GitHub Docs

This repository holds the content that renders docs.github.com, GitHub's official documentation site. It's aimed at open-source contributors who want to fix a typo, clarify a confusing sentence, or improve GitHub's help articles, and at developers curious how a large-scale docs site is structured and synced across public and private repos.

The project is split between two repositories: the public docs repo (this one) and a private docs-internal repo used by GitHub employees. Changes sync frequently between the two, so a fix merged here shows up on the live site through the same pipeline GitHub staff use.

Key features

• Open content model: Markdown files under /content and select /data sections (like reusables) are open to external pull requests.
• Dual licensing: Documentation and content are licensed under CC-BY-4.0, while code (site infrastructure) is under MIT.
• Two-repo sync: A public repo for outside contributors and a private internal repo for employees, kept in sync so both feed the same live site.
• Contributor guardrails: Infrastructure files, workflows, and site-building code are excluded from external edits, which keeps the build and deploy pipeline stable.
• Structured onboarding docs: Links to GitHub's own guides on Git setup, GitHub flow, and pull request collaboration for people new to open-source contribution.
• TypeScript-based tooling: The underlying site infrastructure (not open for edits) is built in TypeScript, reflecting how the docs site itself is engineered.

Ideal use cases

Use this repo if you spot an error, outdated instruction, or unclear wording in GitHub's documentation and want to submit a fix. It's also a reasonable reference if you're building or maintaining a large multilingual documentation site and want to see how GitHub structures content, reusables, and data files.

It is not the place to report bugs in GitHub's actual product, request new features, or modify the site's build system, workflows, or infrastructure code, those changes are restricted to internal contributors. If you need to change how the site is rendered, deployed, or structured rather than the words on the page, this repo won't accept that kind of pull request.

Installation

There's no application to install here in the traditional sense. The repository is a content source that feeds a documentation site, and contribution happens through the standard GitHub pull request flow:

# Fork the repository, then clone your fork
git clone https://github.com/<your-username>/docs.git
cd docs

From there:

1. Read the contributing guide and the .github/CONTRIBUTING.md file for the quick-start summary aimed at open-source contributors.
2. Make edits only to files in /content or the permitted /data sections (like reusables).
3. Commit your changes and open a pull request against the main branch.

If you're new to Git and pull requests, GitHub's own guides on setting up Git, GitHub flow, and collaborating with pull requests cover the basics before you start editing.