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CI/CD Pipeline Design Patterns with GitHub Actions

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By R G
17 min read

CI/CD Pipeline Design Patterns with GitHub Actions

GitHub Actions has become one of the most popular CI/CD platforms due to its tight integration with GitHub repositories, extensive marketplace, and flexible workflow design. In this comprehensive guide, we will explore various design patterns, best practices, and advanced techniques for building robust CI/CD pipelines using GitHub Actions.

Understanding GitHub Actions Fundamentals

Before diving into design patterns, let us understand the core concepts:

  • Workflows: Automated processes defined in YAML files stored in .github/workflows/
  • Events: Triggers that start workflows (push, pull request, schedule, etc.)
  • Jobs: Sets of steps that execute on the same runner
  • Steps: Individual tasks within a job (actions or shell commands)
  • Actions: Reusable units of code that can be shared across workflows
  • Runners: Virtual machines that execute jobs

Workflow Design Patterns

Pattern 1: Branch-Based Workflows

Branch-based workflows execute different pipelines based on the branch being updated.

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name: Branch-Based Deployment

on:
  push:
    branches:
      - main
      - develop
      - 'release/**'

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Set up Node.js
        uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with:
          node-version: '20'
          cache: 'npm'
      
      - name: Install dependencies
        run: npm ci
      
      - name: Run tests
        run: npm test
      
      - name: Build application
        run: npm run build

  deploy-dev:
    needs: build
    if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/develop'
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    environment:
      name: development
      url: https://dev.example.com
    steps:
      - name: Deploy to Development
        run: |
          echo "Deploying to development environment"
          # Add deployment commands here

  deploy-staging:
    needs: build
    if: startsWith(github.ref, 'refs/heads/release/')
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    environment:
      name: staging
      url: https://staging.example.com
    steps:
      - name: Deploy to Staging
        run: |
          echo "Deploying to staging environment"
          # Add deployment commands here

  deploy-prod:
    needs: build
    if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main'
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    environment:
      name: production
      url: https://example.com
    steps:
      - name: Deploy to Production
        run: |
          echo "Deploying to production environment"
          # Add deployment commands here

Pattern 2: Pull Request Validation

Comprehensive validation before merging changes:

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name: Pull Request Validation

on:
  pull_request:
    types: [opened, synchronize, reopened]
    branches:
      - main
      - develop

permissions:
  contents: read
  pull-requests: write
  checks: write

jobs:
  code-quality:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
        with:
          fetch-depth: 0
      
      - name: Set up Python
        uses: actions/setup-python@v5
        with:
          python-version: '3.11'
          cache: 'pip'
      
      - name: Install dependencies
        run: |
          pip install -r requirements.txt
          pip install pylint black isort mypy
      
      - name: Run Black formatter check
        run: black --check .
      
      - name: Run isort check
        run: isort --check-only .
      
      - name: Run Pylint
        run: pylint src/
      
      - name: Run MyPy type checking
        run: mypy src/

  unit-tests:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    strategy:
      matrix:
        python-version: ['3.9', '3.10', '3.11']
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Set up Python $
        uses: actions/setup-python@v5
        with:
          python-version: $
          cache: 'pip'
      
      - name: Install dependencies
        run: pip install -r requirements.txt
      
      - name: Run unit tests
        run: pytest tests/unit -v --cov=src --cov-report=xml
      
      - name: Upload coverage to Codecov
        uses: codecov/codecov-action@v4
        with:
          files: ./coverage.xml
          flags: unittests-py$

  integration-tests:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    services:
      postgres:
        image: postgres:15
        env:
          POSTGRES_PASSWORD: postgres
        options: >-
          --health-cmd pg_isready
          --health-interval 10s
          --health-timeout 5s
          --health-retries 5
        ports:
          - 5432:5432
      
      redis:
        image: redis:7
        options: >-
          --health-cmd "redis-cli ping"
          --health-interval 10s
          --health-timeout 5s
          --health-retries 5
        ports:
          - 6379:6379
    
