[TT-17477] Add distros matrix GitHub action

[konrad-sol]

Add distro-matrix action under .github/actions/tests/distro-matrix. It outputs the deb and rpm JSON arrays used by upgrade smoke tests. Unlike test-controller, it takes no inputs — the distro list does not vary by repo, branch, or trigger, so it is hardcoded directly in the action

[probelabs]

This pull request introduces a new, self-contained GitHub Action, distro-matrix, designed to centralize the list of Linux distributions used for testing.

Files Changed Analysis

• .github/actions/tests/distro-matrix/action.yaml (new): A new composite action that provides hardcoded JSON arrays of deb (Debian, Ubuntu) and rpm (Amazon Linux, Red Hat) based Linux distributions. This creates a single, reusable source of truth for test matrices.
• .github/actions/tests/env-up/action.yaml (modified): A minor cosmetic change, removing a single blank line.

Architecture & Impact Assessment

• What this PR accomplishes: It introduces a reusable GitHub Action to provide a standardized list of Linux distributions for automated testing. This centralizes configuration, preventing divergence and simplifying maintenance for any workflow that needs to run jobs across different Linux versions.

• Key technical changes introduced: A new composite GitHub Action (distro-matrix) is created. It uses a simple inline shell script to define two outputs (deb and rpm) containing JSON arrays of container image names. The action is self-contained and requires no inputs.

• Affected system components: This change primarily affects the CI/CD pipeline. Other GitHub Actions and workflows, particularly those related to upgrade and smoke tests as mentioned in the description, can now consume this action to build their test matrices. The impact is confined to the CI system and does not affect production code.

• Component Interaction:

graph TD
A[Consumer Workflow e.g., Upgrade/Smoke Tests] -- uses --> B[distro-matrix Action];
B -- outputs --> C{""deb: ["distro1", ...]"uot;, ...]"}
B -- outputs --> D{rpm: ["distroA", ...]}
A -- builds matrix from --> C;
A -- builds matrix from --> D;

## Scope Discovery & Context Expansion

The immediate scope is the creation of this reusable CI component. The PR description explicitly states its purpose is for "upgrade smoke tests." This implies that the next step would be to refactor existing test workflows to use this new action, thereby removing any hardcoded distribution lists they might currently contain.

This action establishes a pattern for centralizing configuration within the CI system. While it currently only provides Linux distribution lists, this approach could be expanded for other shared test configurations, such as cloud provider regions, database versions, or other matrix-based testing parameters.


<details>
  <summary>Metadata</summary>

  - Review Effort: 1 / 5
  - Primary Label: feature


</details>
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*Last updated: 2026-06-10T18:43:25.960Z | Triggered by: pr_updated | Commit: ff48ab3*

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[probelabs]

Security Issues (1)

Severity	Location	Issue
🟡 Warning	.github/actions/tests/distro-matrix/action.yaml:19	The list of distributions for testing includes operating systems that are past their standard End-of-Life (EOL) date, such as `ubuntu:xenial` (standard support ended April 2021) and `ubuntu:bionic` (standard support ended April 2023). Using EOL software can pose a security risk as it no longer receives security updates. 💡 Suggestion Review the list of distributions to ensure that testing on EOL versions is strictly necessary for backward compatibility. If so, consider replacing them with Extended Security Maintenance (ESM) versions if available, or add a comment acknowledging the risk and justifying their use. For example, replace `ubuntu:xenial` with a more recent LTS version unless testing upgrades from that specific version is a requirement.

Security Issues (1)

Severity	Location	Issue
🟡 Warning	.github/actions/tests/distro-matrix/action.yaml:19	The list of distributions for testing includes operating systems that are past their standard End-of-Life (EOL) date, such as `ubuntu:xenial` (standard support ended April 2021) and `ubuntu:bionic` (standard support ended April 2023). Using EOL software can pose a security risk as it no longer receives security updates. 💡 Suggestion Review the list of distributions to ensure that testing on EOL versions is strictly necessary for backward compatibility. If so, consider replacing them with Extended Security Maintenance (ESM) versions if available, or add a comment acknowledging the risk and justifying their use. For example, replace `ubuntu:xenial` with a more recent LTS version unless testing upgrades from that specific version is a requirement.

\n\n ### Architecture Issues (1)

Severity	Location	Issue
🟡 Warning	.github/actions/tests/distro-matrix/action.yaml:17-23	The use of heredoc syntax (`<<EOF`) for setting the `deb` and `rpm` outputs is unnecessary as the JSON arrays are single-line strings. This makes the script more verbose and complex than required. 💡 Suggestion Simplify the script by setting the outputs using direct, single-line `echo` commands. This improves readability and maintainability. 🔧 Suggested Fix run: | echo 'deb=["ubuntu:xenial","debian:bullseye","ubuntu:bionic","ubuntu:focal","ubuntu:jammy","debian:bookworm","debian:trixie"]' >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT echo 'rpm=["amazonlinux:2","registry.access.redhat.com/ubi8/ubi","amazonlinux:2023","registry.access.redhat.com/ubi9/ubi"]' >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT

✅ Performance Check Passed

No performance issues found – changes LGTM.

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Last updated: 2026-06-10T18:43:06.380Z | Triggered by: pr_updated | Commit: ff48ab3

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[github-actions]

❌ Downstream test results — TykTechnologies/tyk-analytics

Tested against commit 82e32071 on temp branch ga-pr-136 (now deleted).

Workflow	Run	Result
release.yml	27285208515	⏱️ timed_out
nightly-e2e-tests.yml	27285216280	❌ failure