issue-ingest

name	issue-ingest
description	Full execution protocol for MODE: ISSUE_INGEST -- GitHub issue intake, localization, spec generation, and transition to planning or tracing.

Issue Ingest Protocol

This protocol is loaded on demand by the architect stub in src/agents/architect.ts. The architect prompt keeps only activation, action, and hard safety constraints; the full execution details live here.

MODE: ISSUE_INGEST

Activates when: user invokes /swarm issue <url>; OR architect receives [MODE: ISSUE_INGEST issue="<url>"] signal.

Purpose: ingest a GitHub issue, localize root cause, and produce a resolution spec. The issue URL points to a GitHub issue that describes a bug, feature request, or task to be resolved.

Flags parsed from signal:

• plan=true → after spec generation, transition to MODE: PLAN (create implementation plan)
• trace=true → after plan, delegate to swarm-implement skill for full fix-and-PR workflow (implies plan=true)
• noRepro=true → skip reproduction verification step

Phase 1: INTAKE

1. Fetch the issue body using the GitHub CLI (gh issue view <N> --repo <owner>/<repo> --json title,body,labels,assignees,comments) or web fetch.
2. Parse the issue into a normalized Intake Note with four required fields:
   • Observed behavior: what the issue reports
   • Expected behavior: what should happen instead
   • Reproduction steps: how to trigger the issue (may be absent; flag with [NEEDS REPRO] if missing)
   • Environment: platform, version, configuration context
3. If any required field is missing and cannot be inferred from context, flag as [NEEDS REPRO].
4. If --no-repro flag is set, skip reproduction verification and proceed with available information.
5. Exit when the Intake Note is complete or all missing fields are flagged.

Phase 2: LOCALIZATION

1. Delegate to the active swarm's explorer agent to scan the codebase for code areas related to the issue's observed behavior.
2. Build 2–5 candidate hypotheses for root cause, each with:
   • Location: file(s) and function(s) most likely responsible
   • Confidence: composite score (stack-trace match 0.4, recency 0.25, call-graph proximity 0.2, test-failure correlation 0.15)
   • Falsifiability: a specific test or observation that would disprove this hypothesis
3. Validate top-3 hypotheses in parallel using targeted the active swarm's sme agent consultations.
4. Prune to a single root cause hypothesis with supporting evidence.
5. Exit when a root cause is identified with ≥70% confidence, or when all hypotheses are exhausted (report ambiguity).

Phase 3: SPEC GENERATION

0. Include a Root Cause section derived from Phase 2 localization results: concise statement of the identified root cause, location, and confidence score. Include a Fix Strategy section at product/behavior level (what the fix must accomplish, not how to implement it).
1. Generate .swarm/spec.md using the same SPEC CONTENT RULES as MODE: SPECIFY:
   • WHAT users need and WHY — never HOW to implement
   • FR-### / SC-### numbering, Given/When/Then scenarios
   • No technology stack, APIs, or code structure
     • [NEEDS CLARIFICATION] markers only for items that survive the clarification funnel: inventory all material uncertainties without numeric cap → classify each (self_resolved/critic_resolved/research_needed/user_decision/deferred_nonblocking) — Overconfidence guard: if the default is not directly supported by user request, spec, or recorded context, classify as user_decision rather than self_resolved → consult critic_sounding_board — critic responds per SoundingBoardVerdict: UNNECESSARY→DROP, RESOLVE→RESOLVE, REPHRASE→REPHRASE, APPROVED→ASK_USER — always-surface protection: always-surface categories must not receive UNNECESSARY/DROP; override to APPROVED/ASK_USER → record resolved items as assumptions → surface only survivors as markers with decision packet format (grouped by category, recommended defaults, blocking vs optional markers)
     • Important: If research is ongoing, monitor the timeout configured in .swarm/config.json under research_needed_timeout_ms (default: 300000ms / 5 minutes). If research does not complete before the timeout expires, automatically reclassify the item to user_decision with a note that research was incomplete, then surface it to the user. This prevents the clarification funnel from stalling while waiting for external research.
2. Cross-reference the spec against the issue's expected behavior to ensure alignment.
3. If the issue is a bug: spec must describe the correct behavior, not the broken behavior.
4. If the issue is a feature: spec must describe the user-facing outcome, not the implementation.
5. QA GATE SELECTION: Ask user which QA gates to enable (same dialogue as MODE: SPECIFY). Write to .swarm/context.md under ## Pending QA Gate Selection.

Phase 4: TRANSITION

Based on flags:

• No flags → report spec summary and suggest PLAN or CLARIFY-SPEC
• plan=true → transition to MODE: PLAN using the generated spec
• trace=true → transition to MODE: PLAN, then delegate to swarm-implement skill for full fix workflow

RULES:

• One question per message in INTAKE dialogue (max 6 questions)
• Hypotheses must be falsifiable — no unfalsifiable hypotheses
• Spec must be independently testable — each FR must have a verification path
• The issue URL is already sanitized by the issue command — do not re-sanitize