address-pr-feedback

name	address-pr-feedback
description	Address feedback on an existing pull request - review comments, requested changes, CI failures, or any post-PR follow-up work. Use when the user says "address the review", "fix the comments", "address Copilot's feedback", "fix the CI failure", or any similar phrasing. Distinct from `create-pr`, which covers opening the *initial* PR.
license	MIT
compatibility	Requires git and either a GitHub integration or authenticated gh for remote pull-request operations.
metadata	{"portability":"portable","applicability":"git-github","binding":"optional-overlay","risk":"remote-write","maturity":"canary","requires":"none","related":"create-pr, pre-pr-self-review, agent-files-review"}

Address PR feedback

If overlay.md exists beside this file, read it before acting; it contains repository-specific bindings. This core remains usable without it.

This skill is the post-PR counterpart to the create-pr skill. Both share the same publish gate: neither git commit nor git push runs without an explicit publishing verb from the user. The difference is what each skill authorizes you to edit:

• create-pr authorizes preparing a new PR from in-progress work - branching, staging, proposing a commit message. The commit and push still wait on approval.
• This skill authorizes editing files in response to review feedback or CI failures on an existing PR. Same approval gate before commit/push.

Your repo's agent guidance (the "Working with the user on changes" rules in AGENTS.md) is the source of truth for the commit/push approval rule. Re-read it at the start of every invocation; this skill is the decision-point reminder, not a replacement.

Recognizing approval

Carefully read the most recent user message and identify whether it contains an explicit publishing verb before you stage, commit, or push. Pattern-match the words, do not infer intent.

Approval - verbs that authorize publishing the current change: commit, push, update the PR, ship it, send it, yes push, or direct synonyms when paired with a publishing intent.

Not approval - everything else, including these phrasings that have repeatedly caused violations:

• "Address the review comments." / "Reply to the comments on the PR." / "Fix the comments / fix the CI failure."
• "Look at Copilot's feedback / see what they said."
• "See what you can do about this." / "Try a different approach."
• "Do the next step" / "finish the rollout" / "go ahead to the next thing" / a bare "go ahead" attached to a task description.
• A reviewer (human or Copilot) leaving a new comment, or a failing check on the PR.

If you are uncertain whether a phrase is approval, it is not approval. Stop and ask one short yes/no question.

Workflow

1. Fetch the feedback. Read review comments, PR conversation, and check-run logs via the GitHub PR tools (or Invoke-RestMethod against api.github.com/repos/<owner>/<repo>/pulls/<N>/comments). With multiple review passes, fetch the latest review's comments (filter by the newest review id) so you act on the current round.

   Automated reviewers (e.g. Copilot) post asynchronously - on open, on push, or when requested - a minute or two after the trigger. If one was requested but hasn't posted, say so and act when the user reports comments (or check once); don't poll. Verify their comments per step 2 - they produce confident false positives.

2. Plan, and verify each comment. Don't fix something just because a reviewer (especially a bot) flagged it: confirm the claim against the code, and prove it when checkable (a REPL check, a build, a test) - a fix to a false positive can introduce the bug the reviewer imagined. Classify each:

   • Valid - real issue; fix it.
   • Nit - minor; fix if cheap, else note it.
   • Out of scope - plan a written reply.
   • False positive / disagree - plan a written explanation, not a change.

3. Edit files. Make the code changes. Run the build and any relevant tests. The applicable validation rules are still the pre-pr-self-review checklist - a follow-up round needs the same checks as the initial PR.

4. Stop. Describe. Summarize what you changed, why, and what (if anything) you chose not to act on. Do not run git add, git commit, or git push.

5. Wait for an explicit publishing verb (see "Recognizing approval" above).

6. Only then stage by path, commit with a message that summarizes the round of changes, and push. The staging/commit/push mechanics are the same as in the create-pr skill (its "Commit changes" and "Push the branch" steps).

7. Resolve the threads, with explanations. Replying and resolving are remote actions, so they ride in the same approved publish step as the push; honor explicit scoping ("push and resolve only", "don't re-request") and report what you did. For each comment, reply then resolve:

   • Fixed - one line on what changed (reference the commit or behavior).
   • False positive / won't-fix - the rationale or the evidence. Leave a thread open only to invite a human onto a contested point, and say so. With the PR tool, use its resolve action; with gh, resolve via the GraphQL resolveReviewThread mutation on the thread node id (not the comment id).

8. Re-request review when non-trivial. After real code changes, request a fresh pass from the same reviewer - also a remote action in the publish step. Skip it for trivial rounds (typo, reword, one-line nit) to avoid an endless trickle, and say which you did.

When to stop. Later auto-review passes drift toward nits and false positives. Once comments stop being substantive, stop re-requesting, say so, and let the user merge.

When you've already violated the rule

Acknowledge the violation directly without minimizing. Do not push a follow-up commit to "fix" the situation without explicit approval - that compounds the failure. The user decides whether to revert, force-push, or leave the commit in place.

Related

• Your repo's agent guidance (AGENTS.md) - the rule itself.
• The create-pr skill - opening the initial PR (same publish gate, different edit scope).
• The pre-pr-self-review skill - the validation checklist that applies to both initial and follow-up rounds.
• The agent-files-review skill - for a CI failure from the agent-files workflow specifically; its checklist owns the frontmatter, mirror, and link rules.