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 198 GitHub releases · Updated
- GitHub Changelog infraengineer ·
GitHub Actions: Reference same-repo workflows with self-repository syntax
GitHub Actions now supports a new self-repository syntax (`$/`) to reference actions and reusable workflows within the same repository. This eliminates the need for checking out code or hardcoding versions, ensuring internal references remain consistent with the running commit SHA. This feature is available on github.com for runners version 2.336.0 and newer, simplifying maintenance and enabling adherence to enterprise policies requiring pinned action SHAs.
feature - GitHub Changelog infrapreviewengineer ·
GitHub Stacked Pull Requests Enter Public Preview
GitHub has launched Stacked Pull Requests in public preview, allowing engineers to break large changes into smaller, ordered, and reviewable pull requests. This feature aims to improve the review process for substantial code modifications, making it easier to maintain quality and speed up delivery. The preview is rolling out to all repositories, with merge queue support coming soon.
feature announcement - GitHub Changelog securityinfraengineer ·
GitHub Copilot restricts remote control to managed devices
GitHub Copilot now allows enterprises to limit remote control sessions to specific managed devices, enhancing administrative control. This new `remoteControl` enterprise setting allows administrators to mandate SSO authorization or tailor access per device, complementing existing policies. The feature is available via server-managed, MDM-managed, or file-based deployment mechanisms for users in enterprises.
feature - GitHub Changelog securityinfraengineer ·
CodeQL 2.26.1 enhances analysis accuracy and framework coverage
CodeQL version 2.26.1 improves static analysis accuracy and expands framework coverage for Go, Java/Kotlin, and JavaScript/TypeScript, while reducing false positives in Rust analysis. These enhancements aim to improve security issue detection for users of GitHub code scanning. The update is automatically deployed to GitHub.com users and will be included in a future GHES release.
patch - GitHub Changelog securityinfraengineer ·
GitHub Actions holds workflows for approval to prevent attacks
GitHub Actions now automatically holds potentially malicious workflows for approval before execution to prevent supply chain attacks. This measure requires a repository collaborator with write access to review and approve the workflow run through an authenticated web session. This protection is active for public repositories on GitHub.com and is not configurable by users. GitHub Enterprise Server is not affected by this change.
security announcement - GitHub Changelog securityinfraengineer ·
GitHub Actions holds potentially malicious workflows for approval
GitHub Actions now holds certain workflow runs for approval to protect public repositories from supply chain attacks. This feature automatically prevents malicious workflows from executing until a collaborator with write access reviews and approves them via an authenticated web session. This protection is applied automatically and currently only affects public repositories on github.com, not GitHub Enterprise Server.
security announcement - GitHub Changelog aiinfraengineer ·
GitHub Copilot for JetBrains: Enhanced Config & Model Management
GitHub Copilot for JetBrains has been updated with improved OpenTelemetry configuration and model management, offering greater control over agent workflows and cost. This release introduces new options for token limits, disabling/enabling models, and integrating MCP servers and custom agents in Claude flows. The enhancements benefit engineers and architects managing observability, cost control, and custom IDE workflows.
feature patch - GitHub Changelog infragaengineer ·
GitHub MCP Server adopts stateless protocol specification
GitHub MCP Server now supports the upcoming stateless MCP specification, set to go live on July 28th, 2026. This update simplifies scaling, introduces new innovation paths via extensions, and streamlines connections by removing sessions and initialize. Existing tier 1 SDKs and bespoke clients remain compatible due to preserved backwards compatibility, with GitHub's implementation removing Redis sessions, avoiding deep packet inspection, and upgrading elicitation support.
feature - GitHub Changelog governanceinfraengineer ·
GHES appliance update required for support bundle uploads
GitHub Enterprise Server (GHES) will reject command-line support bundle uploads from unpatched appliances starting August 18, 2026. This change impacts users submitting support bundles via specific command-line tools. To avoid disruption, administrators must update their GHES instances to the latest available patch release for their version line or contact GitHub Support if an update is not feasible by the deadline.
security deprecation - GitHub Changelog aiinfraengineer ·
Manage GitHub Copilot AI credit pools via Billing UI
GitHub now allows managing AI credit pools for cost centers directly within the billing UI, a capability previously limited to the REST API. This feature is for Copilot Business and Enterprise customers on GitHub Enterprise Cloud, offering enhanced control over AI spending by automatically adjusting pool limits based on assigned licenses. Users can choose to block usage or allow overages once the pool is exhausted.
