240.1-devcontainer-feature Create Automated Testing Workflow

[codekiln]

Task

Create GitHub Actions workflow for automated feature testing.

Context

Research (#241) shows that all production devcontainer features use automated CI testing with GitHub Actions. The workflow should trigger on changes to feature files and run comprehensive tests to validate feature installation and functionality.

Why this matters: Automated testing catches issues before they reach users and ensures the feature works across different environments.

Trigger Requirements

The workflow should trigger in two scenarios:

1. Feature Changes (PR Validation)

Test when feature files are modified to catch issues before merge.

2. Releases

Test when the langstar binary is released, as the devcontainer feature depends on it.

Release Process Context:

• Binary Release: .github/workflows/release.yml triggers on version tags (v*)
• Feature Publishing: .github/workflows/release-features.yaml currently uses workflow_dispatch (manual)

Recommended Triggers:

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]
    paths: ['.devcontainer/features/**']
    tags: ['v*']  # Test when binary releases happen
  pull_request:
    paths: ['.devcontainer/features/**']
  workflow_dispatch:  # Allow manual testing

Sub-tasks

• Create .github/workflows/test-features.yml
• Trigger on changes to .devcontainer/features/**
• Trigger on PRs that modify feature files
• Trigger on version tags (v*) when binary releases happen
• Add manual trigger (workflow_dispatch) for testing
• Set up workflow structure following devcontainers/features pattern

Research Reference

Lines 66-76 from research document (devcontainers/features approach)

Related Documentation

• GitHub Actions workflow triggers
• devcontainers/features CI workflows
• Binary release workflow: .github/workflows/release.yml:3-6
• Feature publishing workflow: .github/workflows/release-features.yaml:3-4
• Parent issue: 201.3-devcontainer-feature-ci automated CI testing for devcontainer features #240

[codekiln]

Closing manually. PR #260 was merged to parent branch codekiln/240-implement-automated-ci-testing. GitHub only auto-closes issues when PRs merge to the default branch (main). This issue will remain linked to the parent epic and will be automatically closed when the parent PR eventually merges to main.