In Azure DevOps, the “Publish Artifact” task is used to publish build artifacts produced by a build pipeline. This task allows you to share the build artifacts with other pipelines, stages, or jobs within the same or different Azure DevOps projects. It’s a fundamental step in creating a reliable and efficient CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment) process.

Here’s how to use the “Publish Artifact” task in an Azure DevOps build pipeline:

Adding the “Publish Artifact” Task:

1. Open Your Build Pipeline: In your Azure DevOps project, navigate to the build pipeline you want to configure.

2. Edit the Pipeline: Click on “Edit” to open the build pipeline configuration.

3. Add a New Task:

   • In your build pipeline configuration, locate the stage or job where you want to publish artifacts.
   • Click on the “+” icon to add a new task.

4. Search for “Publish Build Artifacts” Task:

   • In the task catalog, search for “Publish Build Artifacts.”

5. Add the Task:

   • Click on the “Add” button to add the “Publish Build Artifacts” task to your pipeline.

Configuring the “Publish Artifact” Task:

Once you’ve added the “Publish Build Artifacts” task, you’ll need to configure it:

1. Display Name: You can provide a custom display name for the task if needed.

2. Path to Publish: Specify the path to the artifacts you want to publish. This is the directory containing the files you want to share.

3. Artifact Name: Give a unique name to the artifact. This name will be used to identify the published artifact.

4. Artifact Type: Choose the type of artifact you’re publishing. You can choose “Server” or “FilePath” based on where you want to store the artifacts.

   • “Server”: Publishes the artifacts to Azure DevOps server, making them accessible for other pipelines or stages.
   • “FilePath”: Publishes the artifacts to a file path on the agent’s machine.

5. Publish Build Artifacts: If you’re using the “Server” option for artifact type, select this checkbox to publish the artifacts to Azure DevOps server.

6. Artifact publish location: Specify the location where the artifacts should be published if you selected “Server” as the artifact type. You can choose between “Container” and “FilePath.”

Example YAML Configuration:

If you’re using YAML to define your build pipeline, here’s an example of how to use the “Publish Artifact” task in YAML syntax:

In this example, the build artifacts are published to Azure DevOps server in the specified container.

Using Published Artifacts:

Once the artifacts are published, you can use them in other stages or pipelines. You can download or deploy these artifacts in deployment jobs, release pipelines, or even in other build pipelines by using the “Download Build Artifacts” task or similar tasks.

The “Publish Artifact” task is crucial for creating a robust CI/CD process in Azure DevOps, as it enables the sharing of build outputs and dependencies among different stages and jobs within your pipelines.