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Support for UCL researchers to use Travis-CI

How we can help UCL researchers to access the services of Travis-CI, a cloud-based service that can automatically build and run tests on code stored in GitHub repositories.

For step by step instruction see our user guide:

Service description

This is a Gateway Service provided by the Research Software Development Group: Travis-CI provides the service, which RSDG offers to researchers “as is”. RSDG provides local training, support, and advice, and absorbs costs for use of the service.

Travis-CI provides:

  • Continuous Integration

UCL RSDG provides:

  • Local support, advice, and training for users in access to and use of Travis-CI's services.
  • Payment of costs for using the service for private Github repositories.

Public repositories

Groups with public open source repositories on Github can directly make use of Travis-CI.org which is free to use.

Such groups may contact us for training and help with using Travis-CI. Support is limited by our availability and is provided on a best-efforts basis.

Private repositories

Groups with private repositories within the central UCL Github account can directly make use of Travis-CI.com, Groups with repositories in other accounts should get in touch via rc-softdev@ucl.ac.uk to get their organisations added to the central UCL account on Travis-CI.

Inclusions and exclusions

Included

All features of Travis-CI, including:

  • Public and private continuous integration service of Code hosed on Github.
  • Command line and web interface.
  • Feedback on pull requests in Github.
  • Automatic email feedback on failed tests.

Local support and training:

Advice and support on use of Travis-CI through rc-softdev@ucl.ac.uk. You should receive a response within 2 working days. 

Excluded

  • While we have sourced, and recommend, this third-party product, UCL Research Software Development Group does not provide any guarantees about Travis-CI.
  • The relationship for use of Travis-CI's services is between researchers and Travis-CI, not between research groups and RSDG.
  • RSDG is not liable to UCL colleagues for security or reliability issues with Travis-CI’s product.
  • RSDG does not offer support with legal or contractual issues associated with use of the service.
  • Travis-CI is a cloud-based service, and does not guarantee that code remains within any particular jurisdiction or part of the globe. Groups for whom this is a problem should get in touch: we have local solutions for this user community.

Conditions of use

Local organisational accounts

Users who have their own public repositories in their own Github accounts may use Travis-CI at will, without reference to our service or support.

Private repositories

Use of the UCL-funded central account to access continuous integration services on private repositories carries certain conditions:

  • UCL researchers must ensure that all collaborators and partners are happy for their code to be run and tested in a third-party cloud.
  • All liability for use of the service remains with the research group. RSDG disclaims responsibility for any breach of security allowing undesired access to users’ code.

Responsibilities of parties

RSDG is responsible for:

  • Paying for continuous integration on private repositories.
  • Adding Research organisations on Github to the UCL account on Travis-CI.com
  • Gathering and feeding back to Travis-CI requests from UCL users for changes or improvements to the Travis-CI product
  • Providing training, support, and advice on use of Travis-CI to UCL researchers.

Researchers are responsible for:

  • Ensuring that they are authorised to run their code in Travis's cloud servers
  • Preventing abuse of the service by themselves or their team members.
  • The security of their means of access to Travis-CI.
  • Verifying that the terms, conditions, and policies of Travis-CI’s services and products meet their needs and obligations. See Travis-CI Terms of Service

Travis-CI is responsible for:

  • Provision, maintenance, and management of their products and services

For for further information and support in managing your information security requirements, please refer to the Information Security Group (isg@ucl.ac.uk)

Service users

Researchers

This service is available to all UCL academic and research staff.

Research students

Use of UCL-funded CI for private repositories by research students is at the discretion of their supervisor: requests for adding private repositories should come from the supervisor. UCL students may, of course, also run CI on open source repositories.

Students on taught courses

Students on UCL taught courses can, as anyone else, use Travis-CI.org for free.

Researchers at UCL collaborating institutions

Research consortia should follow the signup instructions for local organisation accounts.

The central funded service is also available to collaborative projects with a
significant UCL involvement who do not qualify for free local accounts. Requests
should come from a UCL employee in the first instance.

Staff who leave UCL may continue to use a UCL-funded private CI for a period of one year following departure, or indefinitely if UCL researchers continue to extensively contribute to or use the software, at the discretion of RSDG.

Contacts

For queries about RSDG terms, and support, and feedback on the selection of
Travis-CI as service provider: rc-softdev@ucl.ac.uk

For support with the Travis-CI product, bug reports, and problems with Travis-CI: via
support@travis-ci.com.