How to Automatically Bump and Tag Versions with GitHub Tag Action

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Live Demo

name: Bump version
on:
  push:
    branches:
      - master

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - name: Bump version and push tag
        id: tag_version
        uses: mathieudutour/github-tag-[email protected]
        with:
          github_token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
      - name: Create a GitHub release
        uses: ncipollo/release-action@v1
        with:
          tag: ${{ steps.tag_version.outputs.new_tag }}
          name: Release ${{ steps.tag_version.outputs.new_tag }}
          body: ${{ steps.tag_version.outputs.changelog }}

github-tag-action

This action automatically bumps and tags the version on GitHub using semantic versioning.

What is GitHub Tag Action?​

The GitHub Tag Action helps automate version bumping and tagging on the master branch using the latest semantic version format. It ensures that every merge to master results in a correctly tagged version.

How to Use github_token​

To authorize the action to tag the repository, you need to provide the GitHub token.

with:
  github_token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}

You can learn more about creating GitHub tokens in the GitHub Token Documentation.

How to Fetch All Tags​

By default, this action fetches the last 100 tags. If you need all tags, use the fetch_all_tags input.

with:
  fetch_all_tags: true

How to Filter Branches for Release​

You can specify which branches will trigger a release using release_branches.

with:
  release_branches: 'master,release/*'

How to Customize Tag Creation​

To customize the tag creation process, you can use the following inputs:

• default_bump: Specify whether to bump a patch, minor, or major version.
  Example:

  with:
    default_bump: 'minor'
  

• custom_tag: Set a custom tag name instead of using the default semantic versioning.

  with:
    custom_tag: 'v1.0.0'
  

How to Append to Pre-Release Tags​

You can add a suffix to the pre-release tag using append_to_pre_release_tag:

with:
  append_to_pre_release_tag: 'beta'

How to Customize Commit Messages and Changelog Sections​

You can define custom rules for the commit messages that determine the release type. Here’s an example of custom release rules:

with:
  custom_release_rules: 'fix:patch,feat:minor,breaking:major'

How to Perform a Dry Run​

If you want to test the action without actually tagging the repository, use the dry_run option.

with:
  dry_run: true

This will calculate the next version and changelog without performing any actual tagging.

Outputs​

• new_tag: The newly created tag value.
• new_version: The new version number without the prefix.
• previous_tag: The previous tag value.
• changelog: The changelog generated between the current and previous tags.

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