GitHub Actions: Workflow Setup for Go Projects

GitHub Actions is a powerful tool for automating your software development workflows. Below is a step-by-step guide to setting up a GitHub Actions workflow for a Go project.

Basic Workflow Configuration

Create a new file in your repository at .github/workflows/go.yml with the following content:

yaml
name: Go CI

on:
  push:
    branches:
      - main
  pull_request:
    branches:
      - main

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest

    steps:
    - name: Checkout code
      uses: actions/checkout@v3

    - name: Set up Go
      uses: actions/setup-go@v4
      with:
        go-version: 1.20

    - name: Install dependencies
      run: go mod tidy

    - name: Run tests
      run: go test -v ./...

Explanation

1. name: Go CI: This is the name of your workflow.

2. on:: Specifies the events that trigger the workflow. This example runs the workflow on push and pull_request events targeting the main branch.

3. jobs:: Defines a series of tasks to be run.

4. build:: The name of the job. You can name this anything.

5. runs-on: ubuntu-latest: Specifies the type of virtual machine to run the job on.

6. steps:: Lists the individual steps to be executed as part of the job.

   • name: Checkout code: Uses the actions/checkout action to check out your repository code.

   • name: Set up Go: Uses the actions/setup-go action to set up the Go environment. The go-version parameter specifies which version of Go to use.

   • name: Install dependencies: Runs go mod tidy to ensure your dependencies are correctly installed.

   • name: Run tests: Runs go test -v ./... to execute your tests.

Advanced Configuration

For more complex projects, you might need additional steps like linting, building the project, or deploying artifacts. Here's an extended example:

yaml
name: Go CI

on:
  push:
    branches:
      - main
  pull_request:
    branches:
      - main

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest

    steps:
    - name: Checkout code
      uses: actions/checkout@v3

    - name: Set up Go
      uses: actions/setup-go@v4
      with:
        go-version: 1.20

    - name: Install dependencies
      run: go mod tidy

    - name: Install linters
      run: go install golang.org/x/lint/golint@latest

    - name: Run linters
      run: golint ./...

    - name: Run tests
      run: go test -v ./...

    - name: Build application
      run: go build -v ./...

    - name: Upload test results
      uses: actions/upload-artifact@v3
      with:
        name: test-results
        path: path/to/test-results

Additional Steps Explanation

• name: Install linters: Installs the golint linter.

• name: Run linters: Runs golint to lint the Go code.

• name: Build application: Builds the Go application.

• name: Upload test results: Uses the actions/upload-artifact action to upload test results or other artifacts for later use.

Environment Variables and Secrets

If you need to use environment variables or secrets, you can add them to your workflow. For example:

yaml
jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    env:
      DATABASE_URL: ${{ secrets.DATABASE_URL }}
    steps:
    - name: Checkout code
      uses: actions/checkout@v3

    - name: Set up Go
      uses: actions/setup-go@v4
      with:
        go-version: 1.20

    - name: Install dependencies
      run: go mod tidy

    - name: Run tests with environment variable
      run: go test -v ./...

Here, DATABASE_URL is an environment variable sourced from the repository secrets.

Conclusion

With this setup, you can automate the build, test, and deployment processes of your Go projects using GitHub Actions. The basic configuration provides a solid starting point, while the advanced configuration allows for more complex workflows and integration of additional tools.