changed-files

Retrieve all changed files and directories relative to the target branch or the last remote commit returning the absolute path from the project root.

Features

• Fast execution (0-2 seconds on average).
• Easy to debug.
• Scales to large repositories.
• Git submodules support.
• No extra API calls.
• Escaped JSON Output which can be used for running matrix jobs based on changed files.
• List only changed directories.
• Monorepos (Fetches only the last remote commit).
• Supports all platforms (Linux, MacOS, Windows).
• GitHub-hosted runners support
• GitHub Enterprise Server support.
• self-hosted runners support.
• List all files and directories that have changed:
  • Between the current pull request branch and the last commit on the target branch.
  • Between the last commit and the current pushed change.
  • Between the last remote branch commit and the current HEAD.
• Restrict change detection to a subset of files and directories:
  • Boolean output indicating that certain files have been changed.
  • Using Glob pattern matching.

Usage

NOTE: ⚠️

• IMPORTANT: For push events you need to include fetch-depth: 0 OR fetch-depth: 2 depending on your use case.
• For monorepos where pulling all the branch history might not be desired, you can omit fetch-depth for pull_request events.
• For files located in a sub-directory ensure that the pattern specified contains **/ (globstar) to match any preceding directories or explicitly pass the full path relative to the project root. See: #314.
• All multiline inputs should not use double or single qoutes since the value is already a string seperated by a newline character. See Examples for more information.

name: CI

on:
  push:
    branches:
      - main
  pull_request:
    branches:
      - main

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest  # windows-latest | macos-latest
    name: Test changed-files
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
        with:
          fetch-depth: 0  # OR "2" -> To retrieve the preceding commit.
      
      # Example 1
      - name: Get changed files
        id: changed-files
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32

      - name: List all changed files
        run: |
          for file in ${{ steps.changed-files.outputs.all_changed_files }}; do
            echo "$file was changed"
          done
      
      # Example 2
      - name: Get changed files in the docs folder
        id: changed-files-specific
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          files: |
            docs/**

      - name: Run step if any file(s) in the docs folder change
        if: steps.changed-files-specific.outputs.any_changed == 'true'
        run: |
          echo "One or more files in the docs folder has changed."
          echo "List all the files that have changed: ${{ steps.changed-files-specific.outputs.all_changed_files }}"

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Outputs

Acronym	Meaning
A	Added
C	Copied
M	Modified
D	Deleted
R	Renamed
T	Type changed
U	Unmerged
X	Unknown

Output	type	example	description
any_changed	string	true OR false	Returns true when any of the filenames provided using the files input has changed. If no files have been specified, an empty string '' is returned. i.e. using a combination of all added, copied, modified and renamed files (ACMR)
only_changed	string	true OR false	Returns true when only files provided using the files input has changed. If no files have been specified, an empty string '' is returned. i.e. using a combination of all added, copied, modified and renamed files (ACMR)
other_changed_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns all other changed files not listed in the files input i.e. using a combination of all added, copied, modified and renamed files (ACMR)
any_modified	string	true OR false	Returns true when any of the filenames provided using the files input has been modified. If no files have been specified, an empty string '' is returned. i.e. using a combination of all added, copied, modified, renamed, and deleted files (ACMRD)
only_modified	string	true OR false	Returns true when only files provided using the files input has been modified. If no files have been specified, an empty string '' is returned.(ACMRD)
other_modified_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns all other modified files not listed in the files input i.e. a combination of all added, copied, modified, and deleted files (ACMRD)
any_deleted	string	true OR false	Returns true when any of the filenames provided using the files input has been deleted. If no files have been specified, an empty string '' is returned. (D)
only_deleted	string	true OR false	Returns true when only files provided using the files input has been deleted. If no files have been specified, an empty string '' is returned. (D)
other_deleted_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns all other deleted files not listed in the files input i.e. a combination of all deleted files (D)
all_changed_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns all changed files i.e. a combination of all added, copied, modified and renamed files (ACMR)
all_modified_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns all changed files i.e. a combination of all added, copied, modified, renamed and deleted files (ACMRD)
all_changed_and_modified_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns all changed and modified files i.e. a combination of (ACMRDTUX)
all_old_new_renamed_files	string	'old name.txt,new name.txt old name 2.txt,new name 2.txt...'	Returns only files that are Renamed and list their old and new names. NOTE: This requires setting include_all_old_new_renamed_files to true (R)
added_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns only files that are Added (A)
copied_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns only files that are Copied (C)
deleted_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns only files that are Deleted (D)
modified_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns only files that are Modified (M)
renamed_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns only files that are Renamed (R)
type_changed_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns only files that have their file type changed (T)
unmerged_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns only files that are Unmerged (U)
unknown_files	string	'new.txt path/to/file.png ...'	Returns only files that are Unknown (X)

