[Bug] Step 0 workflow fails with Startup failure — exercise never initializes

[Moussax1]

When creating a new repository from the skills/code-with-codespaces template, the 0-start-exercise.yml (Step 0) workflow fails with "Startup failure" and "No jobs were run". The exercise never initializes — no issue is created and Step 1 is never enabled.

To Reproduce

1. Click "Copy exercise" to create a new repo from skills/code-with-codespaces
2. Wait for the initial push to trigger the workflow
3. Go to the Actions tab

Expected behavior
The 0-start-exercise.yml workflow runs successfully, creates the exercise issue, posts step content, and enables Step 1.

Actual behavior
The workflow fails at startup:

• Status: Startup failure
• Message: "No jobs were run"
• Error: "An unexpected error has occurred and we've been automatically notified. Errors are sometimes temporary, so please try again..."

Additional context
The start_exercise job has the condition if: !github.event.repository.is_template which may not evaluate correctly during the initial push from template creation. The job also calls the reusable workflow skills/exercise-toolkit/.github/workflows/start-exercise.yml@v0.8.1.

Commit SHA: e91edcb
Request ID from the error: 85D9:3F6B1F:809CE3B:6902DFD:6A3A899A

Expected behavior
The 0-start-exercise.yml workflow runs successfully, creates the exercise issue, posts step content, and enables Step 1.

Actual behavior
The workflow fails at startup:

• Status: Startup failure
• Message: "No jobs were run"
• Error: "An unexpected error has occurred and we've been automatically notified. Errors are sometimes temporary, so please try again..."

Additional context
The start_exercise job has the condition if: !github.event.repository.is_template which may not evaluate correctly during the initial push from template creation. The job also calls the reusable workflow skills/exercise-toolkit/.github/workflows/start-exercise.yml@v0.8.1.

Commit SHA: e91edcb
Request ID from the error: 85D9:3F6B1F:809CE3B:6902DFD:6A3A899A

[chriswblake]

@Moussax1, I just tried it on a demo account and it seemed to start fine. I think this was a temporary issue with Actions workflows. Can you please give it another try?

If I don't hear back in a few days, I will close and assume no news is good news.

[chriswblake]

@Moussax1, you can also manually trigger the initial workflow by making any commit to the main branch. For example, edit the readme and add a space somewhere.

[Moussax1]

Thanks @chriswblake ! The second suggestion — making a manual commit to main by editing the README — worked for me. The workflow started successfully after that. Appreciate the help!

[chhivahem-prog]

When creating a new repository from the skills/code-with-codespaces template, the 0-start-exercise.yml (Step 0) workflow fails with "Startup failure" and "No jobs were run". The exercise never initializes — no issue is created and Step 1 is never enabled.

To Reproduce

1. Click "Copy exercise" to create a new repo from skills/code-with-codespaces
2. Wait for the initial push to trigger the workflow
3. Go to the Actions tab

Expected behavior
The 0-start-exercise.yml workflow runs successfully, creates the exercise issue, posts step content, and enables Step 1.

Actual behavior
The workflow fails at startup:

• Status: Startup failure
• Message: "No jobs were run"
• Error: "An unexpected error has occurred and we've been automatically notified. Errors are sometimes temporary, so please try again..."

Additional context
The start_exercise job has the condition if: !github.event.repository.is_template which may not evaluate correctly during the initial push from template creation. The job also calls the reusable workflow skills/exercise-toolkit/.github/workflows/start-exercise.yml@v0.8.1.

Commit SHA: e91edcb
Request ID from the error: 85D9:3F6B1F:809CE3B:6902DFD:6A3A899A

Expected behavior
The 0-start-exercise.yml workflow runs successfully, creates the exercise issue, posts step content, and enables Step 1.

Actual behavior
The workflow fails at startup:

• Status: Startup failure
• Message: "No jobs were run"
• Error: "An unexpected error has occurred and we've been automatically notified. Errors are sometimes temporary, so please try again..."

Additional context
The start_exercise job has the condition if: !github.event.repository.is_template which may not evaluate correctly during the initial push from template creation. The job also calls the reusable workflow skills/exercise-toolkit/.github/workflows/start-exercise.yml@v0.8.1.

Commit SHA: e91edcb
Request ID from the error: 85D9:3F6B1F:809CE3B:6902DFD:6A3A899A

Kelly