github-review-cycle

GitHub Review Cycle

What is it?

This skill manages the collaboration & review phase of software development. It handles commenting, approving, requesting changes, and leveraging AI reviews.

Success Criteria

• Review comments are specific and actionable.
• Batching is used (add_comment_to_pending_review) for multiple comments in a single PR.
• Final review event (APPROVE, REQUEST_CHANGES, COMMENT) matches the overall feedback.
• AI reviews are triggered only when appropriate and add value.

Why use it?

• Structured code review: Manage the complete review lifecycle from commenting to approval
• Batched feedback: Group multiple comments into a single review submission
• Clear communication: Distinguish between general discussion and code-specific feedback
• AI assistance: Leverage Copilot for automated code review insights
• Review etiquette: Avoid spam by consolidating feedback appropriately

When to use this skill

• "Review this PR."
• "Add a comment on line 50."
• "Request a review from @octocat."
• "Ask Copilot to review this PR."

What this skill can do

• Comment: Add general issue comments or specific file-level review comments.
• Review: Submit formal reviews (APPROVE, REQUEST_CHANGES, COMMENT).
• Pending Reviews: Manage batched review comments (add_comment_to_pending_review).
• AI Review: Trigger Copilot code reviews.

What this skill will NOT do

• Merge PRs (use github-pr-flow).
• Change code.

How to use this skill

1. General Feedback: Use add_issue_comment.
2. Code-Specific Feedback: Use add_comment_to_pending_review (start/add to batch) -> pull_request_review_write (submit batch).
3. Automated Feedback: Use request_copilot_review.

Tool usage rules

• Distinguish Comments:
  • add_issue_comment: General PR discussion (timeline).
  • pull_request_review_write: Code review (diff context).
• Bot Etiquette: Do not spam. Group comments into a single review where possible.

Examples

See references/examples.md for compliant review examples.

Limitations

• Cannot view "pending" comments from other users.
• Review requests depend on user permissions.