Performance
Critical Path
The critical path is the longest chain of dependent tasks determining the minimum completion time of a build or workflow. Accelerating work outside that chain may improve resource use without reducing the total elapsed duration.
Why it matters
Optimizing the longest dependency chain is often the fastest way to shorten end-to-end time.
Practical example
Optimize the slow integration-test job that blocks release before speeding up already-short independent checks.
Related terms
Sources
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