Inputs

Input	type	required	default	description
separator	string	false	' '	Split character for output strings
include_all_old_new_renamed_files	boolean	false	false	Include all_old_new_renamed_files output. Note this can generate a large output See: #501.
old_new_separator	string	false	','	Split character for old and new filename pairs
old_new_files_separator	string	false	' '	Split character for multiple old and new filename pairs
files	string OR string[]	false		Check for changes using only these list of file(s) (Defaults to the entire repo) NOTE: Multiline file/directory patterns should not include qoutes.
files_separator	string	false	'\n'	Separator used to split the files input
files_from_source_file	string	false		Source file(s) used to populate the files input
files_ignore	string	false		Ignore changes to these file(s) NOTE: Multiline file/directory patterns should not include qoutes.
files_ignore_separator	string	false	'\n'	Separator used to split the files-ignore input
files_ignore_from_source_file	string	false		Source file(s) used to populate the files_ignore input
sha	string	true	${{ github.sha }}	Specify a different commit SHA used for comparing changes
base_sha	string	false		Specify a different base commit SHA used for comparing changes
path	string	false	'.'	Relative path under GITHUB_WORKSPACE to the repository
quotepath	boolean	false	true	Output filenames completely verbatim by setting this to false
diff_relative	boolean	false		Exclude changes outside the current directory and show pathnames relative to it. NOTE: This requires you to specify the top level directory via the path input.
dir_names	boolean	false	false	Output unique changed directories instead of filenames. NOTE: This returns . for changed files located in the root of the project.
json	boolean	false	false	Output changed files in JSON format which can be used for matrix jobs.
since	string	false		Get changed files for commits whose timestamp is older than the given time.
until	string	false		Get changed files for commits whose timestamp is earlier than the given time.
target_branch_fetch_depth	string	false	20	Limit fetching commits from the target branch to a specified number. NOTE: This can be adjusted to resolve errors with insufficient history. See: #668.

Examples

...
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
        with:
          fetch-depth: 0  # OR "2" -> To retrieve the preceding commit.
#          submodules: true # OR "recursive" -> To include all changed submodule files.

      - name: Get changed files using defaults
        id: changed-files
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32

      - name: Get changed files using a comma separator
        id: changed-files-comma
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          separator: ","

      - name: List all added files
        run: |
          for file in ${{ steps.changed-files.outputs.added_files }}; do
            echo "$file was added"
          done

      - name: Run step when a file changes
        if: contains(steps.changed-files.outputs.modified_files, 'my-file.txt')
        run: |
          echo "Your my-file.txt file has been modified."

      - name: Run step when a file has been deleted
        if: contains(steps.changed-files.outputs.deleted_files, 'test.txt')
        run: |
          echo "Your test.txt file has been deleted."

      - name: Get specific changed files
        id: changed-files-specific
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          files: |
            my-file.txt
            test.txt
            new.txt
            test_directory
            *.sh
            *.png
            !*.md
            *.jpeg
            **/migrate-*.sql
          files_ignore: |
            *.yml

      - name: Run step if any of the listed files above change
        if: steps.changed-files-specific.outputs.any_changed == 'true'
        run: |
          echo "One or more files listed above has changed."

      - name: Run step if only the files listed above change
        if: steps.changed-files-specific.outputs.only_changed == 'true'
        run: |
          echo "Only files listed above have changed."

