Gerrit Advanced Workflows Training

Push your Gerrit expertise to the limit with this 2-day advanced training covering multi-project orchestration, Prolog submit rules, plugin development with the Gerrit Java API, repo tool integration for Android-scale multi-repository workflows, NoteDb and Lucene internals, and compliance patterns for regulated industries. This training is for experienced Gerrit users ready to extend and customize the platform.

Training Details

Duration	2 days (16 hours)
Level	Advanced
Delivery	In-person, Live online, Hybrid
Certification	N/A

Who Is This For?

• Senior engineers working on Gerrit-hosted projects with complex multi-repo dependencies
• Gerrit administrators who need to customize review logic beyond standard configuration
• Platform engineers building Gerrit plugins for organization-specific workflows
• Teams working with Android (AOSP), ChromeOS, or other repo-tool managed projects
• Compliance officers and engineers in regulated industries (financial services, healthcare, defense)

Learning Outcomes

After completing this training, participants will be able to:

• Orchestrate multi-project coordinated submissions using topics and cross-repo dependencies
• Write Prolog submit rules for complex approval logic
• Develop Gerrit plugins using the Java extension API and bazlets build system
• Integrate Gerrit with the repo tool for multi-repository development workflows
• Understand NoteDb storage format, Lucene indexing, and JGit architecture
• Design compliance and audit workflows for regulated environments
• Tune Gerrit performance for large-scale deployments

Detailed Agenda

Day 1: Multi-Project Workflows, Prolog Rules, and Plugin Development

Module 1: Multi-Project Coordinated Submissions

• Topic-based submission: grouping changes across repositories
• Cross-repository dependency resolution and atomic topic submit
• Superproject subscriptions: automatic submodule updates on submit
• Managing diamond dependencies and circular references
• Change chains vs topics: when to use each approach
• Hands-on: Set up three interdependent repositories, create a cross-repo feature using topics, and submit all changes atomically

Module 2: Prolog Submit Rules

• Prolog rule engine: how Gerrit evaluates rules/submit in refs/meta/config
• Rule syntax: submit_rule/1, submit_filter/1 predicates
• Built-in Prolog predicates: gerrit:commit_author/1, gerrit:commit_message_matches/1
• Writing rules: require review from specific groups, enforce file-owner approval
• Combining Prolog rules with modern submit requirements
• Debugging Prolog rules with the test-submit-rule REST endpoint
• Hands-on: Write Prolog rules that require security team approval for changes touching crypto/ directories and enforce two approvals from different teams

Module 3: Plugin Development Basics

• Gerrit plugin architecture: ClassLoader isolation, Guice injection, extension points
• Development environment setup: bazlets (Bazel), Buck legacy, Maven fallback
• Extension points: SSH commands, REST endpoints, UI extensions, event listeners
• The @Listen, @Export, and @PluginName annotations
• Building and packaging plugins as .jar files
• Plugin lifecycle: init, start, stop, reload
• Hands-on: Build a plugin skeleton that adds a custom REST endpoint returning change statistics and an SSH command for bulk label operations

Module 4: Repo Tool Integration

• The repo tool: managing hundreds of Git repositories with a manifest
• Manifest format: project, remote, default revision, groups
• repo init, repo sync, repo upload — the developer workflow
• How repo upload maps to Gerrit refs/for/ pushes
• Topic assignment from repo upload for coordinated reviews
• Gerrit superproject and manifest-based build integration
• Hands-on: Set up a multi-repository project with a repo manifest, make changes across three repos, upload with repo, and review the coordinated changes in Gerrit

Day 2: Architecture Internals, Compliance, and Performance

Module 5: Gerrit Architecture and NoteDb Internals

• NoteDb: storing change metadata as Git notes in All-Users and project repos
• NoteDb data model: change refs (refs/changes/), meta refs, star refs
• Lucene index: change index, account index, group index, project index
• Index schema versions and online reindexing with zero downtime
• JGit internals: ObjectReader, RevWalk, DiffFormatter, and how Gerrit uses them
• Hands-on: Inspect NoteDb refs with git log, examine Lucene index files, and trigger a manual reindex of specific changes

Module 6: Compliance and Audit Patterns

• Audit trail: leveraging NoteDb as an immutable Git-based audit log
• Signed pushes and GPG verification for non-repudiation
• Mandatory review policies: preventing direct pushes, enforcing review before submit
• Separation of duties: distinct author, reviewer, and submitter requirements
• Change retention policies and archival strategies for regulatory compliance
• Integration with external compliance tools (audit log exporters, SIEM systems)
• Hands-on: Configure a compliance-ready project with enforced review, signed pushes, separation of duties, and export the audit trail for a change lifecycle

Module 7: Performance Tuning and Scalability

• JVM tuning: heap sizing, GC algorithm selection (G1GC, ZGC), GC logging
• Pack cache and window/memory configuration for large repositories
• SSH and HTTP thread pool sizing based on concurrent user load
• Query performance: index optimization, secondary index tuning
• Git protocol v2 and bitmap indexes for faster fetches
• Monitoring bottlenecks: slow queries, lock contention, I/O wait
• Hands-on: Profile a Gerrit instance under simulated load, identify bottlenecks, apply JVM and configuration tuning, and measure improvement

Module 8: Capstone — Enterprise Gerrit Deployment

• Designing a Gerrit deployment for a 500-developer organization
• Multi-site topology with geographic distribution
• Plugin stack selection for enterprise needs (webhooks, reviewers, checks, code-owners)
• CI/CD integration architecture with Zuul or Jenkins at scale
• Operational runbook: upgrades, rollbacks, incident response
• Hands-on: Capstone — design and present an enterprise Gerrit architecture including multi-site replication, custom Prolog rules for compliance, a plugin for automated reviewer assignment, and a performance-tuned configuration for the target workload

Prerequisites

• Completion of Gerrit Fundamentals and Gerrit Administration Training (or equivalent production experience)
• Strong Git knowledge including refs, objects, packfiles, and notes
• Java development experience for plugin development modules
• Familiarity with Bazel build system helpful but not required
• Understanding of CI/CD pipelines and automation patterns

Delivery Formats

Format	Description
In-Person	On-site at your company's location, hands-on with direct interaction
Live Online	Interactive virtual sessions with screen sharing and real-time labs
Hybrid	Combination of on-site and remote sessions, flexible scheduling

All formats include hands-on labs, course materials, and post-training support.