docs: add PR description style guide for agents (#21148)

bpmct · claude · web-flow · commit 493f77120c0d · 2025-12-08T19:55:32.000Z
Adds a style guide documenting PR description patterns observed in the Coder repository. This guide is intended for AI agents to reference when creating PRs, ensuring consistency with project conventions. The guide covers title format (Conventional Commits), description structure (default concise vs. complex structured), what to include (links, performance context, warnings), and what to avoid (test plans, benefits sections). Includes examples from recent merged PRs demonstrating each pattern. Placed in `.claude/docs/` alongside other agent-specific documentation (WORKFLOWS.md, ARCHITECTURE.md, etc.) rather than in the main contributing docs, as this is primarily for automated tooling reference. 🤖 Generated with [Claude Code](https://claude.com/claude-code) Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 4.5 <noreply@anthropic.com> --------- Co-authored-by: Claude Sonnet 4.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
diff --git a/.claude/docs/PR_STYLE_GUIDE.md b/.claude/docs/PR_STYLE_GUIDE.md
@@ -0,0 +1,256 @@
+# Pull Request Description Style Guide
+
+This guide documents the PR description style used in the Coder repository, based on analysis of recent merged PRs.
+
+## PR Title Format
+
+Follow [Conventional Commits 1.0.0](https://www.conventionalcommits.org/en/v1.0.0/) format:
+
+```text
+type(scope): brief description
+```
+
+**Common types:**
+
+- `feat`: New features
+- `fix`: Bug fixes
+- `refactor`: Code refactoring without behavior change
+- `perf`: Performance improvements
+- `docs`: Documentation changes
+- `chore`: Dependency updates, tooling changes
+
+**Examples:**
+
+- `feat: add tracing to aibridge`
+- `fix: move contexts to appropriate locations`
+- `perf(coderd/database): add index on workspace_app_statuses.app_id`
+- `docs: fix swagger tags for license endpoints`
+- `refactor(site): remove redundant client-side sorting of app statuses`
+
+## PR Description Structure
+
+### Default Pattern: Keep It Concise
+
+Most PRs use a simple 1-2 paragraph format:
+
+```markdown
+[Brief statement of what changed]
+
+[One sentence explaining technical details or context if needed]
+```
+
+**Example (bugfix):**
+
+```markdown
+Previously, when a devcontainer config file was modified, the dirty
+status was updated internally but not broadcast to websocket listeners.
+
+Add `broadcastUpdatesLocked()` call in `markDevcontainerDirty` to notify
+websocket listeners immediately when a config file changes.
+```
+
+**Example (dependency update):**
+
+```markdown
+Changes from https://github.com/upstream/repo/pull/XXX/
+```
+
+**Example (docs correction):**
+
+```markdown
+Removes incorrect references to database replicas from the scaling documentation.
+Coder only supports a single database connection URL.
+```
+
+### For Complex Changes: Use "Summary", "Problem", "Fix"
+
+Only use structured sections when the change requires significant explanation:
+
+```markdown
+## Summary
+Brief overview of the change
+
+## Problem
+Detailed explanation of the issue being addressed
+
+## Fix
+How the solution works
+```
+
+**Example (API documentation fix):**
+
+```markdown
+## Summary
+Change `@Tags` from `Organizations` to `Enterprise` for POST /licenses...
+
+## Problem
+The license API endpoints were inconsistently tagged...
+
+## Fix
+Simply updated the `@Tags` annotation from `Organizations` to `Enterprise`...
+```
+
+### For Large Refactors: Lead with Context
+
+When rewriting significant documentation or code, start with the problems being fixed:
+
+```markdown
+This PR rewrites [component] for [reason].
+
+The previous [component] had [specific issues]: [details].
+
+[What changed]: [specific improvements made].
+
+[Additional changes]: [context].
+
+Refs #[issue-number]
+```
+
+**Example (major documentation rewrite):**
+
+- Started with "This PR rewrites the dev containers documentation for GA readiness"
+- Listed specific inaccuracies being fixed
+- Explained organizational changes
+- Referenced related issue
+
+## What to Include
+
+### Always Include
+
+1. **Link Related Work**
+   - `Closes https://github.com/coder/internal/issues/XXX`
+   - `Depends on #XXX`
+   - `Fixes: https://github.com/coder/aibridge/issues/XX`
+   - `Refs #XXX` (for general reference)
+
+2. **Performance Context** (when relevant)
+
+   ```markdown
+   Each query took ~30ms on average with 80 requests/second to the cluster,
+   resulting in ~5.2 query-seconds every second.
