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Github Actions Generator

  • 403 installs
  • 286 repo stars
  • Updated July 26, 2026
  • akin-ozer/cc-devops-skills

github-actions-generator is an agent skill that scaffolds production-ready GitHub Actions workflows, reusable workflows, and custom action.yml files for developers implementing CI/CD automation.

About

github-actions-generator is a cc-devops-skills agent skill that creates .github/workflows CI/CD YAML, workflow_call reusable pipelines, and custom action.yml packages following current security and naming conventions. A trigger decision tree routes requests to workflow generation, custom action scaffolding, reusable workflow templates, or security-scanning patterns covering dependency review, SBOM, and CodeQL. The skill ships six reference guides—best practices, common actions, expressions and contexts, advanced triggers, custom actions, and modern features—and mandates post-generation validation via devops-skills:github-actions-validator with fix-and-revalidate loops. Developers install it from akin-ozer/cc-devops-skills alongside validators for Azure Pipelines, GitLab CI, Jenkins, and Terraform. Reach for it when bootstrapping GitHub CI instead of hand-writing pinned action SHAs, minimal permissions, concurrency controls, and timeout defaults from scratch.

  • Workflow YAML scaffolding
  • Build and test job templates
  • Matrix and caching patterns
  • Deploy and release stage stubs

Github Actions Generator by the numbers

  • 403 all-time installs (skills.sh)
  • Ranked #298 of 1,435 DevOps & CI/CD skills by installs in the Skillselion catalog
  • Data as of Aug 5, 2026 (Skillselion catalog sync)
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Installs403
repo stars286
Last updatedJuly 26, 2026
Repositoryakin-ozer/cc-devops-skills

How do you scaffold secure GitHub Actions CI/CD workflows?

Generate GitHub Actions workflow YAML for build, test, lint, deploy, and release pipelines tailored to a repository stack.

Who is it for?

Developers bootstrapping GitHub Actions pipelines who want pinned actions, security baselines, and automatic validator checks before committing workflow YAML.

Skip if: Teams standardized on GitLab CI or Azure Pipelines only—use sibling gitlab-ci-generator or azure-pipelines-generator skills instead.

When should I use this skill?

The user asks to create, scaffold, or generate GitHub Actions workflows, action.yml, or .github/workflows CI/CD pipelines.

What you get

.github/workflows YAML files, action.yml definitions, reusable workflow templates, and validator-passing CI configurations.

  • workflow YAML files
  • action.yml
  • reusable workflow templates

By the numbers

  • Includes 6 reference guides for workflows and custom actions
  • Pairs with github-actions-validator for mandatory post-generation checks

Files

SKILL.mdMarkdownGitHub ↗

GitHub Actions Generator

Generate production-ready GitHub Actions workflows and custom actions following current best practices, security standards, and naming conventions. All generated resources are automatically validated using the devops-skills:github-actions-validator skill.

Quick Reference

CapabilityWhen to UseReference
WorkflowsCI/CD, automation, testingreferences/best-practices.md
Composite ActionsReusable step combinationsreferences/custom-actions.md
Docker ActionsCustom environments/toolsreferences/custom-actions.md
JavaScript ActionsAPI interactions, complex logicreferences/custom-actions.md
Reusable WorkflowsShared patterns across reposreferences/advanced-triggers.md
Security ScanningDependency review, SBOMreferences/best-practices.md
Modern FeaturesSummaries, environmentsreferences/modern-features.md

---

Trigger Decision Tree

Route every request through this decision tree before reading references or generating files:

1. If the user asks for .github/workflows/*.yml CI/CD automation, choose Workflow Generation. 2. If the user asks for action.yml or a reusable step package, choose Custom Action Generation. 3. If the user asks for workflow_call or shared pipelines across repositories, choose Reusable Workflow Generation. 4. If the request includes security-only scanning (dependency review, SBOM, CodeQL), stay on Workflow Generation with the security pattern. 5. If intent is ambiguous, ask one disambiguation question: "Do you want a workflow, a custom action, or a reusable workflow?"

Progressive Disclosure Route

Load only what is needed for the selected route, in this order:

RouteLoad First (required)Load Next (only if needed)Primary Template
Workflow Generationreferences/best-practices.mdreferences/common-actions.md, references/expressions-and-contexts.md, references/modern-features.mdassets/templates/workflow/basic_workflow.yml
Custom Action Generationreferences/custom-actions.mdreferences/best-practices.mdassets/templates/action/composite/action.yml, assets/templates/action/docker/, assets/templates/action/javascript/
Reusable Workflow Generationreferences/advanced-triggers.mdreferences/best-practices.md, references/common-actions.mdassets/templates/workflow/reusable_workflow.yml

If a required reference/template is unavailable, continue with the closest available reference and report the fallback explicitly in output.

