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hotfix

Fix user-visible bugs in cairn-tracked repos with regression tests, gate-lite checks, and gated PR merges.

4|Updated Jul 11, 2026
Search Tags:#pull request#bug fix#git worktree#hotfix#github cli#regression test#merge approval
One-click install
npx skills add https://github.com/jmgirard/cairn --skill hotfix-jmgirard
Or copy as Structured Prompt for Agent▼
Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: hotfix
Source: https://github.com/jmgirard/cairn/tree/main/skills/hotfix
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/jmgirard/cairn --skill hotfix-jmgirard

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

What problem does it solve? When a user-visible bug is reported or an external contributor opens a fix PR, teams need a fast path that skips milestone ceremony without skipping quality gates. This Skill provides that fast lane: reproduce the bug, write a regression test first, run gate-lite checks, and merge only after explicit user approval. ## Core Features & Use Cases - Tier-checked fast lane: Verifies the fix restores documented behavior and fits one sitting; anything larger is routed to milestone planning instead. - Regression test first: Authors a failing test before the fix, or for adopted PRs proves the test fails on the default branch and passes on the PR head using a throwaway git worktree. - External PR adoption: Checks out contributor PRs with gh, verifies their evidence, pushes tests and changelog entries to their branch, and handles unpushable forks through a user-gated re-land flow. - Approval-gated merge: Presents the diff, test evidence, and changelog line, then merges via gh only after an explicit approval chip, with green CI and a merge-guard marker. - Use Case: A user reports "this crashes when loading a CSV". The Skill reproduces the crash, writes a failing regression test, applies the fix, runs the profile's verify checks, adds a changelog entry, and merges the PR after your approval. ## Quick Start Ask the agent to fix the reported bug by running /hotfix with a short description of the crash or the PR number to adopt.

Frequently Asked Questions about hotfix

High-intent search queries and answers about installing and using this skill.

FAQPage Schema
How do I fix a bug without going through full milestone planning?▼

Run /hotfix with a short description of the bug. The Skill tier-checks that the fix restores documented behavior and fits one sitting, then runs regression-test-first development, gate-lite checks, and a user-approved PR merge without milestone ceremony.

How do I adopt an external contributor's pull request?▼

Pass the PR number or URL to /hotfix. It checks out the PR with gh pr checkout, verifies the contributor's regression test fails on the default branch and passes on the PR head, adds a changelog entry, and merges only after your explicit approval.

When should I not use the hotfix workflow?▼

Avoid it when the fix needs a design decision, changes exported behavior beyond restoring documented behavior, or cannot fit one sitting. In those cases the Skill stops and routes the work to milestone planning as a candidate row instead.

Does the hotfix skill work with fork-based pull requests?▼

Yes. It pushes tests and changelog entries to the contributor's fork branch when maintainer edits are allowed, and drops --delete-branch on merge since the branch lives in the contributor's repo. Unpushable forks trigger a user-gated re-land flow with Co-authored-by credit.

What happens if a hotfix PR was merged outside the session?▼

Re-running /hotfix with the PR reference triggers post-hoc verification: it tier-checks the merged diff, proves the regression test against the pre-merge baseline in a throwaway worktree, runs gate-lite checks, and lands any owed test or changelog through a follow-up PR.

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