maintaining-github-repos

name	maintaining-github-repos
description	Use when answering org-level or repo-level GitHub maintenance questions about repository inventory, branch health, PR backlog, or safe cleanup follow-up.
argument-hint	org|repo|branches|prs|cleanup

Maintaining GitHub Repos

This is a prompt-driven reference skill. Use it to surface GitHub maintenance signals and safe follow-up actions without forcing a single workflow.

When to Use

Trigger conditions:

• User asks for org-level repository hygiene or cleanup signals
• User asks for repo-level branch inventory or stale branch checks
• User asks for repo-level PR backlog or pending-review checks
• User asks what cleanup actions are safe for repos, branches, or PRs

Not this skill:

• Does not force a single cleanup workflow or mandatory first command
• Does not assume org-wide cleanup when the user only asked about one repo
• Does not execute destructive actions without an explicit approval step

Routing

Use the prompt to choose only the relevant reference pages:

User intent	Reference
Org-wide stale, empty, scratch, archived, or high-branch-count repo signals	references/org-level-signals.md
Repo branch counts, merged vs remaining, stale branches, or branch drift	references/repo-level-branch-signals.md
Repo PR aging, review backlog, or blocked PR follow-up	references/repo-level-pr-signals.md
Repo archive/delete follow-up	references/repo-level-actions.md
Branch cleanup follow-up	references/branch-level-actions.md
PR nudges, rebase, draft, or close decisions	references/pr-level-actions.md

Answer the requested subset directly. Add adjacent checks as recommendations, not as a forced sequence.

Prompt Obligations

When the prompt supplies facts, surface the relevant signals without inventing missing data. The required repo-level signals are:

• total branch count
• merged branches vs remaining branches
• branches inactive for more than 5 days
• PRs pending for more than 48 hours

Use gh and git command patterns from the references when live inspection is needed, but keep the response prompt-driven rather than script-driven.

Optional Helper

For org-level repo cleanup candidate analysis, the existing helper remains available:

python3 skills/maintaining-github-repos/scripts/analyze_repos.py --org accelerate-data --dry-run

Use it when the user wants a bulk org inventory or cleanup preview. Do not assume every invocation of this skill starts with that script.

Live GitHub Prerequisite

For real repository review or cleanup work, require live GitHub state before answering branch or PR hygiene questions as if they are current.

• Verify that gh is installed before attempting GitHub inspection.
• Verify that gh auth status succeeds before relying on GitHub state.
• Stop and report the blocker if gh is missing or unauthenticated.
• Do not pretend branch or PR state is current when live GitHub inspection is unavailable.

Safety Rails

• Repo archive/delete actions require a preview before mutation and exact-scope confirmation before --execute.
• Branch cleanup requires the exact local and/or remote candidate set before deletion.
• Never treat the default branch as a cleanup candidate.
• PR cleanup must account for merged, approved, blocked, and abandoned states before recommending close or draft actions.
• Inspection, counting, and signal-reporting requests do not require a fixed workflow or confirmation gate.

Destructive Action Boundary

If the user moves from inspection into repo cleanup, keep the helper behavior explicit:

• Preview first with --dry-run
• Confirm the exact destructive scope
• Use only supported execution scopes from the current preview set
• Stop if the requested destructive subset is broader than the helper supports

Dependencies

• gh CLI for GitHub inspection and cleanup actions
• git for local and remote branch state checks
• Python 3 for skills/maintaining-github-repos/scripts/analyze_repos.py