17_actions_activity.md

Activity: Use GitHub Actions to automate releases

Add an Action to your repository from the Marketplace

1. For this activity, we are going to use the Release Drafter action from the Marketplace. This Action helps you organize and draft your release notes. Here, you can read through the documentation and understand how you can customize it to your own liking.

2. Some Actions use a configuration file and Release Drafter is one of them. Go ahead and create a configuration file in your repository in the following directory: .github/release-drafter.yml

3. In this file, add the following:

   name-template: 'v$RESOLVED_VERSION 🌈'
   tag-template: 'v$RESOLVED_VERSION'
   categories:
     - title: '🚀 Features'
       labels:
         - 'feature'
         - 'enhancement'
     - title: '🐛 Bug Fixes'
       labels:
         - 'fix'
         - 'bugfix'
         - 'bug'
     - title: '🧰 Maintenance'
       label: 'chore'
   change-template: '- $TITLE @$AUTHOR (#$NUMBER)'
   version-resolver:
     major:
       labels:
         - 'major'
     minor:
       labels:
         - 'minor'
     patch:
       labels:
         - 'patch'
     default: patch
   template: |
     ## Changes
   
     $CHANGES

   This configuration file styles and formats your release notes.

4. Next, add your workflow file to the following directory: .github/workflows/release-drafter.yml

5. In this file, paste the following:

   name: Release Drafter
   
   on:
     push:
       # branches to consider in the event; optional, defaults to all
       branches:
         - main
   
   jobs:
     update_release_draft:
       runs-on: ubuntu-latest
       steps:
         # Drafts your next Release notes as Pull Requests are merged into ${{ branches }} from above.
         - uses: release-drafter/release-drafter@v5
           with:
           # Specify config name to use, relative to .github/.
             config-name: release-drafter.yml
           env:
             GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}

   Let's break down what this workflow file means:

   • on: push: - This is the event trigger for this workflow. In this example, we are triggering this workflow whenever there is a push on main branch.
   • jobs - Jobs define the environment and the steps.
   • uses - This is where you define the Action. In this example, we are specifying version 5 of the release-drafter repo.
   • config-name - Here, we call out the configuration file we added previously.
   • GITHUB_TOKEN - This action utilizes your Personal Access Token which is stored in the Actions Secret store.

NOTE: Before triggering the action, ensure you already have an existing release in your repository.

Trigger the Action

1. Let's add a Release before we introduce new changes, we can name this Release v0.0.1.

2. Since the Configuration file contains chore as a label in your releases, let's go ahead and add a label called chore.

   • Under the Issue or Pull Request tab, click New Label to create a new label.

3. Create a new branch named, new-colors

4. While on the new-colors branch, edit the index.html file

5. Modify the code on lines 116 through 122 by replacing the existing colors with new colors. For example:

   - var i = { size: 4, blocks: [0x0F00, 0x2222, 0x00F0, 0x4444], color: 'purple' };
   + var i = { size: 4, blocks: [0x0F00, 0x2222, 0x00F0, 0x4444], color: 'blue' };
   

6. Create a commit and open a Pull Request

7. In your Pull Request, add a label defined in the Configuration file:

   • enhancement
   • bug
   • chore

8. Merge your Pull Request

9. Check on your Actions by clicking the Actions tab

   

Congratulations 🎉

Head over to Releases and marvel at the outcome:

Keep on practicing

• Edit the Configuration file to your liking and run your Action again
• Try out other Actions in the Marketplace
• Learn more about Actions via the GitHub Learning Lab