GitHub releases a trial version of GitHub Enterprise Server 3.3. The changes strengthen functionality — particularly for security and CI/CD.
GitHub Enterprise Server is an instance of Microsoft’s code hosting platform that can be deployed as a virtual appliance in both on-premises and cloud environments. This allows developers to always have access to the latest code applications without having to retrieve them from elsewhere on the GitHub platform.
Security applications
On the security front, the 3.3 trial version of GitHub Enterprise Server now features a security administrator role. This role allows security specialists to manage alerts and adjust settings company-wide. It also gives them read access to all (code) repositories within the company. A special security tab was added for this purpose and the possibility of adjusting the security settings at a company- and repository-wide level.
In addition, for security purposes, the option to set an expiration date for personal access tokens makes an appearance. When the date expires, users of the tool have to request a new access token by e-mail. Administrators can then easily re-generate the token with the same properties as the original. When personal access tokens are used with the GitHub API, a new GitHub-Authentication-Token-Expiration header is now automatically added to the response. This header indicates the expiration date of the token.
Also, CodeQL, as part of GitHub Advanced Security, now supports more libraries and frameworks. For example, CodeQL can discover additional, potential sources of untrusted user data, the movement of said data within the process and potentially dangerous collection points where the data may end up.
CI/CD functionality.
For CI/CD, GitHub Enterprise Server now has more capabilities for running each job in a clean environment. This includes support for ‘single job runners’. Also, a new webhook is introduced for GitHub Actions: the workflow_job webhook, which makes it easier to register and unregister runners and scale them automatically.
Lastly, the look and feel of GitHub Enterprise Server underwent minor changes. The tool now features a high contrast dark theme, tweaking the visuals of the previously introduced dark mode.
GitHub Enterprise Server v3.3. is available for download now.
10 hours ago
