Copy files and artifacts via SSH
A GitHub Action for securely copying files and artifacts to remote servers via SSH.
What is Copy files and artifacts via SSH?
SCP Action is a GitHub Action that copies files and artifacts from GitHub Actions workflows to remote servers via SSH. It solves the problem of automating secure file deployments in CI/CD pipelines without requiring external tools or complex scripting. The action handles authentication, multi-server transfers, and cross-platform path conversions.
Developers and DevOps engineers using GitHub Actions for CI/CD who need to deploy build artifacts, static assets, or configuration files to remote servers (Linux or Windows) as part of their automation workflows.
Developers choose SCP Action for its native GitHub Actions integration, robust SSH support with proxy/jump host capabilities, and extensive configuration options. It eliminates the need for custom SSH scripts in workflows while providing security best practices and reliable file transfers.
Overview
GitHub Action that copy files and artifacts via SSH.
Use Cases
Best For
- Deploying static websites or applications to remote servers from GitHub Actions
- Automating configuration file updates across multiple servers
- Copying build artifacts to staging or production environments
- Synchronizing files to Windows servers via SSH
- Implementing incremental deployments with changed-files detection
- Setting up multi-server deployment pipelines with proxy/jump hosts
Not Ideal For
- Projects requiring real-time file synchronization or continuous deployment triggers outside CI/CD runs
- Teams using cloud object storage (e.g., AWS S3, Google Cloud Storage) as their primary deployment target
- Environments where SSH access is restricted or firewalled, necessitating alternative protocols like HTTP/S
Pros & Cons
Pros
Supports simultaneous transfers to multiple remote hosts using a comma-separated list, streamlining deployment across server fleets without additional scripting.
Includes full proxy/jump host capabilities and both key and password authentication, handling complex network configurations reliably, as detailed in the proxy settings section.
Automatically converts paths for Windows servers and provides specific settings like `tar_dereference` for symlink support, reducing manual adjustments in mixed environments.
Seamlessly integrates with GitHub Actions artifacts and changed-files detection actions for efficient, incremental transfers, as shown in the usage examples.
Cons
Only operates on Linux Docker containers, preventing native use with macOS or Windows GitHub Actions runners, which restricts flexibility in heterogeneous CI/CD setups.
Requires additional setup on Windows servers, such as installing Git Bash and manual path adjustments, increasing configuration complexity and potential for errors.
Authentication failures are common due to key formatting issues, as noted in the FAQ, requiring careful PEM format management and troubleshooting in secrets.
Frequently Asked Questions
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