Sync Release Artifacts Action

A GitHub Action that keeps a target branch (default: main) in sync with release artifacts published on the release branch (default: release) after semantic-release. It either merges the changes or opens a pull request, depending on the input.

What it does

• Fetches main and release branches
• Optionally opens a PR from release into main when pr-needed: 'true'
• Otherwise merges release into main and pushes the result
• Skips PR creation if no changes exist

Usage

Example workflow:

name: Update main branch
on:
  push:
    branches: [ release ]
    paths-ignore:
      - 'CHANGELOG.md'

permissions:
  contents: write
  pull-requests: write

jobs:
  sync:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@9c091bb21b7c1c1d1991bb908d89e4e9dddfe3e0 # v7.0.0
        with:
          fetch-depth: 0

      - uses: knowledgepixels/sync-release-artifacts-action@3926beed487a1c183af52423344bf6ee36fd7b27 # v1.0.0
        with:
          main-branch: main
          release-branch: release
          pr-needed: false
          git-user-name: github-actions[bot]
          git-user-email: github-actions[bot]@users.noreply.github.com

Inputs

Name	Description	Required	Default
main-branch	Branch to update (target).	No	main
release-branch	Branch to merge from (source).	No	release
pr-needed	If true, open a PR instead of pushing directly. Skips PR if no diff.	No	false
git-user-name	User name for commits/merges.	No	github-actions[bot]
git-user-email	Email for commits/merges.	No	github-actions[bot]@users.noreply.github.com

Permissions & requirements

• Ensure the workflow grants:
  • contents: write (required to push)
  • pull-requests: write (required when pr-needed: 'true')
• Use actions/checkout with fetch-depth: 0 (action expects a working repository).
• If main is protected, provide a token or allow the Actions bot to push, or use the PR flow.

Testing

• Use a test workflow that prepares a release branch and runs the action with pr-needed set to true and false.
• A matrix job can run both flows in one dispatch: prepare release with a tiny change for the true run, keep it identical for the false run.

Notes

• The action does not resolve real merge conflicts.
• When pr-needed: 'true' and there are no changes, PR creation is skipped with a clear log message.
• Consider branch protection and required checks when using the PR flow.

License

MIT