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Fabro supports two GitHub integration strategies:
  • token — the default for local and individual use. Fabro captures gh auth token during fabro install, stores it as GITHUB_TOKEN, and uses that token directly for repo access, pull requests, and sandbox GITHUB_TOKEN injection.
  • app — the team-oriented option. Fabro registers a GitHub App, uses installation tokens for repo access, enables browser OAuth, and supports webhook delivery when you configure a webhook strategy.
token changes GitHub integration auth only. It does not provide browser sign-in, so the embedded web UI is disabled when strategy = "token".

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Strategy matrix

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GitHub App mode

The rest of this page describes the app strategy, which is required for browser auth and for any webhook delivery strategy.

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Setup

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Prerequisites

  • A GitHub account (personal or organization)
  • Shell access to the host that runs the Fabro server
  • The Fabro web app running (cd apps/fabro-web && bun run dev) if you want browser sign-in after setup

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Register the GitHub App with fabro install

Run the installer on the same machine that will run the Fabro server:
When you choose the GitHub App strategy, the CLI opens GitHub with a pre-filled App Manifest containing: These permissions are included when Fabro registers a new app. For an existing GitHub App, add the missing permissions in the app’s settings, then approve the permission update on each installation before workflows can use them. Fabro’s App manifest does not request the Workflows permission, so Apps registered through Fabro cannot publish changes under .github/workflows/. The installer:
  1. Lets you choose where to register the app. If you have the gh CLI installed, Fabro detects your GitHub username and any organizations you administer and lets you pick. If gh is not available, the installer prompts for a GitHub token and uses it to look up your identity and organizations.
  2. Opens GitHub in your browser so you can review the manifest and click Create GitHub App.
  3. Receives GitHub’s temporary callback on localhost, exchanges it for permanent app credentials, and writes:
    • app_id, client_id, and slug to ~/.fabro/settings.toml
    • GITHUB_APP_CLIENT_SECRET, GITHUB_APP_WEBHOOK_SECRET, and GITHUB_APP_PRIVATE_KEY to the server vault
  4. Prints the resulting app slug so you can install the app on the repositories Fabro should access.
After setup completes, restart the Fabro server before attempting browser login.

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Install the app on GitHub

Go to https://github.com/settings/apps/<your-app-slug>/installations and install it on the repositories Fabro should access.

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Verify the configuration

Run the doctor command to check that all GitHub App credentials are in place:
The GitHub App check verifies five fields: If all five are set, the check passes. If none are set, it warns (GitHub integration is optional). If some are set but others are missing, it errors with the specific missing fields.

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Configuration

The GitHub App configuration lives in two places:

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~/.fabro/settings.toml

settings.toml

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Server vault

Fabro stores the GitHub App secrets in the server vault under these keys:
  • GITHUB_APP_CLIENT_SECRET
  • GITHUB_APP_WEBHOOK_SECRET
  • GITHUB_APP_PRIVATE_KEY
The private key is stored as base64-encoded PEM. Fabro also accepts raw PEM format (starting with -----BEGIN). Install mode writes these automatically. If you rotate them manually, use fabro secret set on the server:

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Webhook delivery strategies

Fabro receives GitHub webhooks on POST /api/v1/webhooks/github whenever GITHUB_APP_WEBHOOK_SECRET is configured. The webhook strategy controls how that route becomes reachable from GitHub:
settings.toml
  • server_url: recommended for production. Fabro assumes server.api.url is already publicly reachable and best-effort updates the GitHub App webhook URL to <server.api.url>/api/v1/webhooks/github each time fabro server start runs.
  • tailscale_funnel: opt-in for machines reachable through Tailscale but not through a stable public URL. Fabro runs tailscale funnel against the main server port and best-effort updates the GitHub App webhook URL to the resulting Funnel origin.
  • Unset strategy: Fabro still serves the webhook route if the secret is present, but it does not expose the route for you and does not mutate the GitHub App webhook URL.
tailscale_funnel has host-wide side effects: it changes Tailscale Funnel state on the server and rewrites the GitHub App webhook URL on startup. Use server_url when you already have HTTPS and a stable hostname.

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Reconfigure GitHub after install

To switch GitHub strategies or re-register the app without re-running the full install wizard, use fabro install github:
This walks through just the GitHub setup steps — choosing a strategy, registering an app, or storing a token — and restarts the server when done. Stale settings and secrets from the previous strategy are cleaned up automatically.

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token mode

Choose GitHub CLI in fabro install to use the default local-user flow. The installer:
  1. Runs gh auth token
  2. Stores the token as vault secret GITHUB_TOKEN
  3. Writes strategy = "token" under [server.integrations.github]
After install, Fabro reads GITHUB_TOKEN from the server vault only. To update it after install, run:
Short-lived GitHub installation tokens (ghs_*) are rejected as static tokens; use a PAT for token mode, or use GitHub App mode so Fabro can refresh installation tokens for you. In this mode, Fabro disables the embedded web UI and browser auth routes. Machine API routes and /health continue to work.

