GitHub Actions are a powerful automation and CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment) platform provided by GitHub. It allows you to automate various tasks and workflows in response to events that occur in your GitHub repositories. Actions are defined using YAML files that specify the workflow to be executed. The workflow file typically has a .yml extension. Below is an explanation of the key syntax elements in a GitHub Actions workflow file as an annotated example:
# Name: You can specify a name for your workflow.
# This is a human-readable description of the workflow
# and is not required for the workflow to function.
name: My CI/CD Workflow
# on: This specifies the events that trigger the workflow.
# You can set it to various events like pushes to a
# repository, pull requests, or even a schedule.
on:
push:
branches:
- master
pull_request:
branches:
- master
# jobs: This is the main section of the workflow file.
# It defines the jobs that are to be executed when
# the workflow is triggered.
jobs:
build:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest # Specifies the type of virtual
# machine or runner on which the job will run. GitHub
# provides various runners for different platforms,
# including Windows, Linux, and macOS.
steps: # Contains a list of steps that are executed
# in the specified order. Steps are individual
# tasks within a job.
- name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2