Replace abandoned third-party actions with inline steps by mattgodbolt · Pull Request #2032 · compiler-explorer/infra

mattgodbolt · 2026-03-12T23:01:55Z

AutoModality/action-clean (last commit 2021) pulled a Docker image just to run rm -rf. Replace with an inline shell step.

prewk/s3-cp-action (last commit 2021, uses Python 3.8 and AWS CLI 1.17.1) wrapped a single aws s3 cp call. Replace with a direct run step using the CLI already available on the runners.

The remaining third-party action (owenthereal/action-upterm) is actively maintained and will likely get a Node 24 update soon.

AutoModality/action-clean (last commit 2021) pulled a Docker image just to run rm -rf. Replace with an inline shell step. prewk/s3-cp-action (last commit 2021, uses Python 3.8 and AWS CLI 1.17.1) wrapped a single aws s3 cp call. Replace with a direct run step using the CLI already available on the runners. The remaining third-party action (owenthereal/action-upterm) is actively maintained and will likely get a Node 24 update soon. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Copilot

Pull request overview

This PR updates multiple GitHub Actions workflows to remove reliance on abandoned third-party actions by replacing them with inline shell steps for workspace cleanup and S3 uploads, aligning the workflows with tools already available on the runners.

Changes:

Replaced AutoModality/action-clean with an inline rm -rf cleanup step across several workflows.
Replaced prewk/s3-cp-action with a direct aws s3 cp command using runner-provided AWS CLI.

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 7 out of 7 changed files in this pull request and generated 7 comments.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
.github/workflows/install.yml	Replaces third-party workspace clean action with inline cleanup step.
.github/workflows/consolidate.yml	Replaces third-party workspace clean action with inline cleanup step.
.github/workflows/cefs-gc.yml	Replaces third-party workspace clean action with inline cleanup step.
.github/workflows/bespoke-build.yaml	Replaces workspace clean action; replaces S3 copy action with direct AWS CLI call.
.github/workflows/bespoke-build-arm64.yaml	Replaces workspace clean action; replaces S3 copy action with direct AWS CLI call.
.github/workflows/adhoc-command.yml	Replaces third-party workspace clean action with inline cleanup step.
.github/workflows/adhoc-command-lin-builder.yml	Replaces third-party workspace clean action with inline cleanup step.

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Copilot · 2026-03-12T23:05:00Z

.github/workflows/adhoc-command.yml

    steps:
      - name: Clean workspace
-        uses: AutoModality/action-clean@v1.1.0
+        run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*


rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/* won’t remove dotfiles/directories, so the workspace may still contain .git and other hidden state from prior runs. Consider a safer full cleanup of $GITHUB_WORKSPACE contents (including dotfiles) with a guard (e.g. ${GITHUB_WORKSPACE:?}) to avoid accidental rm -rf /* if the workspace path is ever empty/unexpected.

Suggested change

run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*

run: |

find "${GITHUB_WORKSPACE:?}" -mindepth 1 -maxdepth 1 -exec rm -rf {} +

Copilot · 2026-03-12T23:05:01Z

.github/workflows/adhoc-command-lin-builder.yml

    steps:
      - name: Clean workspace
-        uses: AutoModality/action-clean@v1.1.0
+        run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*


This cleanup only targets non-hidden entries; dotfiles like .git remain and can leak state between runs on the self-hosted runner. Suggest switching to a full workspace cleanup that includes dotfiles and guarding against an empty/mis-set workspace path.

Suggested change

run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*

run: |

ws="${{ github.workspace }}"

if [ -n "$ws" ] && [ "$ws" != "/" ]; then

find "$ws" -mindepth 1 -maxdepth 1 -exec rm -rf {} +

else

echo "Refusing to clean: invalid workspace path '$ws'" >&2

exit 1

fi

Copilot · 2026-03-12T23:05:01Z

.github/workflows/install.yml

-      - name: Start from a clean directory
-        uses: AutoModality/action-clean@v1.1.0
+      - name: Clean workspace
+        run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*


rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/* does not remove dotfiles/directories (e.g. .git, .github, etc.), so the workspace may not actually be clean on self-hosted runners and could leak state between runs. Consider switching to a pattern that deletes all entries under the workspace (including dotfiles) without removing the workspace directory itself (e.g. find "$GITHUB_WORKSPACE" -mindepth 1 -delete, or a guarded rm that includes .[!.]*/..?*).

Suggested change

run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*

run: find "$GITHUB_WORKSPACE" -mindepth 1 -delete

Copilot · 2026-03-12T23:05:01Z

.github/workflows/consolidate.yml

-      - name: Start from a clean directory
-        uses: AutoModality/action-clean@v1.1.0
+      - name: Clean workspace
+        run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*


rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/* won’t delete dotfiles (including .git), so this isn’t equivalent to the prior clean action and can leave stale state on self-hosted runners. Use a cleanup approach that removes all contents (including dotfiles) under the workspace, ideally with a guard against an empty/incorrect workspace path.

Suggested change

run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*

run: |

if [ -n "${{ github.workspace }}" ] && [ -d "${{ github.workspace }}" ]; then

find "${{ github.workspace }}" -mindepth 1 -maxdepth 1 -exec rm -rf {} +

fi

Copilot · 2026-03-12T23:05:02Z

.github/workflows/cefs-gc.yml

-      - name: Start from a clean directory
-        uses: AutoModality/action-clean@v1.1.0
+      - name: Clean workspace
+        run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*


This cleanup command only deletes non-hidden entries; dotfiles like .git will remain and can cause non-deterministic behavior on self-hosted runners across jobs. Suggest deleting all workspace children (including dotfiles) and adding a safety guard so an unexpected empty workspace path can’t turn into rm -rf /*.

