| name | pr-auto-merge |
| description | Watch a sub-PR through bot review + CI, run /apply-pr-feedback on actionable feedback, then auto-merge into its base branch. Refuses to act when base is the trunk (main/master). Use after green-cycle opens a draft PR, or when the user types /auto-merge <pr-number>. |
| phase | 4-green |
| parallel | false |
| inputs | ["pr-number"] |
| outputs | ["merged-pr | escalation-comment"] |
| escalation | human-comment-on-pr |
/auto-merge
Autonomous watcher + merger for ATDD scenario sub-PRs. Replaces the per-scenario human checkpoint #2 inside atdd-run.
When to use
- Right after
green-cycle pushes a branch and opens a draft PR against the integration branch.
- Standalone via
/auto-merge <pr-number> to take over an existing scenario PR.
NEVER invoke for the final PR that targets main / master / the project trunk. That PR is a hard human stop.
Inputs
<pr-number> — GitHub PR number.- Optional flags:
--idle-window <minutes> — minutes with no bot activity before considering review complete (default 5).--max-fix-iterations <n> — cap on /apply-pr-feedback invocations (default 3).--merge-method <squash|merge|rebase> — default squash.--watch-timeout <minutes> — hard wall-clock cap for the whole loop (default 60).
Preconditions
- PR exists and is mergeable in principle (
gh pr view <pr> --json mergeable,baseRefName,state).
baseRefName is NOT main, master, or the value of .atdd-pipeline.json:trunk_branch. If it is, ABORT with a clear message — humans gate the final merge.- PR is in
OPEN state (not closed/merged).
If any precondition fails, print why and return without further action.
Workflow
1. Mark ready for review
If PR is draft, mark it ready so bots (CodeRabbit, codex review, etc.) start reviewing:
gh pr ready <pr-number>
2. Watch CI
Wait until all required checks reach a terminal state — without blocking the session on Claude Code.
- Claude Code (default): run the watch in the background (
run_in_background) or via the Monitor tool, so the session is free to advance other scenarios while CI runs. The harness re-invokes you when the watch exits.
- With
Monitor, the line filter MUST match every terminal state, not just success: succeeded|passed|failed|failure|cancelled|timed_out|skipped|error. A filter that greps only the success marker stays silent on a crash, so a failed run looks identical to "still running" — the classic Monitor footgun.
- With background
Bash, run an until-loop that exits when no check is still IN_PROGRESS/QUEUED.
- Codex (fallback): there is no
Monitor/backgrounding, so block on gh pr checks <pr-number> --watch --fail-fast=false.
Re-entrancy (both paths). Background and Monitor tasks are NOT restored across a session restart. Never trust an in-memory timer or counter to know where CI stood; on every wake re-derive the truth from GitHub:
gh pr checks <pr-number> --json name,state,conclusion
Then branch on the derived state:
- All checks
COMPLETED and every conclusion green → proceed to step 3.
- Any
FAILURE/CANCELLED/TIMED_OUT → triage like /apply-pr-feedback: fetch the failing job logs (gh run view <run-id> --log-failed), attempt one targeted fix, push, restart step 2. This counts against --max-fix-iterations. Exceeded → escalate (step 6).
3. Bot idle watch
Track bot activity across three endpoints (treat user.type == "Bot" OR login matching .atdd-pipeline.json:bot_logins allowlist):
gh api "repos/{owner}/{repo}/issues/<pr>/comments" --jq '.[]|{login:.user.login,t:.user.type,at:.updated_at}'
gh api "repos/{owner}/{repo}/pulls/<pr>/reviews" --jq '.[]|{login:.user.login,t:.user.type,at:.submitted_at,state:.state}'
gh api "repos/{owner}/{repo}/pulls/<pr>/comments" --jq '.[]|{login:.user.login,t:.user.type,at:.updated_at}'
The three endpoints are independent — fetch them concurrently (& + wait) and fold the timestamps into one last_bot_activity = max(at) across all bot entries.
Run the idle wait without blocking the session on Claude Code, same as step 2:
- Claude Code (default): background
Bash until-loop (or Monitor) that re-polls and exits when (now - last_bot_activity) >= idle_window. The session stays free meanwhile; the harness re-invokes you on exit.
