The Rundeck Project SCM Export and SCM Import features are designed to version control your job definitions and project configuration, by integrating Rundeck projects with a source control management system (SCM), typically Git.
🧠 Why SCM Integration Matters in Rundeck
When you’re managing automation jobs in production, it’s crucial to:
- Version your job definitions
- Audit who changed what and when
- Sync changes across environments (dev → staging → prod)
- Enable team collaboration
- Backup and restore project configuration
🔁 Rundown of SCM Import vs. Export
| Feature | Purpose | Typical Use |
|---|---|---|
| SCM Import | Pulls job definitions from a Git repo into Rundeck | Manage Rundeck from source control |
| SCM Export | Pushes job changes in Rundeck to a Git repo | Let Rundeck act as the source of truth |
🔽 SCM Import Plugin (Git → Rundeck)
✅ Use Case
- You store Rundeck jobs in Git
- Rundeck automatically imports the latest changes from the repository
- Useful in CI/CD pipelines or for managing jobs as code
🔧 Behavior
- When jobs are added/updated in Git → Rundeck pulls and reflects those changes
- Can be set to auto-import or manual pull
- Requires correct YAML/XML format in the repo
🔼 SCM Export Plugin (Rundeck → Git)
✅ Use Case
- You create or modify jobs within Rundeck GUI
- You want those changes committed to Git for versioning
- Useful for auditing, backups, and collaboration
🔧 Behavior
- Rundeck tracks changes to jobs
- Changes can be auto-committed or reviewed before commit
- Commit messages and author info can be customized
🔁 Typical Workflow in a Team
- Developer edits a job in the Rundeck GUI
- SCM Export pushes that change to Git (like
jobs/web-server.yaml) - Another team member updates the same file in Git (e.g., via PR)
- SCM Import detects the change and pulls it back into Rundeck
This ensures bi-directional sync between Git and Rundeck.
🔧 How to Enable
- Go to:
Project Settings → SCM → Export/Import - Choose:
- SCM Type:
Git - Storage: local Git repo or SSH/HTTPS remote
- SCM Type:
- Configure:
- Repo URL
- Branch
- File format: YAML, XML
- Auto-import/export options
📦 File Structure in Git Repo
A typical exported repo looks like:
jobs/
├── job-1.yaml
├── job-2.yaml
scm-status.json
- Each job gets its own file
- Metadata like UUID and project name are retained
✅ Benefits
| Benefit | Description |
|---|---|
| 🕓 Versioning | Track every change to a job with Git history |
| 👥 Team collaboration | Manage jobs via pull requests and reviews |
| ♻️ Sync across environments | Use Git to promote jobs across dev → prod |
| 🔐 Auditability | Know who changed what and when |
| 📦 Backup & Restore | Git becomes a resilient backup of job configs |
⚠️ Things to Keep in Mind
- Jobs must have unique UUIDs to prevent duplication
- Conflicts between Git and GUI may occur (manual resolution needed)
- You may need to ignore
scm-status.jsonin.gitignore - Secure Git access (SSH keys or HTTPS tokens) must be configured properly
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