feature - GitHub Changelog infrapreviewengineer ·
Xcode 27 runner image now in public preview on GitHub
GitHub Actions now offers Xcode 27 on hosted macOS runners in public preview, allowing developers to test applications with the latest Apple toolchains. This change introduces a new support model where images are versioned by Xcode major releases, simplifying toolchain targeting. The preview is currently limited to arm64 macOS runners.
announcement feature - GitHub Changelog infragaengineer ·
GitHub Pull Requests Dashboard Generally Available
GitHub's refreshed pull requests dashboard is now generally available, offering a centralized view for tracking and managing pull requests. The dashboard includes an 'Inbox' for prioritizing tasks, customizable 'Saved Views' based on search queries, and enhanced filtering and search capabilities. These improvements, refined from public preview feedback, aim to streamline workflows for individual contributors and managers.
feature announcement - GitHub Changelog governanceinfraengineer ·
GitHub Enterprise Cloud: Per-user budgets for cost centers
GitHub Enterprise Cloud now allows enterprise admins to set per-user budgets for cost centers directly in the billing UI, mirroring REST API functionality. This feature enables automatic budget application to all members of a cost center and stays synchronized with team membership changes. It is now available for GitHub Enterprise Cloud users to help manage costs at scale.
feature - GitHub Changelog infraengineer ·
GitHub Copilot CLI GitHub Actions integration now uses GITHUB_TOKEN
GitHub Copilot CLI can now authenticate with GitHub Actions using the built-in GITHUB_TOKEN, eliminating the need for Personal Access Tokens (PATs). This change reduces operational overhead and security risks associated with managing PATs for large-scale automations. AI credits are billed directly to the organization when used in organization-owned repositories, requiring a specific Copilot policy to be enabled and the `copilot-requests: write` permission. Users must update to a recent version of Copilot CLI to utilize this feature.
feature - GitHub Changelog aiinfraengineer ·
GitHub Cost Centers Now Support AI Credit Pools
GitHub has introduced AI credit pools for cost centers, enabling organizations to cap monthly included AI credit usage per cost center. This feature prevents one cost center from exhausting shared credits, ensuring usage aligns with assigned licenses and maintains chargeback boundaries. It is available via the REST API for Copilot Business and Enterprise on GitHub Enterprise Cloud, with UI management coming soon.
feature - GitHub Changelog aiinfragaengineer ·
Enterprise managed-settings.json for AI configuration is GA
GitHub Enterprise Cloud now offers general availability for configuring AI standards via a managed-settings.json file. This feature enables enterprises to enforce governance and extensibility for Copilot clients, such as VS Code and Copilot CLI, by defining policies in a .github-private repository. The configuration takes precedence over user-level client settings and is fetched hourly upon user authentication.
feature announcement - GitHub Changelog aiinfrapreviewengineer ·
Copilot CLI and SDK: Set AI credit session limits
GitHub Copilot CLI and SDK now support setting AI credit session limits to control agent spending per session. This feature is beneficial for automation to prevent runaway costs and provides flexibility for interactive and non-interactive runs. The session limits are currently in public preview and available in Copilot CLI 1.0.66+ and SDK 1.0.5+.
feature announcement - GitHub Changelog infraengineer ·
GitHub Releases adds sidebar navigation and per-asset download counts
GitHub Releases now features a sidebar table of contents for easier navigation and a more consistent metadata layout on release pages. Write-access users can also view download counts for individual release assets directly in the UI, offering quicker insights into release adoption and asset popularity. This enhancement previously required API access for download counts.
feature - GitHub Changelog infrapreviewengineer ·
GitHub code coverage merge protection in public preview
GitHub has introduced code coverage merge protection for pull requests, allowing teams to block merges if test coverage falls below defined thresholds. This feature acts as a quality gate to prevent regressions and maintain testing standards, now available in public preview for GitHub Code Quality users on GitHub Enterprise Cloud and Team. Users can start in evaluate mode to assess impact before enforcing merge protection.
feature announcement - GitHub Changelog infraengineer ·
Dependabot stops inferring .npmrc, uses dependabot.yml scope instead
Dependabot will no longer infer .npmrc configuration for npm private registries, resolving frequent authentication failures caused by lockfile inconsistencies. Instead, users can now define a `scope` property in their `dependabot.yml`, which becomes the authoritative source for registry configuration and takes precedence over committed .npmrc files. This enhancement is available for all github.com users and will ship in GHES 3.23.
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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.
How can I get alerts for new GitHub releases? ›
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.