---

Core Capabilities

1. Generate Workflows

Triggers: "Create a workflow for...", "Build a CI/CD pipeline..."

Process: 1. Understand requirements (triggers, runners, dependencies) 2. Define trust boundaries (internal branches vs fork PRs vs external triggers) 3. Set default permissions to read-only, then elevate only per job when required 4. Reference references/best-practices.md for patterns 5. Reference references/common-actions.md for action versions 6. Generate workflow with:

  • Semantic names, pinned actions (SHA), explicit permissions
  • Concurrency controls, caching, matrix strategies
  • Fork-safe PR handling (no secrets in untrusted contexts)

7. Validate with devops-skills:github-actions-validator skill 8. Fix issues and re-validate if needed

Minimal Example:

name: CI Pipeline

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]
  pull_request:
    branches: [main]

permissions:
  contents: read

concurrency:
  group: ${{ github.workflow }}-${{ github.ref }}
  cancel-in-progress: true

jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@de0fac2e4500dabe0009e67214ff5f5447ce83dd # v6.0.2
      - uses: actions/setup-node@6044e13b5dc448c55e2357c09f80417699197238 # v6.2.0
        with:
          node-version: '24'
          cache: 'npm'
      - run: npm ci
      - run: npm test

Untrusted PR Guardrail (required for secret-using jobs):

jobs:
  deploy:
    if: github.event_name != 'pull_request' || github.event.pull_request.head.repo.full_name == github.repository

2. Generate Custom Actions

Triggers: "Create a composite action...", "Build a Docker action...", "Create a JavaScript action..."

Types:

  • Composite: Combine multiple steps → Fast startup
  • Docker: Custom environment/tools → Isolated
  • JavaScript: API access, complex logic → Fastest

Process: 1. Use templates from assets/templates/action/ 2. Follow structure in references/custom-actions.md 3. Include branding, inputs/outputs, documentation 4. Validate with devops-skills:github-actions-validator skill

See references/custom-actions.md for:

  • Action metadata and branding
  • Directory structure patterns
  • Versioning and release workflows

3. Generate Reusable Workflows

Triggers: "Create a reusable workflow...", "Make this workflow callable..."

Key Elements:

  • workflow_call trigger with typed inputs
  • Explicit secrets (avoid secrets: inherit)
  • Explicit trusted-caller expectations (document org/repo boundaries)
  • Outputs mapped from job outputs
  • Minimal permissions
on:
  workflow_call:
    inputs:
      environment:
        required: true
        type: string
    secrets:
      deploy-token:
        required: false
    outputs:
      result:
        value: ${{ jobs.build.outputs.result }}

When secrets are required, pass only the exact secret names needed and prefer environment protection rules for deployment stages.

See references/advanced-triggers.md for complete patterns.

4. Generate Security Workflows

Triggers: "Add security scanning...", "Add dependency review...", "Generate SBOM..."

Components:

  • Dependency Review: actions/dependency-review-action@v4
  • SBOM Attestations: actions/attest-sbom@v2
  • CodeQL Analysis: github/codeql-action

Permission Model: Use a read-only workflow-level baseline, then elevate only in the security job that requires write scopes.

permissions:
  contents: read

jobs:
  security-scan:
    permissions:
      contents: read
      security-events: write  # For CodeQL
      id-token: write         # For attestations
      attestations: write     # For attestations

See references/best-practices.md section on security.

5. Modern Features

Triggers: "Add job summaries...", "Use environments...", "Run in container..."

See references/modern-features.md for:

  • Job summaries ($GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY)
  • Deployment environments with approvals
  • Container jobs with services
  • Workflow annotations

6. Third-Party Action Documentation and Citation

When using third-party actions (any uses: entry not in the same repository):

1. Search for documentation:

   "[owner/repo] [version] github action documentation"

2. Or use Context7 MCP:

  • mcp__context7__resolve-library-id to find action
  • mcp__context7__query-docs for documentation

3. Pin to SHA with version comment:

   - uses: actions/checkout@de0fac2e4500dabe0009e67214ff5f5447ce83dd # v6.0.2

4. Cite source and version in the response:

  • Action source (repository URL)
  • Version source (release/tag/changelog URL)
  • Selected commit SHA and human-readable version
  • Access date for the source used

See references/common-actions.md for pre-verified action versions.

