EndBug/add-and-commit "Author identity unknown"

git refuses to commit without an author. When add-and-commit cannot derive a name/email and none is configured, it fails with "Author identity unknown".

What this error means

The add-and-commit step fails with "Author identity unknown" and "Please tell me who you are".

Author identity unknown

*** Please tell me who you are.
fatal: unable to auto-detect email address

Common causes

No author configured

No author input was set and no global git user is configured on the runner.

Default author disabled

The action default_author was changed to a value that does not resolve to a real identity.

How to fix it

Set author name and email

1. Provide author_name and author_email inputs, or set default_author to github_actions.
2. Re-run; the commit now has a valid author.

- uses: EndBug/add-and-commit@v9
  with:
    default_author: github_actions
    message: 'chore: update generated files'

How to prevent it

• Set default_author: github_actions for bot commits.
• Configure git user.name/user.email in a setup step if multiple commit actions run.

Related guides