Definition
Integration Hell is one of the biggest challenges in traditional software development environments. The Integration process is very rarely smooth and seamless, and results in hours of re-fixing the code, sometimes leading up to days, before it can finally integrate. One of the biggest challenges being the dependency relationship between the code that’s built, and the rest of the code in the system.
Continuous Integration is the process defined to completely avoid this process, by creating an infrastructure where the built-in code can be integrated immediately into the project. It overall goes to great lengths to encourage team members to integrate regularly.
Further Reading
- “Continuous Integration: Improving Software Quality and Reducing Risk”(book), by Andrew Glover, Paul M. Duvall, and Steve Matyas.