This guide will walk you through setting up automated deployments for your applications using GitHub Actions and Valyent. By the end, you’ll have a fully automated CI/CD pipeline that builds, pushes, and deploys your application whenever you push code to your repository.

Before You Begin

Let’s make sure you have everything needed to get started:

1

Create Your Valyent Account

Sign up for an account at the Valyent Console if you haven’t already.

2

Create Your Application

Set up your application in the Valyent Console. This is where your deployments will live.

Setting Up GitHub Secrets

Let’s configure the secrets your workflow will need:

1

Navigate to Repository Settings

  1. Open your GitHub repository
  2. Click “Settings” in the top navigation
  3. Select “Secrets and variables” from the sidebar
  4. Choose “Actions”
2

Add Required Secrets

Create the following secrets by clicking “New repository secret” for each one:

Secret NameValue to AddHow to Get It
VALYENT_API_KEYYour API key1. Open Valyent Console
2. Navigate to “API Keys”
3. Create a new key and copy it
VALYENT_ORGOrganization slugFind this in your Valyent Console settings
VALYENT_APPApplication nameCheck your applications page or run valyent fleets list

Your repository settings should look like this now.

Creating Your Workflow

Now, let’s set up the GitHub Actions workflow that will handle your deployments:

1

Create Workflow File

Create a new file at .github/workflows/build-and-deploy.yml in your repository.

2

Add Workflow Configuration

Copy the following workflow configuration into your new file:

3

Understanding the Workflow

Here’s what each step in your workflow does:

  1. Code Checkout: Grabs your latest code
  2. Registry Login: Connects to Valyent’s Docker registry
  3. Metadata Setup: Prepares Docker image information
  4. Build & Push: Creates and uploads your Docker image
  5. CLI Setup: Installs Valyent’s command-line tool
  6. Authentication: Logs in to Valyent
  7. Deployment: Launches your application

Testing Your Deployment

Let’s verify everything works:

1

Trigger a Deployment

  1. Make a small change to your repository
  2. Commit and push to your default branch
  3. Open your repository’s “Actions” tab
2

Monitor Progress

Watch the workflow run and check each step’s output for any issues.

3

Verify Deployment

Once complete, check your Valyent Console to see your deployed application.

Troubleshooting Guide

If you run into problems, here’s how to fix common issues:

Next Steps

Now that your automated deployment is set up, consider:

  • Adding environment-specific configurations
  • Setting up branch-based deployments
  • Implementing deployment notifications
  • Adding test stages to your workflow

Additional Resources