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Set up Python
        uses: actions/setup-python@v5
        with:
          python-version: '3.11'
          cache: 'pip'
      
      - name: Install dependencies
        run: pip install -r requirements.txt
      
      - name: Run integration tests
        env:
          DATABASE_URL: postgresql://postgres:postgres@localhost:5432/testdb
          REDIS_URL: redis://localhost:6379
        run: pytest tests/integration -v

  security-scan:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Run Bandit security scan
        run: |
          pip install bandit
          bandit -r src/ -f json -o bandit-report.json
      
      - name: Run Trivy vulnerability scanner
        uses: aquasecurity/trivy-action@master
        with:
          scan-type: 'fs'
          scan-ref: '.'
          format: 'sarif'
          output: 'trivy-results.sarif'
      
      - name: Upload Trivy results to GitHub Security
        uses: github/codeql-action/upload-sarif@v3
        if: always()
        with:
          sarif_file: 'trivy-results.sarif'

  comment-pr:
    needs: [code-quality, unit-tests, integration-tests, security-scan]
    if: always()
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Comment PR
        uses: actions/github-script@v7
        with:
          script: |
            const results = {
              'Code Quality': '$',
              'Unit Tests': '$',
              'Integration Tests': '$',
              'Security Scan': '$'
            };
            
            let comment = '## PR Validation Results\n\n';
            for (const [check, result] of Object.entries(results)) {
              const emoji = result === 'success' ? '✅' : result === 'failure' ? '❌' : '⚠️';
              comment += `${emoji} **${check}**: ${result}\n`;
            }
            
            github.rest.issues.createComment({
              issue_number: context.issue.number,
              owner: context.repo.owner,
              repo: context.repo.repo,
              body: comment
            });

Pattern 3: Reusable Workflows

Create reusable workflows to maintain consistency across repositories:

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# .github/workflows/reusable-build.yml
name: Reusable Build Workflow

on:
  workflow_call:
    inputs:
      node-version:
        required: true
        type: string
      environment:
        required: true
        type: string
      runs-on:
        required: false
        type: string
        default: 'ubuntu-latest'
    secrets:
      deploy-token:
        required: true
    outputs:
      artifact-url:
        description: "URL of the build artifact"
        value: $

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: $
    outputs:
      artifact-url: $
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Set up Node.js
        uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with:
          node-version: $
          cache: 'npm'
      
      - name: Install dependencies
        run: npm ci
      
      - name: Run tests
        run: npm test
      
      - name: Build for $
        run: npm run build
        env:
          NODE_ENV: $
      
      - name: Upload artifact
        id: upload
        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
        with:
          name: build-$
          path: dist/
          retention-days: 7

Using the reusable workflow:

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# .github/workflows/main.yml
name: Main Pipeline

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]

jobs:
  build-dev:
    uses: ./.github/workflows/reusable-build.yml
    with:
      node-version: '20'
      environment: 'development'
    secrets:
      deploy-token: $
  
  build-prod:
    uses: ./.github/workflows/reusable-build.yml
    with:
      node-version: '20'
      environment: 'production'
    secrets:
      deploy-token: $

Pattern 4: Matrix Builds

Test across multiple versions, operating systems, and configurations:

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name: Matrix Build Strategy

on: [push, pull_request]

jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: $
    strategy:
      fail-fast: false
      matrix:
        os: [ubuntu-latest, windows-latest, macos-latest]
        python-version: ['3.9', '3.10', '3.11', '3.12']
        exclude:
          - os: macos-latest
            python-version: '3.9'
        include:
          - os: ubuntu-latest
            python-version: '3.13-dev'
            experimental: true
    
    continue-on-error: $
    
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Set up Python $
        uses: actions/setup-python@v5
        with:
          python-version: $
      
      - name: Install dependencies
        run: |
          python -m pip install --upgrade pip
          pip install -r requirements.txt
      
      - name: Run tests
        run: pytest tests/ -v
      
      - name: Upload results
        if: always()
        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
        with:
          name: test-results-$-$
          path: test-results/

