Error Handling in GitHub Actions

In GitHub Actions, workflows can fail for various reasons. Proper error handling is crucial to ensure a smooth CI/CD process and to facilitate debugging. This lesson covers the types of errors you may encounter, techniques to handle them, and best practices for effective error management.

• **Syntax Errors**: These occur when there is a mistake in the YAML workflow file.
• **Runtime Errors**: These happen during the execution of jobs or steps.
• **External Errors**: Issues with external services or APIs that your workflow depends on.
• **Timeout Errors**: When a job exceeds the time limit set in the workflow.

3.1 Using `if` Conditions

Utilize conditional statements to control the execution flow based on the success or failure of previous steps.

steps:
  - name: Checkout code
    uses: actions/checkout@v2

  - name: Run tests
    run: npm test
    continue-on-error: true

  - name: Notify failure
    if: failure()
    run: echo "Tests failed, notify the team."
                

3.2 Using `continue-on-error`

This option allows a job to continue even if a step fails. It can be useful for non-critical steps.

steps:
  - name: Run linters
    run: npm run lint
    continue-on-error: true
                

3.3 Using `jobs..if`

Control job execution based on the status of other jobs.

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Build
        run: echo "Building project..."

  deploy:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    needs: build
    if: success()
    steps:
      - name: Deploy
        run: echo "Deploying project..."
                

• Always use descriptive names for your jobs and steps to make troubleshooting easier.
• Implement logging to capture outputs and error messages for debugging.
• Test your workflows regularly to catch errors early.
• Utilize GitHub Actions contexts and expressions for more dynamic workflows.
• Document your workflows and error handling strategies for future reference.