> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.tempinbox.dev/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# CI Pipeline

> Use TempInbox in GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, and other CI environments for automated email verification testing.

## GitHub Actions

Use the TempInbox API directly from shell steps or JavaScript test runners.

### Shell (cURL)

```yaml .github/workflows/e2e.yml theme={null}
name: E2E Tests

on: [push, pull_request]

jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - name: Create temp email inbox
        id: inbox
        run: |
          RESPONSE=$(curl -s -X POST https://tempinbox.dev/api/new_address \
            -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
            -d '{}')
          echo "address=$(echo $RESPONSE | jq -r .address)" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
          echo "jwt=$(echo $RESPONSE | jq -r .jwt)" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT

      - name: Run signup flow
        env:
          TEST_EMAIL: ${{ steps.inbox.outputs.address }}
        run: npm run test:e2e

      - name: Wait for verification email and extract OTP
        id: otp
        env:
          JWT: ${{ steps.inbox.outputs.jwt }}
        run: |
          for i in $(seq 1 15); do
            MAIL=$(curl -s "https://tempinbox.dev/api/mails?limit=1&offset=0" \
              -H "Authorization: Bearer $JWT")
            COUNT=$(echo $MAIL | jq '.count')
            if [ "$COUNT" -gt "0" ]; then
              UUID=$(echo $MAIL | jq -r '.results[0].uuid')
              RAW=$(curl -s "https://tempinbox.dev/api/mail/$UUID" \
                -H "Authorization: Bearer $JWT" | jq -r '.raw')
              OTP=$(echo "$RAW" | grep -oP '\b\d{6}\b' | head -1)
              echo "otp=$OTP" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
              exit 0
            fi
            sleep 3
          done
          echo "No email received" && exit 1

      - name: Submit OTP
        env:
          OTP: ${{ steps.otp.outputs.otp }}
        run: npm run test:verify -- --otp=$OTP
```

### Node.js test runner

```yaml .github/workflows/playwright.yml theme={null}
name: Playwright E2E

on: [push]

jobs:
  playwright:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with:
          node-version: '20'

      - run: npm ci
      - run: npx playwright install --with-deps chromium

      - name: Run Playwright tests
        run: npx playwright test
        env:
          # Tests create their own inboxes via the API — no env var needed
          BASE_URL: https://your-staging.example.com
```

***

## GitLab CI

```yaml .gitlab-ci.yml theme={null}
e2e-tests:
  stage: test
  image: node:20
  script:
    - npm ci
    - npx playwright install --with-deps chromium
    - npx playwright test
  variables:
    BASE_URL: "https://your-staging.example.com"
```

***

## Environment variable pattern

For test frameworks that need the address upfront (before the test runner starts):

```bash theme={null}
# generate_inbox.sh — run before test suite
#!/bin/bash
RESPONSE=$(curl -s -X POST https://tempinbox.dev/api/new_address \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{}')
export TEST_EMAIL=$(echo $RESPONSE | jq -r .address)
export TEST_EMAIL_JWT=$(echo $RESPONSE | jq -r .jwt)
echo "TEST_EMAIL=$TEST_EMAIL"
echo "TEST_EMAIL_JWT=$TEST_EMAIL_JWT"
```

```yaml github-actions step theme={null}
- name: Set test inbox
  run: |
    source ./generate_inbox.sh
    echo "TEST_EMAIL=$TEST_EMAIL" >> $GITHUB_ENV
    echo "TEST_EMAIL_JWT=$TEST_EMAIL_JWT" >> $GITHUB_ENV
```

***

## Rate limit considerations

In CI with many parallel jobs:

* Each job should create its own inbox (parallel-safe by design)
* Add 2–3 second delays between poll attempts
* Use a timeout of 60 seconds for staging SMTP (external delivery is slower)
* Do not share inboxes across jobs — race conditions will cause flaky tests

***

## Secrets

The TempInbox API requires **no API key** for the public instance. No secrets to manage in CI.

For self-hosted instances with `PASSWORDS` set, add the password as a CI secret:

```yaml theme={null}
env:
  TEMP_EMAIL_AUTH: ${{ secrets.TEMP_EMAIL_PASSWORD }}

# Pass as header:
curl -H "x-custom-auth: $TEMP_EMAIL_AUTH" ...
```

***

## Related reading

* [Temp Email for Developers: API, CI, Testing](https://tempinbox.dev/blog/temp-email-for-developers) — the full developer workflow overview
* [Temporary Email for Deliverability Testing](https://tempinbox.dev/blog/temp-email-deliverability-testing) — testing what CI can't catch
* [Playwright guide](/guides/playwright) — the test-runner side of these pipelines