Copy Files from Source Repo Action

This GitHub Action copies files from a specified source repository to the repository where the action is running.

This action can be used to automate file synchronization between repositories, ensuring that the latest files from the source repository are always available in the current repository. This action allows you to synchronize repositories without granting write permissions to a trusted repository from an untrusted one.

Features

• File Copying: Copy files from a specified path in a source repository to a specified path in the current repository.
• Customizable Commit Message: Set a custom commit message for the changes.
• Pull Request Creation: Optionally create a pull request with a custom title. In case you don't create a PR, the changes will be pushed to the main branch.
• Authentication: Securely authenticate with the source repository using a Personal Access Token (PAT).

Inputs

Input Name	Description	Required	Default
source_repo	The source repository in the format owner/repo.	Yes	N/A
source_path	The path in the source repository to copy files from.	Yes	N/A
destination_path	The path in the current repository to copy files to.	Yes	N/A
commit_message	The commit message for the changes.	No	Automated file copy commit
pr_title	The title for the pull request.	No	Automated file copy PR
create_pr	Whether to create a pull request (true/false).	No	false
source_repo_token	Personal Access/GitHub App token for the source repository.	Yes	N/A
destination_repo_token	Personal Access/GitHub App token for the current repository.	Yes	N/A

Usage

Step 1: Configure Authentication

Add the following secrets to your repository:

• SOURCE_REPO_PAT: Personal Access Token for the source repository.
• DEST_REPO_PAT: Personal Access Token for the source repository.

Important

Ensure the Personal Access Token (PAT) has the necessary permissions to access/read the source repository.

[!INFO]
In case you dont want to create a PR to merge the changes in the current repo, you can use a secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN as destination_repo_token

Step 2: Define Workflow Configuration

Create a workflow file named copy-files.yml in .github/workflows/:

name: Copy Files from Source Repo

on:
  push:
    branches:
      - main

permissions:
  contents: write
  pull-requests: write

jobs:
  copy-files:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout repository
        uses: actions/checkout@v2

      - name: Run file copy action
        uses: DeWildeDaan/copy-from-repo@main
        with:
          source_repo: "owner/source-repo"
          source_path: "path/to/copy"
          destination_path: "path/to/destination"
          commit_message: "Custom commit message"
          create_pr: true
          pr_title: "Custom PR title"
          source_repo_token: ${{ secrets.SOURCE_REPO_PAT }}
          destination_repo_token: ${{ secrets.DEST_REPO_PAT }}

Step 3: Push Changes

Push the .github/workflows/copy-files.yml file to your repository to trigger the action.

Examples

Example using a GitHub app token:

name: Copy Files from Source Repo

on:
  schedule:
    - cron: "0 0 * * *" # Runs every day at midnight

permissions:
  contents: write
  pull-requests: write

jobs:
  copy-files:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout repository
        uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - name: Generate token
        id: create_token
        uses: tibdex/github-app-token@v2
        with:
          app_id: ${{ secrets.APP_ID }}
          private_key: ${{ secrets.APP_PRIVATE_KEY }}

      - name: Run file copy action
        uses:
        with:
          source_repo: "octocat/source-repo"
          source_path: "data/files"
          destination_path: "data/destination"
          commit_message: "Daily automated file copy commit"
          pr_title: "Daily automated file copy PR"
          create_pr: true
          source_repo_token: ${{ steps.create_token.outputs.token }}
          destination_repo_token: ${{ steps.create_token.outputs.token }}

Example without creation of PR:

- name: Run file copy action
  uses:
  with:
    source_repo: "octocat/source-repo"
    source_path: "data/files"
    destination_path: "data/destination"
    commit_message: "Daily automated file copy commit"
    create_pr: false
    source_repo_token: ${{ steps.create_token.outputs.token }}
    destination_repo_token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for details.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please open an issue or submit a pull request for any improvements or fixes.

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For any questions or support, please open an issue in this repository.