📍 Roadmap: Feature Development Plan

[spboyer]

This issue outlines the development roadmap for pycontainer-build based on feature gap analysis with similar tools (Docker, Jib, ko, Buildpacks, .NET SDK containers).

🎯 High Priority Features

These features would significantly increase adoption and are critical for production use:

1. Multi-Stage Builds (#20)

Why: Essential for production apps with build-time dependencies
Impact: Smaller images, faster deployments
Status: Not started
Related: #19 (Build Features parent)

2. True Cross-Compilation (#63)

Why: Complete the platform support already started
Impact: Multi-arch deployments, ARM64/Apple Silicon support
Status: Not started
Related: #47 (Multi-Architecture parent)

3. Lockfile Support (#59)

Why: Reproducible builds are essential for production
Impact: Consistent deployments, compliance, security
Status: Not started
Related: #48 (Dependency Management parent)

4. Image Signing (#13)

Why: Security requirement for enterprises
Impact: Supply chain security, compliance
Status: Not started
Related: #12 (Security & Compliance parent)

5. Remote Cache (#61)

Why: Performance in CI/CD environments
Impact: Faster builds, cost savings
Status: Not started
Related: #49 (Caching & Performance parent)

🔨 Medium Priority Features

These features enhance usability and are commonly expected:

6. Build Arguments (#21)

Why: Common need for parameterized builds
Impact: Flexible configurations for different environments
Status: Not started
Related: #19 (Build Features parent)

7. System Package Installation (#64)

Why: Many Python apps need libpq, gcc, etc.
Impact: Support for more Python packages
Status: Not started
Related: #48 (Dependency Management parent)

8. Layer Inspection Tools (#65)

Why: Debugging and optimization
Impact: Better visibility, smaller images
Status: Not started
Related: #52 (Observability parent)

9. Dockerfile Import Tool (#62)

Why: Migration path from Docker
Impact: Easier adoption, lower barrier to entry
Status: Not started
Related: #53 (Standards & Compatibility parent)

10. Multiple Tag Patterns (#60)

Why: Convenience for versioning workflows
Impact: Simpler tagging, better version management
Status: Not started
Related: #57 (Registry Features parent)

📋 Feature Categories

All features are organized into parent issues:

• 🔐 Security & Compliance (🔐 Security & Compliance Features #12) - 6 features
• 🏗️ Build Features (🏗️ Build Features #19) - Multi-stage, args, optimization
• 🌐 Multi-Architecture & Platform (🌐 Multi-Architecture & Platform Support #47) - Cross-compilation, multi-platform
• 📦 Dependency Management (📦 Dependency Management Enhancements #48) - Lockfiles, system packages
• 🔄 Caching & Performance (🔄 Caching & Performance Optimization #49) - Remote cache, optimization
• 🛠️ Tooling Integration (🛠️ Tooling & IDE Integration #50) - IDEs, CI/CD platforms
• 📊 Observability & Debugging (📊 Observability & Debugging #52) - Inspection, metrics
• 🔧 Advanced Configuration (🔧 Advanced Container Configuration #51) - Health checks, volumes
• 📝 Standards & Compatibility (📝 Standards & Compatibility #53) - Dockerfile import, Compose
• 🌍 Registry Features (🌍 Container Registry Features #57) - Mirrors, multi-tag
• 🧪 Testing & Validation (🧪 Testing & Validation #55) - Linting, structure tests
• 🐍 Python-Specific (🐍 Python-Specific Features #56) - Framework support, matrix builds
• 🚀 CI/CD Integration (🚀 CI/CD Platform Integration #58) - GitLab, Jenkins, CircleCI
• 🎯 User Experience (🎯 User Experience Improvements #54) - Interactive mode, templates

🗺️ Development Phases

Phase 1: Foundation (High Priority)

• Multi-stage builds
• True cross-compilation
• Lockfile support
• Basic image signing

Phase 2: Performance & Security

• Remote caching
• Vulnerability scanning
• SLSA provenance
• Build optimization

Phase 3: Developer Experience

• Build arguments
• Layer inspection
• Dockerfile migration
• System packages

Phase 4: Ecosystem Integration

• IDE plugins
• Additional CI/CD platforms
• Python framework optimizations
• Advanced OCI features

📊 Progress Tracking

• Total Parent Issues: 14
• Total Features Identified: 75+
• High Priority: 5 features
• Medium Priority: 5 features
• Current Phase: Phase 1 planning

🤝 Contributing

See individual issues for implementation details. High-priority items are tagged with high-priority label.

📚 References

• Comparison with .NET SDK containers
• Jib (Java) feature set
• Docker BuildKit capabilities
• Cloud Native Buildpacks
• ko (Go) build tool