Inputs & Outputs
The Workflow Wizard lets you configure these inputs visually and generates the complete workflow YAML for you.
What code is assessed
This page describes exactly which code GrillMyCode sends to the AI, and what happens to the questions before anyone sees them. For a non-technical overview, see How GrillMyCode works.
File filtering
GrillMyCode detects each repository's languages and frameworks and excludes the files they generate, with no configuration needed in most cases. This page lists every rule and how patterns are matched. For a plain-language overview, see Choosing which files are assessed.
Triggers in depth
The workflow's on: block decides when GrillMyCode runs. This page covers how each trigger behaves in detail. To choose between them, see Choosing a trigger.
The assessment issue and PDF
Every run that generates questions delivers them to the student in two fixed places: a GitHub issue and a PDF attached to a release. Neither can be turned off, and both need the permissions in Tokens, secrets and permissions. For what this looks like to a student, see What your students see.
Instructor repository internals
When instructorrepotoken is set in a Classroom 50 assignment repository, GrillMyCode writes a full copy of each assessment, with questions and answers, to a private repository for the assignment. It works only in conjunction with Classroom 50, because the assignment and student are read from Classroom 50's repository naming. This page covers how that works. To set it up, see Keeping a private answer key.
Repository label internals
label_repos labels each student repository in GitHub's own metadata once an assessment exists, so an instructor scanning the organization's repository list can see which repositories have questions. It is off unless the workflow sets it; the Workflow Wizard turns it on by default. For an overview, see Tracking assessed repositories.
Classroom 50 internals
This page records how Classroom 50's own tooling interacts with student repositories, and why none of it affects an assessment. For setting up GrillMyCode with Classroom 50, see Using GrillMyCode with Classroom 50. For how template code is excluded, see What code is assessed.
Tokens, secrets and permissions
A GrillMyCode workflow uses up to three credentials:
Debug mode
GrillMyCode supports GitHub Actions' built-in debug logging mechanism. When enabled, the action emits extra log entries that show exactly what was resolved and what was sent to the AI provider — useful for troubleshooting unexpected assessment results or verifying that context inputs are being picked up correctly.
Upgrade notes
Notes for anyone upgrading a workflow, or an instructor repository, from an earlier GrillMyCode release. The first section covers how releases reach a workflow. The notes follow it, newest changes first.
The VS Code extension
GrillMyCode Companion (GrillMyCode.grillmycode on the Visual Studio Marketplace) shows the questions from the assessment issue beside the code they ask about, and shows an instructor each question's answer as well. It also checks the GrillMyCode step of a workflow file as it is written, and opens the Workflow Wizard in the editor. It is separate from the action: it has its own releases, needs no input in the workflow, and only reads what the action has already posted. For setup, see Showing questions in VS Code.
The JetBrains plugin
GrillMyCode Companion (org.grillmycode.companion on the JetBrains Marketplace) shows the questions from the assessment issue beside the code they ask about, in IntelliJ IDEA, PyCharm, WebStorm and the other IDEs built on the IntelliJ Platform, and shows an instructor each question's answer as well. It is separate from the action: it has its own releases, needs no input in the workflow, and only reads what the action has already posted. For setup, see Showing questions in JetBrains IDEs.