Store information in variables

About variables

Variables provide a way to store and reuse non-sensitive configuration information. You can store any configuration data such as compiler flags, usernames, or server names as variables. Variables are interpolated on the runner machine that runs your workflow. Commands that run in actions or workflow steps can create, read, and modify variables.

You can set your own custom variables or use the default environment variables that GitHub sets automatically. For more information, see Default environment variables.

You can set a custom variable in two ways.

• To define an environment variable for use in a single workflow, you can use the env key in the workflow file. For more information, see Defining environment variables for a single workflow.
• To define a configuration variable across multiple workflows, you can define it at the organization, repository, or environment level. For more information, see Defining configuration variables for multiple workflows.

Defining environment variables for a single workflow

To set a custom environment variable for a single workflow, you can define it using the env key in the workflow file. The scope of a custom variable set by this method is limited to the element in which it is defined. You can define variables that are scoped for:

• The entire workflow, by using env at the top level of the workflow file.
• The contents of a job within a workflow, by using jobs.<job_id>.env.
• A specific step within a job, by using jobs.<job_id>.steps[*].env.

name: Greeting on variable day

on:
  workflow_dispatch

env:
  DAY_OF_WEEK: Monday

jobs:
  greeting_job:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    env:
      Greeting: Hello
    steps:
      - name: "Say Hello Mona it's Monday"
        run: echo "$Greeting $First_Name. Today is $DAY_OF_WEEK!"
        env:
          First_Name: Mona

name: Greeting on variable day

on:
  workflow_dispatch

env:
  DAY_OF_WEEK: Monday

jobs:
  greeting_job:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    env:
      Greeting: Hello
    steps:
      - name: "Say Hello Mona it's Monday"
        run: echo "$Greeting $First_Name. Today is $DAY_OF_WEEK!"
        env:
          First_Name: Mona

You can access env variable values using runner environment variables or using contexts. The example above shows three custom variables being used as runner environment variables in an echo command: $DAY_OF_WEEK, $Greeting, and $First_Name. The values for these variables are set, and scoped, at the workflow, job, and step level respectively. The interpolation of these variables happens on the runner.

The commands in the run steps of a workflow, or a referenced action, are processed by the shell you are using on the runner. The instructions in the other parts of a workflow are processed by GitHub Actions and are not sent to the runner. You can use either runner environment variables or contexts in run steps, but in the parts of a workflow that are not sent to the runner you must use contexts to access variable values. For more information, see Using contexts to access variable values.

Because runner environment variable interpolation is done after a workflow job is sent to a runner machine, you must use the appropriate syntax for the shell that's used on the runner. In this example, the workflow specifies ubuntu-latest. By default, Linux runners use the bash shell, so you must use the syntax $NAME. By default, Windows runners use PowerShell, so you would use the syntax $env:NAME. For more information about shells, see Workflowsyntax für GitHub Actions.

Naming conventions for environment variables

When you set an environment variable, you cannot use any of the default environment variable names. For a complete list of default environment variables, see Default environment variables below. If you attempt to override the value of one of these default variables, the assignment is ignored.

Defining configuration variables for multiple workflows

You can create configuration variables for use across multiple workflows, and can define them at either the organization, repository, or environment level.

For example, you can use configuration variables to set default values for parameters passed to build tools at an organization level, but then allow repository owners to override these parameters on a case-by-case basis.

When you define configuration variables, they are automatically available in the vars context. For more information, see Using the vars context to access configuration variable values.

Configuration variable precedence

If a variable with the same name exists at multiple levels, the variable at the lowest level takes precedence. For example, if an organization-level variable has the same name as a repository-level variable, then the repository-level variable takes precedence. Similarly, if an organization, repository, and environment all have a variable with the same name, the environment-level variable takes precedence.

For reusable workflows, the variables from the caller workflow's repository are used. Variables from the repository that contains the called workflow are not made available to the caller workflow.

Naming conventions for configuration variables

The following rules apply to configuration variable names:

• Darf nur alphanumerische Zeichen ([a-z], [A-Z], [0-9]) oder Unterstriche (_) enthalten Leerzeichen sind nicht zulässig.
• darf nicht mit dem GITHUB_-Präfix beginnen.
• darf nicht mit einer Zahl beginnen.
• Bei Verweisen wird die Groß-/Kleinschreibung nicht beachtet. GitHub speichert Geheimnisnamen unabhängig davon, wie sie eingegeben werden.
• Müssen für das Repository, die Organisation oder das Unternehmen eindeutig sein, in dem bzw. der sie erstellt werden

Creating configuration variables for a repository

Um Geheimnisse oder Variablen auf GitHub für ein Repository eines persönlichen Kontos zu erstellen, müssen Sie Repositorybesitzer*in sein. Um Geheimnisse oder Variablen auf GitHub für ein Organisationsrepository zu erstellen, müssen Sie über admin-Zugriff verfügen. Um Geheimnisse oder Variablen für ein Repository eines persönlichen Kontos oder einer Organisation über die REST-API zu erstellen, müssen Sie über Projektmitarbeiterzugriff verfügen.

