112 lines
4.4 KiB
Markdown
112 lines
4.4 KiB
Markdown
---
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title: Automatically Mirror Sr.ht To GitHub
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date: 2025-05-15
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---
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For a variety of reasons, I've recently migrated to [sr.ht](https://sr.ht/~ficd)
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for Git and project hosting. I prefer the minimal, no-frills interface, and I
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really like that you can have multiple repositories, mailing lists, and issue
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trackers grouped under the same project. The email-centric workflow is also
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appealing to me.
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However, the fact remains that a strong presence on GitHub is very important. If
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you're a student hoping to land a programming job, you need to keep those commit
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stats up. Many tools, such as [Yazi](https://yazi-rs.github.io/)'s package
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manager, only support GitHub repositories. However, I don't _like_ GitHub,
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that's the whole reason I switched!
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I finally decided to give automatically mirroring my repositories a shot. While
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it was a bit of work to set up, it's worth it in the end. In this post, I'll
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guide you through the process.
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## SSH and Sourcehut Secrets
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The first step is to give `builds.sr.ht` push access to your GitHub repositories
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via `ssh`. Begin by generating an `ssh` key pair:
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```bash
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ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -f ~/.ssh/gh_mirror_id -N ""
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```
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You'll want to add the _public_ key to your GitHub account. Navigate to
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**Settings** → **SSH and GPG keys**, click the big green button, and paste the
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contents of `gh_mirror_id.pub`. Make sure its key type is "Authentication Key",
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and give it a helpful name like `sr.ht builds`.
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Next, you need to upload the _private_ key to Sourcehut. Visit
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[builds.sr.ht/secrets](https://builds.sr.ht/secrets), name it something
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memorable, and paste `gh_mirror_id` into the big box labeled "Secret". Take care
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to tick the **Secret Type** → **SSH Key** menu option before hitting the blue
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"Add" button.
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Keep this page open, because you'll need the secret's UUID later.
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## Build Manifest
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The basic idea is as follows: whenever you push to your chosen `sr.ht`
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repositories, it should automatically be pushed to GitHub with the `--mirror`
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flag. Sourcehut has an automated build system that's up for the task. _(Note:
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you need a paid account to use it.)_
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For any repository you want to mirror, you'll need to add a file called
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`.build.yml` to the root. This file will look familiar if you've worked with
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GitHub actions before. Then, you set up the environment, import the `ssh` key
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from earlier, and add a task for pushing the repository as if you were doing it
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from the command line. Finally, make sure you've created an empty GitHub
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repository ahead of time — otherwise, the build will fail!
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```yaml
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image: alpine/latest
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packages:
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- git
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- openssh
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secrets:
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- SECRET_UUID_HERE
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environment:
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# in case the repos have different names
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srht_repo: repo-name-on-srht
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github_repo: repo-name-on-gh
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github: git@github.com:yourusername
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tasks:
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# ssh-keyscan is required, command fails otherwise!
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- mirror: |
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ssh-keyscan github.com >> ~/.ssh/known_hosts
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cd "$srht_repo"
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git remote add github "$github/$github_repo.git"
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git push --mirror github
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```
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And that's it! Anytime you push to a branch that has this build manifest in it,
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your GitHub mirror is updated.
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## Readme Wrangling
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Since all you're doing is _mirroring_, you can't have a different readme on
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GitHub. There's a few things I recommend doing so folks viewing your repository
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on GitHub don't get confused. You can mention the mirror in the "About" section,
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and include a link to your `sr.ht` repo:
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I also recommend prominently displaying links to your bug tracker and mailing
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list, if applicable to your project. Finally, make sure there's an early link to
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the `sr.ht` project page. You could also explicitly mention that the project
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lives on sourcehut and is mirrored on GitHub, but this may be overkill. Consider
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this example from my Ashen project README:
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`ex_start`
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This monorepository contains official implementations of Ashen across a range of
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editors, terminals, tools, and more — each carefully tuned to carry the same
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muted warmth. The project lives on [sourcehut](https://sr.ht/~ficd/ashen/) and
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is mirrored on [GitHub](https://github.com/ficcdaf/ashen). To report issues or
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make requests, visit the [ticket tracker](https://todo.sr.ht/~ficd/ashen) or
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contact the [mailing list](https://lists.sr.ht/~ficd/ashen) (_possibly by
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carrier pigeon_.)
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`ex_end`
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## Happy Hacking!
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Now, you should be able to comfortably use `sr.ht` to host your projects without
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sacrificing the ubiquity of GitHub. Happy hacking!
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