Can I make releases public from a private github repo? - github

Question

I have an application which is in a private github repo, and am wondering if the releases could be made public so that the app can auto-update itself from github instead of us having to host it.
Additionally I'm wondering if it's possible to use the github api from the deployed app to check for new updates.

Answer 1

A workaround would be to create a public repo, composed of:
empty commits (git commit --allow-empty)
each commit tagged
each tag with a release
each release with the deliveries (the binaries of your private app)
That way, you have a visible repo dedicated for release hosting, and a private repos for source development.

Answer 2

As #VonC mentioned we have to create a second Repository for that. This is not prohibited and i am doing it already. With github workflows i automated this task, I'm using a develop / master branching, so always when I'm pushing anything to the master branch a new version is build and pushed to the public "Realease" Repo.
In my specific use case I'm building an android apk and releasing it via unoffical github api "hub". Some additional advantage of this is you can have an extra issue tracker for foreign issues and bugs.
name: Master CI CD
# using checkout#v2 instead of v1 caus it needs further configuration
on:
pull_request:
types: [closed]
jobs:
UnitTest:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
if: github.event.pull_request.merged
steps:
- uses: actions/checkout#v2
- name: make executable
run: chmod +x gradlew
- name: Unit tests
run: |
./gradlew test
IncrementVersionCode:
needs: UnitTest
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- uses: actions/checkout#v2
- name: set up JDK 1.8
uses: actions/setup-java#v1
with:
java-version: 1.8
- name: make executable
run: chmod +x gradlew
- name: increment version
run: ./gradlew incrementVersionCode
- name: Push new version to master
run: |
git config --local user.email "workflow#bot.com"
git config --local user.name "WorkflowBot"
git commit -m "Increment Build version" -a
# maybe better amend commits to avoid bot commits
BuildArtifacts:
needs: IncrementVersionCode
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- uses: actions/checkout#v2
- name: set up JDK 1.8
uses: actions/setup-java#v1
with:
java-version: 1.8
- name: make executable
run: chmod +x gradlew
- name: Build with Gradle
run: ./gradlew build -x lint
- name: Rename artifacts
run: |
cp app/build/outputs/apk/release/app-release.apk MyApp.apk
- name: Upload Release
uses: actions/upload-artifact#master
with:
name: Release Apk
path: MyApp.apk
- name: Upload Debug
uses: actions/upload-artifact#master
with:
name: Debug Apk
path: app/build/outputs/apk/debug/app-debug.apk
# https://dev.to/ychescale9/running-android-emulators-on-ci-from-bitrise-io-to-github-actions-3j76
E2ETest:
needs: BuildArtifacts
runs-on: macos-latest
strategy:
matrix:
api-level: [21, 27]
arch: [x86]
steps:
- name: checkout
uses: actions/checkout#v2
- name: Make gradlew executable
run: chmod +x ./gradlew
- name: run tests
uses: reactivecircus/android-emulator-runner#v2
with:
api-level: ${{ matrix.api-level }}
arch: ${{ matrix.arch }}
script: ./gradlew connectedCheck
Deploy:
needs: E2ETest
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/master'
steps:
- uses: actions/checkout#v2 # Needed for gradle file to get version information
- name: Get Hub
run: |
curl -fsSL https://github.com/github/hub/raw/master/script/get | bash -s 2.14.1
cd bin
chmod +x hub
cd ..
- name: Get Apk
uses: actions/download-artifact#master
with:
name: Release Apk
- name: Publish
env:
GITHUB_TOKEN: "${{ secrets.RELEASE_REPO_SECRET }}"
run: |
APP_NAME=MyApp
VERSION_NAME=`grep -oP 'versionName "\K(.*?)(?=")' ./app/build.gradle`
VERSION_CODE=`cat version.properties | grep "VERSION_CODE" | cut -d'=' -f2`
FILENAME="${APP_NAME}-v${VERSION_NAME}-${VERSION_CODE}"
TAG="v${VERSION_NAME}-${VERSION_CODE}"
TAG="latest-master"
echo $APP_NAME
echo $VERSION_NAME
echo $VERSION_CODE
echo $FILENAME
echo $TAG
git clone https://github.com/MyUser/MyApp-Releases
cd MyApp-Releases
./../bin/hub release delete "${TAG}" || echo "Failed deleting TAG: ${TAG}" # If release got lost catch error with message
./../bin/hub release create -a "../${APP_NAME}.apk" -m "Current Master Build: ${FILENAME}" -p "${TAG}"
EvaluateCode:
needs: Deploy
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- name: Get Hub
run: |
echo "TDOO: Run Jacoco for coverage, and other profiling tools"

Answer 3

The 2022 answer to this question is even more straight-forward.
You'd just need to use the pre-installed gh CLI:
gh release create v0.0.1 foobar.zip -R https://github.com/your/repo-here
This command will create a tag v0.0.1 and a release with the local file foobar.zip attached on the public repository. You can run this in the GitHub Action of any private repository.
The -R argument points to the repository you'd like to create a tag/release on. foobar.zip would be located in your local directory.
One thing is important here: GITHUB_TOKEN must still be set as the token of the repository you'd like to release on!
Full example:
- name: Publish
env:
GITHUB_TOKEN: "${{ secrets.RELEASE_REPO_SECRET }}"
run: |
gh release create v0.0.1 foobar.zip -R https://github.com/your/repo-here
If you're planning to re-release and override existing versions, there is gh release delete as well. The -d flag creates a release as a draft etc. pp. Please take a look at the docs.
I'm using a slightly more advanced approach by setting:
shell: bash
run: $GITHUB_ACTION_PATH/scripts/publish.sh
And in file scripts/publish.sh:
#!/usr/bin/env node
const cp = require('child_process')
const fs = require('fs');
const path = require('path');
const APP_VERSION = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync('package.json', { encoding: 'utf8' })).version
const TAG = `v${APP_VERSION}`
cp.execSync(`gh release create ${TAG} foobar.zip -R https://github.com/your/repo-name`, { stdio: 'inherit' })
This approach enables you to be able to for example, use Node.js or any other programming language available, to extract a version from the project management file of choice (e.g. package.json) and automatically come up with the right tag version and name.

Answer 4

A simple way to duplicate releases from a private repo to a public one may be this Release & Assets Github Action which can: Create a release, upload release assets, and duplicate a release to other repository.
Then you can use the regular electron-builder updater's support for public repos.