Running integration tests in Github actions: issues with connecting with postgres

Question

I have some integration tests that, in order to succesfully run, require a running postgres database, setup via docker-compose, and my go app running from main.go. Here is my docker-compose:

version: "3.9"
services:

  postgres:
    image: postgres:12.5
    user: postgres
    environment:
      POSTGRES_USER: postgres
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: password
      POSTGRES_DB: my-db
    ports:
      - "5432:5432"
    volumes:
      - data:/var/lib/postgresql/data
      - ./initdb:/docker-entrypoint-initdb.d
networks:
  default:
    driver: bridge

volumes:
  data:
    driver: local

and my Github Actions are as follows:

jobs:
  unit:
    name: Test
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    services:
      postgres:
        image: postgres:12.5
        env:
          POSTGRES_USER: postgres
          POSTGRES_PASSWORD: password
          POSTGRES_DB: my-db
        ports:
          - 5432:5432
    env:
      GOMODCACHE: "${{ github.workspace }}/.go/mod/cache"
      TEST_RACE: true 
   steps:
     - name: Initiate Database
       run: psql -f initdb/init.sql postgresql://postgres:password@localhost:5432/my-db

     - name: Set up Cloud SDK
       uses: google-github-actions/setup-gcloud@v0

     - name: Authenticate with GCP
       id: auth
       uses: "google-github-actions/auth@v0"
       with: credentials_json: ${{ secrets.GCP_ACTIONS_SECRET }}

     - name: Configure Docker
       run: |
         gcloud auth configure-docker "europe- docker.pkg.dev,gcr.io,eu.gcr.io"

     - name: Set up Docker BuildX
       uses: docker/setup-buildx-action@v1

     - name: Start App
       run: |
         VERSION=latest make images
         docker run -d -p 3000:3000 -e      POSTGRES_DB_URL='//postgres:password@localhost:5432/my-db?sslmode=disable' --name='app' image/app

     - name: Tests
       env:
        POSTGRES_DB_URL: //postgres:password@localhost:5432/my-db?sslmode=disable
      GOMODCACHE: ${{ github.workspace }}/.go/pkg/mod
       run: | 
         make test-integration
         docker stop app

My tests run just fine locally firing off the docker-compose with docker-compose up and running the app from main.go. However, in Github actions I am getting the following error:

failed to connect to `host=/tmp user=nonroot database=`: dial error (dial unix /tmp/.s.PGSQL.5432: connect: no such file or directory

What am I missing? Thanks

Answer 1

I think this code has more than one problem.

Problem one: In your code I don't see you run docker-compose up, therefore I would assume that Postgres is not running.

Problem two: is in this line: docker run -d -p 3000:3000 -e POSTGRES_DB_URL='//postgres:password@localhost:5432/my-app?sslmode=disable' --name='app' image/app

You point the host of Postgres to localhost, which on your local machine works. As there localhost is your local comuter. Though, as you use docker run you are not running this on your local machine, but in a docker container. There localhost is pointing to inside the conmtainer.

Posible solution for both

As you are already using docker-compose I suggest you to also add your test web server there.

Change your docker-compose file to:

version: "3.9"
services:

  webapp:
    build: image/app
    environment:
      POSTGRES_DB_URL='//postgres:password@postgres:5432/my-app?sslmode=disable'
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"
    depends_on:
      - "postgres"

  postgres:
    image: postgres:12.5
    user: postgres
    environment:
      POSTGRES_USER: postgres
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: password
      POSTGRES_DB: my-app
    ports:
      - "5432:5432"
    volumes:
      - data:/var/lib/postgresql/data
      - ./initdb:/docker-entrypoint-initdb.d
networks:
  default:
    driver: bridge

volumes:
  data:
    driver: local

If you now run docker-compose up, both services will be available. And it should work. Though I am not a github-actions expert, so I might have missed something. At least like this, you can run your tests locally the same way as in CI, something that I always see as a big plus.