github-project-guide

name	github-project-guide
description	Managing items in GitHub Projects v2. Query project items, reorder them, and resolve project IDs. Use when working with GitHub project boards or reordering items in a project.

GitHub Projects v2

GitHub Projects v2 uses a GraphQL API for managing project items and their positions.

Key ID Formats

• Project IDs start with PVT_kwD...
• Project Item IDs start with PVTI_lAD...
• No special headers needed (unlike sub-issues)

Querying Project Items

List items in a project:

gh project item-list <project-number> --owner <owner> --format json \
  | jq '.items[] | {number: .content.number, id: .id, title: .title}'

Or use the helper script:

./scripts/query-project-items.sh <owner> <project-number>

Reordering Project Items

Use the updateProjectV2ItemPosition mutation to reposition an item within a project:

gh api graphql -f query='
mutation {
  updateProjectV2ItemPosition(input: {
    projectId: "PVT_kwD..."     # Project node ID
    itemId: "PVTI_lAD..."       # Item to move
    afterId: "PVTI_lAD..."      # Position after this item
  }) {
    clientMutationId
  }
}'

Or use the helper script:

./scripts/reorder-project-item.sh <project-id> <item-id> [after-id]

• afterId is optional; omit it to move the item to the top
• Position items sequentially using afterId for bulk reordering
• Add 0.2–0.5 second delays between calls to avoid rate limiting

Getting Project IDs

Resolve a project number to its node ID.

For organization projects:

gh api graphql -f query='
query($login: String!, $number: Int!) {
  organization(login: $login) {
    projectV2(number: $number) {
      id
      title
    }
  }
}' -f login="ORG" -F number=NUMBER

For user projects:

gh api graphql -f query='
query($login: String!, $number: Int!) {
  user(login: $login) {
    projectV2(number: $number) {
      id
      title
    }
  }
}' -f login="USER" -F number=NUMBER

Or use the helper script:

./scripts/get-project-id.sh <owner> <project-number>

The script tries organization first, then falls back to user.

Helper Scripts

Scripts are in the scripts/ directory relative to this skill. Each accepts --help for usage information. They wrap the GraphQL calls above with error handling and formatted output.