GitHub Workflow Skill

Complete guide to GitHub integration for autonomous development

Use this skill when:

• Setting up GitHub workflow for the first time
• Creating issues from test failures or GenAI findings
• Creating pull requests automatically
• Linking work to GitHub issues and milestones
• Automating issue tracking on push/commit

---

Quick Reference

Commands Available

/issue           # Create GitHub issues (test failures, GenAI, manual)
/pr-create       # Create pull request with auto-filled content

Hooks Available

• auto_track_issues.py - Auto-create issues on push/commit (configurable)

Configuration

# .env file
GITHUB_AUTO_TRACK_ISSUES=true      # Enable auto-tracking
GITHUB_TRACK_ON_PUSH=true          # Track before push
GITHUB_TRACK_THRESHOLD=medium      # Minimum priority (low/medium/high)
GITHUB_DRY_RUN=false               # Preview mode (true = no actual creation)

---

Complete Workflow

End-to-End: Issue → Feature → PR → Merge

# 1. Start from GitHub issue
gh issue list
gh issue view 42
gh issue edit 42 --add-assignee @me

# 2. Create feature branch
git checkout -b feature/42-add-user-auth

# 3. Implement feature
"Implement user authentication per issue #42"
# orchestrator runs autonomous pipeline

# 4. Quality check
/full-check

# 5. Commit with issue reference
/commit
# Add to commit message: "Closes #42"

# 6. Create pull request
/pr-create
# Auto-links to issue #42
# Creates draft PR by default

# 7. Review and merge
gh pr view
gh pr ready      # Mark draft as ready
gh pr merge --auto --squash

---

Issue Creation Patterns

Pattern 1: After Test Failures

# Run tests
/test

# Tests fail - auto-create issues
/issue
# Menu appears:
# 1. Auto-create from test failures (2 issues) ← Choose this
# 2. Create from GenAI findings
# 3. Create manual issue
# 4. Preview (dry run)
# 5. Cancel

Choice [1-5]: 1

# Result: GitHub issues created automatically
# - Full stack traces included
# - Labeled: automated, test-failure, bug
# - Priority: high

When to use:

• CI/CD pipeline failures
• Local test failures
• Want automatic bug tracking

Pattern 2: From GenAI Findings

# Run GenAI validation
/test-uat-genai        # UX validation
# OR
/test-architecture     # Architecture validation

# Found issues - create tracking issues
/issue
Choice [1-5]: 2

# Result: GitHub issues created from AI analysis
# - UX friction points
# - Architecture drift
# - Performance opportunities
# - Labeled: automated, genai-finding, enhancement

When to use:

• After GenAI validation
• UX improvements needed
• Architecture cleanup
• Code quality tracking

Pattern 3: Manual Issue Creation

/issue
Choice [1-5]: 3

# Interactive prompts:
Title: Memory leak in background sync
Priority [high/medium/low]: high
Type [bug/enhancement/technical-debt/documentation]: bug
Description:
Background sync accumulates memory over time.
After 24 hours, reaches 2GB.
(Press Ctrl+D when done)

Additional labels: performance, memory
Assign to: akaszubski

# Result: Custom GitHub issue created

When to use:

• Manual bug reports
• Feature requests
• Documentation tasks
• Custom tracking needs

---

Automatic Issue Tracking

Enable Auto-Tracking

Setup (one-time):

# Add to .env
cat >> .env << 'EOF'
GITHUB_AUTO_TRACK_ISSUES=true
GITHUB_TRACK_ON_PUSH=true
GITHUB_TRACK_THRESHOLD=medium
GITHUB_DRY_RUN=false
EOF

# Install GitHub CLI
brew install gh

# Authenticate
gh auth login

How it works:

# You work normally
/test                  # Tests fail
/commit                # Commit changes
git push               # Push to GitHub

# Hook runs automatically:
# - Detects test failures
# - Creates GitHub issues
# - Labels and prioritizes
# - Links to commits

# No manual /issue needed!

Configuration Options:

Variable	Values	Default	Description
GITHUB_AUTO_TRACK_ISSUES	true/false	false	Enable auto-tracking
GITHUB_TRACK_ON_PUSH	true/false	true	Track before push
GITHUB_TRACK_ON_COMMIT	true/false	false	Track after commit
GITHUB_TRACK_THRESHOLD	low/medium/high	medium	Minimum priority to track
GITHUB_DRY_RUN	true/false	false	Preview only (no creation)

