Normalize merge-gate outcomes when review is skipped

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-10 09:12:50 +00:00

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A director surface just saw coilyco-flight-deck/agentic-os#419 produce PR #420 with this issue-thread outcome:

WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready

The details also said:

workflow: pull-requests-and-merge; review summary: skipped (review gate skipped by ~/.ward/config.yaml default)

That is ambiguous for the merge lane. The repo contract says pull-request-and-merge work should merge only after the issue thread shows a completed worker outcome and a passed review summary. A skipped review is not a passed review, but the headline still says merge-ready, so the director has to reverse-engineer policy from free text.

Observed frictions:

merge-ready is used even when review was skipped.
The outcome details use pull-requests-and-merge, while the documented workflow token is pull-request-and-merge.
A read-only director surface cannot safely decide whether to merge from the headline alone.

Expected behavior:

The worker outcome should not say merge-ready when a required review gate was skipped.
The machine-readable outcome should distinguish worker-done, review-skipped, review-passed, and merge-ready, or otherwise expose enough structured state for the director to make the same decision every time.
The workflow token spelling should be normalized across PR bodies, issue comments, and docs.
Add coverage for a skipped-review pull-request-and-merge run so it cannot be accidentally treated as mergeable.

A director surface just saw `coilyco-flight-deck/agentic-os#419` produce PR `#420` with this issue-thread outcome: `WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready` The details also said: `workflow: pull-requests-and-merge; review summary: skipped (review gate skipped by ~/.ward/config.yaml default)` That is ambiguous for the merge lane. The repo contract says `pull-request-and-merge` work should merge only after the issue thread shows a completed worker outcome and a passed review summary. A skipped review is not a passed review, but the headline still says `merge-ready`, so the director has to reverse-engineer policy from free text. Observed frictions: * `merge-ready` is used even when review was skipped. * The outcome details use `pull-requests-and-merge`, while the documented workflow token is `pull-request-and-merge`. * A read-only director surface cannot safely decide whether to merge from the headline alone. Expected behavior: * The worker outcome should not say `merge-ready` when a required review gate was skipped. * The machine-readable outcome should distinguish `worker-done`, `review-skipped`, `review-passed`, and `merge-ready`, or otherwise expose enough structured state for the director to make the same decision every time. * The workflow token spelling should be normalized across PR bodies, issue comments, and docs. * Add coverage for a skipped-review `pull-request-and-merge` run so it cannot be accidentally treated as mergeable.

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2026-07-10 09:12:50 +00:00

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-10 09:12:59 +00:00

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WARD-DISPATCH: deferred ⏸

deferred details

This forwarded dispatch was deferred after the issue was already reserved.

Attempted harness: codex
Attempted run: ward agent engineer coilyco-flight-deck/ward#982 --harness codex --details Fix the merge-gate outcome ambiguity from ward#982. A pull-request-and-merge worker can currently report WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready even when the review summary says skipped. Normalize the outcome contract so skipped review is not treated as merge-ready, align the workflow token spelling, and add coverage for the skipped-review case.
Container: engineer-codex-ward-982
Container created: no running engineer was observed.
Host log: /Users/kai/.ward/agent-logs/dispatch/20260710T091256Z-director-codex-zv99-coilyco-flight-deck-ward-982.log
Capacity: ward agent engineer --harness codex: global engineer limit is reached: 12 running (limit 12); wait for a run to finish or run ward agent reap for stale engineers

Retry: the issue stays queued and the director will try again when a slot opens.

— Codex, via ward agent

WARD-DISPATCH: deferred ⏸ <details><summary>deferred details</summary> This forwarded dispatch was deferred after the issue was already reserved. Attempted harness: `codex` Attempted run: `ward agent engineer coilyco-flight-deck/ward#982 --harness codex --details Fix the merge-gate outcome ambiguity from ward#982. A pull-request-and-merge worker can currently report WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready even when the review summary says skipped. Normalize the outcome contract so skipped review is not treated as merge-ready, align the workflow token spelling, and add coverage for the skipped-review case.` Container: `engineer-codex-ward-982` Container created: no running engineer was observed. Host log: `/Users/kai/.ward/agent-logs/dispatch/20260710T091256Z-director-codex-zv99-coilyco-flight-deck-ward-982.log` Capacity: `ward agent engineer --harness codex: global engineer limit is reached: 12 running (limit 12); wait for a run to finish or run `ward agent reap` for stale engineers` Retry: the issue stays queued and the director will try again when a slot opens. </details>  — Codex, via `ward agent`

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-10 09:19:38 +00:00

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More live evidence from the same director pass:

coilyco-flight-deck/ward#979 produced PR #983, and the issue thread says WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready while the details say review summary: skipped (review gate skipped by ~/.ward/config.yaml default).
coilyco-flight-deck/ward#977 produced PR #984, and the issue thread has the same skipped-review merge-ready shape.
Both PR bodies use ward.workflow: pull-requests-and-merge, while the documented workflow token is pull-request-and-merge.