+   ```
+
+3. **Migration Warnings** (when relevant)
+
+   ```markdown
+   **NOTE**: This migration creates an index on `workspace_app_statuses`.
+   For deployments with heavy task usage, this may take a moment to complete.
+   ```
+
+4. **Visual Evidence** (for UI changes)
+
+   ```markdown
+   <img width="1281" height="425" alt="image" src="..." />
+   ```
+
+### Never Include
+
+- ❌ **Test plans** - Testing is handled through code review and CI
+- ❌ **"Benefits" sections** - Benefits should be clear from the description
+- ❌ **Implementation details** - Keep it high-level
+- ❌ **Marketing language** - Stay technical and factual
+- ❌ **Bullet lists of features** (unless it's a large refactor that needs enumeration)
+
+## Special Patterns
+
+### Simple Chore PRs
+
+For straightforward updates (dependency bumps, minor fixes):
+
+```markdown
+Changes from [link to upstream PR/issue]
+```
+
+Or:
+
+```markdown
+Reference:
+[link explaining why this change is needed]
+```
+
+### Bug Fixes
+
+Start with the problem, then explain the fix:
+
+```markdown
+[What was broken and why it matters]
+
+[What you changed to fix it]
+```
+
+### Dependency Updates
+
+Dependabot PRs are auto-generated - don't try to match their verbose style for manual updates. Instead use:
+
+```markdown
+Changes from https://github.com/upstream/repo/pull/XXX/
+```
+
+## Attribution Footer
+
+For AI-generated PRs, end with:
+
+```markdown
+🤖 Generated with [Claude Code](https://claude.com/claude-code)
+
+Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 4.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
+```
+
+## Creating PRs as Draft
+
+**IMPORTANT**: Unless explicitly told otherwise, always create PRs as drafts using the `--draft` flag:
+
+```bash
+gh pr create --draft --title "..." --body "..."
+```
+
+After creating the PR, encourage the user to review it before marking as ready:
+
+```
+I've created draft PR #XXXX. Please review the changes and mark it as ready for review when you're satisfied.
+```
+
+This allows the user to:
+- Review the code changes before requesting reviews from maintainers
+- Make additional adjustments if needed
+- Ensure CI passes before notifying reviewers
+- Control when the PR enters the review queue
+
+Only create non-draft PRs when the user explicitly requests it or when following up on an existing draft.
+
+## Key Principles
+
+1. **Always create draft PRs** - Unless explicitly told otherwise
+2. **Be concise** - Default to 1-2 paragraphs unless complexity demands more
+3. **Be technical** - Explain what and why, not detailed how
+4. **Link everything** - Issues, PRs, upstream changes, Notion docs
+5. **Show impact** - Metrics for performance, screenshots for UI, warnings for migrations
+6. **No test plans** - Code review and CI handle testing
+7. **No benefits sections** - Benefits should be obvious from the technical description
+
+## Examples by Category
+
+### Performance Improvements
+
+Includes query timing metrics and explains the index solution
+
+### Bug Fixes
+
+Describes broken behavior then the fix in two sentences
+
+### Documentation
+
+- **Major rewrite**: Long form explaining inaccuracies and improvements
+- **Simple correction**: One sentence for simple correction
+
+### Features
+
+Simple statement of what was added and dependencies
+
+### Refactoring
+
+Explains why client-side sorting is now redundant
+
+### Configuration
+
+Adds guidelines with issue reference
diff --git a/CLAUDE.md b/CLAUDE.md
@@ -197,6 +197,7 @@ clear what the new test covers.
 @.claude/docs/TESTING.md
 @.claude/docs/TROUBLESHOOTING.md
 @.claude/docs/DATABASE.md
+@.claude/docs/PR_STYLE_GUIDE.md
 @.claude/docs/DOCS_STYLE_GUIDE.md
 
 ## Local Configuration
