Node CI workflow (archiverjs/node-archiver)

The Node CI workflow from archiverjs/node-archiver, explained and optimized by Latchkey.

What it does

This is the Node CI workflow from the archiverjs/node-archiver repository, a real project running GitHub Actions. It is shown here with attribution under its MIT license.

Below, Latchkey shows a faster, safer version produced by its optimization engine.

The workflow

name: Node CI

on:
  push:
    branches:
      - master
  pull_request:
    branches:
      - master

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest

    strategy:
      matrix:
        node-version: [18.x, 20.x]

    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v6.0.2
      - name: Use Node.js ${{ matrix.node-version }}
        uses: actions/setup-node@v6.4.0
        with:
          node-version: ${{ matrix.node-version }}
      - name: npm install and test
        run: |
          npm ci
          npm test
        env:
          CI: true

The same workflow, on Latchkey

Estimated ~20% faster on cache hits, plus fewer wasted runs and a safer supply chain. Added and changed lines are highlighted.

name: Node CI
 
on:
  push:
    branches:
      - master
  pull_request:
    branches:
      - master
 
concurrency:
  group: ${{ github.workflow }}-${{ github.ref }}
  cancel-in-progress: true
 
jobs:
  build:
    timeout-minutes: 30
    runs-on: latchkey-small
 
    strategy:
      matrix:
        node-version: [18.x, 20.x]
 
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v6.0.2
      - name: Use Node.js ${{ matrix.node-version }}
        uses: actions/setup-node@v6.4.0
        with:
          cache: 'npm'
          node-version: ${{ matrix.node-version }}
      - name: npm install and test
        run: |
          npm ci
          npm test
        env:
          CI: true
 

What changed

• Run on Latchkey managed runners with one line (runs-on), which apply the fixes below automatically and self-heal transient failures. This example uses latchkey-small; pick the runner size that fits the job.
• Cancel superseded runs when a branch or PR gets a newer push.
• Cache dependency installs on the setup step so they are served from cache.
• Add a job timeout so a hung step cannot burn hours of runner time.

What Latchkey heals here

This workflow has steps that commonly fail on transient issues (network, registries, flaky browsers). On Latchkey managed runners they are detected, retried, and self-healed instead of failing your build:

• Dependency installs

This workflow runs 1 job (2 with the matrix expanded) per trigger. On Latchkey the same minutes cost up to 58% less than GitHub-hosted, with zero queue time.

Actions used in this workflow