PullPreview is a GitHub Action that deploys pull requests to a temporary URL for easy review.
It was born from a frustration with all the existing solutions:
I don't want to write yet another vendor-specific config file to specify my services setup. I already have docker-compose for that.
I don't want to use a kubernetes setup to deploy my services. I actually just need a VM, shouldn't be too hard right?
I don't want a third-party to see my code during the process. And I want the VM hosted in my AWS account, not by another third-party.
I don't want to go to another UI to trigger or see a deployment. Just let me assign a label on a PR and do your work.
I want to be able to access the VM to debug if needed. Give me root access please.
I actually do want security, let me assign specific firewall rules for my preview environment VMs.
Oh, and can it also run for cheap?
To my knowledge, nothing exists with that set of requirements, hence PullPreview.
Click to see an example workflow file for GitHub Action
Who's this for?
Product Owners - Interact with a new feature as it's built, give valuable feedback earlier, reduce wasted development time.
Developers - Show and test your work in a production-like environment, find bugs early, deliver the right feature.
Ops - Concentrate on high value tasks, not maintaining staging environments.
CTOs - You know your team needs this, but don't want to expose your code to a third-party.
How can I get started?
Assuming you already have a docker-compose file ready, you should have your first preview environment running in about 10min. See the Getting Started guide.
If you require any hands-on help to get setup, or want to see a demo, I'm more than happy to jump on a quick call with you. Book a slot in my Calendar.
How much does this cost?
I'm trying to build a simple AND sustainable solution here, while tens of VC-funded companies are trying to saturate the space with solutions that are often mind-boggingly complex and expensive. That's why PullPreview comes with a License.
The License allows free usage for personal and non-commercial use. If you are a company, the price for an annual license is 300€ for any number of repositories, within a single GitHub Organization. You can try for 30 days before buying the license.
In addition to the License price, you will pay on your side the cost for the VMs you provision in your AWS account. PullPreview uses Lightsail instances with predictable prices, which can range from 5$ to 40$ per month according to the size you select.
You will typically pay a very small fraction of that price for each preview environment, since VMs only run for the duration of a pull request and are charged on an hourly basis.
Hi, I'm Cyril Rohr, a freelance CTO/DevOps consultant from France.
Over the years I've built and maintained many homemade solutions for this problem.
PullPreview is the condensed version of everything I've learned. I hope you'll find it useful.
