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[](https://docs.github.com/en/actions/reference/workflow-syntax-for-github-actions#jobsjob_idruns-on)
[](#contributors-)
## 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](https://docs.github.com/en/actions/using-github-hosted-runners/about-github-hosted-runners) support
* [GitHub Enterprise Server](https://docs.github.com/en/enterprise-server@3.3/admin/github-actions/getting-started-with-github-actions-for-your-enterprise/getting-started-with-github-actions-for-github-enterprise-server) support.
* [self-hosted runners](https://docs.github.com/en/actions/hosting-your-own-runners/about-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](https://docs.github.com/en/actions/learn-github-actions/workflow-syntax-for-github-actions#filter-pattern-cheat-sheet) matching.
## Usage
> NOTE: :warning:
>
> * **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](https://github.com/tj-actions/changed-files/issues/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](#examples) for more information.
```yaml
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 }}"
```
If you feel generous and want to show some extra appreciation:
Support this project with a :star:
[![Buy me a coffee][buymeacoffee-shield]][buymeacoffee]
[buymeacoffee]: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/jackton1
[buymeacoffee-shield]: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/assets/img/custom_images/orange_img.png
## 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](https://github.com/tj-actions/changed-files/issues/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](https://github.com/tj-actions/changed-files/blob/main/.github/workflows/manual-matrix-test.yml). |
| 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](https://github.com/tj-actions/changed-files/issues/668). |
## Examples
```yaml
...
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](LICENSE)
## Known Limitation
> NOTE: :warning:
>
> * Using characters like `\n`, `%`, `.` and `\r` as separators would be [URL encoded](https://www.w3schools.com/tags/ref_urlencode.asp)
> * Spaces in file names can introduce bugs when using bash loops. See: [#216](https://github.com/tj-actions/changed-files/issues/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](https://github.com/cookiecutter/cookiecutter).
* [tj-actions/glob](https://github.com/tj-actions/glob)
* [tj-actions/demo](https://github.com/tj-actions/demo)
* [tj-actions/release-tagger](https://github.com/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](https://allcontributors.org/docs/en/emoji-key)):
This project follows the [all-contributors](https://github.com/all-contributors/all-contributors) specification. Contributions of any kind welcome!
