How to create a GitHub / GitLab runner on Apple silicon

Reviewed on December 05, 2025

You can install your Mac mini with a pre-installed runner for GitHub or GitLab thanks to Scaleway's Dev OS.

Important

If you wish to switch from Runner mode to Standard mode (or vice versa), you must delete you current Mac mini and place a new order with the desired configuration. Mode changes cannot be performed in-place.

Before you start

To complete the actions presented below, you must have:

A Scaleway account logged into the console
Owner status or IAM permissions allowing you to perform actions in the intended Organization
An SSH key

Important

Due to license constraints, the minimum lease for Apple silicon is 24 hours. As a result, the earliest you can delete a Mac mini is 24 hours after the start of its lease.

Creating a runner

Click Apple silicon in the Bare Metal section of the side menu. The Apple silicon splash page displays.
Note
Should your account already contain Mac minis, a list of these will be displayed rather than the Apple silicon splash page. Alongside, you will see a (+ Create Mac mini) button, which you can click to create a new Mac mini.
Click Create Mac mini. The Mac mini creation wizard displays.
Complete the following steps in the wizard:
- Choose the Pre-installed runner setup type for your Mac mini.
- Choose an Availability Zone, which is the geographical region where your Mac mini will be deployed. The available Mac mini configurations depend on the Availability Zone:
- Mac mini M4, M2 pro, and M2 are available in PARIS 1
  Note
  Dev OS is *not compatible with with M1 Mac minis and machines equipped with less than 512 GB of storage.
- Choose a Dev OS version.
- Tick the checkbox to accept the Dev OS license agreement.
- Choose and configure your runner.
  - GitHub: Enter your repository URL, registration token, and a runner name.
  - GitLab: Enter your Instance URL, runner token, and a runner name.
    Tip
    
    Credentials are validated during runner installation. If incorrect credentials are provided, the runner will still be created but will be non-functional. You will be able to update your credentials post-installation.
    
    GitHub tokens have a limited validity of one hour. If your token has expired it will not be possible to register your runner. You have to retrieve a new token.
- Enter a Name for your Mac mini, or leave the randomly-generated name in place.
- Verify the Estimated cost for your Mac mini based on your chosen specifications.
- Select the commitment plan for your Mac mini. Two options are available:
  - No commitment: You can terminate the subscription of your Mac mini at any time after the initial 24 hours, a mandatory period required by Apple's software license. Learn more about Apple's software license requirements (Section 3.A) (PDF).
  - Commitment: You subscribe to a commitment plan for Apple silicon and benefit from a discounted monthly price based on your choice.
    Important
    Currently, it is not possible to switch from a monthly commitment to hourly billing.
Tick the checkbox to agree to the Bare Metal specific conditions and the macOS License Agreement.
Click Create Mac mini to finish. The installation of your Apple silicon is launched, and you are informed when it is ready.

Retrieving your GitHub token

You can retrieve the required registration token to configure your self-hosted runner from your GitHub repository.

Open your GitHub repository in a web browser.
Click Settings to view the settings tab.
In the Actions section of the sidebar, click Runners to display all runners configured for this project.
Click New self-hosted runner to view the setup instructions.
Retrieve the token from the command in the Configure section of the instructions. For example, if the command appears as:
```
$ ./config.sh --url https://github.com/my-user/my-github-repository/ --token 123456789abcdef123456789abcdef123456789a
```
The token is the value after --token, like: 123456789abcdef123456789abcdef123456789a.

Tip
The registration token is single-use and expires one hour after generation. Do not share it or publish it publically.

Updating a runner

Click Apple silicon in the Bare Metal section of the side menu. The Apple silicon splash page displays.
Select the machine you want to update. The runner information overview displays.
Open the Settings tab.
Click Edit in the Runner information section of the page. A pop-up displays.

Tip

GitHub tokens have a limited validity of one hour. If your token has expired it will not be possible to register your runner. You have to retrieve a new token.

Update your runner credentials and click Save and reboot. Your runner configuration will be updated and the runner performs a reboot to take the new configuration into effect.

Tip

Runners relies on dev OS releases & are not kept up to date automatically. Once the runner is delivered you are responsible for keeping the preinstalled software up to date. In order to simplify maintenant of your runner fleet, we recommend personalizing your runners using CICD jobs. This way you can easily dispose of existing runners running outdated versions & replace them with new ones

Reinstalling a runner

Reinstalling a server delivered in Dev OS mode is not possible due to the lengthy installation process required for the full Dev OS stack. You have to delete the runner and create a new one.

Deleting a runner

You can delete a runner like any Mac mini. Refer to How to delete a Mac mini for further information.

Note

Mac mini and macOS are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries and regions. IOS is a trademark or registered trademark of Cisco in the U.S. and other countries and is used by Apple under license. Scaleway is not affiliated with Apple Inc.