Using VSTS (Azure DevOps) with GitHub for Automated Build and Deployment

The article introduces VSTS (Visual Studio Team System), the cloud‑based SaaS version of TFS, and explains why using existing cloud services like VSTS, GitHub, and Azure simplifies development by avoiding manual VM setup.

It provides a brief overview of Git and GitHub, noting GitHub’s role as the world’s largest code‑hosting platform and its lack of built‑in deployment capabilities.

To get started, you need a Microsoft account, then create a VSTS account via the provided URL. Choose the East Asia region for optimal performance in China.

Next, create a new VSTS project and navigate to the Build & Release → Builds section. Add a new build definition using the “Empty process” template and select the Hosted VS2017 queue.

Configure the source by selecting Get Sources → GitHub , authorize the connection using OAuth, and choose the desired repository. After authorization, the repository information appears.

Enable continuous integration by opening the Triggers tab and configuring the trigger settings. In the Options tab, set the build number format and other preferences.

Save the definition with Save & queue . The build pipeline is now ready and will run on each commit.

To display the build status in GitHub, create or edit a README.md file and insert the badge markdown generated by VSTS, for example:

[<img src="https://ltm0203.visualstudio.com/_apis/public/build/definitions/06667c49-f49d-4e3b-8eda-1ee96b1914c7/1/badge">](https://51abp.visualstudio.com/_apis/public/build/definitions/d985e2b0-acd1-4556-bcb9-148d80437520/1/badge)

After committing the README, GitHub will show the build badge, and each push will trigger a VSTS build via the configured webhook.

The article concludes with tips for adjusting trigger frequency (e.g., building only on full commits) and encourages further exploration of VSTS’s broader capabilities.