bulk-github-repo-sync-action

🔄 Sync GitHub repositories from source to target organizations using mirror cloning. Creates target repositories if they don't exist, with support for visibility control, Actions disabling, and archiving.

Features

• 🔄 Mirror cloning - Complete repository sync including all branches and tags
• 🏗️ Automatic repository creation - Creates target repos if they don't exist
• 👁️ Visibility control - Set repository visibility per repo (private/public/internal)
• 🚫 GitHub Actions management - Disable Actions on target repositories
• 📦 Repository archiving - Archive repositories after sync (with smart unarchive/re-archive)
• 🌐 Multi-server support - Sync between GitHub.com and GitHub Enterprise Server
• 📊 Post-run analysis - Detailed sync summary with statistics

Example Usage

Tip

This example uses personal access tokens for simplicity. See the GitHub Apps section below for the recommended approach using GitHub Apps.

- uses: actions/checkout@v5
- name: Bulk GitHub Repository Sync
  uses: joshjohanning/bulk-github-repo-sync-action@v1
  with:
    repo-list-file: repos.yml
    source-github-token: ${{ secrets.SOURCE_GITHUB_TOKEN }}
    target-github-token: ${{ secrets.TARGET_GITHUB_TOKEN }}
    overwrite-repo-visibility: true # overwrite repo visibility with what is in yml file; defaults to false
    force-push: false # force push to target repos (overwrites history); defaults to false
    ### only needed if either your source or target is NOT github.com
    # target-github-api-url: https://ghes.domain.com/api/v3 # API URL for GHES
    # source-github-api-url: https://api.github.com # only needed if source is not github.com

Repository List Format

The repository list uses YML format with per-repository configuration:

repos:
  - source: source-org/source-repo-1
    target: target-org/target-repo-1
    visibility: private # Optional: private, public, or internal (defaults to private)
    disable-github-actions: true # Optional: disable Actions on target repo (defaults to true)
    archive-after-sync: false # Optional: archive repo after sync (defaults to false)

Sample Configuration

See sample file.

Usage with GitHub Apps (recommended)

You can use a personal access token, but it is recommended to use GitHub Apps instead:

Note

Required GitHub App Permissions:

• Source App: Repository Read access to contents and metadata
• Target App: Repository Read and Write access to actions, administration, contents, and metadata

- uses: actions/checkout@v5
# source
- uses: actions/create-github-app-token@v2
  id: source-app-token
  with:
    app-id: ${{ vars.SOURCE_APP_ID }}
    private-key: ${{ secrets.SOURCE_APP_PRIVATE_KEY }}
    owner: ${{ github.repository_owner }}
# target
- uses: actions/create-github-app-token@v2
  id: target-app-token
  with:
    app-id: ${{ vars.TARGET_APP_ID }}
    private-key: ${{ secrets.TARGET_APP_PRIVATE_KEY }}
    owner: joshjohanning-emu
- name: Bulk GitHub Repository Sync
  uses: joshjohanning/bulk-github-repo-sync-action@v1
  with:
    repo-list-file: repos.yml
    source-github-token: ${{ steps.source-app-token.outputs.token }}
    target-github-token: ${{ steps.target-app-token.outputs.token }}
    overwrite-repo-visibility: true # overwrite repo visibility with what is in yml file; defaults to false
    # force push to target repos (overwrites history); defaults to false
    # target-github-api-url: https://ghes.domain.com/api/v3 # only needed if target is GHES

Configuration Options

Per-Repository Settings (YML)

Setting	Description	Default
source	Source repository in owner/repo format	-
target	Target repository in owner/repo format	-
visibility	Repository visibility (private/public/internal)	private
disable-github-actions	Disable GitHub Actions on target repository	true
archive-after-sync	Archive repository after successful sync	false

Action Inputs

Input	Description	Required	Default
repo-list-file	YML file with repository configurations	Yes	-
source-github-token	GitHub PAT for source repositories	Yes	-
target-github-token	GitHub PAT for target repositories	No	(uses source token if not specified)
source-github-api-url	Source GitHub API URL (e.g., https://api.github.com or https://ghes.domain.com/api/v3). Instance URL is auto-derived.	No	${{ github.api_url }}
target-github-api-url	Target GitHub API URL (e.g., https://api.github.com or https://ghes.domain.com/api/v3). Instance URL is auto-derived.	No	${{ github.api_url }}
overwrite-repo-visibility	Force update visibility of existing repos	No	false
force-push	Force push to target repositories (overwrites history)	No	false

Local Command Line Usage

You can also run the script directly:

export SOURCE_GITHUB_TOKEN=ghp_abc
export TARGET_GITHUB_TOKEN=ghp_xyz
node src/index.js --file=repos.yml

Sample Output

=== SYNC SUMMARY ===
Total repositories: 5
✅ Successful: 5
❌ Failed: 0
🆕 Created: 2
🔄 Updated: 3
👁️  Visibility updated: 1
📦 Archived: 2