3.2. Types of Runners#
Instance Runners
Self-hosted GitLab instances can provide their own “Remote Hosted Runners”.
Public Repositories
Public Repositories can use lightweight runners on GitHub without any runtime restriction.
Remote Hosted Runners are provided and maintained by the remote service.
A certain amount of runtime minutes or specific runner sizes may be offered free of charge.
These runners are ideal for automation scripts that do not handle sensitive data.
Self-hosted runners are virtual or physical machines configured by the user and registered with the remote service.
These runners can operate as a service and may be dedicated to specific Projects or Repositories, or shared accross Organizations or (Sub-)Groups.
They are suitable for custom software and hardware requirements or specific security needs.