What is a build system and what is CI?

The text discusses the evolution and challenges of build systems and Continuous Integration (CI), using Jenkins as a case study. Initially, Jenkins was used alongside smaller-scale build systems for frontend and backend code, but as integration needs grew, Jenkins evolved into a comprehensive build system through plugins and customization, making it a complex tool that could only run in a CI environment. This shift led to difficulties in reproducing failures locally, causing delays as engineers waited for CI feedback. The author highlights the advantages of using Bazel, a build system that allows for local reproducibility and can effectively replace the CI paradigm by enabling a local server to run build loops, thereby addressing inefficiencies and redefining traditional CI concepts.

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