Pattern 5: Composite Actions

Create reusable composite actions:

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# .github/actions/setup-project/action.yml
name: Setup Project
description: Setup Node.js project with caching and dependencies

inputs:
  node-version:
    description: 'Node.js version to use'
    required: true
    default: '20'
  install-dependencies:
    description: 'Install npm dependencies'
    required: false
    default: 'true'

runs:
  using: composite
  steps:
    - name: Setup Node.js
      uses: actions/setup-node@v4
      with:
        node-version: $
        cache: 'npm'
    
    - name: Cache node modules
      uses: actions/cache@v4
      with:
        path: ~/.npm
        key: $-node-$
        restore-keys: |
          $-node-
    
    - name: Install dependencies
      if: inputs.install-dependencies == 'true'
      shell: bash
      run: npm ci
    
    - name: Display versions
      shell: bash
      run: |
        node --version
        npm --version

Using the composite action:

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name: Use Composite Action

on: [push]

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Setup project
        uses: ./.github/actions/setup-project
        with:
          node-version: '20'
      
      - name: Build
        run: npm run build

Caching Strategies

Effective caching significantly reduces build times:

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name: Advanced Caching

on: [push]

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      # Cache NPM dependencies
      - name: Cache NPM dependencies
        uses: actions/cache@v4
        with:
          path: |
            ~/.npm
            node_modules
          key: $-npm-$
          restore-keys: |
            $-npm-
      
      # Cache build outputs
      - name: Cache build
        uses: actions/cache@v4
        with:
          path: |
            dist
            .next/cache
          key: $-build-$
          restore-keys: |
            $-build-
      
      # Cache Docker layers
      - name: Set up Docker Buildx
        uses: docker/setup-buildx-action@v3
      
      - name: Cache Docker layers
        uses: actions/cache@v4
        with:
          path: /tmp/.buildx-cache
          key: $-buildx-$
          restore-keys: |
            $-buildx-
      
      - name: Build Docker image
        uses: docker/build-push-action@v5
        with:
          context: .
          push: false
          tags: myapp:latest
          cache-from: type=local,src=/tmp/.buildx-cache
          cache-to: type=local,dest=/tmp/.buildx-cache-new,mode=max
      
      - name: Move cache
        run: |
          rm -rf /tmp/.buildx-cache
          mv /tmp/.buildx-cache-new /tmp/.buildx-cache

Secrets Management

Properly manage sensitive information:

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name: Secrets Management

on: [push]

jobs:
  deploy:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    environment: production
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      # Use repository secrets
      - name: Configure AWS credentials
        uses: aws-actions/configure-aws-credentials@v4
        with:
          aws-access-key-id: $
          aws-secret-access-key: $
          aws-region: us-east-1
      
      # Use environment secrets
      - name: Deploy to production
        env:
          API_KEY: $
          DATABASE_URL: $
        run: |
          echo "Deploying with environment-specific secrets"
          # Deployment commands
      
      # Use GitHub App authentication
      - name: Generate token
        id: generate-token
        uses: actions/create-github-app-token@v1
        with:
          app-id: $
          private-key: $
      
      - name: Use token
        env:
          GH_TOKEN: $
        run: |
          gh api repos/$/releases

Security Scanning

Implement comprehensive security scanning:

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name: Security Scanning

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]
  pull_request:
    branches: [main]
  schedule:
    - cron: '0 0 * * 0'

jobs:
  codeql:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    permissions:
      security-events: write
      actions: read
      contents: read
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Initialize CodeQL
        uses: github/codeql-action/init@v3
        with:
          languages: javascript, python
          queries: security-and-quality
      
      - name: Autobuild
        uses: github/codeql-action/autobuild@v3
      
      - name: Perform CodeQL Analysis
        uses: github/codeql-action/analyze@v3

  dependency-scan:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Run Snyk to check for vulnerabilities
        uses: snyk/actions/node@master
        env:
          SNYK_TOKEN: $
        with:
          args: --severity-threshold=high
      
      - name: Dependency Review
        uses: actions/dependency-review-action@v4
        if: github.event_name == 'pull_request'

  secret-scan:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
        with:
          fetch-depth: 0
      
      - name: Gitleaks scan
        uses: gitleaks/gitleaks-action@v2
        env:
          GITHUB_TOKEN: $

  container-scan:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Build image
        run: docker build -t myapp:$ .
      