1. Navigieren Sie auf GitHub zur Hauptseite des Repositorys.

2. Wähle unter dem Namen deines Repositorys die Option Einstellungen aus. Wenn die Registerkarte „Einstellungen“ nicht angezeigt wird, wähle im Dropdownmenü die Option Einstellungen aus.

   

3. Wählen Sie im Abschnitt „Sicherheit“ in der Randleiste Geheimnisse und Variablen und klicken Sie dann auf Aktionen.

4. Klicke auf die Registerkarte Variablen.

   

5. Click New repository variable.

6. Gib im Feld Name einen Namen für deine Variable ein.

7. Gib im Feld Wert den Wert für deine Variable ein.

8. Click Add variable.

Creating configuration variables for an environment

Um Geheimnisse oder Variablen für eine Umgebung in einem Repository eines persönlichen Kontos zu erstellen, müssen Sie Besitzer des Repositorys sein. Für das Erstellen von Geheimnissen oder Variablen für eine Umgebung in einem Organisationsrepository benötigen Sie admin-Zugriff. Weitere Informationen zu Umgebungen findest du unter Managing environments for deployment.

1. Navigieren Sie auf GitHub zur Hauptseite des Repositorys.

2. Wähle unter dem Namen deines Repositorys die Option Einstellungen aus. Wenn die Registerkarte „Einstellungen“ nicht angezeigt wird, wähle im Dropdownmenü die Option Einstellungen aus.

   

3. Klicke auf der linken Randleiste auf Umgebungen.

4. Click on the environment that you want to add a variable to.

5. Under Environment variables, click Add variable.

6. Gib im Feld Name einen Namen für deine Variable ein.

7. Gib im Feld Wert den Wert für deine Variable ein.

8. Click Add variable.

Creating configuration variables for an organization

Beim Erstellen eines Geheimnisses oder einer Variable in einer Organisation kannst du mit einer Richtlinie den Zugriff jeweils nach Repository einschränken. Du kannst beispielsweise allen Repositorys Zugriff gewähren oder nur private Repositorys oder eine angegebene Liste von Repositorys zulassen.

Organisationsbesitzerinnen und Benutzerinnen mit den Berechtigungen „Organisationsaktionenvariablen verwalten“ oder „Organisationsaktioneneheimnisse verwalten“ können Geheimnisse oder Variablen auf Organisationsebene erstellen.

Weitere Informationen findest du unter Informationen zu benutzerdefinierten Organisationsrollen.

1. Navigieren Sie auf GitHub zur Hauptseite der Organisation.

2. Klicke unter deinem Organisationsnamen auf die Option Einstellungen. Wenn die Registerkarte „Einstellungen“ nicht angezeigt wird, wähle im Dropdownmenü die Option Einstellungen aus.

   

3. Wählen Sie im Abschnitt „Sicherheit“ in der Randleiste Geheimnisse und Variablen und klicken Sie dann auf Aktionen.

4. Klicke auf die Registerkarte Variablen.

   

   Hinweis

   Auf der Seite „Actions secrets and variables“ werden je nach deinen Berechtigungen möglicherweise keine unterschiedlichen Registerkarten für Geheimnisse und Variablen angezeigt. Organisationsbesitzerinnen und Benutzerinnen mit den Berechtigungen „Organisationsaktionenvariablen verwalten“ und „Organisationsaktionengeheimnisse verwalten“ sehen die Registerkarten Variablen und Geheimnisse. Weitere Informationen finden Sie unter Informationen zu benutzerdefinierten Organisationsrollen.

5. Click New organization variable.

6. Gib im Feld Name einen Namen für deine Variable ein.

7. Gib im Feld Wert den Wert für deine Variable ein.

8. From the Repository access dropdown list, choose an access policy.

9. Click Add variable.

Limits for configuration variables

Individual variables are limited to 48 KB in size.

You can store up to 1,000 organization variables, 500 variables per repository, and 100 variables per environment. The total combined size limit for organization and repository variables is 256 KB per workflow run.

A workflow created in a repository can access the following number of variables:

• Up to 500 repository variables, if the total size of repository variables is less than 256 KB. If the total size of repository variables exceeds 256 KB, only the repository variables that fall below the limit will be available (as sorted alphabetically by variable name).
• Up to 1,000 organization variables, if the total combined size of repository and organization variables is less than 256 KB. If the total combined size of organization and repository variables exceeds 256 KB, only the organization variables that fall below that limit will be available (after accounting for repository variables and as sorted alphabetically by variable name).
• Up to 100 environment-level variables.

