Continuous integration (CI) is the process of integrating code changes frequently from developers on a shared mainline several times a day. This helps reduce the time taken to identify defects and improves overall code quality. A typical CI architecture involves developers committing code changes to a source code management system (SCM), which then triggers an automated build and test process on a CI server. Hudson is an open-source CI server that supports various SCMs and build tools. It provides a web-based interface, plugins, and reporting capabilities.