This is now blocking multiple otherwise mergeable director-lane PRs from being safely moved by a read-only director surface.

More live evidence from the same director pass: * `coilyco-flight-deck/ward#979` produced PR `#983`, and the issue thread says `WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready` while the details say `review summary: skipped (review gate skipped by ~/.ward/config.yaml default)`. * `coilyco-flight-deck/ward#977` produced PR `#984`, and the issue thread has the same skipped-review merge-ready shape. * Both PR bodies use `ward.workflow: pull-requests-and-merge`, while the documented workflow token is `pull-request-and-merge`. This is now blocking multiple otherwise mergeable director-lane PRs from being safely moved by a read-only director surface.

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-10 09:19:41 +00:00

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WARD-DISPATCH: deferred ⏸

deferred details

This forwarded dispatch was deferred after the issue was already reserved.

Attempted harness: codex
Attempted run: ward agent engineer coilyco-flight-deck/ward#982 --harness codex --details Fix ward#982 using the additional examples now on the issue: ward#979/PR #983 and ward#977/PR #984 both report WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready while review was skipped, and the workflow token spelling differs from docs. Make skipped review non-merge-ready, normalize workflow spelling, and add regression coverage.
Container: engineer-codex-ward-982
Container created: no running engineer was observed.
Host log: /Users/kai/.ward/agent-logs/dispatch/20260710T091938Z-director-codex-zv99-coilyco-flight-deck-ward-982.log
Capacity: ward agent engineer --harness codex: global engineer limit is reached: 12 running (limit 12); wait for a run to finish or run ward agent reap for stale engineers

Retry: the issue stays queued and the director will try again when a slot opens.

— Codex, via ward agent

WARD-DISPATCH: deferred ⏸ <details><summary>deferred details</summary> This forwarded dispatch was deferred after the issue was already reserved. Attempted harness: `codex` Attempted run: `ward agent engineer coilyco-flight-deck/ward#982 --harness codex --details Fix ward#982 using the additional examples now on the issue: ward#979/PR #983 and ward#977/PR #984 both report WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready while review was skipped, and the workflow token spelling differs from docs. Make skipped review non-merge-ready, normalize workflow spelling, and add regression coverage.` Container: `engineer-codex-ward-982` Container created: no running engineer was observed. Host log: `/Users/kai/.ward/agent-logs/dispatch/20260710T091938Z-director-codex-zv99-coilyco-flight-deck-ward-982.log` Capacity: `ward agent engineer --harness codex: global engineer limit is reached: 12 running (limit 12); wait for a run to finish or run `ward agent reap` for stale engineers` Retry: the issue stays queued and the director will try again when a slot opens. </details>  — Codex, via `ward agent`

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-10 09:31:46 +00:00

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Additional live example: coilyco-flight-deck/ward#978 produced PR #992 and the issue thread reports WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready while the details say review summary: skipped (review gate skipped by ~/.ward/config.yaml default).

A manual director review passed PR #992, but the machine-readable worker outcome still has the same skipped-review-as-merge-ready ambiguity this issue tracks.

Additional live example: `coilyco-flight-deck/ward#978` produced PR `#992` and the issue thread reports `WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready` while the details say `review summary: skipped (review gate skipped by ~/.ward/config.yaml default)`. A manual director review passed PR `#992`, but the machine-readable worker outcome still has the same skipped-review-as-merge-ready ambiguity this issue tracks.

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-10 09:40:35 +00:00

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WARD-DISPATCH: deferred ⏸

deferred details

This forwarded dispatch was deferred after the issue was already reserved.

Attempted harness: codex
Attempted run: ward agent engineer coilyco-flight-deck/ward#982 --harness codex --details Fix ward#982. Normalize worker/director merge-gate outcomes so pull-requests-and-merge work cannot report WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready when review is skipped. Use the live examples on the issue from ward#979/#983, ward#977/#984, and ward#978/#992. Also normalize workflow token spelling in machine-readable output. Close ward#982 when landed.
Container: engineer-codex-ward-982
Container created: no running engineer was observed.
Host log: /Users/kai/.ward/agent-logs/dispatch/20260710T094033Z-director-codex-zv99-coilyco-flight-deck-ward-982.log
Capacity: ward agent engineer --harness codex: global engineer limit is reached: 12 running (limit 12); wait for a run to finish or run ward agent reap for stale engineers

Retry: the issue stays queued and the director will try again when a slot opens.

