github-pages-deploy-action/README.md

# GitHub Pages Deploy Action :rocket: 

[![Actions Status](https://github.com/JamesIves/github-pages-deploy-action/workflows/integration/badge.svg)](https://github.com/JamesIves/github-pages-deploy-action/actions) [![View Action](https://img.shields.io/badge/view-action-blue.svg)](https://github.com/marketplace/actions/deploy-to-github-pages) [![Issues](https://img.shields.io/github/issues/JamesIves/github-pages-deploy-action.svg)](https://github.com/JamesIves/github-pages-deploy-action/issues)

This [GitHub action](https://github.com/features/actions) will handle the  deploy process of your project to [GitHub Pages](https://pages.github.com/). It can be configured to upload your production-ready code into any branch you'd like, including `gh-pages` and `docs`. This action is built on [Node](https://nodejs.org/en/), which means that you can call any optional build scripts your project requires prior to deploying.

## Getting Started :airplane:
You can include the action in your workflow to trigger on any event that [GitHub actions supports](https://help.github.com/en/articles/events-that-trigger-workflows). If the remote branch that you wish to deploy to doesn't already exist the action will create it for you. Your workflow will also need to include the `actions/checkout` step before this workflow runs in order for the deployment to work. 

You can view an example of this below.

```yml
name: Build and Deploy
on: [push]
jobs:
  build-and-deploy:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
    - name: Checkout
      uses: actions/checkout@master

    - name: Install
      run: |
        npm install
        npm run-script build

    - name: Build and Deploy
      uses: JamesIves/github-pages-deploy-action@master
      with:
        ACCESS_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.ACCESS_TOKEN }}
        BASE_BRANCH: master # The branch the action should deploy from.
        BRANCH: gh-pages # The branch the action should deploy to.
        FOLDER: build # The folder the action should deploy.
```

If you'd like to make it so the workflow only triggers on push events to specific branches then you can modify the `on` section. You'll still need to specify a `BASE_BRANCH` if you're deploying from a branch other than `master`.

```yml
on:
  push:	
    branches:	
      - master
```

## Configuration 📁

The `with` portion of the workflow **must** be configured before the action will work. You can add these in the `with` section found in the examples above. Any `secrets` must be referenced using the bracket syntax and stored in the GitHub repositories `Settings/Secrets` menu. You can learn more about setting environment variables with GitHub actions [here](https://help.github.com/en/articles/workflow-syntax-for-github-actions#jobsjob_idstepsenv).

Below you'll find a description of what each option does.

| Key  | Value Information | Type | Required |
| ------------- | ------------- | ------------- | ------------- |
| `GITHUB_TOKEN`  | In order for GitHub to trigger the rebuild of your page you must provide the action with the repositories provided GitHub token. This can be referenced in the workflow `yml` file by using `${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}`. Only required if an access token is **not** provided. **Please note there is currently an issue affecting the use of this token, [you can learn more here](https://github.com/JamesIves/github-pages-deploy-action/issues/5)**. | `secrets` | **Yes** |
| `ACCESS_TOKEN`  | Depending on the repository permissions you may need to provide the action with a GitHub personal access token instead of the provided GitHub token in order to deploy. You can [learn more about how to generate one here](https://help.github.com/en/articles/creating-a-personal-access-token-for-the-command-line). **This should be stored as a secret**. | `secrets` | **No** |
| `BRANCH`  | This is the branch you wish to deploy to, for example `gh-pages` or `docs`.  | `with` | **Yes** |
| `FOLDER`  | The folder in your repository that you want to deploy. If your build script compiles into a directory named `build` you'd put it here. **Folder paths cannot have a leading `/` or `./`**. | `with` | **Yes** |
| `BASE_BRANCH`  | The base branch of your repository which you'd like to checkout prior to deploying. This defaults to `master`.  | `with` | **No** |

With the action correctly configured you should see the workflow trigger the deployment under the configured conditions.

### `CNAME` and `.nojekyll`

This action maintains the full Git history of the deployment branch. Therefore if you're using a custom domain, or require the use of a `.nojekyll` file, you can safely commit these files directly into deployment branch without them being overridden after each deployment.

![Example](screenshot.png)