github-ci-failure-triage

Purpose

Produce a clean, GitHub-native readout of failing PR checks before any code is edited. Triage first: summarize the breakage and propose a local fix plan; implement only after approval when the task is framed as triage-first.

When to Use

• A PR is red and the cause is unknown
• The user asks why CI is failing before asking for a fix
• A triage-first readout must precede any code edits

Inputs

• The PR number or URL (or the current branch to resolve it from)
• gh CLI authenticated for the repository, or a GitHub connector

Core Rules

• Resolve the PR first
• Inspect failing checks before guessing
• Prefer GitHub-native data (gh or a GitHub connector) over screenshots or copied snippets
• Summarize the failure before proposing code changes
• Implement only after approval when the task is framed as triage-first
• Do not auto-commit, auto-push, or auto-rerun remote writes without approval

Workflow

1. Resolve the PR:

   gh pr view <number-or-url> --json number,title,headRefName,url
   gh pr view --json number,title,headRefName,url    # from the current branch
   

2. Inspect failing checks. List checks, isolate failing GitHub Actions jobs, and pull only the failing logs:

   gh pr checks <number>
   gh run list --branch <head-branch> --limit 10
   gh run view <run-id> --json jobs        # job-level status
   gh run view <run-id> --log-failed       # logs from failing steps only
   

   If a check is external (not GitHub Actions), report its URL and keep it out of local log parsing.

3. Summarize the failure:

   • failing job
   • likely root cause
   • relevant log snippet
   • affected files or subsystem

4. Propose the fix plan:

   • what to change locally
   • what to validate locally first
   • what remains remote-only

5. Implement only when the user wants the fix. Keep changes traceable to the failing signal; rerun the narrowest meaningful local validation first.

Bundled Helper

• scripts/inspect_pr_checks.py — use it when you want a structured check summary instead of raw gh output.

Output

• Failing job(s) with a root-cause hypothesis and the minimal relevant log snippet
• Affected files or subsystem
• A local fix plan with validation steps, separated from remote-only actions

Verification

• PR resolved explicitly (number/URL or current branch)
• Failure evidence pulled from GitHub-native data, not screenshots or pasted snippets
• Log excerpt limited to the failing step, not the whole run log
• Summary written before any code change was proposed
• No remote writes (commit/push/rerun) performed without approval

Failure Modes

• Guess-first triage — proposing fixes before reading the failing job's log.
• Log dumping — pasting entire run logs instead of --log-failed output for the failing step.
• Unapproved remote writes — rerunning workflows or pushing while the task was triage-first.
• Parsing external checks locally — non-Actions checks only expose a URL; report it instead.