Import your projects from GitHub to GitLab with minimal effort.
## Overview
>**Note:**
If you are an administrator you can enable the [GitHub integration][gh-import]
in your GitLab instance sitewide. This configuration is optional, users will
still be able to import their GitHub repositories with a
[personal access token][gh-token].
>**Note:**
Administrators of a GitLab instance (Community or Enterprise Edition) can also
use the [GitHub rake task][gh-rake] to import projects from GitHub without the
constrains of a Sidekiq worker.
- At its current state, GitHub importer can import:
- the repository description (GitLab 7.7+)
- the Git repository data (GitLab 7.7+)
- the issues (GitLab 7.7+)
- the pull requests (GitLab 8.4+)
- the wiki pages (GitLab 8.4+)
- the milestones (GitLab 8.7+)
- the labels (GitLab 8.7+)
- the release note descriptions (GitLab 8.12+)
- the pull request review comments (GitLab 10.2+)
- the regular issue and pull request comments
- References to pull requests and issues are preserved (GitLab 8.7+)
- Repository public access is retained. If a repository is private in GitHub
it will be created as private in GitLab as well.
Using the importer, you can import your GitHub repositories to GitLab.com or to your self-hosted GitLab instance.
## How it works
>**Note:** While these instructions will always work for users on gitlab.com, if you are an administrator of a self-hosted GitLab instance, you will need to enable the [GitHub integration](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/integration/github.html) in order for users to follow the preferred import method described on this page. If this is not enabled, users can alternatively import their GitHub repositories using a [personal access token](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/user/project/import/github.html#authorize-access-to-your-repositories-using-a-personal-access-token) from GitHub, but this method will not be able to associate all user activity (such as issues and pull requests) with matching GitLab users.
When issues/pull requests are being imported, the GitHub importer tries to find
the GitHub author/assignee in GitLab's database using the GitHub ID. For this
to work, the GitHub author/assignee should have signed in beforehand in GitLab
and **associated their GitHub account**. If the user is not
found in GitLab's database, the project creator (most of the times the current
user that started the import process) is set as the author, but a reference on
the issue about the original GitHub author is kept.
>As an administrator of a self-hosted GitLab instance, you can also use the [GitHub rake task](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/raketasks/github_import.html) to import projects from GitHub without the constraints of a Sidekiq worker.
The importer will create any new namespaces (groups) if they don't exist or in
the case the namespace is taken, the repository will be imported under the user's
namespace that started the import process.
* The following aspects of a project are imported:
* References to pull requests and issues are preserved (GitLab.com & 8.7+)
* Each imported repository defaults to ‘private’ but can be made public, as needed.
The importer will also import branches on forks of projects related to open pull
requests. These branches will be imported with a naming scheme similar to
GH-SHA-Username/Pull-Request-number/fork-name/branch. This may lead to a discrepancy
in branches compared to the GitHub Repository.
## How it works
For a more technical description and an overview of the architecture you can
refer to [Working with the GitHub importer][gh-import-dev-docs].
When issues and pull requests are being imported, the importer attempts to find their GitHub authors and assignees in the database of the GitLab instance. (Note that pull requests are called "merge requests" in GitLab.)
## Importing your GitHub repositories
For this association to succeed, prior to the import, each GitHub author and assignee in the repository must have either previously logged in to a GitLab account using the GitHub icon **or** have a GitHub account with a [public email address](https://help.github.com/articles/setting-your-commit-email-address-on-github/) that matches their GitLab account’s email address.
The importer page is visible when you create a new project.
If a user referenced in the project is not found in GitLab's database, the project creator (typically the user that initiated the import process) is set as the author/assignee, but a note on the issue mentioning the original GitHub author is added.
The importer creates any new namespaces (groups) if they do not exist, or, if the namespace is taken, the repository is imported under the namespace of the user who initiated the import process. The namespace/repository name can also be edited, with the proper permissions.
Click on the **GitHub** link and the import authorization process will start.
There are two ways to authorize access to your GitHub repositories:
The importer will also import branches on forks of projects related to open pull requests. These branches will be imported with a naming scheme similar to GH-`SHA-Username/Pull-Request-number/fork-name/branch`. This may lead to a discrepancy in branches compared to those of the GitHub repository.
1.[Using the GitHub integration][gh-integration] (if it's enabled by your
GitLab administrator). This is the preferred way as it's possible to
preserve the GitHub authors/assignees. Read more in the [How it works](#how-it-works)
section.
1.[Using a personal access token][gh-token] provided by GitHub.
For additional technical details, you can refer to the [GitHub Importer][gh-import-dev-docs] developer documentation.
### Authorize access to your repositories using the GitHub integration
### Use the GitHub integration
If the [GitHub integration][gh-import] is enabled by your GitLab administrator,
you can use it instead of the personal access token.
Before you begin, ensure that any GitHub users who you want to map to GitLab users have either:
1. A GitLab account that has logged in using the GitHub icon.
\- or -
2. A GitLab account with an email address that matches the [public email address](https://help.github.com/articles/setting-your-commit-email-address-on-github/) of the GitHub user.
1. First you may want to connect your GitHub account to GitLab in order for
the username mapping to be correct.
1. Once you connect GitHub, click the **List your GitHub repositories** button
and you will be redirected to GitHub for permission to access your projects.
