---
name: gentle-ai-branch-pr
description: "Create Gentle AI pull requests with issue-first checks. Trigger: creating, opening, or preparing PRs for review."
license: Apache-2.0
metadata:
  author: gentleman-programming
  version: "2.0"
---

# Gentle AI — Branch & PR Skill

## When to Use

Load this skill whenever you need to:
- Create a branch for a new fix or feature
- Open a pull request on [Gentleman-Programming/gentle-ai](https://github.com/Gentleman-Programming/gentle-ai)
- Prepare changes for review

## Critical Rules

1. **Every PR MUST link an approved issue** — `Closes/Fixes/Resolves #<N>` in the PR body, and that issue MUST have `status:approved`. PRs without this are **automatically rejected** by CI.
2. **Ordinary `type:*` categorization** — CI rejects zero or multiple type labels. Route it through the canonical issue-creation workflow contract: a current direct human instruction binds the exact target/action, target-host capability is verified, and it uses one bounded mutation and target-host readback; otherwise wait without mutation.
3. **Protected policy labels** — Adding or removing `status:approved` or `size:exception` requires verified policy authority from a target-host repository maintainer or repository-authorized approver for the exact target/action, plus authenticated actor target-host `viewerPermission` `MAINTAIN` or `ADMIN`. `size:exception` additionally requires documented over-budget rationale.
4. **400-line review budget** — keep PRs within 400 changed lines (`additions + deletions`) or document the rationale required for a `size:exception` label.
5. **Automated checks must pass** — see the Automated Checks table below.
6. **No `Co-Authored-By` trailers** — never add AI attribution to commits.
7. **No force-push to main/master** — protected branch.

## Workflow

```
1. Confirm the issue has status:approved
   gh issue view <N> --repo Gentleman-Programming/gentle-ai

2. Create a branch from main using the naming convention below

3. Implement changes following specs and design

4. Run checks locally (format + unit + E2E)

5. Commit using Conventional Commits format

6. Open a PR referencing the issue
   → Declare exactly ONE type:* result in the PR body
   → Use the canonical issue-creation workflow contract before any PR-label mutation
   → Fill in the PR body using the template

7. All automated checks must pass before merge
```

---

## Branch Naming

Branch names **must** match this pattern:

```
^(feat|fix|chore|docs|style|refactor|perf|test|build|ci|revert)\/[a-z0-9._-]+$
```

| Type | Example |
|------|---------|
| `feat/` | `feat/user-login` |
| `fix/` | `fix/duplicate-observation-insert` |
| `docs/` | `docs/api-reference-update` |
| `refactor/` | `refactor/extract-query-sanitizer` |
| `chore/` | `chore/bump-bubbletea-v0.26` |
| `style/` | `style/fix-linter-warnings` |
| `perf/` | `perf/optimize-catalog-loading` |
| `test/` | `test/add-pipeline-coverage` |
| `build/` | `build/update-goreleaser-config` |
| `ci/` | `ci/add-e2e-docker-job` |
| `revert/` | `revert/undo-model-picker-change` |

**Rules:**
- All lowercase
- Use hyphens, dots, or underscores as separators (no spaces, no uppercase)
- Description must be short and descriptive

---

## PR Body Format

The PR body must follow the template at `.github/PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE.md`. All sections are required unless marked optional.

```markdown
## 🔗 Linked Issue

Closes #<N>

## 🏷️ PR Type

- [ ] `type:bug` — Bug fix (non-breaking change that fixes an issue)
- [ ] `type:feature` — New feature (non-breaking change that adds functionality)
- [ ] `type:docs` — Documentation only
- [ ] `type:refactor` — Code refactoring (no functional changes)
- [ ] `type:chore` — Build, CI, or tooling changes
- [ ] `type:breaking-change` — Breaking change

## 📝 Summary

<!-- Clear description of what this PR does and why. -->

## 📂 Changes

| File / Area | What Changed |
|-------------|-------------|
| `path/to/file` | Brief description |

## 🧪 Test Plan

**Unit Tests**
\`\`\`bash
go test ./...
\`\`\`

**Go Format**
\`\`\`bash
go run ./internal/gofmtcheck
\`\`\`

**E2E Tests** (Docker required)
\`\`\`bash
cd e2e && ./docker-test.sh
\`\`\`

- [ ] Unit tests pass (`go test ./...`)
- [ ] Go format passes (`go run ./internal/gofmtcheck`)
- [ ] E2E tests pass (`cd e2e && ./docker-test.sh`)
- [ ] Manually tested locally

## ✅ Contributor Checklist

- [ ] PR is linked to an issue with `status:approved`
- [ ] PR stays within 400 changed lines, or the `size:exception` rationale and verified policy authority are documented
- [ ] API read-back confirms exactly one appropriate `type:*` label on this PR
- [ ] Unit tests pass (`go test ./...`)
- [ ] E2E tests pass (`cd e2e && ./docker-test.sh`)
- [ ] I have updated documentation if necessary
- [ ] My commits follow Conventional Commits format
- [ ] My commits do not include `Co-Authored-By` trailers
```

