After encountering some issues with my GitHub Pages site not updating properly, I decided to document the steps I took to resolve the problem. This post serves as a guide for anyone facing similar challenges.

The Problem

When I pushed updates to my GitHub repository, the public site did not reflect the changes. Despite the GitHub Actions workflow running without errors, the site remained outdated. After some investigation, I identified two main issues:

  1. Platform Mismatch: The Gemfile.lock file did not include the x86_64-linux platform required by the GitHub Actions runner.
  2. Ruby Version Incompatibility: The activesupport-8.0.2 gem required Ruby version >= 3.2.0, but the workflow was using Ruby 3.1.6.

The Solution

Here are the steps I followed to fix the issues and get the site updates working again:

Step 1: Add the Required Platform

The first step was to add the x86_64-linux platform to the Gemfile.lock file. I ran the following command locally:

bundle lock --add-platform x86_64-linux

This ensured that the lockfile included the necessary platform for the GitHub Actions runner.

Step 2: Update the Ruby Version in the Workflow

Next, I updated the Ruby version in the GitHub Actions workflow to 3.2.0 to meet the requirements of the activesupport-8.0.2 gem. Here’s the updated section of the workflow file:

- name: Setup Ruby
  uses: ruby/setup-ruby@v1
  with:
    ruby-version: '3.2'
    bundler-cache: true

Step 3: Normalize Platforms in the Lockfile

To ensure compatibility across different environments, I normalized the platforms in the Gemfile.lock file by running:

bundle lock --normalize-platforms

This step removed any discrepancies and ensured the lockfile was consistent.

Step 4: Commit and Push Changes

After making these changes, I committed the updated Gemfile.lock and workflow file to the repository:

git add Gemfile.lock .github/workflows/jekyll.yml
git commit -m "Fix platform and Ruby version issues"
git push

Step 5: Re-run the Workflow

Finally, I triggered the GitHub Actions workflow again. This time, the build and deployment completed successfully, and the site updates were reflected on the public site.

Lessons Learned

  1. Keep Dependencies Updated: Regularly update your gems and ensure compatibility with the latest Ruby versions.
  2. Test Locally: Always test your changes locally before pushing them to the repository.
  3. Read Error Messages Carefully: The error messages provided by GitHub Actions were instrumental in diagnosing the issues.

Conclusion

By following these steps, I was able to resolve the issues and get my site updates working again. If you’re facing similar problems, I hope this guide helps you troubleshoot and fix them efficiently.