1. After accepting, you'll be automatically redirected to the importer.
User-matching attempts occur in that order, and if a user is not identified either way, the activity is associated with the user account that is performing the import.
You can now go on and [select which repositories to import](#select-which-repositories-to-import).
Note: If you are using a self-hosted GitLab instance, this process requires that you have configured the [GitHub integration][gh-import].
### Authorize access to your repositories using a personal access token
1. From the top navigation bar, click **+** and select **New Project**.
2. Select the **Import project** tab and then select **GitHub**.
3. Select the first button to **List your GitHub repositories**. You are redirected to a page on github.com to authorize the GitLab application.
4. Click **Authorize gitlabhq**. You are redirected back to GitLab’s Import page and all of your GitHub repositories are listed.
5. Continue on to [select which repositories to import](#select-which-repositories-to-import).
>**Note:**
For a proper author/assignee mapping for issues and pull requests, the
[GitHub integration][gh-integration] should be used instead of the
[personal access token][gh-token]. If the GitHub integration is enabled by your
GitLab administrator, it should be the preferred method to import your repositories.
Read more in the [How it works](#how-it-works) section.
### Use a GitHub token
If you are not using the GitHub integration, you can still perform a one-off
authorization with GitHub to grant GitLab access your repositories:
>**Note:** For a proper author/assignee mapping for issues and pull requests, the GitHub integration method (above) should be used instead of the personal access token. If you are using gitlab.com or a self-hosted GitLab instance with the GitHub integration enabled, that should be the preferred method to import your repositories. Read more in the [How it works](#how-it-works) section.
1. Go to <https://github.com/settings/tokens/new>.
1. Enter a token description.
1. Check the `repo` scope.
1. Click **Generate token**.
1. Copy the token hash.
1. Go back to GitLab and provide the token to the GitHub importer.
1. Hit the **List Your GitHub Repositories** button and wait while GitLab reads
your repositories' information. Once done, you'll be taken to the importer
page to select the repositories to import.
If you are not using the GitHub integration, you can still perform an authorization with GitHub to grant GitLab access your repositories:
### Select which repositories to import
1. Go to [https://github.com/settings/tokens/new](https://github.com/settings/tokens/new).
2. Enter a token description.
3. Select the repo scope.
4. Click **Generate token**.
5. Copy the token hash.
6. Go back to GitLab and provide the token to the GitHub importer.
7. Hit the **List Your GitHub Repositories** button and wait while GitLab reads your repositories' information. Once done, you'll be taken to the importer page to select the repositories to import.
After you've authorized access to your GitHub repositories, you will be
redirected to the GitHub importer page.
### Select which repositories to import
From there, you can see the import statuses of your GitHub repositories.
After you have authorized access to your GitHub repositories, you are redirected to the GitHub importer page and your GitHub repositories are listed.
- Those that are being imported will show a _started_ status,
- those already successfully imported will be green with a _done_ status,
- whereas those that are not yet imported will have an **Import** button on the
right side of the table.
1. By default, the proposed repository namespaces match the names as they exist in GitHub, but based on your permissions, you can choose to edit these names before you proceed to import any of them.
2. Select the **Import** button next to any number of repositories, or select **Import all repositories**.
3. The **Status** column shows the import status of each repository. You can choose to leave the page open and it will update in realtime or you can return to it later.
4. Once a repository has been imported, click its GitLab path to open its GitLab URL.
If you want, you can import all your GitHub projects in one go by hitting
Depending your GitLab tier, [project mirroring](../../../workflow/repository_mirroring.md) can be set up to keep your imported project in sync with its GitHub copy.
---
Additionally you can configure GitLab to send pipeline status updates back GitHub with the [GitHub Project Integration](../integrations/github.md).
You can also choose a different name for the project and a different namespace,
if you have the privileges to do so.
If you import your project using [CI/CD for external repo](../../../ci/ci_cd_for_external_repos/) then both of the above are automatically configured.
## Making the import process go faster
## Improving the speed of imports on self-hosted instances
For large projects it may take a while to import all data. To reduce the time
necessary you can increase the number of Sidekiq workers that process the
following queues:
For large projects it may take a while to import all data. To reduce the time necessary you can increase the number of Sidekiq workers that process the following queues:
*`github_importer`
*`github_importer_advance_stage`
For an optimal experience we recommend having at least 4 Sidekiq processes (each
running a number of threads equal to the number of CPU cores) that _only_
process these queues. We also recommend that these processes run on separate
servers. For 4 servers with 8 cores this means you can import up to 32 objects
(e.g. issues) in parallel.
For an optimal experience we recommend having at least 4 Sidekiq processes (each running a number of threads equal to the number of CPU cores) that *only* process these queues. We also recommend that these processes run on separate servers. For 4 servers with 8 cores this means you can import up to 32 objects (e.g. issues) in parallel.
Reducing the time spent in cloning a repository can be done by increasing
network throughput, CPU capacity, and disk performance (e.g. by using high
performance SSDs) of the disks that store the Git repositories (for your GitLab
instance). Increasing the number of Sidekiq workers will _not_ reduce the time
spent cloning repositories.
Reducing the time spent in cloning a repository can be done by increasing network throughput, CPU capacity, and disk performance (e.g. by using high performance SSDs) of the disks that store the Git repositories (for your GitLab instance). Increasing the number of Sidekiq workers will *not* reduce the time spent cloning repositories.
