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Document using Copilot CLI within an Actions workflow (#59639)
Co-authored-by: hubwriter <hubwriter@github.com> Co-authored-by: Siara <108543037+SiaraMist@users.noreply.github.com>
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‎content/copilot/how-tos/copilot-cli/automate-with-actions.md‎

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---
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title: Automating tasks with Copilot CLI and GitHub Actions
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shortTitle: Automate with Actions
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intro: Integrate {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli %} into your {% data variables.product.prodname_actions %} workflows.
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product: '{% data reusables.gated-features.copilot-cli %}'
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versions:
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feature: copilot
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topics:
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- Copilot
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- CLI
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contentType: how-tos
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category:
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- Build with Copilot CLI
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- Author and optimize with Copilot
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---
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You can run {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli %} in a {% data variables.product.prodname_actions %} workflow to automate AI-powered tasks as part of your CI/CD process. For example, you can summarize recent repository activity, generate reports, or scaffold project content. {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli %} runs on the Actions runner like any other CLI tool, so you can install it during a job and invoke it from workflow steps.
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## Understanding the workflow
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You can define a job in a {% data variables.product.prodname_actions %} workflow that: installs {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli_short %} on the runner, authenticates it, runs it in programmatic mode, and then handles the results. Programmatic mode is designed for scripts and automation and lets you pass a prompt non-interactively.
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Workflows can follow this pattern:
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1. **Trigger**: Start the workflow on a schedule, in response to repository events, or manually.
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1. **Setup**: Checkout code, set up environment.
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1. **Install**: Install {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli %} on the runner.
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1. **Authenticate**: Ensure the CLI has the necessary permissions to access the repository and make changes.
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1. **Run {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli_short %}**: Invoke {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli_short %} with a prompt describing the task you want to automate.
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The following workflow generates a daily summary of repository changes and prints the summary to the workflow logs.
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```yaml copy
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name: Daily summary
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on:
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workflow_dispatch:
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# Daily at 8:25 UTC
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schedule:
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- cron: '25 8 * * *'
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permissions:
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contents: read
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jobs:
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daily-summary:
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runs-on: ubuntu-latest
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steps:
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- name: Checkout
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uses: {% data reusables.actions.action-checkout %}
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- name: Set up Node.js environment
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uses: {% data reusables.actions.action-setup-node %}
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- name: Install Copilot CLI
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run: npm install -g @github/copilot
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- name: Run Copilot CLI
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env:
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{% raw %}COPILOT_GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN }}{% endraw %}
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run: |
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TODAY=$(date +%Y-%m-%d)
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copilot -p "Review the git log for this repository and write a bullet point summary of all code changes that were made today ($TODAY). Include a brief description of what was changed."
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```
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## Trigger
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In this example, the workflow runs on a daily schedule and can also be triggered manually.
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`The workflow_dispatch` trigger lets you run the workflow manually from the Actions tab, which is useful when testing changes to your prompt or workflow configuration.
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The `schedule` trigger runs the workflow automatically at a specified time using cron syntax.
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```yaml copy
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on:
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# Allows manual triggering of this workflow.
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workflow_dispatch:
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# Daily at 8:30 UTC
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schedule:
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- cron: '30 8 * * *'
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```
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## Setup
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Set up the job so {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli_short %} can access your repository and run on the runner. This allows {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli_short %} to analyze the repository context, when generating the daily summary.
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The `permissions` block defines the scope granted to the built-in `GITHUB_TOKEN`. Because this workflow reads repository data and prints a summary to the logs, it requires `contents: read`.
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```yaml copy
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permissions:
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contents: read
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jobs:
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daily-summary:
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runs-on: ubuntu-latest
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steps:
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- name: Checkout
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uses: {% data reusables.actions.action-checkout %}
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```
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## Install
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Install {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli_short %} on the runner so your workflow can invoke it as a command. You can install {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli %} using any supported installation method. For a full list of installation options, see [AUTOTITLE](/copilot/how-tos/copilot-cli/set-up-copilot-cli/install-copilot-cli).
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In this example, the workflow installs {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli %} globally with npm.
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```yaml copy
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- name: Set up Node.js environment
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uses: {% data reusables.actions.action-setup-node %}
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- name: Install Copilot CLI
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run: npm install -g @github/copilot
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```
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## Authenticate
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To authenticate {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli_short %} in a workflow, create a {% data variables.product.pat_v2 %} (PAT) with the **Copilot Requests** permission. Store the PAT as a repository secret, then pass it to the CLI using an environment variable. For more information on creating a PAT for the CLI, see [Authenticating with a {% data variables.product.pat_generic %}](/copilot/how-tos/copilot-cli/set-up-copilot-cli/install-copilot-cli#authenticating-with-a-personal-access-token).
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{% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli_short %} supports multiple authentication environment variables. In this example, the workflow uses `COPILOT_GITHUB_TOKEN`, which is specific to {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli_short %} and avoids confusion for the built-in `GITHUB_TOKEN` environment variable.
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```yaml copy
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- name: Run Copilot CLI
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env:
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{% raw %}COPILOT_GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN }}{% endraw %}
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```
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## Run {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli_short %}
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Run {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli_short %} in programmatic mode when you want to use it in automation.
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`copilot -p PROMPT` executes a prompt programmatically and exits when the command completes.
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In this workflow, {% data variables.copilot.copilot_cli_short %} references the repository content that is available in the job workspace. The command prints its response to standard output and the summary appears in the workflow logs.
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```yaml copy
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- name: Run Copilot CLI
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env:
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{% raw %}COPILOT_GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN }}{% endraw %}
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run: |
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TODAY=$(date +%Y-%m-%d)
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copilot -p "Review the git log for this repository and write a bullet point summary of all code changes that were made today ($TODAY). Include a brief description of what was changed."
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```
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## Next steps
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After you confirm the workflow prints a summary to the logs, you can adapt the same pattern to other automation tasks. Start by changing the prompt you pass to `copilot -p PROMPT`, then decide what you want to do with the output.
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* Write the summary to a file so later steps can use it as input.
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* Post the summary as a comment on an issue or a message in a team chat.
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* Summarize requests and output a draft changelog.
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## Further reading
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* [AUTOTITLE](/copilot/reference/cli-command-reference)
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* [AUTOTITLE](/copilot/reference/cli-plugin-reference)
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‎content/copilot/how-tos/copilot-cli/index.md‎

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- /set-up-copilot-cli
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- /customize-copilot
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- /use-copilot-cli
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- /automate-with-actions
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contentType: how-tos
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---

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