Connecting GitHub Beginner
Connect GitHub so your bot can work in it for you. This guide explains what that means, how to connect it in a few clicks, and practical things to try.
What you'll learn
- What connecting GitHub lets your bot do
- How to connect it step by step
- How to stay in control and disconnect
Before you start
- The Grok Bot app, installed and signed in. New? See where to download it and installing and signing in.
- A GitHub account you can sign in to.
1. What GitHub is and why connect it
GitHub is a site where people store and share code. A connector is a link that lets your bot work inside an app for you, instead of you clicking around yourself. Once GitHub is connected, you can just ask in plain words and your bot does the work in GitHub. New to connectors? Read What is a connector first.
2. Connect GitHub
- Open Grok Bot and click Connect apps in the sidebar. (Or just type "Connect GitHub" to your bot; it can show a Connect card right in the chat.)
- Find GitHub in the list. If you can't find it, ask your bot; which connectors appear can depend on your account.
- Click to connect. Your web browser opens GitHub's own sign-in page.
- Sign in there and read what access it asks for, then approve. Your password goes to GitHub, never into the chat.
- Come back to Grok Bot and test it with a simple request, like one of the ideas below.
3. What your bot can do with it
- You can ask it to read repositories (code projects), issues and pull requests.
- You can ask it to help with code work.
Exactly which actions are available depends on the connector's current tools. If you're not sure, ask: "What can you do with GitHub?"
4. Staying in control
A connected app is available to every bot on your account. Bots draft messages and changes for your approval, and risky actions are checked by Auto-review (see Safety and approvals). To cut access later, remove the connection on the GitHub side (GitHub Docs: reviewing authorizations) or ask your bot how to disconnect it.
Ideas to try
- Learning to code.
Explain what this repository does in plain language, file by file.
- Track your to-dos.
List the open issues in my project and group them by how hard they look.
- Review help.
Summarize the changes in my latest pull request.
- Hobby site.
Find where the homepage title is set in my website repo.
Tips
- Start with read-only requests (search, list, summarize) before asking for changes.
- If you have more than one account, tell the bot which one to use.
- If GitHub stops responding, ask your bot to check the connection. You may just need to sign in again.
Facts about the Grok Bot app come from Cursor's official Grok Bot documentation. GitHub details: GitHub Docs: reviewing authorizations. Menus and services change; if something looks different, check the official docs or ask your bot.