Tekton runs CI/CD pipelines natively on Kubernetes. Each step runs in a container. Each pipeline is a Kubernetes custom resource. If your infrastructure is Kubernetes, your CI/CD can be too.
Core Concepts
Tasks
A Task is a sequence of steps that run in containers:
apiVersion: tekton.dev/v1
kind: Task
metadata:
name: build-and-push
spec:
params:
- name: image
type: string
workspaces:
- name: source
steps:
- name: build
image: gcr.io/kaniko-project/executor:latest
args:
- --dockerfile=Dockerfile
- --destination=$(params.image)
- --context=dir://$(workspaces.source.path)Pipelines
A Pipeline chains Tasks together:
apiVersion: tekton.dev/v1
kind: Pipeline
metadata:
name: ci-pipeline
spec:
params:
- name: repo-url
type: string
- name: image
type: string
workspaces:
- name: shared-workspace
tasks:
- name: clone
taskRef:
name: git-clone
params:
- name: url
value: $(params.repo-url)
workspaces:
- name: output
workspace: shared-workspace
- name: test
runAfter: ["clone"]
taskRef:
name: run-tests
workspaces:
- name: source
workspace: shared-workspace
- name: build
runAfter: ["test"]
taskRef:
name: build-and-push
params:
- name: image
value: $(params.image)
workspaces:
- name: source
workspace: shared-workspacePipelineRuns
A PipelineRun executes a Pipeline with specific parameters:
apiVersion: tekton.dev/v1
kind: PipelineRun
metadata:
generateName: ci-run-
spec:
pipelineRef:
name: ci-pipeline
params:
- name: repo-url
value: https://github.com/myorg/my-app
- name: image
value: ghcr.io/myorg/my-app:latest
workspaces:
- name: shared-workspace
volumeClaimTemplate:
spec:
accessModes: ["ReadWriteOnce"]
resources:
requests:
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# Install Tekton Pipelines
kubectl apply -f https://storage.googleapis.com/tekton-releases/pipeline/latest/release.yaml
# Install Tekton Triggers (for webhooks)
kubectl apply -f https://storage.googleapis.com/tekton-releases/triggers/latest/release.yaml
# Install Tekton Dashboard
kubectl apply -f https://storage.googleapis.com/tekton-releases/dashboard/latest/release.yaml
# Install CLI
brew install tektoncd-cliTriggers: Webhook-Driven Pipelines
apiVersion: triggers.tekton.dev/v1beta1
kind: EventListener
metadata:
name: github-listener
spec:
triggers:
- name: github-push
bindings:
- ref: github-push-binding
template:
ref: ci-pipeline-templatePush to GitHub → webhook fires → EventListener creates a PipelineRun → pipeline executes.
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Subscribe Free →Tekton vs Other CI Systems
| Feature | Tekton | GitHub Actions | Jenkins |
|---|---|---|---|
| Runs on | Kubernetes | GitHub cloud | Anywhere |
| Definition | Kubernetes YAML | GitHub YAML | Groovy/YAML |
| Scaling | Kubernetes-native | GitHub-managed | Manual |
| Self-hosted | Yes (required) | Optional | Yes |
| Reusable tasks | Tekton Hub | Marketplace | Plugin system |
| Vendor lock-in | None (K8s standard) | GitHub | None |
When to Choose Tekton
Good fit: - Your infrastructure is Kubernetes-first - You need complete control over CI/CD infrastructure - Compliance requires self-hosted CI/CD - You want CI/CD pipelines as Kubernetes resources (GitOps-managed) - Multi-cloud environments where vendor-neutral CI matters
Not ideal: - Small teams without Kubernetes expertise - Projects already using GitHub Actions effectively - Teams that prefer managed CI/CD over self-hosted
Tekton is powerful but operationally heavy. You are running a CI/CD platform, not just using one.
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