Azure DevOps (On-Demand)

Context-efficient Azure DevOps operations without loading all MCP tools into context.

Core Concept

Use REST API helpers and Python scripts to interact with Azure DevOps only when needed. Results are filtered before returning to context.

Prerequisites

Environment variables must be set:

export AZURE_DEVOPS_PAT="your-personal-access-token"
export AZURE_DEVOPS_ORGANIZATION="emstas"
export AZURE_DEVOPS_PROJECT="Program Unify"

Available Operations

Pull Request Operations

from scripts.ado_pr_helper import ADOHelper

ado = ADOHelper()

# Get PR details
pr = ado.get_pr(5860)
print(pr["title"])
print(pr["mergeStatus"])

# Check for merge conflicts
conflicts = ado.get_pr_conflicts(5860)
if conflicts.get("value"):
    print(f"Found {len(conflicts['value'])} conflicts")

# Get PR discussion threads
threads = ado.get_pr_threads(5860)

# Get PR commits
commits = ado.get_pr_commits(5860)

CLI Usage

# Get PR details and check conflicts
python3 .claude/skills/mcp-code-execution/scripts/ado_pr_helper.py 5860

Context Efficiency

Without this approach:

• Loading ADO MCP server → 50+ tools in context
• Each tool definition → 200-500 tokens
• Total: 10,000-25,000 tokens just for tool definitions

With this approach:

• Only load specific helper when needed
• Filter results before returning to context
• Return summaries instead of full data
• Total: 500-2,000 tokens for actual work

Common Workflows

Review and Fix PR Conflicts

# 1. Get PR details and conflicts
ado = ADOHelper()
pr = ado.get_pr(pr_id)
conflicts = ado.get_pr_conflicts(pr_id)

# 2. Filter to only conflict info (don't load full PR data)
conflict_files = [c["conflictPath"] for c in conflicts.get("value", [])]

# 3. Return summary to context
print(f"PR {pr_id}: {pr['mergeStatus']}")
print(f"Conflicts in: {', '.join(conflict_files)}")

Query Work Items

# TODO: Add work item helper functions

Pipeline Operations

# TODO: Add pipeline helper functions

Extending Functionality

To add more ADO operations:

1. Add methods to ado_pr_helper.py or create new helper files
2. Follow the pattern: fetch → filter → return summary
3. Use REST API directly for maximum efficiency
4. Document new operations in this skill file

REST API Reference

Base URL: https://dev.azure.com/{organization}/{project}/_apis/

API Version: 7.1

Authentication: Basic auth with PAT

See: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/rest/api/azure/devops/