GitHub Releases
GitHub changelog, platform updates, and Copilot coding-assistant releases. New features, breaking changes, security advisories and deprecations - each summarised in plain English and updated continuously.
Tracking 199 GitHub releases · Updated
- GitHub Changelog infraengineer ·
GitHub Actions custom images gain layered build support
GitHub Actions now allows building custom runner images on top of other custom images, enabling layered image workflows. This feature offers teams greater flexibility in managing image-generation pipelines, reducing duplication, and speeding up builds. It also introduces conditional logic for the snapshot keyword, giving more control over image version generation. These enhancements are available now for teams using GitHub-hosted runners with custom images.
feature - GitHub Changelog securityinfraengineer ·
GitHub Actions checkout v7 enhances security for pull_request_target
GitHub Actions checkout v7 now defaults to refusing common 'pwn request' patterns, preventing vulnerabilities in workflows triggered by pull_request_target events from forks. This change is crucial for supply-chain security, affecting users who rely on checking out unreviewed pull request code. The update is available now for workflows pinned to floating major tags, with enforcement backported to supported major versions by July 2026.
feature security - GitHub Changelog securitypreviewengineer ·
GitHub Actions workflow execution protections now in public preview
GitHub Actions workflow execution protections are now in public preview, allowing administrators to define allow lists for workflow triggers. This feature enhances security by preventing unauthorized users or events from initiating workflows, which could otherwise be exploited to run malicious code. Initially available for GitHub Enterprise, organizations, and repositories, it helps mitigate common attack patterns like poisoned pipeline execution and manual-trigger abuse.
feature announcement - GitHub Changelog aiengineer ·
GitHub Copilot PRs now credit users in generated release notes
GitHub's generated release notes will now credit the user who initiated a pull request created by Copilot, not just the Copilot agent itself. This change provides better recognition for developers' contributions when using Copilot for pull requests. The update is available now for all GitHub repositories and plans.
feature - GitHub Changelog securityinfraengineer ·
GitHub Secret Scanning Enhancements in June 2026
GitHub has updated its secret scanning capabilities with expanded detection coverage, including new partners like Cloudsmith and Meraki, and enhanced GitLab token support. Push protection now defaults to blocking more secret types, improving security for all repositories. Additionally, validity checks and richer metadata have been added for certain leaked credentials, aiding faster remediation for affected users.
feature patch - GitHub Changelog governanceinfraengineer ·
GitHub Copilot Enterprise Admins Can Now Disable Permission Bypass
Enterprise administrators can now disable automatic permission bypass (yolo mode) for GitHub Copilot CLI and VS Code using the new `disableBypassPermissionsMode` setting in enterprise-managed settings. This provides enhanced governance for AI features, ensuring users adhere to permission prompts. This capability is available for GitHub Copilot Business and Enterprise licenses and requires VS Code v1.122+.
feature - GitHub Changelog governanceinfraengineer ·
GitHub: Limit open PRs for users without write access
GitHub now allows repository maintainers to set a maximum number of open pull requests for users without write access, helping to manage contribution volume and reduce noise. This feature enables maintainers to proactively control the influx of contributions, with options to bypass the limit for trusted users. Draft PRs are excluded from the limit, and the change aims to reduce review and CI overhead for busy repositories.
feature - GitHub Changelog aigaengineer ·
GitHub Copilot Chat adds auto model selection for all users
GitHub Copilot Chat now offers auto model selection for all users on github.com and the mobile app, allowing it to dynamically choose models based on request complexity and availability. This feature aims to optimize token usage and response quality, benefiting all Copilot plan subscribers. Auto mode routes to various models including Claude Sonnet 4.6, GPT-5.4 mini, GPT-5.4, and Haiku 4.5, with usage billed at a 10% discount.
feature announcement - GitHub Changelog aiengineer ·
GitHub Copilot Agent Finder enables dynamic capability discovery
GitHub Copilot now includes an Agent Finder feature, which dynamically discovers and suggests relevant AI resources for tasks described in plain language, eliminating the need for manual configuration. This enhancement improves efficiency by loading only necessary tools and offering ranked matches, benefiting all GitHub Copilot users. The feature supports private registries and offers managed settings for enterprise control, with no automatic installations.
feature - GitHub Changelog aigaengineer ·
GitHub Copilot App Now Generally Available
The GitHub Copilot app, a desktop environment for agent-driven development, is now generally available for macOS, Windows, and Linux. New features include Canvases for shared interaction, cloud automations for scheduled work, and support for custom models and tools. Organization administrators must enable Copilot CLI for Business/Enterprise users.
feature announcement - GitHub Changelog governancegapreviewengineer ·
GitHub Code Quality Moves to General Availability
GitHub Code Quality will transition from public preview to general availability on July 20, 2026, becoming a purchasable product for enterprises. This change introduces new capabilities like organization-wide deployment and enhanced dashboards, alongside a new pricing model that includes a per-committer license and usage-based charges for AI features. Customers on GitHub Enterprise Cloud and Team plans will be affected, with options to disable the feature before the transition.
