Running Parallel Tasks in Azure DevOps YAML Pipeline

1. Running Parallel Jobs

If you want multiple jobs to run in parallel, define them separately under the jobs section.

jobs: - job: Job1 displayName: 'Job 1' pool: vmImage: 'ubuntu-latest' steps: - script: echo "Running Job 1" - job: Job2 displayName: 'Job 2' pool: vmImage: 'ubuntu-latest' steps: - script: echo "Running Job 2"

2. Running Parallel Steps within a Job

Option 1: Using dependsOn for Parallel Execution in Jobs

jobs: - job: Build displayName: 'Build Job' steps: - script: echo "Building the application" - job: Test displayName: 'Test Job' dependsOn: [] # Runs in parallel with Build steps: - script: echo "Running tests" - job: Deploy displayName: 'Deploy Job' dependsOn: [Build, Test] # Runs only after both are completed steps: - script: echo "Deploying the application"

Option 2: Using template for Parallel Execution

Create a separate YAML template file:

# parallel-template.yml steps: - script: echo "Task 1" - script: echo "Task 2"

Then, reference it in the main pipeline:

jobs: - job: ParallelJob steps: - template: parallel-template.yml

Option 3: Using background: true for Background Tasks

steps: - script: echo "Starting Task 1" displayName: 'Task 1' background: true # Runs in the background - script: echo "Starting Task 2" displayName: 'Task 2' background: true # Runs in the background

Best Approach?

• Use separate jobs if tasks need different agents or environments.
• Use parallel steps in a job if they share the same environment.
• Use background tasks for lightweight independent tasks.

Let me know if you need a specific example for your pipeline! 🚀