Make in 2025 - The DevOps Secret Weapon You Already Have

TL;DR

• Make and Makefiles remain highly relevant in 2025 for DevOps and SysAdmin automation
• They offer simplicity, dependency tracking, and portability that modern alternatives still can't match
• Best practices include using .PHONY, .DELETE_ON_ERROR, and automatic dependency generation
• Practical examples show how Make excels at Docker builds, Terraform workflows, and CI/CD pipelines

Updated for 2025: This guide reflects current industry changes, including Terraform's 2023 license shift and updated company references.

Introduction

It's 2025, and with countless new automation tools flooding the market, you might wonder why a tool from 1976 is still in your DevOps toolkit. But Make, with its simple yet powerful Makefiles, continues to be the secret weapon of efficient teams worldwide.

Why? Because Make does one thing exceptionally well: it creates predictable, reproducible automation that just works. No complex dependencies, no heavy frameworks, just clean automation that runs anywhere.

Let's explore how this vintage tool is still making waves in modern DevOps.

What Can Make Do For You? A Quick Demo

Imagine simplifying this complex workflow:

# Without Make - repetitive, error-prone commands
docker compose build app
docker compose run --rm app go test ./...
docker compose push app
terraform init
terraform plan -out=tfplan
terraform apply tfplan

Into this elegant command:

make deploy

First, you'll need a docker-compose.yml:

services:
  app:
    build: .
    image: myapp:latest
    volumes:
      - .:/app
    working_dir: /app

Then, a Makefile handles all the complexity behind the scenes:

.PHONY: build test deploy terraform-deploy

build:
    docker compose build app

test: build
    docker compose run --rm app go test ./...

terraform-init:
    terraform init

terraform-plan: terraform-init
    terraform plan -out=tfplan

terraform-apply: terraform-plan
    terraform apply tfplan

deploy: test terraform-apply
    docker compose push app
    echo "Deployment complete!"

How Make Makes DevOps Easier

Make instantly transforms your DevOps workflow in three crucial ways:

1. Dependency Tracking That Saves Time

Make only rebuilds what needs rebuilding. When files change, Make knows exactly which targets need to be rerun - no wasted time.

app: main.go utils.go config.go
    go build -o app

Run make app once, change only utils.go, and Make will rebuild only what's necessary.

2. Standardized Commands Across Projects

No more remembering different commands for different projects:

# Same commands work across all projects
make build
make test
make deploy

This standardization reduces errors and dramatically speeds up onboarding.

3. Perfect Portability

Make runs on virtually any system without special requirements. A Makefile written today will likely still work decades from now - try saying that about most modern tools!

Three Good Practices for Better CI/CD Makefiles

Want to write Makefiles that your team will thank you for? Follow these three essential practices:

1. Use .PHONY for Virtual Targets

Mark any target that doesn't represent an actual file as .PHONY:

.PHONY: clean build test deploy

clean:
    rm -rf build/ dist/

build:
    go build -o app

This prevents confusion when a directory named "clean" or "build" exists in your project.

2. Implement .DELETE_ON_ERROR

Add this one line to ensure partially-built targets get deleted if a command fails:

.DELETE_ON_ERROR:

app:
    go build -o app
    # If this fails, 'app' is automatically deleted
    ./app --verify

3. Use Variables for Flexibility

Define variables at the top of your Makefile for easy configuration:

APP_NAME := myapp
VERSION := $(shell git describe --tags --always)
REGISTRY := example.com/registry

.PHONY: build push

build:
    docker build -t $(REGISTRY)/$(APP_NAME):$(VERSION) .

push: build
    docker push $(REGISTRY)/$(APP_NAME):$(VERSION)

Real-World Use Cases

Docker Build Automation

.PHONY: docker-build docker-test docker-push

docker-build:
    docker compose build app

docker-test: docker-build
    docker compose run --rm app npm test

docker-push: docker-test
    docker compose push app

Terraform Workflow Management

.PHONY: tf-init tf-plan tf-apply

tf-init:
    terraform init

tf-plan: tf-init
    terraform plan -out=tfplan

tf-apply: tf-plan
    terraform apply tfplan

Note on Terraform in 2025: While the CLI commands remain unchanged, Terraform's license shifted to Business Source License (BSL) in 2023, restricting commercial SaaS usage without a paid license. This has led many teams to adopt open-source alternatives like OpenTofu, a community-driven fork that maintains full compatibility. Consider evaluating OpenTofu if open-source licensing is critical for your organization.

Streamlined CI/CD Pipeline

.PHONY: ci

ci: lint test build deploy

lint:
    golangci-lint run

test:
    go test ./...

build:
    go build -o app

deploy:
    ./scripts/deploy.sh

Make vs. Modern Alternatives

While tools like Just, Task, and custom shell scripts exist, Make's widespread adoption, dependency tracking, and simplicity keep it relevant. As one DevOps engineer put it in a recent discussion:

I've tried the fancy new tools, but I keep coming back to Make. It's like a reliable old friend who never lets you down.

Getting Started in 5 Minutes

Create a file named Makefile in your project root:

.PHONY: hello

hello:
    @echo "Hello, Make!"
    @echo "You've just created your first Makefile target!"

Run it with:

make hello

Congratulations! You're now using the same technology that powers builds at companies like Google, Meta, and countless others.

Conclusion

In 2025, Make and Makefiles continue to be the unsung heroes of DevOps automation. Their simplicity, portability, and powerful dependency management make them indispensable for teams that value reliability and efficiency.

Whether you're building Docker images, managing Terraform workflows, or streamlining CI/CD pipelines, Make offers a battle-tested solution that just works.

Ready to simplify your automation? Start with a basic Makefile today, and discover why this 49-year-old tool still outperforms many of its modern alternatives.

Further Resources

• Official GNU Make Documentation