🔧 Source Code Management
• Git repository hosting with web-based interface
• Branching, merging, and commit history viewer
• File browsing and blame features
• Access control via roles and permissions
• Git LFS (Large File Storage) support
🧪 Built-in CI/CD Pipelines
• Native Continuous Integration and Delivery tools
• Auto DevOps with pre-configured templates
• YAML-based .gitlab-ci.yml pipeline configuration
• Multi-stage, parallel jobs, and scheduled pipelines
• Docker container and Kubernetes support
🧠 Project & Issue Management
• Kanban-style issue boards and task tracking
• Labels, milestones, and epics for team planning
• Built-in time tracking and productivity analytics
• Merge request approvals and code reviews
• Wiki for internal documentation
🔐 Security & Access Controls
• Role-based access control (admin, maintainer, developer, etc.)
• 2FA (Two-Factor Authentication)
• Integrated container scanning, SAST, and dependency scanning
• Protected branches and merge request policies
• Audit logs and user activity tracking
💡 Code Collaboration
• Merge Requests (pull requests) with inline commenting
• Snippet sharing and collaborative editing
• Markdown support for descriptions, docs, and comments
• Reviewer assignment and change suggestions
• GitLab Pages for hosting static sites
🌐 Webhooks & Integrations
• Custom webhooks for external systems
• Integrate with Jira, Slack, Mattermost, Jenkins, etc.
• REST API for automation and custom tooling
• OAuth2, LDAP, and SAML authentication options
• VS Code integration and GitLab CLI
💾 DevOps Infrastructure Support
• Docker registry built-in for container images
• Helm chart and Kubernetes integration
• GitLab Runner for managing jobs (Docker, shell, Kubernetes runners)
• Autoscaling CI runners
• Self-managed or hybrid DevOps workflows
☁️ Deployment Options
• Host on your own Linux server or VPS (Ubuntu, CentOS, Debian)
• Cloud deployment on AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud
• Support for Docker, Docker Compose, and Kubernetes Helm Charts
• Easy upgrade to GitLab Enterprise Edition when needed
🧩 Best Use Cases
• Code collaboration for distributed dev teams
• Continuous integration/deployment pipelines
• Secure DevSecOps development environments
• Academic and open-source project hosting
• Internal software product lifecycle management