      - name: Run step if any of the listed files above is deleted
        if: steps.changed-files.outputs.any_deleted == 'true'
        run: |
          for file in ${{ steps.changed-files.outputs.deleted_files }}; do
            echo "$file was deleted"
          done

      - name: Run step if all listed files above have been deleted
        if: steps.changed-files.outputs.only_deleted == 'true'
        run: |
          for file in ${{ steps.changed-files.outputs.deleted_files }}; do
            echo "$file was deleted"
          done

      - name: Use a source file or list of file(s) to populate to files input.
        id: changed-files-specific-source-file
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          files_from_source_file: |
            test/changed-files-list.txt

      - name: Use a source file or list of file(s) to populate to files input and optionally specify more files.
        id: changed-files-specific-source-file-and-specify-files
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          files_from_source_file: |
            test/changed-files-list.txt
          files: |
            test.txt

      - name: Use a different commit SHA
        id: changed-files-custom-sha
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          sha: ${{ github.event.pull_request.head.sha }}

      - name: Use a different base SHA
        id: changed-files-custom-base-sha
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          base_sha: ${{ github.event.pull_request.base.sha }}
          
      - name: Checkout into dir1
        uses: actions/checkout@v3
        with:
          fetch-depth: 0
          path: dir1

      - name: Run changed-files with defaults on the dir1
        id: changed-files-for-dir1
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          path: dir1

      - name: List all added files in dir1
        run: |
          for file in ${{ steps.changed-files-for-dir1.outputs.added_files }}; do
            echo "$file was added"
          done

      - name: Run changed-files with quotepath disabled
        id: changed-files-quotepath
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          quotepath: "false"

      # Run changed-files action using the last successful commit as the base_sha
      # NOTE: This setting overrides the commit sha used by setting since_last_remote_commit to true.
      # It is recommended to use either solution that works for your use case.

      # Push event based workflows
      - name: Get branch name
        id: branch-name
        uses: tj-actions/branch-names@v6

      - uses: nrwl/last-successful-commit-action@v1
        id: last_successful_commit_push
        with:
          branch: ${{ steps.branch-name.outputs.current_branch }} # Get the last successful commit for the current branch. 
          workflow_id: 'test.yml'
          github_token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}

      - name: Run changed-files with the commit of the last successful test workflow run
        id: changed-files-base-sha-push
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          base_sha: ${{ steps.last_successful_commit_push.outputs.commit_hash }}

      # Pull request based workflows.
      - name: Get branch name
        id: branch-name
        uses: tj-actions/branch-names@v5
        if: github.event_name == 'pull_request'

      - uses: nrwl/last-successful-commit-action@v1
        id: last_successful_commit_pull_request
        if: github.event_name == 'pull_request'
        with:
          branch: ${{ steps.branch-name.outputs.base_ref_branch }} # Get the last successful commit on master or main branch 
          workflow_id: 'test.yml'
          github_token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}

      - name: Run changed-files with the commit of the last successful test workflow run on main
        if: github.event_name == 'pull_request'
        id: changed-files-base-sha-pull-request
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          base_sha: ${{ steps.last_successful_commit_pull_request.outputs.commit_hash }}

      - name: Run changed-files with dir_names
        id: changed-files-dir-names
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          dir_names: "true"

      # All outputs are JSON formatted arrays and can be used in other actions and matrix compatible jobs.
      - name: Run changed-files with json output
        id: changed-files-json
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          json: "true"

      - name: Run changed-files since 2022-08-19
        id: changed-files-since
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          since: "2022-08-19"

      - name: Run changed-files until 2022-08-20
        id: changed-files-until
        uses: tj-actions/changed-files@v32
        with:
          until: "2022-08-20"

• Free software: MIT license

Known Limitation

NOTE: ⚠️

• Using characters like \n, %, . and \r as separators would be URL encoded
• Spaces in file names can introduce bugs when using bash loops. See: #216 However, this action will handle spaces in file names, with a recommendation of using a separator to prevent hidden issues.

Credits

This package was created with Cookiecutter.

• tj-actions/glob
• tj-actions/demo
• tj-actions/release-tagger

Report Bugs

Report bugs at https://github.com/tj-actions/changed-files/issues.

If you are reporting a bug, please include:

• Your operating system name and version.
• Any details about your workflow that might be helpful in troubleshooting.
• Detailed steps to reproduce the bug.

Contributors ✨

Thanks goes to these wonderful people (emoji key):

Josh Soref 📖	Nick Landers 💻	Krasimir Nikolov 💻 📖	Ivan Pizhenko 💻 📖	talva-tr 💻	Ikko Ashimine 📖	James 📖
James Cheng 📖	Masaya Suzuki 💻	fagai 📖	Constantine Peresypkin 💻	Mathieu Dupuy 📖	Joe Moggridge 📖	Charles Santos 💻
Kostiantyn Korniienko 📖	Logan Pulley 💻

This project follows the all-contributors specification. Contributions of any kind welcome!