What is cloud-native continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) and how does it differ from traditional pipelines?

• A. Cloud-native CI/CD uses cloud-hosted pipelines and infrastructure-as-code with automatic scaling and managed runners.
• B. Traditional pipelines always have built-in cloud-native features.
• C. Cloud-native CI/CD requires manual resource provisioning and on-prem runners.
• D. Cloud-native CI/CD cannot integrate with cloud resources.

Answer: (A)

Cloud-native CI/CD combines automation of build, test, and deployment with cloud-based services that are managed and scalable. It uses infrastructure-as-code to define the entire pipeline and the environments it runs in, so you can provision, update, and reproduce everything from code. Build and test runners are managed by the cloud provider or a cloud-native service, meaning you don’t have to maintain servers yourself—these runners can scale up and down automatically with demand. This setup integrates tightly with other cloud resources (like cloud storage, container registries, and deployment targets) and supports rapid, consistent delivery across environments.

Traditional pipelines, by comparison, often run on fixed on-premise hardware or self-managed agents. They require manual provisioning and maintenance of build resources, scaling can be slow or limited, and integrating with cloud resources is typically more manual and less seamless. The cloud-native approach streamlines setup, expands scalability, and leverages the cloud’s native tools and services for faster, repeatable deployments.