pr-writer

PR Writer

Create pull requests following Sentry's engineering practices.

Requires: GitHub CLI (gh) authenticated and available.

Prerequisites

Before creating a PR, ensure all changes are committed to a feature branch, not to the default branch.

# Check current branch and for uncommitted changes
git branch --show-current
git status --porcelain

If on main or master, create a feature branch and move any uncommitted changes onto it before committing — a PR cannot be opened from the default branch against itself. If there are uncommitted changes, commit them on the feature branch before proceeding.

Process

Step 1: Verify Branch State

# Detect the default branch — note the output for use in subsequent commands
gh repo view --json defaultBranchRef --jq '.defaultBranchRef.name'

# Check current branch and status (substitute the detected branch name above for BASE)
git status
git log BASE..HEAD --oneline

Ensure:

• All changes are committed
• Branch is up to date with remote
• Changes are rebased on the base branch if needed

Step 2: Analyze Changes

Review what will be included in the PR:

# See all commits that will be in the PR (substitute detected branch name for BASE)
git log BASE..HEAD

# See the full diff
git diff BASE...HEAD

Understand the scope and purpose of all changes before writing the description.

Step 3: Check Existing PR

If the current branch already has an open PR, inspect the current title and body before rewriting either one:

gh pr view PR_NUMBER --json number,title,body,url,baseRefName,headRefName

Treat the current PR title and body as inputs, not source of truth. Compare them against the current diff, not the diff from when the PR was first opened.

When refreshing a PR:

• Keep the current title only if it still matches the dominant change.
• Rewrite vague or stale titles.
• Rewrite the body as a fresh description of the current diff, not an append-only update log.

If the branch already has an open PR, refresh it after material follow-up changes even if the user did not explicitly ask for a PR edit.

Refresh when follow-up commits change reviewer expectations, such as a scope change, a new implementation approach from review feedback, or new context the current title/body no longer explains. Skip trivial edits like typos or rename-only diffs.

Step 4: Write or Update the PR Title

Write or re-evaluate the title before finalizing the body.

Title format: <type>(<scope>): <Subject> or <type>: <Subject>.

Allowed types: feat, fix, ref, perf, docs, test, build, ci, chore, style, meta, license, revert.

Rules:

• The dominant change, not the latest commit
• The narrowest accurate type and scope
• No bracketed labels like [codex], [claude], [ai], [bot], or [wip]
• No agent, tool, or automation attribution
• No vague process titles like update, cleanup, misc, fix stuff, or address feedback
• No trailing period

Rewrite invalid titles before creating or updating the PR:

• [codex] Paginate replay segment downloads -> fix(replay): Paginate recording segment downloads

Use this test on updates: if a reviewer read only the title, would they still form the right expectation about the current diff? If not, rewrite it.

Step 5: Write or Update the PR Description

Write a reviewer-facing cover note, not a generated changelog.

Default to 1-2 short paragraphs:

<What changed and what effect it has.>

<Why this approach, tradeoff, risk, or review focus matters, if it is not obvious from the diff.>

Write enough context that a reviewer can predict the shape and intent of the diff before opening it. The body should answer the questions that code alone will not: why the change exists, what behavior changes, what tradeoff was chosen, and what deserves careful review.

Use structure only when the change needs it:

Change shape	Useful body shape
Small obvious change	one concise paragraph; no headings
Bug fix	problem/root cause/fix in prose; headings only if the body would be confusing without them
API, schema, payload, config, permissions, or CLI change	before/after fenced blocks when direct comparison is clearer than prose
Performance or reliability change	include measured impact or expected tradeoff when known; do not invent numbers
Broad, generated, or cross-cutting change	explain the organizing principle and where reviewers should start
Review feedback update	rewrite the whole body around the current final diff; do not append a progress log

Rules:

• Lead with changed behavior or effect, then implementation detail only when useful.
• Prefer paragraphs over headings and bullets.
• Use bullets only to guide review order, list genuine alternatives/tradeoffs, or compare independent contract changes.
• When verification matters, fold it into the relevant prose instead of adding a separate checklist.
• Include issue references only when the exact ID or URL is present in user input, branch name, commits, or verified tracker output; omit the line entirely otherwise.
• Keep links self-contained by summarizing the relevant context in the body.
• Prefer synthesized reviewer context over file-by-file narration, copied commit logs, generic headings like "Summary" or "Changes", and stale template scaffolding.

