User guide · Chapter 2

Connect GitHub Actions

Install the TrimCI GitHub App with read-only permissions, choose the repositories to track, and let the backfill collect your run history.

TrimCI connects to GitHub Actions through a GitHub App that requests read-only access to pipeline data — never your source code. The installation takes a couple of minutes: you approve the app on github.com, GitHub sends you straight back, and you tick the repositories TrimCI should track. Only organization owners and admins can manage connectors.

Connectors
No connections yet
+ Add connection
Open Connectors from the SETUP section of the sidebar and press the Add connection button.
Add CI/CD provider
GitHub Actions
Connect GitHub Actions
Pick GitHub Actions from the provider grid; a short summary page then explains exactly what the app reads before you continue to GitHub.
github.com
Install TrimCI
Only select repositories
acme/api
Install
On GitHub, choose which repositories the app may see and press Install — GitHub returns you to TrimCI automatically.
GitHub repositories
acme/api
acme/web
acme/docs
Save selection
Back in TrimCI, tick the repositories to track and press Save selection — syncing starts immediately in the background.
GitHub repositories
acme/api Synced — 214 runs
acme/web Syncing…
Sync now
Each repository shows Syncing… during its first pass, then flips to Synced with a run count (or Active when the window held no runs) once up to 60 days of history are backfilled.

Simplified illustration — the real screens hold more detail, but the labels and steps match the app.

Step by step

  1. Open the Connectors page

    In the sidebar, under SETUP, click Connectors. The item is visible only to organization owners and admins — members cannot manage integrations. Press "+ Add connection", then choose "Connect GitHub Actions" from the provider grid.

  2. Review the access summary

    Before leaving TrimCI you see the "Install TrimCI GitHub App" page. It lists what TrimCI reads (workflow runs, job logs, step timings) and what it never touches (source code, commit diffs, workflow YAML files). Press "Continue to GitHub" when ready.

  3. Install the app on GitHub

    GitHub asks which account to install into and which repositories to include — "All repositories" or "Only select repositories". This GitHub-side choice controls what the app can see at all; you can change it later in your GitHub settings. Private repositories are supported.

  4. Return to TrimCI

    After the install, GitHub redirects you back to TrimCI and the installation is confirmed automatically — no extra steps. You land on the GitHub repositories page, which lists every repository the installation can see.

  5. Tick repositories and save

    Only ticked repositories are tracked and synced. Press "Save selection" and a background sync starts right away; a repository's first pass backfills up to 60 days of pipeline history. The Status column shows "Syncing…" during that first pass and flips to "Synced" with a run count when it completes (or "Active" when the window held no runs) — larger histories can take a while.

  6. Keep the data fresh

    Automatic sync runs hourly on paid and trial plans and daily on the Free plan. "Sync now" pulls fresh run data on demand, with a 5-minute cooldown per connection and a daily allowance (3 on Free, 12 on paid plans). "Refresh repository list" is different — it re-fetches the repository catalog from GitHub so repositories created after the install appear in the picker.

Zero code access, enforced twice: the GitHub App requests only read-only Actions and Metadata permissions — it cannot read repository contents even in principle — and TrimCI's own HTTP client additionally rejects any request outside the pipeline-data endpoints before it leaves the server.

Uninstalling the app on GitHub, or removing repositories from the installation, marks the affected repositories "Revoked" in TrimCI and pauses their syncing — nothing is deleted. Historical runs stay in your dashboards and reports, and reconnecting resumes where the sync left off. The "Disconnect" button in TrimCI likewise keeps your history; to fully revoke access, also uninstall the app at github.com/settings/installations.

The Free plan tracks up to 2 active repositories, counted across all providers; paid and trial plans have no repository cap. If a selection would exceed your plan's limit, TrimCI refuses the save and changes nothing — deselect some repositories or upgrade. Existing data is never deleted.

Within a few minutes of the first sync your data starts appearing on the dashboard — the next chapter shows how to read it.