GH-200 GitHub Actions Exam Question and Answers

The $GITHUB_OUTPUT file is used to pass data from one step to another in GitHub Actions. The echo command appends the key-value pair to this file, which sets the output variable (MY_OUTPUT) for the current step.

The workflow_call event is used to trigger a reusable workflow from another workflow. This allows you to create workflows that can be reused in multiple places within your organization, enabling better modularity and reducing duplication.

First, the dataset should be encrypted before being stored. This ensures that the data is protected when stored in a repository.

The encrypted dataset can be stored in a GitHub secret, ensuring it is securely kept and not exposed publicly.

The encryption key needed to decrypt the dataset should also be stored in a GitHub secret to maintain security during the workflow, allowing access only when needed.

The GITHUB_ACTOR environment variable indicates the name of the person or app that initiated the workflow. This variable is automatically provided by GitHub in the workflow and can be used to identify the user or application triggering the workflow.

A. Use the actions/setup-docker action

B. Authenticate to the GitHub Container Registry.

C. Build the container image.

D. Push the image to the GitHub Container Registry

E. Pull the image from the GitHub Container Registry.

Workflow commands are special commands that allow you to interact with the runner, set environment variables, output values, add debug messages, and perform other tasks within the workflow. These commands are used to modify the environment or influence the behavior of the GitHub Actions runner.

To prevent reaching the storage limit for GitHub artifacts and packages, you should manage and clean up artifacts and packages stored in repositories owned by your organization. This includes deleting unnecessary artifacts and managing the lifecycle of packages, as they contribute directly to your organization's storage quota.

The check_run event is triggered when a check (such as a code quality check) completes, including when the status of a check changes. By adding this event as a trigger, you can initiate a follow-up workflow when the code quality integration finishes its checks.

For a Docker container action to run in a GitHub Actions workflow, the runner must have Docker installed. The runs-on attribute of the job should specify an environment that supports Docker, typically a Linux environment (e.g., ubuntu-latest), since Docker is widely supported and commonly used in Linux-based environments.

When troubleshooting a self-hosted runner, you can access the _diag folder located in the self-hosted runner's installation directory. This folder contains diagnostic logs that can help you identify the root cause of issues, such as connection problems.

Job outputs are used to pass data from one job to another in a workflow. A job can produce output values (like variables or files), which can be referenced by subsequent jobs using the needs keyword and ${{ steps.step_id.outputs.output_name }} syntax.

Artifact storage allows data (such as files or results) to be saved by a job and then retrieved by another job in a later step. This is commonly used for passing large amounts of data or files between jobs.

If a workflow depends on an external service that is down, disabling the workflow temporarily will prevent it from running and sending requests to the service, thus avoiding failed requests or unnecessary retries.

If a workflow is causing a negative impact on external services by generating too many requests or incorrect data due to a bug, temporarily disabling the workflow will stop this behavior while the issue is fixed.

The GET /repos/:owner/:repo/actions/runs/:run_id/logs API endpoint is used to retrieve the logs of a specific workflow run identified by run_id. This is the correct method for downloading logs from a workflow run.

GitHub-hosted runners automatically handle patching, meaning they will be kept up to date with the latest security updates and software patches for both the runner environment and the underlying operating system.

GitHub-hosted runners support Linux, Windows, and macOS, giving you flexibility to run workflows on different operating systems without needing to manage your own self-hosted runners.

The GITHUB_REF environment variable specifies the branch or tag that triggered the workflow. It contains the full reference to the branch or tag, such as refs/heads/main for a branch or refs/tags/v1.0 for a tag.

Some actions may require a GITHUB_TOKEN as an input to authenticate and perform specific tasks, such as creating issues, commenting on pull requests, or interacting with the GitHub API. In such cases, you would need to explicitly pass the token to the action.

When making an authenticated GitHub API request, the GITHUB_TOKEN is required to authenticate the request. This token is automatically provided by GitHub in the workflow, and it must be explicitly used when interacting with the GitHub API.

Using a tag is a best practice because tags are immutable and represent a fixed version of your action. By referencing tags, consumers of your action can be assured they are using a stable and specific version of the action, which helps in avoiding issues with breaking changes.

The commit SHA is another reliable way to specify a particular version of an action. By referencing a specific commit SHA, consumers can ensure they are using exactly the code that was written at that moment, avoiding the potential for changes in the future.

The smallest scope for an environment variable is within a step. Environment variables defined within a step are only accessible to that particular step, which makes it the smallest scope for a variable in a GitHub Actions workflow.