Continuous Delivery: Reliable Software Releases through Build, Test, and Deployment Automation

by David Farley

should never use long-lived, infrequently merged branches as the preferred means of managing the complexity of a large project.

Our proposal is not a technical solution but a practice: Always commit to trunk, and do it at

In this pattern: • Features are always developed on mainline. • A branch is created when your code is feature-complete for a particular release and you want to start working on new features.

If you need to be able to cherry-pick features, take a look at the next pattern, branch by feature.

To use an analogy with lean manufacturing, software that is not being delivered frequently is like inventory stored up in a warehouse. It has cost you money to manufacture, but is not making you any money—indeed, it is costing you money to store it.