GitHub Actions⚓︎

What are GitHub Actions?⚓︎

GitHub Actions is a continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) platform that allows you to automate your build, test, and deployment pipeline. It's integrated directly into GitHub and allows you to create custom workflows for your projects.

Why Use GitHub Actions?⚓︎

Integrated: Native GitHub integration
Flexible: Customizable workflows
Powerful: Extensive marketplace of actions
Free: Generous free tier for public repositories
Secure: Built-in secrets management

Where are Actions Executed?⚓︎

GitHub Actions run on GitHub-hosted runners or self-hosted runners:

GitHub-hosted runners:
Ubuntu Linux
Windows
macOS
Different hardware specifications available
Self-hosted runners:
Run on your own infrastructure
Custom hardware
Custom operating systems
Private network access

When are Actions Executed?⚓︎

Actions can be triggered by various events:

Push events: When code is pushed to a branch
Pull request events: When a PR is created, updated, or merged
Schedule: Using cron syntax
Manual: Using workflow_dispatch
Repository events: Issues, releases, etc.
External events: Using repository_dispatch

Basic Workflow Example⚓︎

# .github/workflows/ci.yml
name: CI

on:
  push:
    branches: [ main ]
  pull_request:
    branches: [ main ]

jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
    - uses: actions/checkout@v3
    - name: Set up Python
      uses: actions/setup-python@v4
      with:
        python-version: '3.x'
    - name: Install dependencies
      run: |
        python -m pip install --upgrade pip
        pip install -r requirements.txt
    - name: Run tests
      run: |
        pytest

Common Use Cases⚓︎

1. Python Testing⚓︎

name: Python Tests

on: [push, pull_request]

jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    strategy:
      matrix:
        python-version: [3.8, 3.9, '3.10']

    steps:
    - uses: actions/checkout@v3
    - name: Set up Python ${{ matrix.python-version }}
      uses: actions/setup-python@v4
      with:
        python-version: ${{ matrix.python-version }}
    - name: Install dependencies
      run: |
        python -m pip install --upgrade pip
        pip install -r requirements.txt
    - name: Run tests
      run: |
        pytest

2. Code Quality⚓︎

name: Code Quality

on: [push, pull_request]

jobs:
  lint:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
    - uses: actions/checkout@v3
    - name: Set up Python
      uses: actions/setup-python@v4
      with:
        python-version: '3.x'
    - name: Install dependencies
      run: |
        pip install ruff black
    - name: Run linters
      run: |
        ruff check .
        black --check .

3. Documentation Deployment⚓︎

name: Deploy Docs

on:
  push:
    branches: [ main ]

jobs:
  deploy:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
    - uses: actions/checkout@v3
    - name: Set up Python
      uses: actions/setup-python@v4
      with:
        python-version: '3.x'
    - name: Install dependencies
      run: |
        pip install mkdocs-material
    - name: Deploy to GitHub Pages
      run: |
        mkdocs gh-deploy --force

Best Practices⚓︎

Workflow Organization
Keep workflows focused and modular
Use reusable workflows
Separate concerns (test, lint, deploy)
Security
Use secrets for sensitive data
Limit permissions
Use dependency caching
Pin action versions
Performance
Use caching
Run jobs in parallel
Use matrix builds
Optimize workflow steps
Maintenance
Document workflows
Use consistent naming
Keep workflows up to date
Monitor workflow runs