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How to Run Synthetic Tests in GitHub Actions

Problem

Section titled “Problem”

You want to validate that your application’s critical endpoints are working before deploying to production. Running synthetic tests in your CI/CD pipeline catches issues early and prevents broken deployments.

Solution

Section titled “Solution”

orbtymon provides a GitHub Action that runs your configured monitors as part of your CI/CD workflow. This guide shows you how to set it up.

Prerequisites

Section titled “Prerequisites”
  • An orbtymon account
  • A GitHub repository
  • At least one monitor configured in orbtymon
  • Admin access to your GitHub repository (for secrets)

Step-by-step guide

Section titled “Step-by-step guide”

1. Create a configuration file

Section titled “1. Create a configuration file”

Create a file named orbtymon.config.yaml in your repository root:

tests:
  ids:
    - 1
    - 2

Finding monitor IDs:

  1. Go to your orbtymon dashboard
  2. Click on a monitor
  3. The ID is in the URL: https://www.orbtymon.app/app/[workspace]/monitors/[ID]

Tip: Start with your most critical monitors and expand from there.

2. Get your orbtymon API key

Section titled “2. Get your orbtymon API key”
  1. Go to your orbtymon workspace settings
  2. Navigate to the API section
  3. Create a new API key or copy an existing one
  4. Store it securely - you’ll need it for the next step

3. Add your API key to GitHub Secrets

Section titled “3. Add your API key to GitHub Secrets”

Secure your API key as a GitHub secret:

  1. Go to your GitHub repository
  2. Click Settings → Secrets and variables → Actions
  3. Click New repository secret
  4. Name: OPENSTATUS_API_KEY
  5. Value: Your orbtymon API key
  6. Click Add secret

4. Create the GitHub Action workflow

Section titled “4. Create the GitHub Action workflow”

Create .github/workflows/orbtymon.yml:

name: Run orbtymon Synthetics CI


on:
  workflow_dispatch:  # Manual trigger
  push:
    branches: [ main ]  # Trigger on push to main
  pull_request:        # Run on PRs (optional)


jobs:
  synthetic_ci:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    name: Run orbtymon Synthetics CI
    steps:
      - name: Checkout
        uses: actions/checkout@v4


      - name: Run orbtymon Synthetics CI
        uses: openstatushq/orbtymon-github-action@v1
        with:
          api_key: ${{ secrets.OPENSTATUS_API_KEY }}

5. Commit and push

Section titled “5. Commit and push”
Terminal window
git add orbtymon.config.yaml .github/workflows/orbtymon.yml
git commit -m "Add orbtymon synthetic tests to CI"
git push origin main

The GitHub Action will run automatically on the next push to main.

What you’ve accomplished

Section titled “What you’ve accomplished”

Great work! You’ve successfully:

  • ✅ Integrated orbtymon into your CI/CD pipeline
  • ✅ Automated synthetic testing on every deployment
  • ✅ Added a safety check before production releases
  • ✅ Set up continuous validation of critical endpoints

Customization options

Section titled “Customization options”

Run on different branches

Section titled “Run on different branches”
on:
  push:
    branches: [ main, staging, develop ]

Run on pull requests

Section titled “Run on pull requests”
on:
  pull_request:
    types: [opened, synchronize, reopened]

Run on a schedule

Section titled “Run on a schedule”
on:
  schedule:
    - cron: '0 */4 * * *'  # Every 4 hours

Multiple configuration files

Section titled “Multiple configuration files”
- name: Run orbtymon Synthetics CI
  uses: openstatushq/orbtymon-github-action@v1
  with:
    api_key: ${{ secrets.OPENSTATUS_API_KEY }}
    config_file: .orbtymon/production.yaml

Best practices

Section titled “Best practices”
  1. Start small: Begin with 2-3 critical monitors
  2. Fail fast: Run synthetic tests early in your pipeline
  3. Monitor the monitors: Track your synthetic test success rate
  4. Environment-specific: Use different monitors for staging vs production
  5. Document failures: Investigate and document any CI failures

Troubleshooting

Section titled “Troubleshooting”

Action fails with authentication error:

  • Verify OPENSTATUS_API_KEY secret is set correctly
  • Check that your API key hasn’t expired

Monitors not found:

  • Confirm monitor IDs are correct in orbtymon.config.yaml
  • Ensure monitors are active in your orbtymon dashboard

Tests timing out:

  • Check that your endpoints are accessible from GitHub’s runners
  • Consider increasing timeouts in monitor configuration

Next steps

Section titled “Next steps”
Section titled “Related resources”