valid-trigger-events

Rule catalog ID: R018

Targeted pattern scope

GitHub Actions workflow YAML files that declare trigger events under on.

What this rule reports

This rule reports trigger event names that are not documented GitHub Actions workflow events.

Why this rule exists

Mistyped trigger names silently break workflow intent. Validating events early prevents workflows from never running, or from running at the wrong time.

❌ Incorrect

on:
  foo_bar:

✅ Correct

on:
  push:
    branches:
      - main

Additional examples

For larger repositories, this rule is often enabled together with one of the published presets so violations are caught in pull requests before workflow changes are merged.

ESLint flat config example

import githubActions from "eslint-plugin-github-actions-2";

export default [
  {
    files: ["**/*.{yml,yaml}"],
    plugins: {
      "github-actions": githubActions,
    },
    rules: {
      "github-actions/valid-trigger-events": "error",
    },
  },
];

When not to use it

You can disable this rule when its policy does not match your repository standards, or when equivalent enforcement is already handled by another policy tool.

Targeted pattern scope​

What this rule reports​

Why this rule exists​

❌ Incorrect​

✅ Correct​

Additional examples​

ESLint flat config example​

When not to use it​

Further reading​