Highly Customizable CI/CD Pipelines: Automated processes for building and deploying the blog.
GitLab Container Image Repository: Efficient management and storage of container images.
Custom GitLab Runners: Flexibility in managing the CI/CD environment.

The CI/CD pipeline is configured to build the blog for both amd64 and arm64 architectures, allowing me to host the site on my Pi cluster as well as on other x86 platforms.

Motivation

My previous homelab setup included rack-mounted, power-hungry servers, which were expensive to run. By migrating to a Raspberry Pi cluster, I significantly reduced costs and improved efficiency. You can read more about this migration on my site.

A static site generator was the best choice for my needs, as I don't require a dynamically updating site. It provides simplicity and efficiency without sacrificing performance.

Benefits of Static Sites

Security: Reduced attack surface due to the absence of a server-side backend.
Reliability: Less prone to downtime and issues.
Speed: Faster load times since content is pre-rendered.
Scalability: Easily handle large amounts of traffic.
Flexibility: Greater control over content and design.
Low Resource Overhead: Minimal resource consumption compared to dynamic sites.

Implementation

Hugo: Converts Markdown files into static HTML/CSS/JS files.
GitLab CI/CD: Automates the build process and creates Docker images.
Kubernetes Cluster: Serves the static files to users.

To-Do List

Migrate to Kubernetes
Migrate to Blowfish theme
Make repo private to ensure all keys etc are hidden
Update docker file
Migrate to hugo modules for the theme
Continue to write awesome posts

Notes

Cloning the Repository

To clone this repository along with its submodules, use the following command:

git clone git@gitlab.com:ahmza/blog.git