Uploading Reports to AWS S3 Storage

Automate publishing your test and coverage reports to an Amazon S3 bucket by swapping out a manual upload step with the prebuilt jakejarvis/s3-sync-action in your GitHub Actions workflow.

1. Current Workflow: Placeholder Upload

Your existing reports-s3 job runs after unit-testing and code-coverage, downloads artifacts, merges them, and uses a placeholder echo command:

jobs:
  reports-s3:
    needs: [unit-testing, code-coverage]
    name: AWS S3 - Upload Reports
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    continue-on-error: true
    steps:
      - name: Download Mocha Test Artifact
        uses: actions/download-artifact@v3
        with:
          name: Mocha-Test-Result

      - name: Download Code Coverage Artifact
        uses: actions/download-artifact@v3
        with:
          name: Code-Coverage-Result

      - name: Merge Test Files
        run: |
          ls -ltr
          mkdir reports-${{ github.sha }}
          mv cobertura-coverage.xml reports-${{ github.sha }}/
          mv test-results.xml reports-${{ github.sha }}/
          ls -ltr reports-${{ github.sha }}/

      - name: Upload to AWS S3
        run: echo "uploading..."

We’ll replace the final step with the S3 Sync action.

2. Selecting the S3 Sync Action

2.1 Search GitHub Marketplace

In your repository’s GitHub Marketplace, search for S3 and choose jakejarvis/s3-sync-action:

2.2 Action Inputs

Inspect the action’s README for the inputs:

uses: jakejarvis/s3-sync-action@master
with:
  args: --acl public-read --follow-symlinks --delete
env:
  AWS_S3_BUCKET: ${{ secrets.AWS_S3_BUCKET }}
  AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID: ${{ secrets.AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID }}
  AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY: ${{ secrets.AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY }}
  AWS_REGION: 'us-west-1'      # defaults to us-east-1
  SOURCE_DIR: 'public'         # defaults to repository root
  DEST_DIR: ''                 # optional destination path

3. Updated Workflow: S3 Sync Step

Replace the placeholder with the S3 Sync action. Here’s the complete reports-s3 job:

jobs:
  reports-s3:
    needs: [unit-testing, code-coverage]
    name: AWS S3 - Upload Reports
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    continue-on-error: true
    steps:
      - name: Download Mocha Test Artifact
        uses: actions/download-artifact@v3
        with:
          name: Mocha-Test-Result

      - name: Download Code Coverage Artifact
        uses: actions/download-artifact@v3
        with:
          name: Code-Coverage-Result

      - name: Merge Test Files
        run: |
          ls -ltr
          mkdir reports-${{ github.sha }}
          mv cobertura-coverage.xml reports-${{ github.sha }}/
          mv test-results.xml reports-${{ github.sha }}/
          ls -ltr reports-${{ github.sha }}/

      - name: Upload to AWS S3
        uses: jakejarvis/s3-sync-action@master
        with:
          args: --follow-symlinks --delete
        env:
          AWS_S3_BUCKET: solar-system-reports-bucket
          AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID: ${{ secrets.AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID }}
          AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY: ${{ secrets.AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY }}
          AWS_REGION: 'us-east-1'
          SOURCE_DIR: 'reports-${{ github.sha }}'
          DEST_DIR: 'reports-${{ github.sha }}'

4. Setting Up AWS S3

4.1 Creating the Bucket

In the AWS S3 console, create a bucket named solar-system-reports-bucket (or your preferred name) in the desired region:

5. Storing AWS Credentials as GitHub Secrets

Add your AWS keys under Settings > Secrets and variables > Actions:

• AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID
• AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY

6. Running the Workflow

Commit and push your changes. The reports-s3 job will queue after unit-testing and code-coverage complete:

6.1 Merge Step Log

Run ls -ltr
total 24
-rw-r--r-- 1 runner docker 3347 Oct 22 07:44 test-results.xml
-rw-r--r-- 1 runner docker 597 Oct 22 07:44 cobertura-coverage.xml
...

6.2 S3 Sync Step Log

Run jakejarvis/s3-sync-action@master
/usr/bin/docker run --name e8d... \
  --workdir /github/workspace --rm ... \
  --follow-symlinks --delete
upload: reports-1374785c0a9719be70ed2e7ba3481dabd72429c6/test-results.xml to s3://solar-system-reports-bucket/reports-1374785c0a9719be70ed2e7ba3481dabd72429c6/test-results.xml

Once complete, the AWS S3 upload step shows success:

7. Why the Extra “build” Step?

Because jakejarvis/s3-sync-action is a Docker-based custom action, GitHub builds the container at runtime. You’ll see this as an extra “build” step in the logs:

8. Verifying in S3

8.1 Inspect the Commit-SHA Folder

After syncing, refresh your bucket to see a folder named after the commit SHA:

8.2 Check Uploaded Files

Open the folder to confirm your XML reports are present:

9. Next Steps & Alternatives

You can apply the same pattern to other cloud storage solutions like Azure Blob Storage. Always store credentials securely as GitHub Secrets:

Before building your own plugin, explore the GitHub Marketplace—you may find a prebuilt action that meets your requirements:

Links and References

• jakejarvis/s3-sync-action
• GitHub Actions: Storing encrypted secrets
• AWS S3 Documentation
• Azure Blob Storage Introduction