copyright-headers

name	copyright-headers
description	Add or update Apache License 2.0 copyright headers to Go source files, configuration files (YAML, TOML), shell scripts, and Makefiles
argument-hint	[files to examine]

Copyright Headers

Add copyright headers to Go source files and configuration files.

Description

This skill automatically adds Apache License 2.0 copyright headers to files. It supports:

• Go source files (.go)
• Configuration files (.yaml, .yml, .toml)
• Workflow files (.github/workflows/*.yml, .github/workflows/*.yaml)
• Shell scripts (.sh)
• Makefiles

Instructions

When this skill is invoked:

1. Identify target files:

   • If the user specifies files or patterns, use those
   • Otherwise, scan the current directory and subdirectories for Go source files and configuration files
   • Exclude: vendor directories, .git directory, go.mod, go.sum

2. Check for existing headers and update years:

   • Read each file and check if it already has a copyright header in the first 20 lines
   • Look for keywords: "Copyright", "License", "Licensed", "SPDX-License-Identifier"
   • If a copyright header exists, check the year format and update if needed:
     • Single past year (e.g., Copyright (C) 2024) → Update to range: Copyright (C) 2024-2026
     • Range ending before current year (e.g., Copyright (C) 2024-2025) → Update end year: Copyright (C) 2024-2026
     • Range with same start and end (e.g., Copyright (C) 2024-2024) → Update to range: Copyright (C) 2024-2026
     • Current year (e.g., Copyright (C) 2026) → No change needed
     • Range ending with current year (e.g., Copyright (C) 2024-2026) → No change needed
     • Future years or invalid ranges → Leave as-is and optionally warn
   • If no copyright header exists, add one

3. Add the copyright header based on file type:

For Go files (.go):

/**********************************************************************
 * Copyright (C) 2026 Red Hat, Inc.
 *
 * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
 * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
 * You may obtain a copy of the License at
 *
 * http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
 *
 * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
 * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
 * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
 * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
 * limitations under the License.
 *
 * SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
 **********************************************************************/

• Place BEFORE the package declaration
• Add a blank line after the header

For YAML, Shell, Makefiles, and other comment-based files:

# Copyright (C) 2026 Red Hat, Inc.
#
# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
# You may obtain a copy of the License at
#
# http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
#
# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
# limitations under the License.
#
# SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0

4. Special handling:

   • Shebangs: For shell scripts with #!/..., place the copyright header AFTER the shebang, with a blank line between
   • YAML directives: For YAML files with --- at the top, place the copyright header BEFORE the ---

5. Report results:

   • List files that had headers added (new headers)
   • List files that had years updated (existing headers)
   • List files that were skipped (already up-to-date)
   • Show total count of files processed
   • Report any errors or warnings

Usage Examples

Add headers to all Go files and config files:

/copyright-headers

Add headers to specific files:

/copyright-headers main.go root.go

Add headers to all Go files in a directory:

/copyright-headers pkg/cmd/**/*.go

Important Notes

• Use the current year (2026) in the copyright notice
• Preserve existing file structure (shebangs, package declarations, etc.)
• Update copyright years in existing headers if they are outdated
• Skip generated files and vendor directories
• When updating years, preserve the original start year and update only the end year