latex-action

A GitHub Action that compiles LaTeX documents to PDF using a complete TeXLive environment.

[!TIP] For running arbitrary commands in a TeXLive environment, use texlive-action instead.

Features

• 🐳 Containerized: Run in a Docker container with a full TeXLive installation.
• 📅 TeXLive version flexibility: Support both the latest and historic versions of TeXLive.
• 🐧 Multi-platform: Support both Alpine and Debian-based Docker images.
• 📁 Multi-document support: Compile multiple LaTeX files in a single workflow.
• 🔧 Flexible compilation: Support various LaTeX engines (pdfLaTeX, XeLaTeX, LuaLaTeX).
• 🎨 Custom fonts: Install additional fonts.
• 📦 System packages: Add extra system packages as needed.
• ⚙️ Customizable: Run arbitrary pre/post-compile scripts.

Inputs

Configure the action by providing these inputs in the with section:

Required Inputs

• root_file (required) The root LaTeX file(s) to compile. Supports glob patterns and multiple files via multi-line input:

  - uses: xu-cheng/latex-action@v4
    with:
      root_file: |
        file1.tex
        file2.tex
  

Environment Configuration

• texlive_version TeXLive version to use (2020-2025 or 'latest'). Defaults to latest. Cannot be used with docker_image.

  - uses: xu-cheng/latex-action@v4
    with:
      root_file: main.tex
      texlive_version: 2024
  

• os Base operating system for the Docker image (alpine or debian). Defaults to alpine.

  - uses: xu-cheng/latex-action@v4
    with:
      root_file: main.tex
      os: debian
  

• docker_image Custom Docker image to use (overrides texlive_version and os). We recommend to use latex-docker images. An example if you want to pin the docker image.

  - uses: xu-cheng/latex-action@v4
    with:
      root_file: main.tex
      docker_image: ghcr.io/xu-cheng/texlive-alpine@sha256:<hash>
  

Compilation Settings

• working_directory Working directory for the compilation process.

• work_in_root_file_dir Change to each root file's directory before compilation. Useful for multi-document builds where each document has its own directory structure.

• continue_on_error Continue building remaining documents even if some fail. The action will still report failure if any document fails.

• compiler LaTeX compiler to use. Defaults to latexmk for automated compilation.

• args Additional arguments passed to the LaTeX compiler. Defaults to -pdf -file-line-error -halt-on-error -interaction=nonstopmode.

Dependencies

• extra_system_packages Additional system packages to install (space-separated). Uses apk for Alpine or apt-get for Debian.

  extra_system_packages: "inkscape ghostscript"
  

• extra_fonts Extra font files to install for fontspec (.ttf/.otf). Supports glob patterns and multi-line input:

  extra_fonts: |
    ./path/to/custom.ttf
    ./fonts/*.otf
  

Scripts

• pre_compile Bash commands to execute before compilation (e.g., package updates):

  pre_compile: "tlmgr update --self && tlmgr update --all"
  

• post_compile Bash commands to execute after compilation (e.g., cleanup tasks):

  post_compile: "latexmk -c"
  

LaTeX Engine Options

[!IMPORTANT] The following inputs only work with the default latexmk compiler.

• latexmk_shell_escape Enable shell-escape for latexmk (allows external command execution).

• latexmk_use_lualatex Use LuaLaTeX engine with latexmk.

• latexmk_use_xelatex Use XeLaTeX engine with latexmk.

Example

name: Build LaTeX document
on: [push]
jobs:
  build_latex:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Set up Git repository
        uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - name: Compile LaTeX document
        uses: xu-cheng/latex-action@v4
        with:
          root_file: main.tex
      - name: Upload PDF file
        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
        with:
          name: PDF
          path: main.pdf

FAQs

How to use XeLaTeX or LuaLaTeX instead of pdfLaTeX?

By default, this action uses pdfLaTeX. If you want to use XeLaTeX or LuaLaTeX, you can set the latexmk_use_xelatex or latexmk_use_lualatex input respectively. For example:

- uses: xu-cheng/latex-action@v4
  with:
    root_file: main.tex
    latexmk_use_xelatex: true

- uses: xu-cheng/latex-action@v4
  with:
    root_file: main.tex
    latexmk_use_lualatex: true

Alternatively, you could create a .latexmkrc file. Refer to the latexmk document for more information.

How to enable --shell-escape?

To enable --shell-escape, set the latexmk_shell_escape input.

- uses: xu-cheng/latex-action@v4
  with:
    root_file: main.tex
    latexmk_shell_escape: true

Where is the PDF file? How to upload it?

The compiled PDF file will be placed in the same directory as the LaTeX source file. You have several options for handling the generated PDF:

• Upload as artifact - Use @actions/upload-artifact to make the PDF available in the workflow tab:

  - uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
    with:
      name: PDF
      path: main.pdf
  

• Attach to releases - Use @softprops/action-gh-release to attach the PDF to GitHub releases.

• Deploy elsewhere - Use standard tools like scp, git, or rsync to upload the PDF to any destination. For example, push to the gh-pages branch to serve via GitHub Pages.

How to add additional paths to the LaTeX input search path?

Sometimes you may have custom package (.sty) or class (.cls) files in other directories. If you want to add these directories to the LaTeX input search path, you can add them in TEXINPUTS environment variable. For example:

- name: Download custom template
  run: |
    curl -OL https://example.com/custom_template.zip
    unzip custom_template.zip
- uses: xu-cheng/latex-action@v4
  with:
    root_file: main.tex
  env:
    TEXINPUTS: ".:./custom_template//:"

Note that you should NOT use {{ github.workspace }} or $GITHUB_WORKSPACE in TEXINPUTS. This action runs in a separate Docker container where the workspace directory is mounted. Therefore, the workspace directory inside the Docker container is different from github.workspace.

You can find more information of TEXINPUTS here.

It fails to build the document, how to solve it?

1. Check the build log - Examine the GitHub Actions log output for specific error messages
2. Test locally - Try building your document locally with the same LaTeX distribution
3. Create a minimal example - Narrow down the issue by creating a minimal working example
4. Check dependencies - Ensure all required packages and fonts are properly configured
5. Get help - Open an issue with a minimal working example if you need assistance

License

MIT