Best Self Hosted Alternatives to Drone CI

OneDev is a self-hosted DevOps platform that combines Git repository hosting with CI/CD automation, code review, and project management in a single application. It focuses on deep cross-referencing between code, issues, builds, and packages to streamline day-to-day development workflows.

Key Features

• Git hosting with pull requests, inline code discussions, and configurable code protection rules
• Language-aware code search and navigation, including regex search and symbol lookup
• Built-in CI/CD with a graphical pipeline editor, templates, matrix jobs, caching, and job debugging tools (including a web terminal)
• Multiple execution options for CI/CD, from local/container runs to agent farms and Kubernetes-based scaling
• Integrated Kanban boards with customizable issue workflows, automation rules, and time tracking/reporting
• Built-in package registries for managing and linking build artifacts to pipelines
• Service desk mode to link incoming emails with issues for customer support workflows
• Dashboards, saved queries with subscriptions/notifications, and project hierarchy management
• Built-in security and compliance scanning for dependencies, artifacts, and container images
• MCP server support to interact with issues, pull requests, and builds via AI agents

Use Cases

• Replace separate tools (Git hosting, CI, issue tracker, package registry) with one integrated platform
• Run CI/CD pipelines with traceability from commits to builds and released artifacts
• Manage engineering work with Kanban boards, automated issue transitions, and time tracking

Limitations and Considerations

• CI/CD scaling via Kubernetes/agents requires additional infrastructure and operational setup beyond the built-in executor

OneDev is well-suited for teams that want an integrated, resource-efficient alternative to larger DevOps suites while keeping tight links between code, planning, and delivery. Its unified approach helps reduce tool sprawl and improves traceability across the software lifecycle.

Semaphore UI is a modern web UI for managing popular DevOps tools. It provides a clean interface to run tasks across tooling such as Ansible, Terraform/OpenTofu, Bash, and PowerShell with a focus on clarity and security.

Key Features

• Easily run Ansible playbooks, Terraform/OpenTofu code, Bash, and PowerShell scripts. (github.com)
• Receive notifications about failed tasks. (github.com)
• Project isolation and granular access control. (semaphoreui.com)
• Intuitive workflow and quick setup. (semaphoreui.com)

Use Cases

• Orchestrate infrastructure automation with Ansible, Terraform/OpenTofu, and Bash. (github.com)
• Manage multi-team deployments with project isolation and role-based access. (semaphoreui.com)
• Track tasks with templates, schedules, and inventories to automate repetitive workloads. (github.com)

Limitations and Considerations

Conclusion

Semaphore UI is an open-source, modern UI for automating DevOps workflows. It combines a Go backend with a Vue.js front-end, runs in Docker/K8s, and supports common databases to fit existing environments. It is backed by an active open-source community and ongoing development. (semaphoreui.com)

Woodpecker CI is a lightweight, extensible CI/CD engine for building, testing, and deploying software. It executes pipeline steps in containers and is designed to integrate with common Git forges using webhook-driven workflows.

Key Features

• Container-based pipeline execution for isolated, reproducible builds
• Multi-workflow support within a single repository, including dependent workflows
• Plugin-based extensibility to add custom capabilities beyond standard images
• Server/agent architecture to scale runners across multiple machines
• Default SQLite storage for simple deployments

Use Cases

• Automating build, test, and deployment pipelines for software projects
• Running Docker-based CI jobs for monorepos with multiple independent workflows
• Extending CI behavior with custom plugins for internal tooling and integrations

Limitations and Considerations

• Focuses on containerized execution, so workloads requiring non-container runtimes may need additional runner customization

Woodpecker CI fits teams that want a straightforward CI/CD platform with a Docker-first execution model and strong extensibility. Its lightweight footprint and workflow flexibility make it suitable for homelabs through production deployments.

GitLab is a web-based DevOps platform that combines Git repository hosting with tools for planning, code review, CI/CD, and software delivery. It provides a single application for managing the software lifecycle from idea to production.

Key Features

• Git repository hosting with access controls and protected branches
• Merge requests for code review, discussions, and approvals
• Integrated CI/CD pipelines defined as code, including runners integration
• Issue tracking, boards, milestones, and labels for project planning
• Built-in package and container registries for distributing artifacts
• Security and compliance capabilities such as SAST/DAST (availability varies by edition)
• Webhooks and APIs for integrations and automation

Use Cases

• Hosting private Git repositories for teams with review workflows
• Building and deploying applications using integrated CI/CD pipelines
• Managing end-to-end software projects with issues, epics, and boards

Limitations and Considerations

• Some advanced security, governance, and portfolio features are limited to paid editions
• Resource usage can be significant for larger installations, especially with CI/CD and registries

GitLab is well-suited for organizations that want an integrated, end-to-end DevOps workflow in a single product. It can replace a collection of separate tools for source control, CI/CD, and project tracking while keeping workflows closely connected.

SourceHut is a suite of integrated tools for hosting and collaborating on software projects. It provides a minimal, performance-focused web UI and emphasizes standards-based workflows (notably email-driven collaboration).

Key Features

• Hosted Git repositories with public, private, and unlisted visibility options
• First-class Mercurial hosting alongside Git
• Fine-grained access control, including access for users without accounts
• Continuous integration with fully virtualized builds across multiple Linux distributions and BSDs
• Ad-hoc CI jobs and post-build triggers (email, webhooks, etc.)
• Mailing lists with web-based patch review tools and searchable, threaded archives
• Focused ticket tracking with support for private/security bug reports and email participation
• Markdown- and Git-driven wikis with flexible page organization
• Account security features such as TOTP-based 2FA, audit logs, and PGP-signed/encrypted service email

Use Cases

• Hosting open source projects that prefer email-based patch review workflows
• Running CI for multi-platform builds (Linux and BSD) with reproducible, isolated environments
• Managing project collaboration with integrated repos, tickets, wikis, and mailing lists

Limitations and Considerations

• Designed around a minimalist UI and email/SSH-centric workflows, which may differ from PR-centric forges
• The public service has historically been labeled as “alpha,” which may affect expectations around stability

SourceHut is well-suited to teams and communities that value simple interfaces, strong integrations, and standards-driven collaboration. It offers a cohesive set of tools for maintaining projects without relying on heavyweight, JavaScript-dependent web experiences.