darwin-pipelines-as-code

name	darwin-pipelines-as-code
description	Pipeline trigger commands for Pipelines-as-Code (PaC) and vanilla GitLab CI. Single source of truth for /retest, /test, /ok-to-test, and /cancel.
requires	["darwin-gitlab-ops"]
roles	["developer","sysadmin"]

Pipeline Trigger Commands

Pipeline retests and cancellations are triggered by posting specific commands as MR/PR comments. Two CI environments exist -- choose the right commands for the environment.

Pipelines as Code (PaC)

PaC pipelines are Tekton PipelineRuns triggered by a controller that watches MR/PR comments. The following commands are recognized:

Command	Behavior
/retest	Re-run failed PipelineRuns for the current commit. Skips runs that already succeeded (duplicate suppression).
/retest <pipelinerun-name>	Always triggers a new run for the named PipelineRun, even if a previous run succeeded.
/test	Re-trigger all matched PipelineRuns for the current commit.
/test <pipelinerun-name>	Re-trigger only the named PipelineRun.
/ok-to-test	Authorize pipeline execution for first-time or external contributors (trust gate).
/cancel	Cancel all running PipelineRuns on the MR/PR.
/cancel <pipelinerun-name>	Cancel only the named PipelineRun.

Vanilla GitLab CI

Vanilla GitLab CI pipelines are triggered by the GitLab CI/CD service, not a Tekton controller. The /retest comment is recognized by GitLab as a pipeline retry. The /test, /ok-to-test, and /cancel commands are PaC-specific and have no effect on vanilla GitLab CI pipelines.

Command Selection

Situation	Command
Transient failure (network, registry, flaky test)	/retest
Need to re-run a specific PipelineRun regardless of prior result	/retest <pipelinerun-name>
Re-trigger all pipelines (e.g., after external dependency fix)	/test
First-time contributor PR needs CI authorization	/ok-to-test
Stuck or runaway pipeline consuming resources	/cancel

Expected Behavior After Posting

• /retest with duplicate suppression: if all runs for the current commit already succeeded, no new run is created. Post /retest <name> to force a re-run.
• /ok-to-test authorization: the contributor is trusted for this MR/PR. Subsequent pushes trigger pipelines automatically without another /ok-to-test.
• After posting any trigger command, check pipeline status to confirm it was accepted (status changed to running or pending). Report the current state and return -- do not poll.
• On subsequent dispatches, if the pipeline is still non-terminal, check queue state on the build cluster (see darwin-k8s-mcp) and include it in the report.

Failure Modes

• Closed MR/PR: Commands do not work on closed merge/pull requests. If the MR/PR is closed, the command is silently ignored.
• Permissions: The comment author must have sufficient permissions. If Darwin's service account lacks authorization, the command has no effect and no error is returned.
• No matching PipelineRun: /retest <name> or /test <name> with a non-existent PipelineRun name produces no pipeline. Check the PipelineRun name against the repository's PaC configuration.
• Command not recognized: If the repository uses vanilla GitLab CI and a PaC-only command (/test, /ok-to-test, /cancel) is posted, it appears as a regular comment with no CI effect.

Reference

Pipelines as Code GitOps Commands