How to Test GitHub Actions

Quick summary

Testing GitHub Actions manually lets you validate your workflow before it runs in production by using the workflow_dispatch trigger to fire jobs on demand. This step-by-step process ensures your automation is reliable and behaves as expected across any branch.

Steps

1. Navigate to your target repository on GitHub.
2. Open the workflow file you want to update and click on it to edit.
3. Add the workflow_dispatch trigger to your workflow file to enable manual runs.
4. Go to the GitHub Actions tab to manually trigger the workflow.
5. Find the specific workflow you want to run and click on it.
6. Locate the Run workflow button in the top-right corner of the page.
7. Select the branch and provide any required inputs for the workflow run.
8. Click Run workflow to dispatch the job.
9. Iteratively develop and test your GitHub Actions to ensure they perform reliably in production.