]
  executor = "docker"
  [runners.cache]
    Type = "local"
    Path = "/cache"
    Shared = true
    [runners.cache.local]

S3 Cache

[[runners]]
  executor = "docker"
  [runners.cache]
    Type = "s3"
    Path = "runner"
    Shared = true
    [runners.cache.s3]
      ServerAddress = "s3.amazonaws.com"
      AccessKey = "AWS_ACCESS_KEY"
      SecretKey = "AWS_SECRET_KEY"
      BucketName = "runners-cache"
      BucketLocation = "us-east-1"

Google Cloud Storage Cache

[[runners]]
  executor = "docker"
  [runners.cache]
    Type = "gcs"
    Path = "runner"
    Shared = true
    [runners.cache.gcs]
      AccessID = "cache-access-account@test-project-123456.iam.gserviceaccount.com"
      PrivateKey = "/path/to/key.json"
      BucketName = "runners-cache"

Azure Cache

[[runners]]
  executor = "docker"
  [runners.cache]
    Type = "azure"
    Path = "runner"
    Shared = true
    [runners.cache.azure]
      AccountName = "account-name"
      AccountKey = "account-key"
      ContainerName = "runners-cache"

Security

Protected Runners

Only run jobs on protected branches/tags
Configure in project/group settings
Prevents unauthorized job execution

[[runners]]
  # Runner configuration
  access_level = "ref_protected"

Locked Runners

Prevents runner from being enabled for other projects
Useful for dedicated project runners

Via UI: Runner settings > Lock to current projects

Via API:

curl --request PUT --header "PRIVATE-TOKEN: <token>" \
  "https://gitlab.com/api/v4/runners/:id" \
  --form "locked=true"

Runner Tags

Control which runners execute which jobs:

.gitlab-ci.yml:

job-name:
  tags:
    - docker
    - linux
  script:
    - echo "Running on tagged runner"

Runner configuration:

[[runners]]
  name = "docker-linux-runner"
  # Tags assigned during registration or via config

Privileged Mode

Allows Docker-in-Docker but has security implications:

[[runners]]
  executor = "docker"
  [runners.docker]
    privileged = true  # Use with caution

Security considerations:

Container escapes possible
Host system access
Use only when necessary
Prefer rootless Docker

Monitoring

Prometheus Metrics

Enable metrics in config:

listen_address = ":9252"

Metrics endpoint: http://runner-host:9252/metrics

Key metrics:

gitlab_runner_jobs - Running jobs
gitlab_runner_job_duration_seconds - Job duration
gitlab_runner_errors_total - Error count
gitlab_runner_api_request_statuses_total - API request statuses

Logging

# Logging level
log_level = "info"  # debug, info, warning, error, fatal, panic

# Log format
log_format = "text"  # text or json

View logs:

# Service logs (systemd)
sudo journalctl -u gitlab-runner -f

# Docker logs
docker logs -f gitlab-runner

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. Runner not picking up jobs

Check runner is registered: gitlab-runner verify
Verify runner is active in GitLab UI
Check tags match job requirements
Ensure runner has capacity (concurrent jobs)

2. Docker executor issues

Verify Docker is running: docker ps
Check Docker socket permissions
Ensure Docker image is accessible
Check network connectivity

3. Permission errors

Check gitlab-runner user permissions
Verify working directory permissions
Check cache directory permissions

4. Out of disk space

Clear old Docker images: docker system prune -a
Check cache size
Monitor disk usage

5. SSL certificate errors

Add certificate to system: gitlab-runner register --tls-ca-file=/path/to/ca.crt
Or disable verification (not recommended): tls_verify = false

Debug Mode

# Run in debug mode
gitlab-runner --debug run

# Single job debug
gitlab-runner --debug run-single

Health Check

# Verify runner can connect to GitLab
gitlab-runner verify

# Delete invalid runners
gitlab-runner verify --delete

Best Practices

1. Runner Configuration

Use Docker executor for isolation
Configure appropriate concurrent jobs limit
Set up distributed cache (S3, GCS)
Use helper image from registry
Configure resource limits

2. Security

Use protected runners for sensitive jobs
Lock runners to specific projects
Avoid privileged mode when possible
Rotate runner tokens regularly
Use runner tags effectively

3. Performance

Enable distributed caching
Use local Docker image cache
Configure appropriate timeout values
Monitor runner metrics
Scale runners based on load

4. Maintenance

Keep runners updated
Monitor disk space
Clean up old Docker images
Review runner logs regularly
Set up alerts for runner failures

5. High Availability

Deploy multiple runners
Use auto-scaling (Docker Machine, Kubernetes)
Configure health checks
Implement monitoring
Plan for failover

Auto-Scaling

Docker Machine Auto-Scaling

[[runners]]
  limit = 10  # Maximum runners
  executor = "docker+machine"

  [runners.machine]
    IdleCount = 2  # Idle machines to keep
    IdleTime = 600  # Seconds before removing idle machine
    MaxBuilds = 100  # Max builds per machine before removal
    MachineDriver = "amazonec2"
    MachineName = "gitlab-docker-machine-%s"
    MachineOptions = [
      "amazonec2-instance-type=t2.medium",
      "amazonec2-region=us-east-1",
      "amazonec2-vpc-id=vpc-xxxxx",
      "amazonec2-subnet-id=subnet-xxxxx",
      "amazonec2-zone=a",
      "amazonec2-security-group=gitlab-runner"
    ]

    # Periods when auto-scaling is active
    [[runners.machine.autoscaling]]
      Periods = ["* * 9-17 * * mon-fri *"]  # Business hours
      IdleCount = 5
      IdleTime = 600
      Timezone = "America/New_York"

    [[runners.machine.autoscaling]]
      Periods = ["* * * * * sat,sun *"]  # Weekends
      IdleCount = 1
      IdleTime = 300

Kubernetes Auto-Scaling

Kubernetes handles scaling automatically based on resource requests.

Additional Resources

Official Runner Documentation: https://docs.gitlab.com/runner/
Runner Executors: https://docs.gitlab.com/runner/executors/
Advanced Configuration: https://docs.gitlab.com/runner/configuration/
Auto-scaling: https://docs.gitlab.com/runner/configuration/autoscale.html

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