Reputation: 13345

How to run a github-actions step, even if the previous step fails, while still failing the job

I'm trying to follow an example Github has for testing my build with github actions, and then compressing the test results and uploading them as an artifact. https://help.github.com/en/actions/automating-your-workflow-with-github-actions/persisting-workflow-data-using-artifacts#uploading-build-and-test-artifacts

I'm having trouble with what to do when my tests fail though. This is my action. When my tests pass everything works great, my results are zipped an exported as an artifact, but if my tests fail, it stops the rest of the steps in the job, so my results never get published.

I tried adding the continue-on-error: true https://help.github.com/en/actions/automating-your-workflow-with-github-actions/workflow-syntax-for-github-actions#jobsjob_idstepscontinue-on-error
This makes it continue after it fails and uploads my test results. but then the job is marked as passed, even though my test step failed. Is there some way to have it upload my artifact even if a step fails, while still marking the overall job as failed?

name: CI
on:
  pull_request:
    branches:
    - master
  push:
    branches:
      - master

jobs:
  build-and-test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
    - uses: actions/checkout@v1    
    - name: Test App
      run: ./gradlew test

    - name: Archive Rest Results
      uses: actions/upload-artifact@v1
      with:
        name: test-results
        path: app/build/reports/tests

Upvotes: 386

Answers (9)

Khai Vu

Reputation: 2128

Other way, you can add continue-on-error: true. Look like

- name: Job fail
  continue-on-error: true
  run: |
    exit 1
- name: Next job
  run: |
    echo Hello

Read more in here.

Note: exit 1 statement used within run marks the job as failed while continue-on-error is used so the next tasks are still executed. Together the two would result in a failed job while also executing the following tasks.

About exit codes

Upvotes: 101

Arlind Hajredinaj

Reputation: 8519

The .status property does not work for me, I now use the new API to access the outcome of a step. The new approach allows you to handle step failures more effectively.

To achieve this, you can use the if conditional statement along with the failure() expression. Here's an example of how you can run a subsequent step even if the previous step fails:

jobs:
  my-job:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Step 1
        id: demo
        run: echo "This step will fail" && exit 1
      
      - name: Step 2
        if: ${{ failure() && steps.demo.conclusion == 'failure' }}
        run: echo "This step will run even if the previous step fails"

In the above example, Step 2 will execute regardless of the success or failure of Step 1. The if: ${{ failure() }} condition checks if the previous step failed and allows Step 2 to proceed.

You can refer to the GitHub Actions documentation for more details on using conditions to handle step failures.

Upvotes: 5

Tomer Shemesh

Reputation: 13345

You can add

if: always()

to your step to have it run even if a previous step fails https://docs.github.com/en/actions/learn-github-actions/expressions#status-check-functions

so for a single step it would look like this:

steps:
- name: Build App
  run: ./build.sh

- name: Archive Test Results
  if: always()
  uses: actions/upload-artifact@v1
  with:
    name: test-results
    path: app/build

Or you can add it to a job:

jobs:
  job1:
  job2:
    needs: job1
  job3:
    if: always()
    needs: [job1, job2]

Additionally, as pointed out below, putting always() will cause the function to run even if the build is canceled. If you don't want the function to run when you manually cancel a job, you can instead put:

if: success() || failure()

if: '!cancelled()'

(Quotes are needed so that !cancelled() is not interpreted as a YAML tag.)

Likewise, if you want to run a function ONLY when something has failed, you can put:

if: failure()

Also, as mentioned in the comments, if a status check function is not used in if, like

if: true

the result will (perhaps confusingly) behave like

if: success() && true

This is documented in Expressions - GitHub Docs:

Status check functions

You can use the following status check functions as expressions in if conditionals. A default status check of success() is applied unless you include one of these functions.

Upvotes: 539

user7610

Reputation: 28751

Instead of

if: success() || failure()

I suggest to use

if: ${{ ! cancelled() }}

to run a step "always, except when the CI run was cancelled". My version is more concise and in my view less awkward.

Reference: https://docs.github.com/en/actions/learn-github-actions/expressions#status-check-functions

Upvotes: 8

Joman68

Reputation: 2850

In case anyone is wondering, you can combine always() with another condition to perform the step if that condition holds true even if there is a failure before that step is processed.

    steps:

      - name: Exit with error
        run: |
          echo "Erroring"
          exit 1

      - name: Output report 1
        if: true
        run: |
          echo "Report 1"

      - name: Output report 2
        if: always() && true
        run: |
          echo "Report 2"

Gives this output:

Upvotes: 4

Cameron Tacklind

Reputation: 7174

The other answers here are great and work, but you might want a little more granularity.

For instance, ./upload only if ./test ran, even if it failed.
However, if something else failed and prevented the tests from running, don't upload.

      # ... Other steps
      - run: ./test
        id: test
      - run: ./upload
        if: success() || steps.test.conclusion == 'failure'

steps.*.conclusion will be success, failure, cancelled, or skipped.
success or failure indicate the step ran. cancelled or skipped means it didn't.

Note there is an important caveat that you must test at least one success() or failure() in if.
if: steps.test.conclusion == 'success' || steps.test.conclusion == 'failure' won't work as expected.

Upvotes: 29

u-ways

Reputation: 7714

run a github-actions step, even if the previous step fails

If you only need to execute the step if it succeeds or fails, then:

steps:
- name: Build App
  run: ./build.sh

- name: Archive Test Results
  if: success() || failure()
  uses: actions/upload-artifact@v1
  with:
    name: test-results
    path: app/build

Why use success() || failure() instead of always()?

Reading the Status check functions documentation on Github:

always

Causes the step to always execute, and returns true, even when canceled. A job or step will not run when a critical failure prevents the task from running. For example, if getting sources failed.

Which means the job will run even when it gets cancelled, if that's what you want, then go ahead. Otherwise, success() || failure() would be more suitable.

Note - The documentation made clear thanks to Vladimir Panteleev in which he submitted the following PR: Github Docs PR #8411

Upvotes: 34

Pawan Jenu

Reputation: 67

you can add || true to your command. example:

 jobs:
  build-and-test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
    - uses: actions/checkout@v1    
    - name: Test App
      run: ./gradlew test || true

Upvotes: -2

shemekh

Reputation: 456

Addon: if you have following sitution. 2 steps i.e. build > deploy and in some cases i.e. workflow_dispatch with input parameters you might want to skip build and proceed with deploy. At the same time you might want deploy to be skipped, when build failed.
Logically that would be something like skipped or not failed as deploy conditional.
if: always() will not work, cause it will always trigger deploy, even if build failed.
Solution is pretty simple:
if: ${{ !failure() }}
Mind that you cannot skip brackets when negating in if:, cause it reports syntax error.

Upvotes: 13

How to run a github-actions step, even if the previous step fails, while still failing the job

Answers (9)

Status check functions

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