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GeezerVison is showing github.com — Document merge-commit requirement for release PRs by redsun82 · Pull Request #4110 · github/codeql-action

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@redsun82

@redsun82 redsun82 commented Aug 26, 2026

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The release process creates a cascade of PRs (main -> releases/vN, then the releases/vN -> main mergeback, then a releases/vN -> releases/v(N-1) backport). These must be merged with a merge commit: the mergeback tags the release using the merge commit of the "Merge main into releases/vN" PR, so squashing or rebasing breaks tagging and the branch linkage the release automation relies on. Today nothing in the repo states this, so it depends on whoever clicks merge remembering the right strategy.

This PR bakes the rule into two places:

  • .github/instructions/release-merge.instructions.md (new) - a path-scoped Copilot instructions file with an applyTo glob targeting the files that reliably change in release/mergeback/backport PRs (CHANGELOG.md, src/defaults.json, lib/defaults.json, src/api-compatibility.json). It tells the agent to merge with a merge commit and arm auto-merge with --merge.
  • CONTRIBUTING.md - the human-facing Releasing runbook. Both automerge steps now say to merge "with a merge commit (gh pr merge --merge)", plus a > [!NOTE] explaining why squash/rebase would break tagging.

Docs-only change; no behavior or code paths are affected.

Risk assessment

  • Low risk: Documentation only.

Which use cases does this change impact?

Environments:

  • Testing/None - This change does not impact any CodeQL workflows in production.

How did/will you validate this change?

  • None - Documentation-only change; no runtime behavior is affected.

If something goes wrong after this change is released, what are the mitigation and rollback strategies?

  • Development/testing only - This change cannot cause any failures in production.

How will you know if something goes wrong after this change is released?

  • Other - N/A, documentation-only change.

Are there any special considerations for merging or releasing this change?

  • No special considerations - This change can be merged at any time.

Merge / deployment checklist

  • Confirm this change is backwards compatible with existing workflows.
  • Consider adding a changelog entry for this change.
  • Confirm the readme and docs have been updated if necessary.

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@redsun82
Document merge-commit requirement for release PRs
42c2ea9 
Release, mergeback, and backport PRs must be merged with a merge commit
so the branch linkage the release automation depends on is preserved
(the mergeback tags the release using the merge commit of the
"Merge main into releases/vN" PR, so squashing or rebasing breaks
tagging).

Add a path-scoped Copilot instructions file scoped to the files that
reliably change in these PRs (CHANGELOG.md, src/defaults.json,
lib/defaults.json, src/api-compatibility.json), and add an explicit note
to the Releasing runbook in CONTRIBUTING.md so the rule is enforced
regardless of who merges.

Co-authored-by: Copilot App <[email protected]>
Copilot-Session: 0dae6e42-7fc6-4fb1-b1ea-15dc17e402a2
Copilot AI balanced review requested due to automatic review settings August 26, 2026 15:13
@redsun82
redsun82 requested a review from a team as a code owner August 26, 2026 15:13
henrymercer
henrymercer approved these changes Aug 26, 2026
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@henrymercer henrymercer left a comment

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Changes to CONTRIBUTING.md make sense. Is there a risk that the applyTo filter for the instructions will mean that the agent doesn't see them when interacting with the release process more indirectly?

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Copilot AI reviewed Aug 26, 2026

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Copilot encountered an error and was unable to review this pull request. You can try again by re-requesting a review.

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@redsun82
Merge branch 'main' into redsun82-release-merge-instructions
76ba03b
@redsun82
redsun82 enabled auto-merge August 27, 2026 08:10
@github-actions github-actions Bot added the size/XS Should be very easy to review label Aug 27, 2026
@redsun82

redsun82 commented Aug 27, 2026

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Changes to CONTRIBUTING.md make sense. Is there a risk that the applyTo filter for the instructions will mean that the agent doesn't see them when interacting with the release process more indirectly?

This should work when the agent is working from this repository. However you're right this might not be enough. I plan to also add an instruction for this in the internal release playbook.
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@redsun82
redsun82 added this pull request to the merge queue Aug 27, 2026
Merged via the queue into main with commit 7acc225 Aug 27, 2026
221 checks passed

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@redsun82
redsun82 deleted the redsun82-release-merge-instructions branch August 27, 2026 08:38
This was referenced Sep 9, 2026
Merge main into releases/v4 #4131
Merged
Merge releases/v4 into releases/v3 #4133
Merged
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@henrymercer henrymercer henrymercer approved these changes

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@redsun82 @henrymercer
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