Suggested change

run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*

run: |

workspace="${{ github.workspace }}"

if [ -n "$workspace" ] && [ "$workspace" != "/" ]; then

# Remove all contents, including dotfiles, but not the workspace directory itself

rm -rf "${workspace:?}/"*

rm -rf "${workspace:?}"/.[!.]* "${workspace:?}"/..?* || true

else

echo "Refusing to clean invalid workspace path: '$workspace'"

exit 1

fi

Copilot · 2026-03-12T23:05:02Z

.github/workflows/bespoke-build.yaml

-      - name: Start from a clean directory
-        uses: AutoModality/action-clean@v1.1.0
+      - name: Clean workspace
+        run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*


rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/* doesn’t remove dotfiles/directories (notably .git), so the runner may keep state between runs. Consider using $GITHUB_WORKSPACE with a non-empty guard (e.g. ${GITHUB_WORKSPACE:?}) and a deletion method that removes all children (including dotfiles) without deleting the workspace itself.

Suggested change

run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*

run: find "${GITHUB_WORKSPACE:?}" -mindepth 1 -maxdepth 1 -exec rm -rf {} +

Copilot · 2026-03-12T23:05:02Z

.github/workflows/bespoke-build-arm64.yaml

-      - name: Start from a clean directory
-        uses: AutoModality/action-clean@v1.1.0
+      - name: Clean workspace
+        run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*


The workspace cleanup here only removes non-hidden files; dotfiles (like .git) remain and can affect subsequent actions/checkout behavior on self-hosted runners. Recommend deleting all workspace contents (including dotfiles) and guarding against an empty workspace variable to prevent accidental deletion outside the intended directory.

Suggested change

run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*

shell: bash

run: |

if [ -z "${GITHUB_WORKSPACE}" ]; then

echo "GITHUB_WORKSPACE is not set; refusing to clean workspace."

exit 1

fi

if [ ! -d "${GITHUB_WORKSPACE}" ]; then

echo "GITHUB_WORKSPACE directory does not exist; refusing to clean workspace."

exit 1

fi

shopt -s dotglob

rm -rf "${GITHUB_WORKSPACE:?}/"*

The rm -rf glob didn't remove dotfiles like .git, so stale hidden state could persist between runs on self-hosted runners. Use find with -delete instead, matching the original action-clean behavior. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Copilot

Pull request overview

Copilot reviewed 7 out of 7 changed files in this pull request and generated no new comments.

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mattgodbolt requested a review from Copilot March 12, 2026 23:01

Copilot started reviewing on behalf of mattgodbolt March 12, 2026 23:02 View session

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mattgodbolt requested a review from Copilot March 12, 2026 23:18

Copilot started reviewing on behalf of mattgodbolt March 12, 2026 23:19 View session

Copilot AI reviewed Mar 12, 2026

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mattgodbolt merged commit 04bb382 into main Mar 12, 2026
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mattgodbolt deleted the replace-abandoned-actions branch March 12, 2026 23:22

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Replace abandoned third-party actions with inline steps#2032

Replace abandoned third-party actions with inline steps#2032
mattgodbolt merged 2 commits intomainfrom
replace-abandoned-actions

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	run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*
	run: \|
	find "${GITHUB_WORKSPACE:?}" -mindepth 1 -maxdepth 1 -exec rm -rf {} +

-        run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*
+        run: |
+          ws="${{ github.workspace }}"
+          if [ -n "$ws" ] && [ "$ws" != "/" ]; then
+            find "$ws" -mindepth 1 -maxdepth 1 -exec rm -rf {} +
+          else
+            echo "Refusing to clean: invalid workspace path '$ws'" >&2
+            exit 1
+          fi

	run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*
	run: find "$GITHUB_WORKSPACE" -mindepth 1 -delete

-        run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*
+        run: |
+          if [ -n "${{ github.workspace }}" ] && [ -d "${{ github.workspace }}" ]; then
+            find "${{ github.workspace }}" -mindepth 1 -maxdepth 1 -exec rm -rf {} +
+          fi

-        run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*
+        run: |
+          workspace="${{ github.workspace }}"
+          if [ -n "$workspace" ] && [ "$workspace" != "/" ]; then
+            # Remove all contents, including dotfiles, but not the workspace directory itself
+            rm -rf "${workspace:?}/"*
+            rm -rf "${workspace:?}"/.[!.]* "${workspace:?}"/..?* || true
+          else
+            echo "Refusing to clean invalid workspace path: '$workspace'"
+            exit 1
+          fi

	run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*
	run: find "${GITHUB_WORKSPACE:?}" -mindepth 1 -maxdepth 1 -exec rm -rf {} +

-        run: rm -rf "${{ github.workspace }}"/*
+        shell: bash
+        run: |
+          if [ -z "${GITHUB_WORKSPACE}" ]; then
+            echo "GITHUB_WORKSPACE is not set; refusing to clean workspace."
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          if [ ! -d "${GITHUB_WORKSPACE}" ]; then
+            echo "GITHUB_WORKSPACE directory does not exist; refusing to clean workspace."
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          shopt -s dotglob
+          rm -rf "${GITHUB_WORKSPACE:?}/"*

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