25 Ways to Supercharge Your Development Workflow with GitHub Actions

As developers, we’re constantly looking for ways to streamline our workflows, automate repetitive tasks, and focus on what matters most – building amazing software. That’s where GitHub Actions comes in. In this article, we’ll explore 25 ways to supercharge your development workflow using GitHub Actions.

What is GitHub Actions?

GitHub Actions is a powerful feature that allows you to automate various tasks as part of your software development process. With Actions, you can create custom workflows that run on every commit, pull request, or push event in your repository.

25 Ways to Use GitHub Actions

1. Automate Testing

Run automated tests for your code on every commit, ensuring that changes are validated and reducing the likelihood of breaking existing functionality.

“`yaml
name: Automate Testing

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
test:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Run tests
run: |
npm install
npm test
“`

2. Deploy to Production

Automate the deployment of your application to production, ensuring that updates are deployed safely and efficiently.

“`yaml
name: Deploy to Production

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
deploy:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Deploy to production
uses: appleboy/drupal-deploy@v4.5
“`

3. Build and Package

Automate the build and packaging of your application, ensuring that updates are packaged correctly.

“`yaml
name: Build and Package

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
package:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Build and package application
run: |
npm run build
tar -czvf myapp.tar.gz .
“`

4. Create Docker Images

Automate the creation of Docker images for your application, making it easy to deploy across environments.

“`yaml
name: Create Docker Image

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
image:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Create Docker image
uses: azure/docker-action@v1.3
“`

5. Run Code Formatters

Automate the formatting of your code, ensuring consistency and making it easier to collaborate.

“`yaml
name: Run Code Formatter

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
format:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Run code formatter
run: |
prettier –write .
“`

6. Create Documentation

Automate the generation of documentation for your application, making it easier to onboard new team members.

“`yaml
name: Create Documentation

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
docs:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Run documentation generator
uses: davglass/docs-action@v1.3
“`

7. Run Linters

Automate the running of linters for your code, ensuring that it is clean and consistent.

“`yaml
name: Run Linter

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
lint:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Run linter
run: |
eslint .
“`

8. Create Snapshots

Automate the creation of snapshots for your application, making it easy to deploy across environments.

“`yaml
name: Create Snapshot

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
snapshot:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Create snapshot
uses: vercel/snapshot-action@v1.3
“`

9. Run Performance Tests

Automate the running of performance tests for your application, ensuring that it is performing optimally.

“`yaml
name: Run Performance Test

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
perf-test:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Run performance test
run: |
jest –onlyChanges
“`

10. Create Release Notes

Automate the generation of release notes for your application, making it easier to onboard new team members.

“`yaml
name: Create Release Note

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
release-note:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Run release note generator
uses: davglass/docs-action@v1.3
“`

11. Run Security Scans

Automate the running of security scans for your application, ensuring that it is secure and compliant.

“`yaml
name: Run Security Scan

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
security-scan:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Run security scan
run: |
snyk test
“`

12. Create Test Certificates

Automate the creation of test certificates for your application, making it easy to deploy across environments.

“`yaml
name: Create Test Certificate

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
cert:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Create test certificate
uses: appleboy/drupal-deploy@v4.5
“`

13. Run Code Style Checkers

Automate the running of code style checkers for your application, ensuring that it is clean and consistent.

“`yaml
name: Run Code Style Checker

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
style-checker:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Run code style checker
run: |
prettier –write .
“`

14. Create Docker Images with Multi-Stage Builds

Automate the creation of Docker images with multi-stage builds for your application, making it easy to deploy across environments.

“`yaml
name: Create Docker Image with Multi-Stage Build

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
image:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Create multi-stage Docker build
uses: docker/build-push-action@v1.4
“`

15. Run Code Analyzers

Automate the running of code analyzers for your application, ensuring that it is clean and consistent.

“`yaml
name: Run Code Analyzer

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
analyzer:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Run code analyzer
run: |
eslint .
“`

16. Create Docker Images with Custom Commands

Automate the creation of Docker images with custom commands for your application, making it easy to deploy across environments.

“`yaml
name: Create Docker Image with Custom Command

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
image:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Create custom Docker command
uses: docker/build-push-action@v1.4
“`

17. Run Code Formatters

Automate the running of code formatters for your application, ensuring that it is clean and consistent.

“`yaml
name: Run Code Formatter

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
formatter:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Run code formatter
run: |
prettier –write .
“`

18. Create Docker Images with Environment Variables

Automate the creation of Docker images with environment variables for your application, making it easy to deploy across environments.

“`yaml
name: Create Docker Image with Environment Variable

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
image:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Create environment variable Docker build
uses: docker/build-push-action@v1.4
“`

19. Run Code Linters

Automate the running of code linters for your application, ensuring that it is clean and consistent.

“`yaml
name: Run Code Linter

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
linter:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Run code linter
run: |
eslint .
“`

20. Create Docker Images with Port Exposes

Automate the creation of Docker images with port exposes for your application, making it easy to deploy across environments.

“`yaml
name: Create Docker Image with Port Expose

on:
push:
branches: [ main ]

jobs:
image:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
– name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v2
– name: Install dependencies
run: |
npm install
– name: Create port expose Docker build
uses: docker/build-push-action@v1.4
“`

These 20 examples demonstrate various use cases for creating and running automated tests, code checks, and other tasks using GitHub Actions. By leveraging these pre-built actions, developers can streamline their development workflows, ensure the quality of their code, and reduce the effort required to maintain a high level of code hygiene.