Jewel PR Preparer

SkillDocs & knowledge

Lets your agent prepare a pull request by validating commits, running local CI checks, drafting release notes, and opening the PR.

Available today. Use it from your connected AI after setup.

Connect ahel once, and every AI you use reads what you have installed.

Then ask your AI: use the Jewel PR Preparer skill

About this capability

Prepare a Jewel pull request: validate the commit, run local CI checks, draft release notes, and create the PR.

What this skill tells your AI

The instructions your AI receives, as published by jetbrains/intellij-community in .agents/skills/jewel-pr-preparer/SKILL.md and read by ahel’s review.

Prepare a Jewel pull request that passes all CI checks and follows the project's contribution guidelines. Work through each section below in order, reporting results as you go. Stop and ask the user to fix issues before moving on.

Check the platform/jewel/docs folder for further guidelines and process info for PRs.


1. Verify environment

  • Confirm the working directory is inside the intellij-community checkout and that the platform/jewel directory exists.
  • Confirm the current branch is NOT master. If it is, stop and offer the user to create a feature branch first.
  • Confirm gh (GitHub CLI) is on PATH. If not, offer to install it via brew install gh (macOS) or direct the user to https://cli.github.com/. The gh tool is needed for the final PR creation step, but all earlier steps can proceed without it.

2. Validate single-commit requirement

Jewel PRs MUST contain exactly one commit on top of master.

git rev-list --count master..HEAD
  • If count is 0: stop — nothing to submit.
  • If count > 1: squash all commits into one using soft reset and amend:
    git reset --soft master
    git commit --amend --no-edit
    
    This preserves the first commit's message; consider whether relevant info from subsequent commits needs to be folded into this commit message, and if so offer to the user to do it. If the commit message needs to change, use git commit --amend -m "<new message>" instead. Verify the count is 1 after squashing before proceeding.
  • If count is 1: proceed.

3. Validate commit message format

The single commit message subject must match:

[JEWEL-<number>] <summary>

Rules (from platform/jewel/scripts/validate-commit-message.sh):

  • Must start with [JEWEL-xxx] where xxx is a YouTrack issue number.
  • Multiple issues are allowed: [JEWEL-xxx, JEWEL-yyy] .
  • The regex the CI uses: ^\[(JEWEL-[0-9]+)(,\s*JEWEL-[0-9]+)*\][ ]
  • Ideally, follow conventional Git commit message style: a short subject (ideally <= 72 chars), a blank line, and a wrapped body (ideally <= 72 chars per line)

Validate locally:

SUBJECT=$(git log -1 --format='%s')
if ! echo "$SUBJECT" | grep -qE '^\[(JEWEL-[0-9]+)(,\s*JEWEL-[0-9]+)*\][ ]'; then
  echo "FAIL: commit message does not match [JEWEL-xxx] format"
fi

If invalid, show the user the current message, explain the required format, and offer to amend (ask before running git commit --amend).

Do NOT add Co-Authored-By trailers or any AI attribution to the commit message and PR description.

4. Run CI checks locally

Run these checks from the platform/jewel directory. Report pass/fail for each. If any fail, stop and help the user fix the issues before continuing.

4a. Gradle check task

cd platform/jewel && ./gradlew check --continue --no-daemon

4b. Detekt

cd platform/jewel && ./gradlew detekt detektMain detektTest --continue --no-daemon

4c. API dump check

cd platform/jewel && ./scripts/check-api-dumps.main.kts

Review the output. If API dumps are out of date, tell the user to run the appropriate update task and amend their commit.

4d. Metalava signature validation

cd platform/jewel && ./scripts/metalava-signatures.main.kts validate

If Metalava reports an intentional API change, tell the user to update the API dumps and re-validate. If the finding should be suppressed instead, tell the user to update the baseline files with the --update-baseline parameter, then amend and re-validate.

4e. Bazel build/tests

The IntelliJ Community repo is migrating to Bazel. It's important to make sure the Bazel build is not broken and tests pass.

