Connecting your enterprise account to GitHub Enterprise Cloud

About GitHub Connect

To enable GitHub Connect, you must configure the connection in both your GitHub Enterprise Server instance and in your GitHub Enterprise Cloud organization or enterprise account.

To configure a connection, your proxy configuration must allow connectivity to github.com and api.github.com. For more information, see "Configuring an outbound web proxy server."

After enabling GitHub Connect, you will be able to enable features such as unified search and unified contributions. For more information about all of the features available, see "Managing connections between your enterprise accounts."

When you connect your GitHub Enterprise Server instance to GitHub Enterprise Cloud, a record on GitHub.com stores information about the connection:

• The public key portion of your GitHub Enterprise Server license
• A hash of your GitHub Enterprise Server license
• The customer name on your GitHub Enterprise Server license
• The version of your GitHub Enterprise Server instance
• The hostname of your GitHub Enterprise Server instance
• The organization or enterprise account on GitHub.com that's connected to your GitHub Enterprise Server instance
• The authentication token that's used by your GitHub Enterprise Server instance to make requests to GitHub.com

Enabling GitHub Connect also creates a GitHub App owned by your GitHub Enterprise Cloud organization or enterprise account. GitHub Enterprise Server uses the GitHub App's credentials to make requests to GitHub.com.

GitHub Enterprise Server stores credentials from the GitHub App. These credentials will be replicated to any high availability or clustering environments, and stored in any backups, including snapshots created by GitHub Enterprise Server Backup Utilities.

• An authentication token, which is valid for one hour
• A private key, which is used to generate a new authentication token

Enabling GitHub Connect will not allow GitHub.com users to make changes to GitHub Enterprise Server.

For more information about managing enterprise accounts using the GraphQL API, see "Enterprise accounts."

Enabling GitHub Connect

1. Sign in to your GitHub Enterprise Server instance and GitHub.com.

2. In the top-right corner of GitHub Enterprise Server, click your profile photo, then click Enterprise settings.

3. In the enterprise account sidebar, click Settings.

4. In the left sidebar, click GitHub Connect.

5. Under "GitHub Connect is not enabled yet", click Enable GitHub Connect. By clicking Enable GitHub Connect, you agree to the "GitHub Terms for Additional Products and Features."

   

6. Next to the enterprise account or organization you'd like to connect, click Connect.

Disconnecting a GitHub Enterprise Cloud organization or enterprise account from your enterprise account

When you disconnect from GitHub Enterprise Cloud, the GitHub Connect GitHub App is deleted from your enterprise account or organization and credentials stored on your GitHub Enterprise Server instance are deleted.

1. In the top-right corner of GitHub Enterprise Server, click your profile photo, then click Enterprise settings.

2. In the enterprise account sidebar, click Settings.

3. In the left sidebar, click GitHub Connect.

4. Next to the enterprise account or organization you'd like to disconnect, click Disable GitHub Connect.

   

5. Read the information about disconnecting and click Disable GitHub Connect.