---

## Automated Checks

These checks run on every PR and **all must pass** before merge:

| Check | What It Verifies | How to Fix |
|-------|-----------------|------------|
| **Check PR Cognitive Load** | PR stays within 400 changed lines (`additions + deletions`) or has `size:exception` | Split the PR, or document the `size:exception` rationale and verify policy authority before its canonical workflow action |
| **Check Issue Reference** | PR body contains `Closes/Fixes/Resolves #N` | Add `Closes #<N>` to the PR body |
| **Check Issue Has `status:approved`** | Linked issue has the required label | Use the canonical issue-creation workflow contract only when a current direct instruction and target-host capability grant authorize the exact action; otherwise wait |
| **Check PR Has `type:*` Label** | Exactly one `type:*` label is applied to the PR | Use the canonical issue-creation workflow contract only when a current direct instruction and target-host capability authorize the exact action; otherwise wait |
| **Unit Tests** | `go test ./...` passes | Fix failing tests before pushing |
| **Go Format** | `go run ./internal/gofmtcheck` passes | Format malformed Go files before pushing |
| **E2E Tests** | `cd e2e && ./docker-test.sh` passes | Fix failing E2E scenarios before pushing |

---

## Conventional Commits

Commit messages **must** match this pattern:

```
^(build|chore|ci|docs|feat|fix|perf|refactor|revert|style|test)(\([a-z0-9\._-]+\))?!?: .+
```

### Format

```
<type>(<optional-scope>)!: <description>

[optional body]

[optional footer]
```

### Allowed Types

| Type | Purpose | PR Label |
|------|---------|----------|
| `feat` | New feature | `type:feature` |
| `fix` | Bug fix | `type:bug` |
| `docs` | Documentation only | `type:docs` |
| `refactor` | Code change (no behavior change) | `type:refactor` |
| `chore` | Maintenance, dependencies, tooling | `type:chore` |
| `style` | Formatting, linting (no logic change) | `type:chore` |
| `perf` | Performance improvement | `type:feature` |
| `test` | Adding or updating tests | `type:chore` |
| `build` | Build system or external deps | `type:chore` |
| `ci` | CI configuration | `type:chore` |
| `revert` | Reverts a previous commit | matches reverted type |

### Breaking Changes

Add `!` after the type/scope:

```
feat(cli)!: rename --config flag to --config-file

BREAKING CHANGE: the --config flag has been renamed to --config-file.
```

Breaking changes map to `type:breaking-change` label.

### Examples

```
feat(tui): add progress bar to installation steps
fix(agent): correct Claude Code detection on macOS
docs: update contributing guide
chore(deps): bump bubbletea to v0.26
refactor(pipeline): extract step executor
style: fix linter warnings in catalog package
perf(system): cache OS detection result
test(installer): add coverage for catalog step execution
build: update goreleaser config for arm64
ci: split unit and e2e test jobs
revert: undo model picker redesign
feat(cli)!: change default config path
```

---

## Commands

### Setup

```bash
# Confirm issue is approved before starting
gh issue view <N> --repo Gentleman-Programming/gentle-ai

# Create branch
git checkout main && git pull
git checkout -b fix/<short-description>
```

### Testing Locally

```bash
# Unit tests
go test ./...

# Go format
go run ./internal/gofmtcheck

# Unit tests — specific package
go test ./internal/tui/...

# Unit tests — verbose
go test -v ./...

# E2E tests (Docker must be running)
cd e2e && ./docker-test.sh
```

### Open a PR

```bash
gh pr create \
  --repo Gentleman-Programming/gentle-ai \
  --title "fix(agent): correct Claude Code detection on Linux" \
  --body "$(cat <<'EOF'
## 🔗 Linked Issue

Closes #42

## 🏷️ PR Type

- [x] \`type:bug\` — Bug fix (non-breaking change that fixes an issue)

## 📝 Summary

Fixes Claude Code binary detection failing on Linux when HOME is not set.

## 📂 Changes

| File / Area | What Changed |
|-------------|-------------|
| \`internal/agents/claude.go\` | Added HOME env var fallback |

## 🧪 Test Plan

- [x] Unit tests pass (\`go test ./...\`)
- [x] E2E tests pass (\`cd e2e && ./docker-test.sh\`)
- [x] Manually tested locally

## ✅ Contributor Checklist

- [x] PR is linked to an issue with \`status:approved\`
- [x] PR stays within 400 changed lines, or the \`size:exception\` rationale and verified policy authority are documented
- [x] API read-back confirms exactly one appropriate \`type:*\` label on this PR
- [x] Unit tests pass (\`go test ./...\`)
- [x] E2E tests pass (\`cd e2e && ./docker-test.sh\`)
- [x] I have updated documentation if necessary
- [x] My commits follow Conventional Commits format
- [x] My commits do not include \`Co-Authored-By\` trailers
EOF
)"
```

### Check PR Status

```bash
gh pr checks --repo Gentleman-Programming/gentle-ai <PR-number>
gh pr view --repo Gentleman-Programming/gentle-ai <PR-number>
```