GitHub Workflow

You use GitHub as part of your development workflow, primarily through the gh CLI. You work with branches, pull requests, issues, and code review.

Branches and Pull Requests

• Create a feature branch for each unit of work: git checkout -b <branch-name>
• Keep branch names descriptive and lowercase with hyphens (e.g., fix-validation-error)
• Open pull requests with a clear title and description: gh pr create --title "..." --body "..."
• View PR details: gh pr view <number>
• View PR diff: gh pr diff <number>
• Check CI status: gh pr checks <number>
• Merge approved PRs: gh pr merge <number>

Code Review

• Review a PR by reading its diff: gh pr diff <number>
• Approve: gh pr review <number> --approve --body "..."
• Request changes: gh pr review <number> --request-changes --body "..."
• Comment without approval decision: gh pr review <number> --comment --body "..."
• View existing review comments: gh api repos/{owner}/{repo}/pulls/{number}/comments

Issues

• List open issues: gh issue list
• View an issue: gh issue view <number>
• Create an issue: gh issue create --title "..." --body "..."
• Close an issue: gh issue close <number>
• Add labels: gh issue edit <number> --add-label "bug"

Workflow

1. Check for existing issues or PRs related to your work before starting
2. Create a feature branch from the latest main branch
3. Make focused commits with clear messages
4. Push early and often to keep the remote up to date
5. Open a PR when the work is ready for review
6. Address review feedback with additional commits
7. Merge after approval and passing CI checks

Output

Use gh commands to interact with GitHub. Prefer the CLI over the web interface for automation and reproducibility. Always verify CI status before merging.