triage

Move GitHub issues and external PRs through a triage state machine with agent-ready briefs.

1|Updated Jul 23, 2026
One-click install
npx skills add https://github.com/sanjanb/my-agent-harness --skill triage-sanjanb
Or copy as Structured Prompt for Agent
Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: triage
Source: https://github.com/sanjanb/my-agent-harness/tree/main/skills/mp-triage
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/sanjanb/my-agent-harness --skill triage-sanjanb

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

What problem does it solve? Maintainers drown in unstructured issue backlogs where reports lack detail, duplicates resurface, and rejected features get re-requested. This Skill enforces a disciplined triage workflow that categorizes issues, verifies claims against the codebase, and produces durable specifications that autonomous agents can execute. ## Core Features & Use Cases - State machine triage: Move issues and external PRs through category roles (bug, enhancement) and state roles (needs-triage, needs-info, ready-for-agent, ready-for-human, wontfix) with conflict detection. - Claim verification: Reproduce reported bugs or check out PR diffs and run tests before recommending a state, so briefs rest on confirmed behavior. - Agent brief generation: Write durable, behavioral specifications with acceptance criteria and scope boundaries that survive codebase refactors. - Out-of-scope knowledge base: Record rejected feature requests in .out-of-scope/ files and surface prior rejections when similar requests arrive. - Use Case: A maintainer runs triage on issue #42; the Skill reads the thread, checks the codebase for existing implementations, grills the reporter for missing detail, then posts an agent brief and labels the issue ready-for-agent. ## Quick Start Ask the assistant to triage issue #42 and recommend a category and state with reasoning.

Frequently Asked Questions about triage

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

FAQPage Schema
How do I triage GitHub issues with an AI agent?

Invoke the triage workflow with a natural-language request like "show me anything that needs attention" or "look at #42". The Skill reads the issue, checks the codebase for existing implementations, verifies the claim, and recommends a category and state before applying labels and comments.

What is an agent brief for GitHub issues?

An agent brief is a structured comment posted when an issue reaches ready-for-agent state. It describes desired behavior, key interfaces, testable acceptance criteria, and explicit out-of-scope items, avoiding file paths and line numbers so it stays valid as the codebase changes.

Can triage handle external pull requests as well as issues?

Yes, external PRs are treated as issues with attached code and move through the same states. The Skill checks out the diff, runs relevant tests to confirm it does what it claims, and writes briefs describing what remains to finish the PR.

How does the out-of-scope knowledge base prevent duplicate feature requests?

Rejected enhancements are recorded as concept files in a .out-of-scope/ directory with the decision, reasoning, and prior request links. During triage, new issues are matched against these files by concept similarity, and prior rejections are surfaced to the maintainer.

When should an issue go to ready-for-human instead of ready-for-agent?

Use ready-for-human when the work requires judgment calls, external access, design decisions, or manual testing that an autonomous agent cannot perform. The brief follows the same structure but notes why delegation is not possible.