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Clarify .dockerignore usage in README #1341

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Clarify .dockerignore usage in README #1341

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b515073
Clarify .dockerignore in README
npwolf Mar 27, 2025
67fd940
Further .dockerignore clarification
npwolf Mar 28, 2025
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13 changes: 7 additions & 6 deletions README.md
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Expand Up @@ -80,12 +80,13 @@ jobs:
tags: user/app:latest
```

Be careful because **any file mutation in the steps that precede the build step
will be ignored, including processing of the `.dockerignore` file** since
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I think this is already self-explanatory that .dockerignore is ignored with Git context here. We also say that Path context should be used in next sentence if you don't want this behavior.

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@crazy-max I personally thought the text was saying file mutations in general and file mutations of the .dockerignore file specifically weren't supported with git context (not that .dockerignore wasn't supported at all in git context). I've updated this with another revision to try to improve the clarity for others. Let me know if I can improve it further. If you don't feel it warrants an update, feel free to close the PR. Thanks!

the context is based on the Git reference. However, you can use the
[Path context](#path-context) using the [`context` input](#inputs) alongside
the [`actions/checkout`](https://github.com/actions/checkout/) action to remove
this restriction.
**Important Considerations for Git Context**

* **File Mutations** perfomred during your workflow will **not** be reflected in the final Docker image.

* **.dockerignore** is ignored altogether when using git context.

You can remove these limitations by using the [path context](#path-context) input alongside the [`actions/checkout`](https://github.com/actions/checkout/) action.

Default Git context can also be provided using the [Handlebars template](https://handlebarsjs.com/guide/)
expression `{{defaultContext}}`. Here we can use it to provide a subdirectory
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