- Codex (fallback): block, sleeping
min(60s, remaining_idle_window) between polls.
Re-entrancy. The idle window is derived state, never an in-memory clock: on every wake recompute last_bot_activity from the three endpoints and compare against now. A restart that loses the background task loses nothing — the next poll reconstructs the window from GitHub.
Exit conditions:
(now - last_bot_activity) >= idle_window → exit the idle watch, go to step 4.- Total elapsed in this step exceeds
watch_timeout → escalate (step 6).
4. Classify outstanding feedback
After idle exit, compute:
has_changes_requested — any review in state CHANGES_REQUESTED not later superseded by APPROVED from the same reviewer.actionable_comments — bot inline comments not marked resolved, and bot summary comments containing action verbs (e.g., CodeRabbit's "Actionable comments posted: N").
If has_changes_requested == false AND actionable_comments == 0 AND CI is green → step 5 (merge).
Otherwise → step 4a.
4a. Invoke /apply-pr-feedback
Increment the fix iteration counter. If it exceeds --max-fix-iterations → escalate (step 6).
Invoke the bundled apply-pr-feedback skill against this PR. It returns {pushed_commit, actionable_remaining, all_out_of_scope, replies_posted} (see its Return contract). Branch on actionable_remaining, NOT on "did it push":
actionable_remaining == 0 AND pushed_commit == true → fixes landed; return to step 2 (CI watch).actionable_remaining == 0 AND pushed_commit == false (everything was out of scope, replies posted) → nothing left to fix; re-run step 4 classification, then step 5 (merge). Do NOT loop.actionable_remaining > 0 AND pushed_commit == true → partial progress; return to step 2.actionable_remaining > 0 AND pushed_commit == false → the skill could not make progress (error or stuck). Do NOT re-invoke it on the same unchanged feedback; escalate (step 6).
5. Merge
gh pr merge <pr-number> --<merge-method> --delete-branch
Verify gh pr view <pr> --json state,mergeCommit reports MERGED. Return success.
6. Escalation
Post a comment on the PR:
ESCALATED: pr-auto-merge gave up after <reason>.
- CI status: <pass|fail|timeout>
- Bot reviewers seen: <list>
- Fix iterations consumed: <n>/<max>
- Last bot activity: <iso8601>
Hand off to a human.
Do NOT merge. Leave the PR open. Return.
Configuration knobs (read from .atdd-pipeline.json)
{
"auto_merge": {
"enabled": true,
"idle_window_minutes": 5,
"max_fix_iterations": 3,
"watch_timeout_minutes": 60,
"merge_method": "squash",
"bot_logins": ["coderabbitai", "coderabbitai[bot]", "github-actions[bot]", "codex", "codex-bot"]
},
"trunk_branch": "main"
}
CLI flags override file values; file values override built-in defaults.
Anti-patterns
- Do NOT merge a PR whose
baseRefName matches trunk_branch. This guard is non-negotiable.
- Do NOT squash a CHANGES_REQUESTED review by force-merging. The classification step is the gate.
- Do NOT run
/apply-pr-feedback on a PR that has no actionable comments — wastes iterations.
- Do NOT silence failing CI by disabling required checks. Fix the underlying cause or escalate.
- Do NOT keep polling past
watch_timeout. Escalate so a human can investigate stuck bots.
Composition
apply-pr-feedback (bundled with this plugin) handles the comment-application loop. This skill orchestrates it and branches on the {pushed_commit, actionable_remaining, all_out_of_scope, replies_posted} return contract — "pushed no commit" alone never decides the loop; actionable_remaining does. Zero external dependency.green-cycle opens the PR; this skill takes over from there when auto_merge.enabled == true.atdd-run chains green-cycle → pr-auto-merge per scenario, then opens the final integration→trunk PR and stops.
Outputs
- Merged PR (success).
specs/<us-slug>/.cycles/<issue-number>/auto-merge.log — timeline of CI watches, bot polls, fix iterations.- Escalation comment on the PR (failure).
