picpeak/.github/workflows/README-DOCKER.md

Docker Build and Push Workflow

This GitHub Actions workflow automatically builds and pushes Docker images for both the backend and frontend to GitHub Container Registry (ghcr.io).

Features

• 🔧 Automatic builds on push to main/develop branches, PRs, and releases
• 🏗️ Multi-architecture support (linux/amd64 and linux/arm64)
• 🏷️ Smart tagging based on branches, versions, and commits
• 🔒 Security scanning with Trivy vulnerability scanner
• 💾 Build caching for faster subsequent builds
• 📊 Build summaries in GitHub Actions UI

Authentication

The workflow uses the built-in GITHUB_TOKEN for authentication with GitHub Container Registry. No additional setup or personal access tokens are required.

Required Permissions

The workflow automatically sets the necessary permissions:

• contents: read - To checkout the repository
• packages: write - To push images to ghcr.io
• security-events: write - To upload security scan results

Image Tags

Images are automatically tagged based on the trigger event:

Event	Tags Generated
Push to main	latest, main, main-<short-sha>
Push to develop	develop, develop-<short-sha>
Pull Request	pr-<number>
Release (v1.2.3)	1.2.3, 1.2, 1, latest
Manual trigger	Based on branch + optional push

Usage

Pull Images

Once published, images can be pulled using:

# Pull backend image
docker pull ghcr.io/picpeak/picpeak/backend:latest

# Pull frontend image
docker pull ghcr.io/picpeak/picpeak/frontend:latest

# Pull specific version
docker pull ghcr.io/picpeak/picpeak/backend:v1.0.0

# Pull for specific architecture
docker pull --platform linux/arm64 ghcr.io/picpeak/picpeak/backend:latest

Using in Docker Compose

version: '3.8'

services:
  backend:
    image: ghcr.io/picpeak/picpeak/backend:latest
    environment:
      - NODE_ENV=production
    ports:
      - "3001:3000"

  frontend:
    image: ghcr.io/picpeak/picpeak/frontend:latest
    ports:
      - "80:80"

Using in Kubernetes

apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: picpeak-backend
spec:
  replicas: 3
  template:
    spec:
      containers:
      - name: backend
        image: ghcr.io/picpeak/picpeak/backend:latest
        imagePullPolicy: Always

Manual Workflow Trigger

You can manually trigger the workflow from the Actions tab:

1. Go to Actions → "Build and Push Docker Images"
2. Click "Run workflow"
3. Select branch and whether to push images
4. Click "Run workflow"

Security Scanning

The workflow includes Trivy vulnerability scanning that:

• Scans for CRITICAL and HIGH severity vulnerabilities
• Uploads results to GitHub Security tab
• Available under Security → Code scanning alerts

Build Optimization

The workflow uses several optimization techniques:

1. GitHub Actions Cache: Speeds up builds by caching layers
2. Multi-stage builds: Reduces final image size
3. Parallel builds: Backend and frontend build simultaneously
4. Smart rebuilds: Only rebuilds changed components

Troubleshooting

Permission Denied Errors

If you encounter permission errors when pushing images:

1. First-time setup: The first push creates a private package. You may need to:

   • Go to your package settings at https://github.com/users/YOUR_USERNAME/packages
   • Link the package to your repository
   • Set package visibility (public/private)

2. Organization repositories: Ensure the organization allows GitHub Actions to create packages

Build Failures

Check the workflow logs in the Actions tab for detailed error messages. Common issues:

• Missing dependencies in package.json
• Dockerfile syntax errors
• Network issues during package installation

Image Not Found

If images aren't visible after successful push:

• Check package visibility settings
• Ensure you're authenticated to pull private images:

  echo $GITHUB_TOKEN | docker login ghcr.io -u YOUR_USERNAME --password-stdin
  

Package Management

View Packages

Your Docker images are available at:

• Backend: https://github.com/orgs/PicPeak/packages/container/package/picpeak%2Fbackend
• Frontend: https://github.com/orgs/PicPeak/packages/container/package/picpeak%2Ffrontend

Delete Old Versions

To save storage, you can delete old versions:

1. Go to package settings
2. Click on "Manage versions"
3. Select versions to delete
4. Click "Delete selected versions"

Set Retention Policy

Configure automatic cleanup in package settings:

1. Go to package settings
2. Click on "Manage Actions access"
3. Set retention days for untagged versions

Best Practices

1. Use semantic versioning for releases (e.g., v1.2.3)
2. Test images locally before pushing to production
3. Monitor security alerts from Trivy scans
4. Clean up old images regularly to save storage
5. Use specific tags in production (avoid latest)

Advanced Configuration

Custom Registry

To use a different registry, update the workflow:

env:
  REGISTRY: docker.io  # or your custom registry
  BACKEND_IMAGE_NAME: yourusername/picpeak-backend

Additional Platforms

To build for more platforms:

platforms: linux/amd64,linux/arm64,linux/arm/v7

Custom Build Arguments

Add build arguments in the workflow:

build-args: |
  NODE_VERSION=20
  API_URL=${{ secrets.API_URL }}

Related Documentation

• GitHub Container Registry Docs
• Docker Build Action
• Trivy Security Scanner
• Multi-platform Builds