GitHub Actions

Automate workflows directly from your GitHub repository. Build, test, and deploy code automatically on every push or pull request.

Core Topics

Topic	Description
Fundamentals	Workflows, events, jobs, steps, actions, runners, secrets, matrix builds
Cheatsheet	Quick reference for YAML syntax, common actions, and expressions

Key Features

• Integrated CI/CD — Built directly into GitHub
• Free for public repos — Unlimited free CI/CD
• Matrix builds — Test across multiple environments
• Secrets management — Secure credential storage
• Reusable workflows — Share automation across repos
• Community actions — Leverage 10,000+ community actions
• Self-hosted runners — Run on your own infrastructure

Key Concepts

• Workflow: YAML file that defines automated process
• Event: GitHub action that triggers workflow (push, PR, schedule)
• Job: Set of steps that run on same runner
• Step: Individual task (action or shell command)
• Action: Reusable code unit
• Runner: Machine that executes your jobs
• Secret: Securely stored sensitive data (API keys, passwords)

Common Use Cases

• Run tests on every pull request
• Build and publish Docker images
• Deploy to cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP)
• Release and publish packages to npm, PyPI
• Automated security scanning (SAST, dependency checks)
• Create/update issues and pull requests
• Notify teams on Slack, Discord

Getting Started

1. Create .github/workflows/ directory
2. Add a .yml workflow file
3. Define triggers (push, pull_request, schedule, etc.)
4. Add jobs with steps
5. Commit and push to trigger workflow

name: CI

on: [push, pull_request]

jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - uses: actions/setup-node@v3
        with:
          node-version: 16
      - run: npm test

Popular Resources

Resource	Topic
GitHub Actions Docs	Official documentation
Workflow Syntax	Complete YAML reference
GitHub Marketplace	Browse 10,000+ actions
Awesome Actions	Curated list of Actions

Contributing

Know great GitHub Actions resources? Submit a PR to help the community learn!