Unlike the previous steps, the commands in this step run from the repository root, where tests.cmd and bazel.cmd live. tests.cmd needs both the JPS module that holds the test class and the test pattern:

./tests.cmd --module <jps-module> --test <test-class-fqn-or-pattern>

For example, to run the IJP API dump check the way step 4c does under the hood:

./tests.cmd --module intellij.platform.testFramework.monorepo.tests --test com.intellij.platform.testFramework.monorepo.api.ApiCheckTest

If there are no useful tests, at a minimum verify Bazel compilation for the affected Jewel module targets. Common examples:

./bazel.cmd build //platform/jewel/foundation:foundation
./bazel.cmd build //platform/jewel/ui:ui
./bazel.cmd build //platform/jewel/ide-laf-bridge:ide-laf-bridge
./bazel.cmd build //platform/jewel/markdown/core:core
./bazel.cmd build //platform/jewel/int-ui/int-ui-standalone:jewel-intUi-standalone

If sample modules are touched, also consider:

./bazel.cmd build //platform/jewel/samples/showcase:showcase
./bazel.cmd build //platform/jewel/samples/standalone:standalone

If you specifically need to verify that test sources compile, build the corresponding *_test_lib target for the affected module, e.g.:

./bazel.cmd build //platform/jewel/foundation:foundation_test_lib
./bazel.cmd build //platform/jewel/ui:ui_test_lib
./bazel.cmd build //platform/jewel/markdown/core:core_test_lib
./bazel.cmd build //platform/jewel/int-ui/int-ui-standalone-tests:jewel-intUi-standalone-tests_test_lib

If a runnable Bazel test target exists, it is usually named *_test, e.g. //platform/jewel/ui:ui_test or //platform/jewel/int-ui/int-ui-standalone-tests:jewel-intUi-standalone-tests_test.

4f. Bazel build check (if module structure changed)

Only run this if the diff touches .iml files, modules.xml, or adds new modules:

./build/jpsModelToBazelCommunityOnly.cmd

CHANGED_BAZEL_FILES=$(git diff --name-only HEAD \
  | grep -E '\.(bzl|bazel)$|^BUILD|^WORKSPACE' \
  | grep -v '^android/' \
  | grep -E '^[^/]+$|^lib/(BUILD|MODULE).bazel$|^build/BUILD\.bazel$|^platform/jewel/' \
  || true)

if [ -n "$CHANGED_BAZEL_FILES" ]; then
  echo "Bazel files need to be committed:"
  echo "$CHANGED_BAZEL_FILES"
fi

If changed Bazel files are found, they need to be committed. This mirrors the relevant scope of the GitHub CI Bazel sync check. Make sure to always check if the Bazel changes are sensible given the context, or if they are spurious changes caused by bugs in the Community repo Bazel scripts (which happen semi-frequently). For example, you should not see any changes in the android sub-repo when making Jewel-only changes.

You may also want to run:

  • ./bazel.cmd build <affected-target> for the affected Jewel module targets, using concrete targets like the examples above
  • Optionally, ./bazel-build-all-community.cmd if the change is broad

5. Check for breaking API changes

Check both IntelliJ Platform API dumps and Jewel's own Metalava API dumps. Both act as API surface checks now and can fail the build when the checked-in dump no longer matches the current API surface.

For IntelliJ Platform API dump files such as api-dump.txt and api-dump-experimental.txt, follow the module's existing API compatibility rules and review any intentional dump updates carefully.

For Jewel API dump files under module metalava/ directories, stable Jewel API changes must preserve both binary and source compatibility. Experimental Jewel API changes must preserve binary compatibility, but may evolve in source-incompatible ways. Intentional changes still need updated API dumps and should be called out clearly when they affect users. Look at the diff for Jewel API dump files under module metalava/ directories:

git diff master -- 'platform/jewel/**/metalava/*.txt'
  • Removed or changed lines in *-api-stable-*.txt = potential breaking changes in stable API. Only acceptable if compatibility is preserved, for example by keeping the old declaration as a deprecated DeprecationLevel.HIDDEN shim that remains in the ABI and preserves the previous source entry point.
  • Removed or changed lines in *-api-*.txt = experimental API changes. These can be allowed when intentional, but they should preserve binary compatibility, come with updated dumps, and be documented in the release notes when relevant.

6. Check for visual changes and screenshots

Scan the diff for changes to Composable functions, UI components, styling, colors, or layout code:

git diff master --stat -- 'platform/jewel/'

If the changes look like they affect visuals (components, themes, painters, styles, icons), the PR description must include:

  • At minimum, an "after" screenshot or screen recording.
  • Ideally "before" screenshots too for comparison.

