Using Variables and Secrets

Applicable Scenarios

When you need to use environment variables, configuration variables, secrets, or input parameters in a workflow and understand their scope and priority rules.

Prerequisites

• Required vars and secrets have been created in the GitCode interface (Path: Project Settings → Action Secrets and Variables).
• Understand the differences between env, vars, secrets, and inputs.

Quick Example

name: ci-with-vars

on:
  push:
    branches:
      - main
  workflow_dispatch:
    inputs:
      environment:
        description: "Deployment environment"
        type: string
        default: test

env:
  APP_NAME: demo-app

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: [ubuntu-latest, x64, small]
    env:
      BUILD_MODE: release
    steps:
      - uses: checkout

      - name: Print variables
        env:
          STEP_VAR: step-level
        run: |
          echo "APP_NAME=$APP_NAME"
          echo "BUILD_MODE=$BUILD_MODE"
          echo "STEP_VAR=$STEP_VAR"
          echo "CONFIG_VAR=${{ vars.DEPLOY_TARGET }}"
          echo "SHA=${{ atomgit.sha }}"

      - name: Use secret
        env:
          REGISTRY_PASSWORD: ${{ secrets.REGISTRY_PASSWORD }}
        run: echo "password is masked"

Configuration Guide

Four Types of Variables

Type	Suitable for storing	Sensitive	Defined location	Reference method
env	Temporary environment variables within the workflow	No	YAML file	$APP_NAME or ${{ env.APP_NAME }}
vars	General configuration at repository/organization level	No	GitCode interface	${{ vars.DEPLOY_TARGET }}
secrets	Passwords, tokens, private keys	Yes	GitCode interface	${{ secrets.REGISTRY_PASSWORD }}
inputs	Inputs for workflow_dispatch / workflow_call	No	YAML file	${{ inputs.environment }}

env Environment Variables

env supports three levels of scope: Workflow level → Job level → Step level

env:
  APP_NAME: demo-app        # Workflow level, visible to all jobs and steps

jobs:
  build:
    env:
      BUILD_MODE: release    # Job level, visible to all steps within this job
    steps:
      - env:
          STEP_VAR: step-level   # Step level, only visible to this step
        run: echo "$STEP_VAR"

Priority Rules: Step level > Job level > Workflow level. A step-level variable with the same name will override the job-level and workflow-level variables.

YAML Reference vs Runner Reference:

Reference Method	Syntax	Applicable Scenario
YAML reference (expression)	${{ env.APP_NAME }}	Used in YAML fields, replaced before runner execution
Runner reference (environment variable)	$APP_NAME	Used in run commands, interpreted by Shell

vars Configuration Variables

vars are created in the GitCode interface and support repository-level and organization-level scope:

steps:
  - name: Use config variable
    run: echo "deploy to ${{ vars.DEPLOY_TARGET }}"

Creation path: Repository settings → Variables → Create new variable

Secrets

secrets are encrypted and created in the GitCode interface, automatically masked as *** in logs:

steps:
  - name: Login registry
    env:
      REGISTRY_USERNAME: ${{ secrets.REGISTRY_USERNAME }}
      REGISTRY_PASSWORD: ${{ secrets.REGISTRY_PASSWORD }}
    run: |
      echo "$REGISTRY_PASSWORD" | docker login example.com -u "$REGISTRY_USERNAME" --password-stdin

Security Tip:

• Do not print secrets in logs (echo "$SECRET" will be masked in logs, but echo "${{ secrets.MY_SECRET }}" might bypass masking).
• Do not write secrets into artifacts or caches.
• PR/MR from external contributors should not expose high-privilege secrets by default.

System Variables

GitCode Action system variables use the ATOMGIT_* prefix:

System Variable	Description
ATOMGIT_TOKEN	Auto-generated workflow token
ATOMGIT_SHA	Current commit SHA
ATOMGIT_REF	Current branch or tag reference
ATOMGIT_EVENT_NAME	Trigger event name
ATOMGIT_REPOSITORY	Repository identifier (owner/repo)
ATOMGIT_WORKSPACE	Working directory on the runner
ATOMGIT_OUTPUT	File path for step output writing
ATOMGIT_ENV	File path for environment variable writing
ATOMGIT_PATH	File path for PATH writing
ATOMGIT_RUNNER_OS	Runner operating system
ATOMGIT_RUNNER_ARCH	Runner architecture

Overview of Priority Rules

From highest to lowest:

1. Step-level env
2. Job-level env
3. Workflow-level env
4. vars (configuration variables)
5. System variables (ATOMGIT_*)