      - name: Run Trivy vulnerability scanner
        uses: aquasecurity/trivy-action@master
        with:
          image-ref: myapp:$
          format: 'sarif'
          output: 'trivy-results.sarif'
          severity: 'CRITICAL,HIGH'
      
      - name: Upload Trivy results
        uses: github/codeql-action/upload-sarif@v3
        with:
          sarif_file: 'trivy-results.sarif'

Deployment Strategies

Blue-Green Deployment

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name: Blue-Green Deployment

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]

jobs:
  deploy:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    environment: production
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Configure AWS credentials
        uses: aws-actions/configure-aws-credentials@v4
        with:
          aws-access-key-id: $
          aws-secret-access-key: $
          aws-region: us-east-1
      
      - name: Deploy to Green environment
        run: |
          aws ecs update-service \
            --cluster production-cluster \
            --service myapp-green \
            --force-new-deployment
      
      - name: Wait for Green deployment
        run: |
          aws ecs wait services-stable \
            --cluster production-cluster \
            --services myapp-green
      
      - name: Run smoke tests
        run: |
          curl -f https://green.example.com/health || exit 1
      
      - name: Switch traffic to Green
        run: |
          aws elbv2 modify-listener \
            --listener-arn $ \
            --default-actions Type=forward,TargetGroupArn=$
      
      - name: Deactivate Blue environment
        run: |
          aws ecs update-service \
            --cluster production-cluster \
            --service myapp-blue \
            --desired-count 0

Canary Deployment

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name: Canary Deployment

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]

jobs:
  deploy-canary:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Deploy canary (10% traffic)
        run: |
          kubectl set image deployment/myapp \
            myapp=myapp:$ \
            -n production
          kubectl patch deployment myapp \
            -n production \
            -p '{"spec":{"replicas":1}}'
      
      - name: Wait and monitor metrics
        run: |
          sleep 300
          # Check error rates, latency, etc.
      
      - name: Scale to 50% traffic
        run: |
          kubectl scale deployment myapp \
            --replicas=5 \
            -n production
      
      - name: Wait and monitor
        run: sleep 300
      
      - name: Full deployment
        run: |
          kubectl scale deployment myapp \
            --replicas=10 \
            -n production

Monitoring and Notifications

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name: Build with Notifications

on: [push, pull_request]

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Build application
        run: npm run build
      
      - name: Run tests
        run: npm test
      
      - name: Notify Slack on success
        if: success()
        uses: slackapi/slack-github-action@v1
        with:
          payload: |
            {
              "text": "Build succeeded for $",
              "blocks": [
                {
                  "type": "section",
                  "text": {
                    "type": "mrkdwn",
                    "text": "*Build Status:* ✅ Success\n*Repository:* $\n*Branch:* $\n*Commit:* $"
                  }
                }
              ]
            }
        env:
          SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL: $
      
      - name: Notify Slack on failure
        if: failure()
        uses: slackapi/slack-github-action@v1
        with:
          payload: |
            {
              "text": "Build failed for $",
              "blocks": [
                {
                  "type": "section",
                  "text": {
                    "type": "mrkdwn",
                    "text": "*Build Status:* ❌ Failed\n*Repository:* $\n*Branch:* $\n*Commit:* $\n*Logs:* $/$/actions/runs/$"
                  }
                }
              ]
            }
        env:
          SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL: $