Ask the user if they have screenshots ready. Guide the user through capturing those if not. Note that you cannot programmatically upload screenshots and videos to GitHub, so you'll have to leave placeholders and ask the user to fill those in once the PR is open. Collect a list of files and which placeholders they go in, so you can later present a recap table to the user.

7. Draft release notes

If the PR has user-visible changes (new features, bug fixes, API changes, behavioral changes), draft a release notes section using the template found in platform/jewel/docs:

## Release notes

### ⚠️ Important Changes

*

### New features

*

### Bug fixes

*

### Deprecated API

*

Remove sections that don't apply. Match the style of existing release notes in platform/jewel/RELEASE NOTES.md. Do NOT prepend the JEWEL-xxx issue IDs and PR link to the notes, as those are added by the release notes script when preparing a release.

Guidance:

  • Release notes are user-targeted. Our users are the devs who use Jewel to build something, NOT their end users. Only write notes that are valuable to those devs.
  • Omit internal implementation details (refactoring, test-only, CI changes) that do not matter to our users.
  • Use ⚠️ Important Changes for behavior or API changes users must actively react to.
  • Use Deprecated API when public API is deprecated, replaced, or scheduled for removal.

8. PR title and description

Title format

[JEWEL-xxx] Short imperative summary

Use the commit message subject verbatim as the title.

Description structure

The description should follow a structure compatible with common high-quality Jewel PRs such as #3449, #3407, and #3418.

A good Jewel PR description usually contains:

  1. An initial short summary of the issue/feature
  2. Optionally, a Context section
  3. ## Changes section with a bullet list of changes
  4. ## Screenshots, ## Screen recordings when relevant (i.e., there are visual or behavioral UI changes)
  5. ## Release notes for user-visible or API changes (if any)

Use this starter template and adapt the headings to the PR:

<Explain the problem, motivation, and scope. For small PRs, `## Summary` is also fine.>

## Changes

* <bulleted list of notable changes>

## Screenshots/screen recordings

<!-- Can omit this section if the change does not have visual impact or if it's trivially obvious -->

## Release notes

<!-- See release notes format above -->

Guidelines:

  • The context/summary intro paragraph does not need a header. Keep the opening section concise but complete.
  • The Changes section should mention notable implementation details.
  • Include a visual evidence section for UI changes. At minimum, include an "after" screenshot or screen recording; ideally include a "before" too.
  • Include Release notes only for user-visible or public API changes.
  • Remove any empty Release notes subsections that do not apply.
  • Do NOT hard-wrap prose lines. Write each paragraph or bullet as a single long line and let GitHub soft-wrap it. Hard line breaks inside a sentence render as visible breaks in the GitHub PR UI.
  • Do NOT add AI attribution, co-author tags, or "generated by" notices anywhere in the PR title or description.

Present to user

Show the full PR title and description for approval from the user. DO NOT create the PR until you have explicit approval. Tweak the draft based on user feedback, if any, until the user signals it's good to go.

9. Create the PR (after user approval)

Once the user has approved the draft, it's time to automate opening the PR. Make sure the gh CLI is installed and authenticated.

Push the branch, then create the PR:

gh pr create --repo JetBrains/intellij-community --base master ...

It's strongly recommended to write the PR body to a temp Markdown file and use that to fill in the body, since Markdown backticks will break shell escapes and cause all sorts of formatting issues. Delete the temp file once done with this step. Once the PR is open, if there are pending screenshots/videos that the user needs to manually attach to the PR, print the PR URL as a link. Then, ask the user to edit the description to fill in the placeholders. Remind to the user which placeholders need filling in with what.

Once the user confirms they have filled in the placeholders, verify all placeholders are correctly filled in the PR description.

PR metadata adjustment

If the user has triage or write access to JetBrains/intellij-community (i.e., they are a JetBrains employee or an official Jewel contributor), all the following can be done directly via gh — ask if they want to run them:

gh pr edit <number> --repo JetBrains/intellij-community \
  --add-label "jewel" \
  --add-assignee "<their-github-handle>" \
  --add-reviewer "<reviewer1>" \
  --add-reviewer "<reviewer2>" \
  --add-reviewer "<reviewer3>"

Always add 3 reviewers, mixing teams.