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How it works

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OAuth login

The web app uses the GitHub App’s OAuth credentials to authenticate users:
  1. User clicks Sign in with GitHub on the login page
  2. Fabro redirects to GitHub’s OAuth authorization endpoint with scopes read:user and user:email
  3. User authorizes the app on GitHub
  4. GitHub redirects back with an authorization code
  5. Fabro exchanges the code for an access token and fetches the user’s profile and verified email
  6. Fabro checks the username against the allowed_usernames list in settings.toml
Configure allowed users in settings.toml:
settings.toml
An empty allowed_usernames list rejects all users.

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Repository cloning in sandboxes

When a workflow runs in a remote sandbox (Daytona or Docker), Fabro clones the current repository into the sandbox using the GitHub App:
  1. Fabro detects the local repository’s origin remote URL and current branch
  2. SSH URLs (e.g. git@github.com:owner/repo.git) are converted to HTTPS
  3. Fabro signs a short-lived JWT using the App ID and private key (RS256, 10-minute validity)
  4. Using the JWT, Fabro looks up the GitHub App installation for the repository (GET /repos/\{owner\}/\{repo\}/installation)
  5. Fabro requests a scoped Installation Access Token with contents: write permission on the specific repository
  6. The sandbox clones via HTTPS using x-access-token as the username and the token as the password
For public repositories, the clone works without credentials. The token is still generated because it’s needed for pushing checkpoints.

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Git targets for run intents

The RunIntent create body always names a GitHub repository and a working branch. It may also select a bare tag, pin a full 40-character commit SHA, or include both: branch is always the attached branch inside the sandbox. tag is a bare tag name such as v1.2.3; refs/tags/v1.2.3 and tags/v1.2.3 are rejected. An unpinned tag is resolved when the worker starts, so moving a tag before that point changes the selected commit. Creating the run validates the selectors and lowercase-normalizes sha, but does not contact GitHub or prove ancestry. An exact SHA is authoritative: Fabro does not prove it belongs to the branch or matches the accompanying tag. If a requested tag or exact commit is unavailable, sandbox setup fails without falling back to a same-named branch or the branch’s newer HEAD.

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GITHUB_TOKEN injection

When any settings layer declares [run.integrations.github.permissions], Fabro prepares a scoped GitHub App token source and exposes it as the GITHUB_TOKEN environment variable in sandbox command and agent execution. Agents running inside the sandbox can use this token for GitHub API calls and pushes within the granted permissions. The GitHub CLI (gh) reads GITHUB_TOKEN automatically, so command stages can run gh pr list, gh issue create, and similar commands without an explicit gh auth login.
workflow.toml
Only the listed permissions are requested — the token is scoped to the minimum access needed. If the GitHub App isn’t configured or the repository lacks an installation, the run logs a warning and continues without the token. In App mode, the token covers only the run’s origin repository unless the run declares additional repositories. Injecting GITHUB_TOKEN alone does not make other private repositories reachable.

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Additional repositories

A run can declare extra GitHub repositories that its stages may access through the same GITHUB_TOKEN:
workflow.toml
The run origin stays implicit — never list it. Each entry is a full owner/repository slug (no scheme, host, ref, or extra path component). Fabro mints one installation token scoped to the origin plus every declared repository, with the one shared permissions map applying to all of them. What works against every declared repository, within the granted permissions:
  • gh CLI and raw GitHub API calls through GITHUB_TOKEN.
  • Plain Git over HTTPS (git clone https://github.com/owner/repo), through a secret-free credential helper that reads $GITHUB_TOKEN at invocation time.
  • The common SSH spellings git@github.com:owner/repo[.git] and ssh://git@github.com/owner/repo[.git], through per-repository SSH-to-HTTPS rewrites injected into the stage environment.
Fabro does not clone additional repositories for you; a workflow that needs one on disk adds its own clone step (git clone https://github.com/owner/repo or gh repo clone owner/repo). Requirements and validation:
  • Every repository in the effective set must share one owner and be reachable by the origin repository’s GitHub App installation, because one App installation covers one account. Cross-owner declarations fail configuration validation; a same-owner repository outside the installation fails preflight and run initialization with the repository named.
  • A non-empty additional_repositories requires contents = "read" or contents = "write" in the permission map.
  • Malformed slugs, duplicates (repository identity is case-insensitive), and sets larger than 499 entries fail configuration validation with indexed error paths.
  • Unlike permissions-only configuration, declared additional repositories are a hard requirement: missing GitHub credentials, a missing origin, or an inaccessible declared repository fails preflight and run initialization instead of continuing without the token.
  • Layering: the higher-precedence additional_repositories list replaces the lower one wholesale (no union, no ... splice), and additional_repositories = [] explicitly clears an inherited list. permissions keeps its existing whole-map replacement behavior. If layering leaves repositories declared with permissions cleared, configuration resolution reports the invalid combination.
Behavior notes:
  • Token strategy (PAT): the configured PAT is used as-is. The repository list drives validation and preflight probes, but it cannot narrow the PAT’s inherent GitHub scope — App mode remains the least-authority option.
  • GH_TOKEN precedence: gh checks GH_TOKEN before GITHUB_TOKEN. If the resolved run environment defines GH_TOKEN, gh uses it instead of the managed token; Fabro never sets or removes GH_TOKEN, and preflight warns when additional repositories are declared alongside one.
  • SSH rewrites match by prefix. With owner/repo declared, the SSH spelling of owner/repo-other is also rewritten to HTTPS. The scoped token is invalid for undeclared repositories at GitHub, so authority is unchanged — but a private undeclared repository fails with a GitHub authorization error instead of a missing-credential or SSH error.

