I currently have a docker compose script that brings up a few containers and runs them against some hardware that is installed on a local network. The software in these containers requires that hardware be installed on the local network in order to run. The software is also stored in GitLab repos.
I'd like to have GitLab CI kickoff some nightly tests (scheduled) that can bring up these compose scripts and execute several commands in the containers against this hardware.
I would think something like this that requires special hardware and which can only be provided on a local network is a common thing for GitLab. I've run tests within the GitLab instance, but in this case, it needs to be local. I've seen posts on using GitLab runners to do this (very old) and just want to make sure this is the right way to go.
Also, this appears deprecated. https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/385235
Can anyone elaborate what tools can do this or better ways on how it might be done?