workflow not triggering CI/CD Origin: Build & delivery Last updated 25 Oct 2026

GitHub Actions: workflow does not run on push / pull_request / workflow_dispatch button missing

A workflow file exists but no run appears — the trigger filters do not match, the file is not on the right branch, or the workflow is disabled.

Exact message you may see workflow not triggeringGitHub Actions workflow not runningworkflow_dispatch not showingRun workflow button missingGitHub Actions not triggered on push
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Seen on: GitHub Actions

Meaning

There is no error message, which makes this confusing. Check, in order: the file is in .github/workflows/ on the branch GitHub reads (for workflow_dispatch and schedule the default branch), the on: events and branches/paths filters match your change, the workflow is not disabled, and commits from a workflow using GITHUB_TOKEN do not trigger other workflows.

Common causes

  • workflow_dispatch / schedule file not on the default branch
  • branches / paths filters exclude the change
  • YAML error so the workflow never registered
  • Push made with GITHUB_TOKEN (it does not trigger new runs)
  • Workflow disabled (inactivity of 60 days on schedules) or Actions disabled for the repo

⚡ Quick fix

  1. Open Actions → the workflow → check for a "disabled" banner or YAML error
  2. Compare on: filters with the files and branch you changed
  3. Use a PAT or GitHub App token if one workflow must trigger another

Detailed fix by platform

GitHub Actions

  1. Minimal trigger: on: { push: { branches: [main] }, pull_request: {}, workflow_dispatch: {} }
  2. Merge the workflow into the default branch before using workflow_dispatch

Code examples

Triggers that rarely miss

yaml
name: CI
on:
  push:
    branches: [main]
  pull_request:
  workflow_dispatch:        # shows the "Run workflow" button (file must be on the default branch)

How to diagnose

  1. Location — Is the file on the right branch?
  2. Filters — Do branches/paths match?
  3. State — Disabled or YAML error?

🔧 Still not fixed?

Many errors look alike. If the steps above didn’t solve it, one of these is probably what you’re facing:

Where this error sits

Origin: Build & delivery. Errors that are often confused with or caused by this one (click to open):

API rate limit exceeded — GitHub Actions: HttpError: API rate limit exceeded for installation ID 123456 / secondary rate limit (CI/CD)API rate limit exceed…Cache not found / Unable to reserve cache — GitHub Actions: Cache not found for input keys: npm-Linux-abc123 / Failed to save: Unable to reserve cache with key, another job may be creating this cache (CI/CD)Cache not found / Una…Credentials could not be loaded — GitHub Actions: Error: Credentials could not be loaded, please check your action inputs: Could not load credentials from any providers (CI/CD)Credentials could not…Expected — Waiting for status to be reported — GitHub Actions: Expected — Waiting for status to be reported (required check never runs on the pull request) (CI/CD)Expected — Waiting fo…Invalid workflow file — GitHub Actions: Invalid workflow file: .github/workflows/ci.yml#L12 — You have an error in your yaml syntax on line 12 (CI/CD)Invalid workflow filePipeline filtered out by workflow:rules — GitLab CI: No pipeline created — pipeline filtered out by workflow:rules / "The rules configuration prevented any jobs from being added to the pipeline" (CI/CD)Pipeline filtered out…secrets not available in pull requests from forks — GitHub Actions: secret is empty on pull_request from a fork or Dependabot (Secrets are not passed to workflows triggered by a fork) (CI/CD)secrets not available…Unable to download artifact — GitHub Actions: Error: Unable to download artifact(s): Artifact not found for name: build (CI/CD)Unable to download ar…workflow …

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