---

Validation Workflow

CRITICAL: Every generated resource MUST be validated.

1. Generate workflow/action file 2. Invoke devops-skills:github-actions-validator skill 3. If errors: fix and re-validate 4. If success: present with usage instructions

Skip validation only for:

  • Partial code snippets
  • Documentation examples
  • User explicitly requests skip

Fallback Behavior (Tooling and Environment Constraints)

If required tooling or network access is unavailable, use this deterministic fallback order:

1. If devops-skills:github-actions-validator is unavailable, run local fallback checks:

  • actionlint (if installed)
  • yamllint (if installed)
  • manual YAML/schema review with a clear "not tool-validated" note

2. If Context7 or internet access is unavailable:

  • use references/common-actions.md for known action versions
  • state that external version verification could not be completed

3. If a template path is missing:

  • generate from the closest template pattern in assets/templates/
  • document which template was substituted

Fallback usage must always be reported in the final output.

---

Mandatory Standards

All generated resources must follow:

StandardImplementation
SecurityPin to SHA, minimal permissions, mask secrets
PerformanceCaching, concurrency, shallow checkout
NamingDescriptive names, lowercase-hyphen files
Error HandlingTimeouts, cleanup with if: always()

See references/best-practices.md for complete guidelines.

---

Resources

Reference Documents

DocumentContentWhen to Use
references/best-practices.mdSecurity, performance, patternsEvery workflow
references/common-actions.mdAction versions, inputs, outputsPublic action usage
references/expressions-and-contexts.md${{ }} syntax, contexts, functionsComplex conditionals
references/advanced-triggers.mdworkflow_run, dispatch, ChatOpsWorkflow orchestration
references/custom-actions.mdMetadata, structure, versioningCustom action creation
references/modern-features.mdSummaries, environments, containersEnhanced workflows

Templates

TemplateLocation
Basic Workflowassets/templates/workflow/basic_workflow.yml
Reusable Workflowassets/templates/workflow/reusable_workflow.yml
Composite Actionassets/templates/action/composite/action.yml
Docker Actionassets/templates/action/docker/
JavaScript Actionassets/templates/action/javascript/

---

Common Patterns

Matrix Testing

strategy:
  matrix:
    os: [ubuntu-latest, windows-latest]
    node: [18, 20, 22]
  fail-fast: false

Conditional Deployment

deploy:
  if: github.event_name == 'push' && github.ref == 'refs/heads/main'

Artifact Sharing

# Upload
- uses: actions/upload-artifact@5d5d22a31266ced268874388b861e4b58bb5c2f3 # v4.3.1
  with:
    name: build-${{ github.sha }}
    path: dist/

# Download (in dependent job)
- uses: actions/download-artifact@c850b930e6ba138125429b7e5c93fc707a7f8427 # v4.1.4
  with:
    name: build-${{ github.sha }}

Third-Party Action Citation Block

Third-party action citations:
- actions/checkout: https://github.com/actions/checkout (version: v6.0.2, sha: de0fac2e4500dabe0009e67214ff5f5447ce83dd, accessed: 2026-02-28)

---

Done Criteria

The task is complete only when all checks below pass:

1. The request route was selected using the trigger decision tree. 2. Only the minimum required references/templates were loaded first. 3. Every third-party action is pinned to a commit SHA and has source/version citation. 4. Validation was run, or a skip exception/fallback path was explicitly documented. 5. Output includes assumptions, security-sensitive decisions (permissions/secrets), and generated file paths.

---

Workflow Summary

1. Route the request using the trigger decision tree 2. Load the minimum references/templates for that route 3. Generate using mandatory security and naming standards 4. Cite and pin third-party actions (source, version, SHA) 5. Validate with devops-skills:github-actions-validator (or documented fallback) 6. Fix and re-validate until clean 7. Present validated output with citations, assumptions, and file paths

Related skills

How it compares

Use github-actions-generator when you need opinionated, validator-checked GitHub YAML rather than copying unpinned workflow snippets from generic templates.

FAQ

Does github-actions-generator validate generated workflows?

github-actions-generator automatically invokes the devops-skills:github-actions-validator skill after generation, fixes reported issues, and re-validates until the workflow or action.yml passes mandatory checks.

What GitHub Actions artifacts can github-actions-generator create?

github-actions-generator can scaffold standard .github/workflows CI/CD files, custom local action.yml packages, workflow_call reusable pipelines, and security-focused workflows such as dependency review, SBOM, or CodeQL scanning.

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