03Deep Dive
Workflows In Detail
The workflow is the "Brain" of your automation. It's a YAML file that coordinates exactly what happens, when, and where.
1. Anatomy of a Workflow
Hover over keys to explorename: My Awesome Workflow
on: push:
jobs: build-and-test:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps
- name: Checkout code
uses: actions/checkout@v4
- name: Install deps
run: npm install
Hover over the YAML keys to see what each part does.
2. Common Triggers (on)
Event-Based
Runs when something happens in GitHub.
pushpull_requestfork
Scheduled
Runs at specific times using cron syntax.
cron: "0 0 * * *"Daily Builds
Manual
Triggered by a human from the UI.
workflow_dispatchrepository_dispatch
3. Job Dependencies (needs)
By default, jobs run in parallel. Use `needs` to create a sequential pipeline.
Build
Test
Deploy
Workflow Pro-Tips
Use Env Variables
"Don't hardcode sensitive values. Use GitHub Secrets and environment variables for flexibility."
Conditional Execution
"Use the `if` conditional to skip jobs or steps based on branch names or event types."