github-actions.md

GitHub Actions Cheatsheet

Quick Setup

• Run /install-github-app inside Claude Code terminal (requires repo admin)
• Or manually: install github.com/apps/claude, add ANTHROPIC_API_KEY secret, copy workflow from examples

Required GitHub App permissions: Contents R/W, Issues R/W, Pull requests R/W

Basic Workflow

- uses: anthropics/claude-code-action@v1
  with:
    anthropic_api_key: ${{ secrets.ANTHROPIC_API_KEY }}
    # Responds to @claude mentions automatically

Action Parameters

Parameter	Description	Required
anthropic_api_key	Claude API key	Yes*
prompt	Instructions for Claude	No
claude_args	CLI flags passed to Claude Code	No
github_token	GitHub token for API access	No
trigger_phrase	Custom trigger (default: @claude)	No
use_bedrock	Use AWS Bedrock instead of Claude API	No
use_vertex	Use Google Vertex AI instead of Claude API	No

* Not required for Bedrock/Vertex

Common claude_args Options

claude_args: "--max-turns 5 --model claude-sonnet-4-6 --allowedTools Bash,Read,Edit"

Flag	Purpose
--max-turns N	Limit conversation turns
--model <model-id>	Override model
--append-system-prompt	Append custom instructions
--allowedTools	Comma-separated allowed tools
--disallowedTools	Comma-separated blocked tools
--mcp-config <path>	Path to MCP config

Trigger Modes

• Interactive (tag mode): listens for @claude in issue/PR comments — omit prompt
• Automation (direct mode): runs immediately with a prompt — for scheduled jobs, PR events, etc.

Example: PR Review on Every PR

on:
  pull_request:
    types: [opened, synchronize]
jobs:
  review:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: anthropics/claude-code-action@v1
        with:
          anthropic_api_key: ${{ secrets.ANTHROPIC_API_KEY }}
          prompt: "Review this PR for code quality and security."
          claude_args: "--max-turns 5"

Cloud Provider Setup (Bedrock)

Required secrets: AWS_ROLE_TO_ASSUME, APP_ID, APP_PRIVATE_KEY

permissions:
  id-token: write
steps:
  - uses: aws-actions/configure-aws-credentials@v4
    with:
      role-to-assume: ${{ secrets.AWS_ROLE_TO_ASSUME }}
      aws-region: us-west-2
  - uses: anthropics/claude-code-action@v1
    with:
      github_token: ${{ steps.app-token.outputs.token }}
      use_bedrock: "true"
      claude_args: '--model us.anthropic.claude-sonnet-4-6 --max-turns 10'

Cloud Provider Setup (Vertex AI)

Required secrets: GCP_WORKLOAD_IDENTITY_PROVIDER, GCP_SERVICE_ACCOUNT, APP_ID, APP_PRIVATE_KEY

  - uses: anthropics/claude-code-action@v1
    with:
      use_vertex: "true"
      claude_args: '--model claude-sonnet-4@20250514'
    env:
      ANTHROPIC_VERTEX_PROJECT_ID: ${{ steps.auth.outputs.project_id }}
      CLOUD_ML_REGION: us-east5

Beta → v1 Migration

Old (beta)	New (v1)
mode	Removed (auto-detected)
direct_prompt	prompt
custom_instructions	claude_args: --append-system-prompt
max_turns	claude_args: --max-turns
model	claude_args: --model
allowed_tools	claude_args: --allowedTools

Gotchas

• Use @claude not /claude in comments
• API key must be in GitHub Secrets, never hardcoded
• For Bedrock/Vertex, use a custom GitHub App — not the Anthropic app
• Bedrock model IDs have region prefix: us.anthropic.claude-sonnet-4-6
• Use --max-turns and workflow timeouts to control costs

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Source: github-actions.md