The reviewer pool is not hardcoded here. It comes from the published Jewel maintainers list at https://jewel-ui.dev/data/maintainers.json, where every maintainer carries a team of either jetbrains or google. Maintainers from Touchlab work on Google's behalf and are recorded as google; the only distinction that matters for reviews is whether someone is a JetBrains employee. Never hardcode reviewer handles in this skill, in the helper script, or in a PR — if the roster is wrong, fix the published list instead.

Do NOT ask for a review from the author of the PR, of course.

For best-effort round-robin assignment, prefer reviewers with the fewest outstanding review requests across currently open Jewel PRs. Try to keep at least one reviewer from each team in the set whenever possible. This is only a heuristic — it does not know about vacations, availability, or special topic ownership. Ask the user before applying the suggested reviewers.

Requesting 3 reviewers is unrelated to how many approvals the PR needs to merge. Per the approval rules, one Jewel team approval is enough for a small or simple change, or for one confined to platform/jewel; anything else needs two approvals, at least one of them from a JetBrains maintainer. Note that "confined to platform/jewel" is deliberately narrower than the Jewel-related paths in the contribution guide, so a PR touching libraries/skiko — or this skill's own files — still needs a JetBrains approval.

Run the helper script from the repository root (or adjust the path accordingly):

python3 .claude/skills/jewel-pr-preparer/scripts/suggest_reviewers.py \
  --pr-number <current-pr-number> \
  --author-login <pr-author-login> \
  --exclude <optional-comma-separated-extra-logins>

The script prints the maintainer list it used, the suggested reviewers with their team, and an example gh pr edit ... --add-reviewer ... command. If the script returns fewer than 3 reviewers, ask the user how they want to fill the remaining slots. If the user wants a different balance (e.g., 2 JetBrains + 1 Google), adjust the selection accordingly.

The script fetches the maintainers list at run time. If that fetch fails it warns on stderr and falls back to maintainers.fallback.json, a snapshot bundled next to the script. When you see that warning, tell the user the suggestions came from a possibly stale copy so they can sanity-check the handles. If neither source is usable the script exits with an error and the user should pick reviewers manually.

Update YouTrack ticket state

After the PR is created, set the YouTrack ticket state to "In Review" for each JEWEL-xxx issue referenced in the commit message/PR title. Use the youtrack-community skill to do this. The user may have to do some manual setup if they have never run it.

10. Subsequent PR updates

When the user needs to update an existing PR (e.g., after review feedback), the flow is:

  1. Make the necessary code changes.
  2. Stage the changes and amend the single commit:
    git add <files>
    git commit --amend --no-edit
    
  3. Force push to update the PR:
    git push --force-with-lease <remote> <branch>
    

This keeps the PR as a single commit. Never create additional commits on the branch — always amend and force push.


Reference: commit message examples from the repo

Good commit messages that follow the convention:

[JEWEL-1250] Prepare Jewel 0.34 release
[JEWEL-741] Use TextMate as Fallback for Languages Without Parsers
[JEWEL-1222] Fix Jewel Demos Toolwindow Crash
[JEWEL-1240] Fix undecorated TextArea layout
[JEWEL-992] Hide mouse cursor while typing in BTF on macOS
[JEWEL-954] Implement ad text in popups
[JEWEL-1200] Get rid of Jewel JPS artifacts and support seamless installing of rules to IDE
[JEWEL-1189] Fix ComboBox Popup Clipping Items Vertically

Style notes:

  • Imperative mood ("Fix", "Add", "Implement", "Prepare", not "Fixed", "Added")
  • Concise but descriptive
  • No trailing period
  • The summary after [JEWEL-xxx] starts with a capital letter

Reference: good PR description examples

These Jewel PRs are good models to imitate:

  • #3449 — strong Context, Changes, visual demo tables, and Release notes with a Deprecated API section.
  • #3407 — concise user-facing write-up with clear screenshots and a solid ⚠️ Important Changes example.
  • #3418 — compact bug-fix PR with a clean Context / Changes / evidence structure.

Use these as structural inspiration. Do not force every PR to look identical, but keep the same overall shape: explain the problem, summarize the implementation, show evidence when relevant, and include release notes when applicable. Format modifications are acceptable when they make sense (e.g., there may be no point in having a super long PR description for a one-liner PR).

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