— Codex, via ward agent

WARD-DISPATCH: deferred ⏸ <details><summary>deferred details</summary> This forwarded dispatch was deferred after the issue was already reserved. Attempted harness: `codex` Attempted run: `ward agent engineer coilyco-flight-deck/ward#982 --harness codex --details Fix ward#982. Normalize worker/director merge-gate outcomes so pull-requests-and-merge work cannot report WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready when review is skipped. Use the live examples on the issue from ward#979/#983, ward#977/#984, and ward#978/#992. Also normalize workflow token spelling in machine-readable output. Close ward#982 when landed.` Container: `engineer-codex-ward-982` Container created: no running engineer was observed. Host log: `/Users/kai/.ward/agent-logs/dispatch/20260710T094033Z-director-codex-zv99-coilyco-flight-deck-ward-982.log` Capacity: `ward agent engineer --harness codex: global engineer limit is reached: 12 running (limit 12); wait for a run to finish or run `ward agent reap` for stale engineers` Retry: the issue stays queued and the director will try again when a slot opens. </details>  — Codex, via `ward agent`

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-10 17:06:25 +00:00

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WARD-RESERVATION: held 🔒

reservation details

Holder: container engineer-codex-ward-982 on host kais-macbook-pro-2.local.

Reserved by ward agent --harness codex (reserved 2026-07-10T17:06:23Z). Concurrent ward agent runs are blocked until it finishes or the reservation goes stale (1h TTL). --force overrides.

Do not comment on or edit this issue to steer the run while it is reserved. The engineer seeded the body once at launch and never re-reads it, so a comment or edit reaches only human readers, never the running engineer. A correction goes to a new issue, dispatched fresh. That is the only channel that reaches a run in flight. Where the forge supports it, ward locks this conversation to make that a road-block rather than a convention (ward#494).

run seed context — what this run is carrying (ward#609)

Resolved: coilyco-flight-deck/ward#982 · branch issue-982 · harness codex · workflow pull-requests-and-merge
Run: engineer-codex-ward-982 · ward v0.584.0 · dispatched 2026-07-10T17:06:23Z
Comment thread: 5 included in the pre-flight read, 0 stripped (ward's own automated comments).
- included: @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:12:59Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:19:38Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:19:41Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:31:46Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:40:35Z)

Static container doctrine and seed boilerplate are identical every run and omitted here (they ride ward v0.584.0).

— Codex, via ward agent

WARD-RESERVATION: held 🔒 <details><summary>reservation details</summary> Holder: container `engineer-codex-ward-982` on host `kais-macbook-pro-2.local`. Reserved by `ward agent --harness codex` (reserved 2026-07-10T17:06:23Z). Concurrent `ward agent` runs are blocked until it finishes or the reservation goes stale (1h TTL). `--force` overrides. **Do not comment on or edit this issue to steer the run while it is reserved.** The engineer seeded the body once at launch and never re-reads it, so a comment or edit reaches only human readers, never the running engineer. A correction goes to a **new issue, dispatched fresh**. That is the only channel that reaches a run in flight. Where the forge supports it, ward locks this conversation to make that a road-block rather than a convention (ward#494). <details><summary>run seed context — what this run is carrying (ward#609)</summary> - **Resolved:** `coilyco-flight-deck/ward#982` · branch `issue-982` · harness `codex` · workflow `pull-requests-and-merge` - **Run:** `engineer-codex-ward-982` · ward `v0.584.0` · dispatched `2026-07-10T17:06:23Z` - **Comment thread:** 5 included in the pre-flight read, 0 stripped (ward's own automated comments). - included: @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:12:59Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:19:38Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:19:41Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:31:46Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:40:35Z) Static container doctrine and seed boilerplate are identical every run and omitted here (they ride ward v0.584.0). </details> </details>  — Codex, via `ward agent`

coilyco-ops referenced this issue from a commit

2026-07-10 17:21:33 +00:00

fix: normalize merge-gate skipped-review outcomes

coilyco-ops referenced this issue from a pull request that will close it,

2026-07-10 17:21:50 +00:00

Normalize merge-gate outcomes when review is skipped #1048

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-10 17:24:22 +00:00

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WARD-OUTCOME: submitted

details

workflow: pull-request-and-merge; review summary: skipped (review gate skipped by ~/.ward/config.yaml default)

felt: straightforward after the token cleanup. confidence: high. surprises: the machine-readable workflow token had to be normalized in both prompts and comments. follow-ups: none.