Hard constraints:

• Customer data — customer/org names, user emails, support ticket contents, or PII. Describe the technical symptom, not who hit it, and use the Issue References syntax below only when a verified ticket is available. PRs are typically public on open-source repos.
• Never invent issue references or leave placeholders like XXXXX, <issue>, or TODO.
• Generate reviewer prose only. Do not add new agent trace links, "action taken on behalf" lines, or tool attribution. When refreshing an existing PR, preserve an existing integration-owned footer only if it appears intentional and the user did not ask to remove it.

When updating, rewrite the body as one coherent description of the current PR.

Step 6: Create or Update the PR

For a new PR, create a draft with the rewritten title and body:

gh pr create --draft --title "<type>(<scope>): <description>" --body "$(cat <<'EOF'
<description body here>
EOF
)"

Before running the create or update command, strip any issue reference not backed by known context. Never emit placeholder IDs (XXXXX, <issue>, TODO).

For an existing PR, patch the title and body after you have re-evaluated both. If the current title still fits, keep it intentionally rather than skipping title review.

gh api -X PATCH repos/{owner}/{repo}/pulls/PR_NUMBER \
  -f title='fix(scope): Preserve replay segment cursor' \
  -f body="$(cat <<'EOF'
<updated description body here>
EOF
)"

PR Description Examples

Simple PR

The AI Customizations section in the sessions sidebar now starts collapsed so
it does not consume space before users need it. Expanding the section keeps the
same persisted preference behavior as before.

Feature PR

Alert updates and resolves now reply to the original Slack message instead of
creating a new channel message. This keeps the notification timeline grouped in
one thread and reduces channel noise.

Bug Fix PR

Inactive authenticated users now go to account reactivation before the login
view honors a `next` URL.

The GET login path could previously bounce an inactive user between
`/auth/login/` and a protected view because it redirected authenticated users
without checking `is_active`. The POST path already handled this case, so this
applies the same guard to the GET redirect and covers the loop with a regression
test.

Schema Change PR

Run logs now write one versioned record per analyzed chunk instead of one
large skill-level record. This lets `warden runs follow` show findings as
chunks complete while preserving durable run reconstruction at finalization.

Before, each line represented a full skill result:

```jsonc
{
  "run": {...},
  "skill": "security-review",
  "summary": "Found 2 issues",
  "findings": [...],
  "files": [...]
}
```

After, each line represents one chunk result:

```jsonc
{
  "schemaVersion": 1,
  "run": {...},
  "skill": "security-review",
  "chunk": {
    "file": "src/api/auth.ts",
    "index": 1,
    "total": 2,
    "lineRange": "42-45"
  },
  "status": "ok",
  "findings": [...]
}
```

Refactor PR

Duplicate validation code from the alerts, issues, and projects endpoints now
lives in a shared validator class without changing endpoint behavior.
Future validation rules can now be added in one place instead of being copied
across each endpoint.

Broad Review PR

The admin layout now holds together at narrow viewport widths: the shared
header, details grid, result table, and sidebar wrap, collapse, or scroll
instead of overflowing the viewport. The changes are intentionally limited to
responsive layout behavior; table column prioritization is left out because it
needs product judgment.

Review the shared layout and table wrappers first, then check individual
component breakpoints for regressions.

Issue References

Reference issues in the PR body:

Syntax	Effect
Fixes #1234	Closes GitHub issue on merge
Fixes SENTRY-1234	Closes Sentry issue
Refs GH-1234	Links without closing
Refs LINEAR-ABC-123	Links Linear issue

These are syntax examples — do not copy example IDs into a real PR body.

Guidelines

• One PR per feature/fix - Don't bundle unrelated changes
• Keep PRs reviewable - Smaller PRs get faster, better reviews
• Explain the why - Code shows what; description explains why
• Mark WIP early - Use draft PRs for early feedback
• Rewrite, don't append - Updated PRs should read like a fresh description of the current diff
• Re-evaluate the title on updates - Do not assume the existing title still fits after scope changes

Note: gh pr edit is currently broken due to GitHub's Projects (classic) deprecation.

References

• Sentry Code Review Guidelines
• Sentry Commit Messages