Best Practices

Workflow Organization

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name: Organized Workflow

on:
  push:
    branches: [main, develop]
    paths:
      - 'src/**'
      - 'tests/**'
      - 'package*.json'
  pull_request:
    branches: [main]
    paths:
      - 'src/**'
      - 'tests/**'

concurrency:
  group: $-$
  cancel-in-progress: true

env:
  NODE_VERSION: '20'
  CACHE_VERSION: v1

jobs:
  validate:
    name: Validate Code
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    timeout-minutes: 10
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Setup Node.js
        uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with:
          node-version: $
          cache: 'npm'
      
      - name: Install dependencies
        run: npm ci
      
      - name: Lint code
        run: npm run lint
      
      - name: Check formatting
        run: npm run format:check

  test:
    name: Run Tests
    needs: validate
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    timeout-minutes: 15
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with:
          node-version: $
          cache: 'npm'
      
      - run: npm ci
      
      - name: Run unit tests
        run: npm test -- --coverage
      
      - name: Upload coverage
        uses: codecov/codecov-action@v4
        with:
          token: $

  build:
    name: Build Application
    needs: test
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    timeout-minutes: 20
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with:
          node-version: $
          cache: 'npm'
      
      - run: npm ci
      
      - name: Build
        run: npm run build
      
      - name: Upload build artifact
        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
        with:
          name: build-output
          path: dist/
          retention-days: 7

Error Handling

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name: Error Handling

on: [push]

jobs:
  deploy:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      - name: Deploy with retries
        uses: nick-invision/retry@v3
        with:
          timeout_minutes: 10
          max_attempts: 3
          retry_wait_seconds: 30
          command: |
            npm run deploy
      
      - name: Rollback on failure
        if: failure()
        run: |
          echo "Deployment failed, initiating rollback"
          npm run rollback
      
      - name: Cleanup
        if: always()
        run: |
          echo "Cleaning up temporary resources"
          npm run cleanup

Performance Optimization

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name: Optimized Pipeline

on: [push]

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      
      # Use sparse checkout for large repos
      - name: Sparse checkout
        run: |
          git config core.sparseCheckout true
          echo "src/" >> .git/info/sparse-checkout
          echo "tests/" >> .git/info/sparse-checkout
          git read-tree -mu HEAD
      
      # Parallel job execution
      - name: Install and test in parallel
        run: |
          npm ci &
          PID=$!
          # Do other tasks
          wait $PID
          npm test
      
      # Use buildx for faster Docker builds
      - name: Set up Docker Buildx
        uses: docker/setup-buildx-action@v3
      
      - name: Build with cache
        uses: docker/build-push-action@v5
        with:
          context: .
          platforms: linux/amd64,linux/arm64
          cache-from: type=gha
          cache-to: type=gha,mode=max

Conclusion

GitHub Actions provides a powerful and flexible platform for building CI/CD pipelines. By following these design patterns and best practices, you can create robust, secure, and efficient workflows that scale with your project needs.

Key takeaways:

  • Use reusable workflows and composite actions to maintain consistency
  • Implement proper caching strategies to improve performance
  • Secure your pipelines with proper secrets management and security scanning
  • Use matrix builds for comprehensive testing across platforms
  • Implement appropriate deployment strategies for your use case
  • Monitor and notify your team of pipeline status

References

  • GitHub Actions Documentation: https://docs.github.com/en/actions
  • Workflow Syntax: https://docs.github.com/en/actions/using-workflows/workflow-syntax-for-github-actions
  • GitHub Actions Marketplace: https://github.com/marketplace?type=actions
  • Security Hardening: https://docs.github.com/en/actions/security-guides/security-hardening-for-github-actions
  • Reusing Workflows: https://docs.github.com/en/actions/using-workflows/reusing-workflows
  • Caching Dependencies: https://docs.github.com/en/actions/using-workflows/caching-dependencies-to-speed-up-workflows
  • GitHub Actions Best Practices: https://docs.github.com/en/actions/learn-github-actions/best-practices-for-using-github-actions
  • Environment Protection Rules: https://docs.github.com/en/actions/deployment/targeting-different-environments/using-environments-for-deployment
CI-CD
cicd github-actions devops automation continuous-integration continuous-deployment workflows pipelines
This post is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the author.