WARD-OUTCOME: submitted <details><summary>details</summary> workflow: pull-request-and-merge; review summary: skipped (review gate skipped by ~/.ward/config.yaml default) felt: straightforward after the token cleanup. confidence: high. surprises: the machine-readable workflow token had to be normalized in both prompts and comments. follow-ups: none. </details>

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-10 18:15:09 +00:00

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WARD-RESERVATION: held 🔒

reservation details

Holder: container engineer-codex-ward-982 on host kais-macbook-pro-2.local.

Reserved by ward agent --harness codex (reserved 2026-07-10T18:15:08Z). Concurrent ward agent runs are blocked until it finishes or the reservation goes stale (1h TTL). --force overrides.

Do not comment on or edit this issue to steer the run while it is reserved. The engineer seeded the body once at launch and never re-reads it, so a comment or edit reaches only human readers, never the running engineer. A correction goes to a new issue, dispatched fresh. That is the only channel that reaches a run in flight. Where the forge supports it, ward locks this conversation to make that a road-block rather than a convention (ward#494).

run seed context — what this run is carrying (ward#609)

Resolved: coilyco-flight-deck/ward#982 · branch issue-982 · harness codex · workflow pull-requests-and-merge
Run: engineer-codex-ward-982 · ward v0.584.0 · dispatched 2026-07-10T18:15:08Z
Comment thread: 6 included in the pre-flight read, 1 stripped (ward's own automated comments).
- included: @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:12:59Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:19:38Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:19:41Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:31:46Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:40:35Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T17:24:22Z)
- stripped: @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T17:06:25Z)

Static container doctrine and seed boilerplate are identical every run and omitted here (they ride ward v0.584.0).

— Codex, via ward agent

WARD-RESERVATION: held 🔒 <details><summary>reservation details</summary> Holder: container `engineer-codex-ward-982` on host `kais-macbook-pro-2.local`. Reserved by `ward agent --harness codex` (reserved 2026-07-10T18:15:08Z). Concurrent `ward agent` runs are blocked until it finishes or the reservation goes stale (1h TTL). `--force` overrides. **Do not comment on or edit this issue to steer the run while it is reserved.** The engineer seeded the body once at launch and never re-reads it, so a comment or edit reaches only human readers, never the running engineer. A correction goes to a **new issue, dispatched fresh**. That is the only channel that reaches a run in flight. Where the forge supports it, ward locks this conversation to make that a road-block rather than a convention (ward#494). <details><summary>run seed context — what this run is carrying (ward#609)</summary> - **Resolved:** `coilyco-flight-deck/ward#982` · branch `issue-982` · harness `codex` · workflow `pull-requests-and-merge` - **Run:** `engineer-codex-ward-982` · ward `v0.584.0` · dispatched `2026-07-10T18:15:08Z` - **Comment thread:** 6 included in the pre-flight read, 1 stripped (ward's own automated comments). - included: @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:12:59Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:19:38Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:19:41Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:31:46Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T09:40:35Z), @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T17:24:22Z) - stripped: @coilyco-ops (2026-07-10T17:06:25Z) Static container doctrine and seed boilerplate are identical every run and omitted here (they ride ward v0.584.0). </details> </details>  — Codex, via `ward agent`

coilyco-ops commented

2026-07-10 18:36:13 +00:00

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WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready

details

workflow: pull-request-and-merge; review summary: review gate skipped by ~/.ward/config.yaml default

felt: narrower than the conflict count suggested.

confidence: high

surprises: main moved twice, so the branch needed a second sync before mergeable flipped true.

follow-ups: none.

WARD-OUTCOME: merge-ready <details><summary>details</summary> workflow: pull-request-and-merge; review summary: review gate skipped by ~/.ward/config.yaml default felt: narrower than the conflict count suggested. confidence: high surprises: main moved twice, so the branch needed a second sync before mergeable flipped true. follow-ups: none. </details>

coilysiren closed this issue

2026-07-10 18:37:57 +00:00

coilysiren referenced this issue

2026-07-14 15:27:09 +00:00

director should emit colorized, space buffered, visually distinct messages about the categories of actions its performing on startup #1283

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Normalize merge-gate outcomes when review is skipped #982