announcement feature patch - GitHub Changelog governancepreviewengineer ·
GitHub Org-Level Code Quality Enablement Now in Public Preview
GitHub Code Quality can now be enabled or disabled organization-wide through a single toggle in organization settings, simplifying rollout for administrators. This feature is available in public preview for GitHub Enterprise Cloud and GitHub Team plans, allowing admins to manage settings across all repositories efficiently. It targets organization administrators seeking to quickly deploy or revoke Code Quality across their entire organization.
feature announcement - GitHub Changelog aiengineer ·
GitHub Copilot usage metrics now include more active users
GitHub Copilot enterprise usage reports now incorporate server-side telemetry alongside client signals, increasing the count of active users displayed. This change addresses inconsistencies caused by client-side telemetry failures, providing a more complete picture of user engagement. While top-level counts are more accurate, detailed per-interaction breakdowns for these newly surfaced users are still limited but expected to improve in future releases.
feature - GitHub Changelog securityinfraengineer ·
Copilot code review: Enhanced configuration and content controls
GitHub Copilot code review now offers expanded configuration options, including organization-level runner controls and content exclusion support for specified files or directories. These updates aim to simplify setup and provide greater control over how Copilot analyzes code within repositories and organizations. Previously, custom instructions were limited by a character count, which has now been removed, allowing for more extensive customization.
feature - GitHub Changelog governanceinfragaengineer ·
GitHub Enterprise Server 3.21 Released
GitHub Enterprise Server 3.21 is now generally available, bringing enhancements to deployment efficiency, monitoring, code security, and policy management. Key updates include the general availability of organization custom properties and hierarchy view for GitHub Projects, alongside a new REST API version with breaking changes. These updates benefit enterprise administrators and developers by improving metadata tagging, project visualization, and workflow management.
feature patch breaking - GitHub Changelog infrapreviewengineer ·
GitHub Actions runner images in public preview
GitHub Actions is releasing new Ubuntu 26.04 and Windows 11 arm64 runner images in public preview for all users. This allows early testing of workflows on the latest platforms before general availability, with Ubuntu 26.04 supporting both x64 and arm64 architectures. Users should update their workflow files to use the new image labels and may observe differences in tool versions.
feature announcement - GitHub Changelog securityinfraengineer ·
Bot-created pull requests can run workflows with approval
Pull requests created by github-actions[bot] can now trigger CI/CD workflows upon user approval. This security enhancement prevents unreviewed generated code from automatically executing potentially sensitive workflows. The behavior now aligns with Copilot-generated pull requests, addressing a previous gap where bot-generated changes could be merged without CI checks.
feature - GitHub Changelog aigaengineer ·
GitHub AI Usage Reports Updated
GitHub AI usage reports have been updated to reflect native AI credit billing, replacing preview fields with standard ones. This change clarifies how to monitor AI credit usage going forward using quantity and gross_amount. A bug that caused incorrect values in preview fields has been fixed and retroactively applied for usage from June 1. This update is available for GitHub Enterprise Cloud customers.
patch feature - GitHub Changelog aiengineer ·
GitHub Copilot CLI unifies configuration with /settings command
GitHub Copilot CLI introduces a new /settings slash command, consolidating scattered configuration options into a single, schema-driven interface. This provides a discoverable and validated way to manage settings, improving user experience by reducing guesswork and preventing configuration errors. The feature is available now via the `copilot update` command for all Copilot CLI users.
feature - GitHub Changelog aiinfraengineer ·
GitHub Agentic Workflows now use GITHUB_TOKEN, no PAT needed
GitHub Agentic Workflows have been updated to use GitHub Actions' built-in GITHUB_TOKEN, eliminating the need for personal access tokens (PATs). This change simplifies management, reduces security risks, and allows AI credit consumption to be billed directly to organizations. Configuration requires enabling a Copilot policy and updating workflow permissions, with cost management options available for organizations.
feature
About GitHub release tracking on ReleaseBytes
The GitHub changelog covers Actions, Copilot, code security, the API and the platform itself — dozens of entries a week. ReleaseBytes summarises each changelog entry and tags breaking changes and deprecations (like Actions runner image retirements and API sunsets) so platform teams catch them before workflows break.
Frequently asked questions
How often are GitHub release notes updated on ReleaseBytes? ›
Continuously. ReleaseBytes monitors the official GitHub release channels around the clock and publishes a plain-English summary of each announcement shortly after it lands.
What kinds of GitHub changes does ReleaseBytes track? ›
New features, enhancements, bug fixes, security advisories, breaking changes, deprecations and end-of-life announcements. Every item is tagged by type so you can filter to just the changes that need action.
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Set up a free email or Slack alert filtered to GitHub, subscribe to the weekly digest, or follow the RSS feed. Teams can also install the ReleaseBytes GitHub App or connect via MCP.
Where does the GitHub release data come from? ›
From the official sources: GitHub changelog, platform updates, and Copilot coding-assistant releases. Every item links back to the original vendor announcement.