Example workflows:

Conservative (manual review):

GITHUB_AUTO_TRACK_ISSUES=true
GITHUB_TRACK_ON_PUSH=false
GITHUB_DRY_RUN=true

# Result: Shows what would be created, but doesn't create
# You review, then manually run /issue

Aggressive (full automation):

GITHUB_AUTO_TRACK_ISSUES=true
GITHUB_TRACK_ON_PUSH=true
GITHUB_DRY_RUN=false

# Result: Issues created automatically on every push
# Fast, automated, but less control

Balanced (recommended):

GITHUB_AUTO_TRACK_ISSUES=true
GITHUB_TRACK_ON_PUSH=true
GITHUB_TRACK_THRESHOLD=high
GITHUB_DRY_RUN=false

# Result: Only high-priority issues auto-created
# Manual /issue for medium/low priority

---

Pull Request Patterns

Pattern 1: Simple Draft PR

/pr-create

# What happens:
# ✅ Creates draft PR
# ✅ Auto-fills title from commit messages
# ✅ Auto-fills body from commit messages
# ✅ Parses "Closes #42" and links issues
# ✅ Draft mode: Requires manual "Ready for review"

# Result:
# Draft PR created
# URL: https://github.com/user/repo/pull/123

When to use:

• Default workflow (safe)
• Want manual review before marking ready
• Still working on PR
• Need reviewer feedback before finalizing

Pattern 2: PR with Reviewer Assignment

/pr-create --reviewer alice

# Same as Pattern 1, plus:
# ✅ Assigns alice as reviewer
# ✅ Sends notification to alice

# For multiple reviewers:
/pr-create --reviewer alice,bob

When to use:

• Know who should review
• Team workflow (solo developer: skip this)
• Want immediate review request

Pattern 3: Ready for Review (Not Draft)

/pr-create --ready

# What's different:
# ✅ Creates PR as "Ready for review" (not draft)
# ✅ Triggers CI/CD immediately
# ✅ Can be merged immediately if checks pass

# Use with caution - skips draft safety

When to use:

• Confident PR is ready
• Fast-track workflow
• Small changes
• Solo developer (no team review needed)

---

Sprint/Milestone Integration

Link Work to Milestones

In PROJECT.md:

## CURRENT SPRINT

**Sprint Name**: Sprint 6: Documentation Accuracy
**GitHub Milestone**: https://github.com/user/repo/milestone/6
**Duration**: 2025-10-24 → 2025-10-27

orchestrator reads this:

# When you run autonomous pipeline
"Implement feature X"

# orchestrator:
# 1. Reads PROJECT.md current sprint
# 2. Queries GitHub Milestone via gh CLI
# 3. Links work to sprint
# 4. Tracks progress

Manual sprint queries:

# List milestones
gh api repos/user/repo/milestones

# View specific milestone
gh api repos/user/repo/milestones/6

# List issues in milestone
gh issue list --milestone "Sprint 6"

---

Issue Lifecycle Management

Close Issues Automatically

Via commit message:

git commit -m "feat: add user auth

Implements JWT-based authentication with secure token handling.

Closes #42
Fixes #43
Resolves #44"

git push

# Result: Issues #42, #43, #44 auto-closed when PR merges

Keywords that work:

• Closes #123
• Fixes #123
• Resolves #123
• Closes: #123
• Fixes: #123

Close Issues Manually

gh issue close 42
gh issue close 42 --comment "Fixed in PR #123"

Reopen Issues

gh issue reopen 42
gh issue reopen 42 --comment "Regression found, reopening"

Clean Up Stale Issues

# List old open issues
gh issue list --state open --json number,title,updatedAt

# Close stale issues
gh issue close 42 --comment "Closing as stale (no activity in 90 days)"

---

Troubleshooting

"GitHub CLI not found"

# Install gh CLI
brew install gh         # Mac
# OR
sudo apt install gh     # Linux
# OR
choco install gh        # Windows

# Verify
gh --version

"Not authenticated"