Using contexts to access variable values

Kontexte sind eine Möglichkeit, auf Informationen zu Workflowausführungen, Variablen, Runnerumgebungen, Aufträge und Schritten zuzugreifen. For more information, see Zugreifen auf kontextbezogene Informationen zu Workflowausführungen. There are many other contexts that you can use for a variety of purposes in your workflows. For details of where you can use specific contexts within a workflow, see Zugreifen auf kontextbezogene Informationen zu Workflowausführungen.

You can access environment variable values using the env context and configuration variable values using the vars context.

Using the env context to access environment variable values

In addition to runner environment variables, GitHub Actions allows you to set and read env key values using contexts. Environment variables and contexts are intended for use at different points in the workflow.

The run steps in a workflow, or in a referenced action, are processed by a runner. As a result, you can use runner environment variables here, using the appropriate syntax for the shell you are using on the runner - for example, $NAME for the bash shell on a Linux runner, or $env:NAME for PowerShell on a Windows runner. In most cases you can also use contexts, with the syntax ${{ CONTEXT.PROPERTY }}, to access the same value. The difference is that the context will be interpolated and replaced by a string before the job is sent to a runner.

However, you cannot use runner environment variables in parts of a workflow that are processed by GitHub Actions and are not sent to the runner. Instead, you must use contexts. For example, an if conditional, which determines whether a job or step is sent to the runner, is always processed by GitHub Actions. You must therefore use a context in an if conditional statement to access the value of an variable.

name: Conditional env variable

on: workflow_dispatch

env:
  DAY_OF_WEEK: Monday

jobs:
  greeting_job:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    env:
      Greeting: Hello
    steps:
      - name: "Say Hello Mona it's Monday"
        if: ${{ env.DAY_OF_WEEK == 'Monday' }}
        run: echo "$Greeting $First_Name. Today is $DAY_OF_WEEK!"
        env:
          First_Name: Mona

name: Conditional env variable

on: workflow_dispatch

env:
  DAY_OF_WEEK: Monday

jobs:
  greeting_job:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    env:
      Greeting: Hello
    steps:
      - name: "Say Hello Mona it's Monday"
        if: ${{ env.DAY_OF_WEEK == 'Monday' }}
        run: echo "$Greeting $First_Name. Today is $DAY_OF_WEEK!"
        env:
          First_Name: Mona

In this modification of the earlier example, we've introduced an if conditional. The workflow step is now only run if DAY_OF_WEEK is set to "Monday". We access this value from the if conditional statement by using the env context. The env context is not required for the variables referenced within the run command. They are referenced as runner environment variables and are interpolated after the job is received by the runner. We could, however, have chosen to interpolate those variables before sending the job to the runner, by using contexts. The resulting output would be the same.

run: echo "${{ env.Greeting }} ${{ env.First_Name }}. Today is ${{ env.DAY_OF_WEEK }}!"

You will commonly use either the env or github context to access variable values in parts of the workflow that are processed before jobs are sent to runners.

Using the vars context to access configuration variable values

Configuration variables can be accessed across the workflow using vars context. For more information, see Zugreifen auf kontextbezogene Informationen zu Workflowausführungen.

Wenn keine Konfigurationsvariable festgelegt wurde, ist der Rückgabewert eines Kontexts, der auf die Variable verweist, eine leere Zeichenfolge.

Das folgende Beispiel zeigt die Verwendung von Konfigurationsvariablen mit dem Kontext vars in einem Workflow. Jede der folgenden Konfigurationsvariablen wurde auf Repository-, Organisations- oder Umgebungsebene definiert.

on:
  workflow_dispatch:
env:
  # Setting an environment variable with the value of a configuration variable
  env_var: ${{ vars.ENV_CONTEXT_VAR }}

jobs:
  display-variables:
    name: ${{ vars.JOB_NAME }}
    # You can use configuration variables with the `vars` context for dynamic jobs
    if: ${{ vars.USE_VARIABLES == 'true' }}
    runs-on: ${{ vars.RUNNER }}
    environment: ${{ vars.ENVIRONMENT_STAGE }}
    steps:
    - name: Use variables
      run: |
        echo "repository variable : $REPOSITORY_VAR"
        echo "organization variable : $ORGANIZATION_VAR"
        echo "overridden variable : $OVERRIDE_VAR"
        echo "variable from shell environment : $env_var"
      env:
        REPOSITORY_VAR: ${{ vars.REPOSITORY_VAR }}
        ORGANIZATION_VAR: ${{ vars.ORGANIZATION_VAR }}
        OVERRIDE_VAR: ${{ vars.OVERRIDE_VAR }}
        
