Resolving Permission Denied Error in GitHub Actions for Database Dumps

If you're encountering a "Permission denied" error when trying to create database dumps in GitHub Actions, this is typically caused by file path permission restrictions on the GitHub runner. Error Symptoms You may see an error message similar to: /home/github-runner/actions-runner/_work/_temp/[random-id].sh: line X: /home/ubuntu/database_dump.sql: Permission denied Solution Instead of writing the dump file to system directories like /home/ubuntu/ , use the $GITHUB_WORKSPACE environment variable which provides a writable directory for your GitHub Actions workflow. Change your mysqldump command from: mysqldump [options] database_name > /home/ubuntu/database_dump.sql To: mysqldump [options] database_name > $GITHUB_WORKSPACE/database_dump.sql Why This Happens GitHub Actions runners have restricted permissions for certain system directories. The $GITHUB_WORKSPACE directory is specifically designed to be writable by your workflow and is the recommended location for storing temporary files and outputs during your GitHub Actions execution. This issue can appear suddenly even if your workflow previously worked, potentially due to changes in runner configurations or security policies.