Windows Runners in GitHub Actions

1. Introduction

GitHub Actions allows you to automate, customize, and execute your software development workflows right in your repository. Runners are the servers that execute your workflows. This lesson focuses on Windows runners, specifically designed to run jobs on Windows environments.

2. What are Runners?

Runners are applications that run your jobs when you execute a workflow in GitHub Actions. They can be either hosted by GitHub or self-hosted on your own infrastructure. Each runner listens for available jobs, executes them, and reports the results back to GitHub.

3. Windows Runners

Windows runners allow you to run jobs on a Windows environment. They are particularly useful for building and testing .NET applications, Windows desktop applications, and any other software that requires a Windows environment.

3.1 Features of Windows Runners

• Support for Windows-based software development.
• Pre-installed tools like .NET SDK, Visual Studio, and PowerShell.
• Ability to run GUI applications in headless mode.

3.2 Available Windows Versions

GitHub Actions supports several versions of Windows:

• Windows Server 2019
• Windows Server 2022

4. Setting Up a Windows Runner

You can configure a Windows runner in two ways: using GitHub's hosted runners or setting up a self-hosted runner.

4.1 Using Hosted Windows Runners

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: windows-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run a script
        run: |
          echo "Running on Windows Runner!"

4.2 Setting Up a Self-Hosted Windows Runner

1. Navigate to your GitHub repository.
2. Go to Settings > Actions > Runners.
3. Click on Add Runner and select Windows.
4. Follow the instructions to download and configure the runner on your Windows machine.
5. Once configured, you can use it in your workflow by specifying its name.

5. Best Practices

• Use the latest version of Windows runners to take advantage of new features and security updates.
• Regularly update your self-hosted runners to ensure compatibility and security.
• Leverage caching to improve build times by storing dependencies between runs.

6. FAQ