    - name: ${{ vars.HELLO_WORLD_STEP }}
      if: ${{ vars.HELLO_WORLD_ENABLED == 'true' }}
      uses: actions/hello-world-javascript-action@main
      with:
        who-to-greet: ${{ vars.GREET_NAME }}

on:
  workflow_dispatch:
env:
  # Setting an environment variable with the value of a configuration variable
  env_var: ${{ vars.ENV_CONTEXT_VAR }}

jobs:
  display-variables:
    name: ${{ vars.JOB_NAME }}
    # You can use configuration variables with the `vars` context for dynamic jobs
    if: ${{ vars.USE_VARIABLES == 'true' }}
    runs-on: ${{ vars.RUNNER }}
    environment: ${{ vars.ENVIRONMENT_STAGE }}
    steps:
    - name: Use variables
      run: |
        echo "repository variable : $REPOSITORY_VAR"
        echo "organization variable : $ORGANIZATION_VAR"
        echo "overridden variable : $OVERRIDE_VAR"
        echo "variable from shell environment : $env_var"
      env:
        REPOSITORY_VAR: ${{ vars.REPOSITORY_VAR }}
        ORGANIZATION_VAR: ${{ vars.ORGANIZATION_VAR }}
        OVERRIDE_VAR: ${{ vars.OVERRIDE_VAR }}
        
    - name: ${{ vars.HELLO_WORLD_STEP }}
      if: ${{ vars.HELLO_WORLD_ENABLED == 'true' }}
      uses: actions/hello-world-javascript-action@main
      with:
        who-to-greet: ${{ vars.GREET_NAME }}

Default environment variables

The default environment variables that GitHub sets are available to every step in a workflow.

Because default environment variables are set by GitHub and not defined in a workflow, they are not accessible through the env context. However, most of the default variables have a corresponding, and similarly named, context property. For example, the value of the GITHUB_REF variable can be read during workflow processing using the ${{ github.ref }} context property.

Du kannst den Wert der Standardumgebungsvariablen namens GITHUB_* und RUNNER_* nicht überschreiben. Derzeit kannst du den Wert der Variablen CI überschreiben. Es ist jedoch nicht garantiert, dass dies immer möglich sein wird. For more information about setting environment variables, see Defining environment variables for a single workflow and Workflow commands for GitHub Actions (Workflowbefehle für GitHub Actions).

We strongly recommend that actions use variables to access the filesystem rather than using hardcoded file paths. GitHub sets variables for actions to use in all runner environments.

Detecting the operating system

You can write a single workflow file that can be used for different operating systems by using the RUNNER_OS default environment variable and the corresponding context property ${{ runner.os }}. For example, the following workflow could be run successfully if you changed the operating system from macos-latest to windows-latest without having to alter the syntax of the environment variables, which differs depending on the shell being used by the runner.

on: workflow_dispatch

jobs:
  if-Windows-else:
    runs-on: macos-latest
    steps:
      - name: condition 1
        if: runner.os == 'Windows'
        run: echo "The operating system on the runner is $env:RUNNER_OS."
      - name: condition 2
        if: runner.os != 'Windows'
        run: echo "The operating system on the runner is not Windows, it's $RUNNER_OS."

on: workflow_dispatch

jobs:
  if-Windows-else:
    runs-on: macos-latest
    steps:
      - name: condition 1
        if: runner.os == 'Windows'
        run: echo "The operating system on the runner is $env:RUNNER_OS."
      - name: condition 2
        if: runner.os != 'Windows'
        run: echo "The operating system on the runner is not Windows, it's $RUNNER_OS."

In this example, the two if statements check the os property of the runner context to determine the operating system of the runner. if conditionals are processed by GitHub Actions, and only steps where the check resolves as true are sent to the runner. Here one of the checks will always be true and the other false, so only one of these steps is sent to the runner. Once the job is sent to the runner, the step is executed and the environment variable in the echo command is interpolated using the appropriate syntax ($env:NAME for PowerShell on Windows, and $NAME for bash and sh on Linux and macOS). In this example, the statement runs-on: macos-latest means that the second step will be run.

Passing values between steps and jobs in a workflow

If you generate a value in one step of a job, you can use the value in subsequent steps of the same job by assigning the value to an existing or new environment variable and then writing this to the GITHUB_ENV environment file. The environment file can be used directly by an action, or from a shell command in the workflow file by using the run keyword. For more information, see Workflow commands for GitHub Actions (Workflowbefehle für GitHub Actions).

If you want to pass a value from a step in one job in a workflow to a step in another job in the workflow, you can define the value as a job output. You can then reference this job output from a step in another job. For more information, see Workflowsyntax für GitHub Actions.