Refactoring the GitHub Actions Workflow

Oct 13, 2025 by wbrum.org 13 views

Introduction

In the world of continuous integration (CI) and continuous deployment (CD), GitHub Actions has become a popular choice for automating workflows. However, as the complexity of our projects grows, so does the need for more efficient and scalable CI/CD pipelines. In this article, we will explore how to refactor our GitHub Actions workflow to have separate jobs for each provider's tests, enabling faster CI and clearer reporting of test failures.

Why Separate Jobs for Each Provider?

Having separate jobs for each provider's tests offers several benefits:

Faster CI: By running jobs in parallel, we can significantly reduce the overall CI time, allowing us to catch issues earlier and deploy changes faster.
Clearer Reporting: With separate jobs, it becomes easier to identify which provider's tests failed, making it simpler to diagnose and fix issues.
Improved Test Isolation: Separate jobs ensure that each provider's tests are isolated from each other, reducing the risk of test interference and making it easier to debug issues.

Refactoring the GitHub Actions Workflow

To achieve separate jobs for each provider, we need to refactor our GitHub Actions workflow. Here's a step-by-step guide:

Step 1: Identify Providers and Their Tests

First, we need to identify the providers and their corresponding tests. This will help us create separate jobs for each provider.

Step 2: Create Separate Jobs for Each Provider

Next, we will create separate jobs for each provider. We can use the jobs keyword in our GitHub Actions workflow file to define each job.

jobs:
  provider1:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run provider1 tests
        run: |
          npm run test:provider1
  provider2:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run provider2 tests
        run: |
          npm run test:provider2

Step 3: Run Jobs in Parallel

To run jobs in parallel, we can use the strategy keyword in our GitHub Actions workflow file.

jobs:
  provider1:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run provider1 tests
        run: |
          npm run test:provider1
  provider2:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run provider2 tests
        run: |
          npm run test:provider2

strategy:
  matrix:
    - provider: provider1
    - provider: provider2

Step 4: Clear Reporting of Test Failures

To provide clear reporting of test failures, we can use the reporting keyword in our GitHub Actions workflow file.

jobs:
  provider1:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run provider1 tests
        run: |
          npm run test:provider1
  provider2:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run provider2 tests
        run: |
          npm run test:provider2

reporting:
  group_by_tests: true
  group_by_author: true
  group_by_branch: true

Conclusion

In this article, we explored how to refactor our GitHub Actions workflow to have separate jobs for each provider's tests. By running jobs in parallel and providing clear reporting of test failures, we can significantly improve the efficiency and scalability of our CI/CD pipelines. With separate jobs for each provider, we can catch issues earlier, deploy changes faster, and make it easier to diagnose and fix issues.

Best Practices

When refactoring your GitHub Actions workflow to have separate jobs for each provider, keep the following best practices in mind:

Use clear and descriptive job names: Use job names that clearly indicate which provider's tests are being run.
Use the strategy keyword: Use the strategy keyword to run jobs in parallel.
Use the reporting keyword: Use the reporting keyword to provide clear reporting of test failures.
Test thoroughly: Thoroughly test your refactored workflow to ensure that it is working as expected.

Common Issues

When refactoring your GitHub Actions workflow to have separate jobs for each provider, you may encounter the following common issues:

Job dependencies: If your jobs have dependencies, you may need to use the needs keyword to specify the dependencies.
Job concurrency: If your jobs are running concurrently, you may need to use the concurrency keyword to specify the concurrency level.
Job reporting: If your jobs are not reporting correctly, you may need to use the reporting keyword to specify the reporting settings.

Conclusion

Introduction

In our previous article, we explored how to refactor our GitHub Actions workflow to have separate jobs for each provider's tests. In this article, we will answer some frequently asked questions (FAQs) about separate jobs for each provider in GitHub Actions.

Q: Why do I need separate jobs for each provider?

A: Having separate jobs for each provider offers several benefits, including faster CI, clearer reporting of test failures, and improved test isolation.

Q: How do I create separate jobs for each provider?

A: To create separate jobs for each provider, you need to use the jobs keyword in your GitHub Actions workflow file. You can define each job using the provider keyword, and specify the steps for each job.

jobs:
  provider1:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run provider1 tests
        run: |
          npm run test:provider1
  provider2:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run provider2 tests
        run: |
          npm run test:provider2

Q: How do I run jobs in parallel?

A: To run jobs in parallel, you need to use the strategy keyword in your GitHub Actions workflow file. You can specify the concurrency level using the concurrency keyword.

jobs:
  provider1:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run provider1 tests
        run: |
          npm run test:provider1
  provider2:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run provider2 tests
        run: |
          npm run test:provider2

strategy:
  matrix:
    - provider: provider1
    - provider: provider2
  concurrency: 2

Q: How do I provide clear reporting of test failures?

A: To provide clear reporting of test failures, you need to use the reporting keyword in your GitHub Actions workflow file. You can specify the reporting settings using the group_by_tests, group_by_author, and group_by_branch keywords.

jobs:
  provider1:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run provider1 tests
        run: |
          npm run test:provider1
  provider2:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run provider2 tests
        run: |
          npm run test:provider2

reporting:
  group_by_tests: true
  group_by_author: true
  group_by_branch: true

Q: What are some common issues I may encounter when refactoring my GitHub Actions workflow?

A: Some common issues you may encounter when refactoring your GitHub Actions workflow include job dependencies, job concurrency, and job reporting.

Q: How do I troubleshoot issues with my GitHub Actions workflow?

A: To troubleshoot issues with your GitHub Actions workflow, you can use the GitHub Actions logs to identify the source of the issue. You can also use the debug keyword to add debug statements to your workflow file.

Conclusion

In this article, we answered some frequently asked questions about separate jobs for each provider in GitHub Actions. We hope this article has been helpful in answering your questions and providing you with a better understanding of how to refactor your GitHub Actions workflow to have separate jobs for each provider.

Best Practices

When refactoring your GitHub Actions workflow to have separate jobs for each provider, keep the following best practices in mind:

Use clear and descriptive job names: Use job names that clearly indicate which provider's tests are being run.
Use the strategy keyword: Use the strategy keyword to run jobs in parallel.
Use the reporting keyword: Use the reporting keyword to provide clear reporting of test failures.
Test thoroughly: Thoroughly test your refactored workflow to ensure that it is working as expected.

Common Issues

When refactoring your GitHub Actions workflow to have separate jobs for each provider, you may encounter the following common issues:

Job dependencies: If your jobs have dependencies, you may need to use the needs keyword to specify the dependencies.
Job concurrency: If your jobs are running concurrently, you may need to use the concurrency keyword to specify the concurrency level.
Job reporting: If your jobs are not reporting correctly, you may need to use the reporting keyword to specify the reporting settings.