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Security boundary

Workflow authors may name any repository reachable by the server’s GitHub App installation; Fabro applies no second server-side repository intersection. The token is scoped server-side to exactly the declared set — a request to an undeclared repository fails at GitHub, and Fabro never mints an unscoped installation-wide token. With contents = "write", any stage can push to any declared repository. Declare the smallest repository set and the weakest permissions that work. Installation Access Tokens are short-lived. Fabro refreshes its own credentials before checkpoint pushes. For ACP/CLI agent turns launched with GitHub App push credentials, Fabro also re-mints the token and rewrites the sandbox’s origin URL before the ACP process starts, then every 45 minutes for the lifetime of that turn. Refresh failures are logged and do not fail the stage. FABRO_PUSH_CRED_REFRESH_AHEAD defaults to enabled; set it to 0, false, off, no, or an empty value to disable both turn-entry and background refresh. FABRO_PUSH_CRED_REFRESH_INTERVAL_SECONDS overrides the background interval, and 0 disables only the background loop. This refresh loop is ACP-specific; command and native/API agent stages do not run it. Reconnected sandboxes for resumed or parked runs currently lack the App credentials needed for ACP refresh, so the refresh is skipped there. The permissions table follows the standard layer-merge order (workflow > project > user > defaults). Set defaults at [run.integrations.github.permissions] in ~/.fabro/settings.toml so every run inherits a baseline; tighten or override per-workflow as needed. A higher layer that defines permissions = {} clears the inherited map (no token requested).

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Security model

The upper bound on what Fabro will mint is whatever permissions the GitHub App installation has been granted. Fabro does not impose a separate server-side cap on the run-level permissions map: any value the App has been granted can be requested by run config. Operators must not run untrusted workflow, project, or user TOML against a broadly-scoped GitHub App installation. Preflight prints the resolved permission set so reviewers can see what each run will request.

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Checkpoint pushing

After each workflow stage, Fabro checkpoints by pushing the run branch and metadata branch to origin. Before a successful run becomes terminal, the publish stage pushes the final commit again and treats failure as a run failure. Inside remote sandboxes, the git remote URL is configured with the Installation Access Token for authenticated pushing. When pull request creation is enabled, Fabro then checks that GitHub reports the run branch at the exact final commit before opening the PR. A failed final push, branch check, or PR creation marks the run as failed with publish_failed; the terminal run event is emitted only after this step finishes. For long-running workflows, Fabro refreshes the token before each push since Installation Access Tokens are short-lived (typically 1 hour).

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Troubleshooting

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”GitHub App is not installed for {owner}”

The GitHub App exists but hasn’t been installed on the organization or user account that owns the repository. Install it at:
Or for personal accounts:

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“GitHub App is private but this repo belongs to a different owner”

GitHub Apps are private by default, meaning they can only be installed on repositories owned by the same account or organization that owns the app. If you need to install the app on a repository owned by a different user or organization, you must make the app public:
  1. Go to GitHub → Settings → Developer settings → GitHub Apps → {your app}
  2. Scroll to the bottom under Danger zone
  3. Click Make public
Once the app is public, anyone with the installation link can install it on their repositories. This does not grant the app any additional permissions — repository owners still choose which repositories the app can access during installation.

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”GitHub App installation is suspended”

The installation was disabled in GitHub’s settings. Re-enable it in the organization’s GitHub App settings.

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”GitHub App does not have access to repository {repo}”

The app is installed but doesn’t have access to this specific repository. Update the installation’s repository permissions to include it (the app may be configured for “Only select repositories”).

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”GitHub App authentication failed”

The app_id in settings.toml or the GITHUB_APP_PRIVATE_KEY vault secret is incorrect. Re-run fabro install on the server host or verify the values match your GitHub App.

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Clone fails for private repositories

If you see Git clone failed ... If this is a private repository, configure a GitHub App, the GitHub App credentials are not configured. Run fabro install on the server host or verify with fabro doctor.