# Authenticate
gh auth login

# Follow prompts:
# 1. Choose: GitHub.com
# 2. Choose: HTTPS
# 3. Choose: Login with web browser
# 4. Authorize in browser

# Verify
gh auth status

"Permission denied creating issue"

Check:

# Verify repo access
gh repo view

# Check token scopes
gh auth status

Fix:

# Re-authenticate with full scopes
gh auth login --scopes repo,write:discussion,workflow

"Issue creation failed"

Check:

# Test manually
gh issue create --title "Test" --body "Test issue"

# If works: Plugin hook issue
# If fails: GitHub CLI issue

Common causes:

• Rate limiting (wait 60 seconds)
• Network issues (check connection)
• Repository archived (can't create issues)

"No test failures found"

Cause: /issue option 1 requires test failures

Fix:

# Run tests first
/test

# If all pass: No issues to create
# If failures: Now /issue will find them

---

Best Practices

✅ DO

1. Start from issues

   • Every feature should have a GitHub issue
   • Reference issue in branch name: feature/42-add-auth
   • Reference issue in commit: Closes #42

2. Use draft PRs by default

   • /pr-create (draft mode)
   • Review yourself before marking ready
   • Safe guard against premature merges

3. Enable auto-tracking for high priority

   • GITHUB_TRACK_THRESHOLD=high
   • Auto-create for critical bugs
   • Manual /issue for enhancements

4. Link to PROJECT.md goals

   • In issue description: "Supports Goal #1: Solo developer productivity"
   • Maintains strategic alignment
   • Makes prioritization clear

5. Use conventional commits

   • feat:, fix:, docs:, refactor:
   • Clean commit history
   • Auto-generates better PR descriptions

❌ DON'T

1. Skip GitHub issues

   • All work should be traceable
   • Even quick fixes: Create issue first

2. Create ready PRs blindly

   • Avoid /pr-create --ready unless confident
   • Draft mode is safer default

3. Auto-track everything

   • Don't set GITHUB_TRACK_THRESHOLD=low
   • Creates noise, too many issues
   • Medium or high only

4. Forget to clean up

   • Close stale issues regularly
   • Archive completed milestones
   • Keep issue list clean

5. Break the workflow

   • Don't commit directly to main
   • Don't skip PRs "because solo developer"
   • Workflow builds good habits

---

Integration with Other Commands

With Testing

# Run tests
/test

# If failures: Auto-create issues
/issue

With Commits

# Format + test + security
/commit

# Standard commit (full checks)
/commit --check

# Push to GitHub (future)
/commit --push

With Alignment

# Check PROJECT.md alignment
/align-project

# Fix issues found
/align-project

# Create issue for remaining work
/issue

---

Advanced: Custom Issue Templates

Create .github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/bug_report.md:

---
name: Bug Report
about: Report a bug
labels: bug
---

## Description
Clear description of the bug

## Steps to Reproduce
1. Step 1
2. Step 2
3. See error

## Expected Behavior
What should happen

## Actual Behavior
What actually happens

## Environment
- OS:
- Version:

## Additional Context
Any other context

Use:

gh issue create --template bug_report.md

---

Quick Command Reference

# ISSUES
/issue                        # Interactive issue creation
gh issue list                 # List all issues
gh issue view 42              # View specific issue
gh issue create               # Manual issue creation
gh issue close 42             # Close issue

# PULL REQUESTS
/pr-create                    # Draft PR (default)
/pr-create --ready            # Ready PR
/pr-create --reviewer alice   # PR with reviewer
gh pr list                    # List PRs
gh pr view                    # View current PR
gh pr merge                   # Merge PR

# MILESTONES
gh api repos/user/repo/milestones    # List milestones
gh issue list --milestone "Sprint 6" # Issues in milestone

# WORKFLOW
git checkout -b feature/42-description   # Create branch
/commit                                  # Commit with checks
git push                                 # Push changes
/pr-create                               # Create PR

---

See Also

• docs/GITHUB-WORKFLOW.md - Complete workflow guide
• docs/GITHUB_AUTH_SETUP.md - Authentication setup
• commands/issue.md - /issue command reference
• commands/pr-create.md - /pr-create command reference
• hooks/auto_track_issues.py - Auto-tracking hook code

---

Use this skill to master GitHub-first autonomous development workflow