Configuring GitHub Webhooks

Introduction

Webhooks send HTTP POST payloads to external URLs when repository events occur, enabling integrations with other systems.

Create a Webhook

1. Go to Settings > Webhooks and click Add webhook.
2. Enter the payload URL of your application.
3. Choose the content type, usually application/json.
4. Provide a secret token to sign payloads for verification.
5. Select individual events or Send me everything.
6. Click Add webhook to save.

Verify Payloads

Use the secret token to validate the signature:

const crypto = require('crypto');
const signature = 'sha256=' + crypto
  .createHmac('sha256', secret)
  .update(body)
  .digest('hex');

Common Use Cases

• Trigger CI/CD pipelines
• Post messages to chat applications
• Synchronize issues with project management tools

Further Reading

• GitHub webhooks