---
title: GitHub
description: Connect your GitHub repositories to SurfSense
---

# GitHub Integration Setup Guide

This guide walks you through connecting your GitHub repositories to SurfSense for code search and AI-powered insights.

## How it works

The GitHub connector uses [gitingest](https://gitingest.com) to fetch and process repository contents from GitHub.

- For follow-up indexing runs, the connector retrieves the latest repository state and updates changed files.
- Indexing should be configured to run periodically, so updates should appear in your search results within minutes.

---

## What Gets Indexed

| Content Type | Examples |
|--------------|----------|
| Code Files | Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, Go, Rust, Java, etc. |
| Documentation | README files, Markdown documents, text files |
| Configuration | JSON, YAML, TOML, .env examples, Dockerfiles |

<Callout type="warn">
    Binary files and files larger than 5MB are automatically excluded.
</Callout>

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## Quick Start (Public Repos)

1. Navigate to **Connectors** → **Add Connector** → **GitHub**
2. Enter repository names: `owner/repo` (e.g., `facebook/react, vercel/next.js`)
3. Click **Connect GitHub**

No authentication required for public repositories.

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## Private Repositories

For private repos, you need a GitHub Personal Access Token (PAT).

### Generate a PAT

1. Go to [GitHub's token creation page](https://github.com/settings/tokens/new?description=surfsense&scopes=repo) (pre-filled with `repo` scope)
2. Set an expiration
3. Click **Generate token** and copy it

<Callout type="warn">
    The token starts with `ghp_`. Store it securely.
</Callout>

<Callout type="info" title="Periodic Sync">
Enable periodic sync to automatically re-index repositories when content changes. Available frequencies: Every 5 minutes, 15 minutes, hourly, every 6 hours, daily, or weekly.
</Callout>

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## Connector Configuration

| Field | Description | Required |
|-------|-------------|----------|
| **Connector Name** | A friendly name to identify this connector | Yes |
| **GitHub Personal Access Token** | Your PAT (only for private repos) | No |
| **Repository Names** | Comma-separated list: `owner/repo1, owner/repo2` | Yes |

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## Troubleshooting

**Repository not found**
- Verify format is `owner/repo`
- For private repos, ensure PAT has access

**Authentication failed**
- Check PAT is valid and not expired
- Token should start with `ghp_` or `github_pat_`

**Rate limit exceeded**
- Use a PAT for higher limits (5,000/hour vs 60 unauthenticated)
- Reduce sync frequency