How the .github defaults work (and why)

[zaccesss]

Why this repo exists

I keep a lot of repositories and want the same community-health files on all of them without copying and re-editing them everywhere. GitHub reads a special account-level .github repository as the default: any public repository of mine that does not carry its own copy of one of these files falls back to the version here. So I maintain one set in one place; every repo inherits it.

The canonical-home pattern

Each policy document has one canonical home, and the .github file is a short summary that links to it. This keeps a single source of truth and lets each doc live where it renders best.

Document	Canonical home	The .github file
Contributing	zaccesss/contribute and my site	short summary linking both
Code of conduct	zaccesss/code-of-conduct and my site	short summary linking both
Security policy	zaccesss/security-policy and my site	short summary linking both
Support	isaacadjei.me/contact	short pointer

Each summary carries a callout on its key line (how to report a concern, how to report a vulnerability) and my contact details, so a reader gets the essentials without leaving GitHub.

What GitHub inherits from here

For any of my repositories that lacks its own copy, GitHub falls back to these:

• CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md, CONTRIBUTING.md, SECURITY.md, SUPPORT.md (the summaries above)
• .github/FUNDING.yml (the sponsor button)
• .github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/ and .github/PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE.md

A repository that has its own version of any of these overrides the default, so my polished per-repo files (git-unlocked, phaemos, the portfolio) keep winning where they exist.

The issue and PR templates

The issue templates are structured YAML forms with validation checkboxes:

• Bug report (bug_report.yml) - what happened, steps and context, plus checks that it is not a security issue, that I have read the guides and that it is written in the reporter's own words. Hardware setups are prompted for too.
• Idea or improvement (feature_request.yml) - the problem first, then the idea.
• Typo or small fix (typo.yml) - with an invitation to just open a pull request.

config.yml turns off blank issues and routes questions to my contact page and security reports to the security repo. The pull request template carries a full checklist: focused, tested, docs updated, no secrets, written in your own words, code of conduct, security.

What does NOT inherit

GitHub only inherits the community-health files above. It does not inherit:

• CODEOWNERS
• dependabot.yml
• WORKFLOW.md (my "how I work here" doc, kept at .github/WORKFLOW.md)

Those are applied per repository instead. The canonical WORKFLOW.md template lives here at .github/WORKFLOW.md, and the /repo-ops scaffold command stamps it, along with those other non-inherited files, the canonical labels and my standard settings, into a repository on demand. Private repositories, which do not inherit the public .github at all, also get the health files this way.

Notes

• My GitHub profile page is driven by my zaccesss repository, not this one.
• Website versions of the contributing guide and the code of conduct are planned; the security policy already lives at isaacadjei.me/security-policy.
• This repo is managed, mirrored and backed up by my automation like any other.

[zaccesss]

Updated to reflect the current setup: the canonical-home pattern, the three dedicated repos, the summaries with callouts, the YAML issue forms and WORKFLOW.md at .github/WORKFLOW.md. Keeping it pinned as the durable reference, closed like my other how-it-works issues.