Core
GitHub Actions runner
Quick answer
A GitHub Actions runner is the agent process that polls GitHub for queued jobs, executes their steps and streams logs back.
A GitHub Actions runner is the agent process that polls GitHub for queued jobs, executes their steps and streams logs back.
Why it matters
The runner binary is open source and identical whether it runs on GitHub's infrastructure, a managed provider's, or your own laptop. Only the machine underneath it differs.
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Related
Runner imageA runner image is the preconfigured disk image containing the operating system and preinstalled toolchain a job starts from.Runner labelA runner label is the string in a workflow's runs-on field that determines which runner picks up the job.runs-onruns-on is the GitHub Actions workflow key that specifies which runner or runner label a job should execute on.