Running GitHub on Rails 6.0 (github.blog)

Article summary

GitHub has successfully upgraded its application to Rails 6.0, just 1.5 weeks after the final release of Rails 6.0. This upgrade represents a significant achievement, given GitHub's history of using a custom fork of Rails 3.2. The company's involvement in the development of Rails 6.0, including sending over 100 pull requests, helped ensure a smooth upgrade process. GitHub's experience can serve as a model for other companies looking to upgrade their Rails versions.

Main themes

• Rails upgrade
• GitHub engineering
• Software maintenance
• Legacy code
• Framework support

What commenters say

• Regularly upgrading software frameworks can prevent painful upgrade paths and reduce technical debt. Some argue that the cost of frequent upgrades is worthwhile, while others believe it may not be efficient for all projects. The importance of having a comprehensive test suite and continuous integration cannot be overstated when upgrading software frameworks. Upgrading frameworks can be a significant undertaking, especially for large and complex applications, and may require significant engineering resources. The decision to upgrade should be based on a careful consideration of the costs and benefits, including the potential impact on the application's functionality and performance. Some developers prefer to use SQL instead of ORMs, citing the benefits of database-specific functionality. Others argue that frameworks like Rails provide a productive and powerful way to build web applications, but may not be the best choice for every project.