Monitoring machine pools
When a GitHub Actions job targets one of your Build Hub machine pools, Bitrise provisions a machine to run it. This page covers what you can see and do while that machine is working: checking its status, viewing its logs, connecting to it remotely, and finding the right pool or machine in the first place.
On the left navigation bar, select Build Hub, then click a machine pool to open it. Each pool shows a list of its machines, and you can expand any machine row for more detail.
Machine and pool statusesClick to copy link
The pool card shows an overall status for the pool:
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Up-to-date | Every machine in the pool is running the pool's current configuration. |
| Updating... | The pool was recently reconfigured and some machines are still being replaced. |
| Unspecified | The pool's status can't be determined right now. |
Each machine in the pool's table has its own status:
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Pending... | The machine is waiting to be scheduled or started. |
| Running | The machine is running and up to date with the pool's configuration. |
| Out-of-date | The machine is still running, but the pool's configuration changed since it started. It's replaced during the pool's next rolling update. |
| Finished | The machine terminated successfully. |
| Failed | The machine terminated with a failure. |
| Unspecified | The machine's status can't be determined right now, typically because it isn't responding. |
Warmup and Main stagesClick to copy link
Every machine goes through two stages:
- Warmup: the machine installs dependencies and prepares its environment.
- Main: the machine is warmed up and doing work. This is the stage where your GitHub Actions runner actually executes your workflow's job.
The Stage column in the machine table shows which stage a machine is currently in. Expand a machine row to see a Warmup stage tab and a Main stage tab, each with its own status:
| Stage status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Pending | The stage is waiting to be scheduled or started. |
| Running | The stage is in progress. |
| Complete | The stage finished successfully. |
| Failed | The stage finished with a failure. |
| Skipped | The stage was skipped, typically because the machine was terminated during an earlier stage. |
Each stage tab also shows when it started, when it finished, and how long it took.
Viewing logsClick to copy link
Expand a machine row and open the Warmup stage or Main stage tab to see that stage's Logs section. Logs are only available once a stage has started, so this section only appears for stages in the Running, Complete, or Failed state. There's nothing to show for a stage that's still Pending or was Skipped.
Use the stdout/stderr toggle above the log output to switch between the two log streams:
- stdout: the regular progress and status messages you'd expect to see from the stage's process while it runs.
- stderr: the standard error stream. Use it for troubleshooting: it contains error messages and debug logs, which makes it easier to debug issues with a stage.
Logs stream live while the stage is running.
Checking resource usageClick to copy link
If resource-usage monitoring is enabled for your workspace, a machine's expanded row also shows a Monitoring tab with charts for CPU, memory, load average, swap, network interfaces, mount paths, and disk usage. Use the time range selector above the charts to zoom in or out.
Connecting to a machine with remote accessClick to copy link
Build Hub supports two ways to connect directly to a running machine: SSH, and screenshare over VNC for images that support it. Both give you hands-on access to the machine for troubleshooting while it's running your workflow.
While a machine is in the Main stage and hasn't terminated or failed, you can connect to it directly:
-
Expand the machine's row and open the Main stage tab.
-
Turn on the Remote access toggle.
The connection automatically stops 4 hours after you request it.
-
Once the connection is open, copy the credentials you need:
- SSH: a ready-to-use
Commandand aPassword. - Screenshare (VNC): an
Address,Username, andPassword. VNC is only available for images that support it.
- SSH: a ready-to-use
The machine table's Remote access column shows an On or Off badge so you can tell at a glance which machines currently have an open connection.
Filtering and searching machine poolsClick to copy link
On the Machine pools list page, click + Add filter to filter pools by Label: select one or more of the pool-name, image, and machine-type labels (or any custom labels you've added) to narrow down the list. Use the search box next to the filter to find a pool by name.
Within a pool's machine table, click the Machine ID, Stage, or Status column headers to sort the machines by that column.