/issue-creation

name: engram-issue-creation
description: >
  Issue creation workflow for Engram following the issue-first enforcement system.
  Trigger: When creating a GitHub issue, reporting a bug, or requesting a feature.
license: Apache-2.0
metadata:
  author: gentleman-programming
  version: "1.0"

When to Use

Use this skill when:

• Creating a GitHub issue (bug report or feature request)
• Helping a contributor file an issue
• Triaging or approving issues as a maintainer

---

Critical Rules

1. **Blank issues are disabled** — MUST use a template (bug report or feature request) 2. **Every issue gets `status:needs-review` automatically** on creation 3. **A maintainer MUST add `status:approved`** before any PR can be opened 4. **Questions go to [Discussions](https://github.com/Gentleman-Programming/engram/discussions)**, not issues

---

Workflow

1. Search existing issues for duplicates
2. Choose the correct template (Bug Report or Feature Request)
3. Fill in ALL required fields
4. Check pre-flight checkboxes
5. Submit → issue gets status:needs-review automatically
6. Wait for maintainer to add status:approved
7. Only then open a PR linking this issue

---

Issue Templates

Bug Report

Template: `.github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/bug_report.yml` Auto-labels: `bug`, `status:needs-review`

Required Fields

| Field | Description | |-------|-------------| | **Pre-flight Checks** | Checkboxes: no duplicate + understands approval workflow | | **Bug Description** | Clear description of the bug | | **Steps to Reproduce** | Numbered steps to reproduce | | **Expected Behavior** | What should have happened | | **Actual Behavior** | What happened instead (include errors/logs) | | **Operating System** | Dropdown: macOS, Linux variants, Windows, WSL | | **Engram Version** | Output of `engram version` | | **Agent / Client** | Dropdown: Claude Code, OpenCode, Gemini CLI, Cursor, Windsurf, Other |

Optional Fields

| Field | Description | |-------|-------------| | **Relevant Logs** | Log output (auto-formatted as code block) | | **Additional Context** | Screenshots, workarounds, extra info |

Example — Bug Report via CLI

gh issue create --template "bug_report.yml" \
  --title "fix(store): duplicate observations on concurrent saves" \
  --body "
### Pre-flight Checks
- [x] I have searched existing issues and this is not a duplicate
- [x] I understand this issue needs status:approved before a PR can be opened

### Bug Description
When two agents save observations concurrently, duplicates are created.

### Steps to Reproduce
1. Start two engram instances pointing to the same DB
2. Both save an observation with the same title simultaneously
3. Query observations — duplicates appear

### Expected Behavior
The second save should upsert, not insert a duplicate.

### Actual Behavior
Two identical observations exist with different IDs.

### Operating System
macOS

### Engram Version
0.3.1

### Agent / Client
Claude Code

### Relevant Logs
\`\`\`
UNIQUE constraint failed: observations.title
\`\`\`
"

---

Feature Request

Template: `.github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/feature_request.yml` Auto-labels: `enhancement`, `status:needs-review`

Required Fields

| Field | Description | |-------|-------------| | **Pre-flight Checks** | Checkboxes: no duplicate + understands approval workflow | | **Problem Description** | The pain point this feature solves | | **Proposed Solution** | How it should work from the user's perspective | | **Affected Area** | Dropdown: CLI, MCP Server, TUI, Store, Sync, Skills, Documentation, Other |

Optional Fields

| Field | Description | |-------|-------------| | **Alternatives Considered** | Other approaches or workarounds | | **Additional Context** | Mockups, examples, references |

Example — Feature Request via CLI

gh issue create --template "feature_request.yml" \
  --title "feat(cli): add --json flag to mem search" \
  --body "
### Pre-flight Checks
- [x] I have searched existing issues and this is not a duplicate
- [x] I understand this issue needs status:approved before a PR can be opened

### Problem Description
When scripting with engram, parsing the human-readable output of mem search is fragile. There's no machine-readable output format.

### Proposed Solution
Add a \`--json\` flag to \`engram mem search\` that outputs results as JSON.

Example:
\`\`\`bash
engram mem search \"auth middleware\" --json
\`\`\`

Expected output:
\`\`\`json
[{\"id\": 42, \"title\": \"JWT auth middleware\", \"type\": \"decision\", ...}]
\`\`\`

### Affected Area
CLI (commands, flags)

### Alternatives Considered
Using \`jq\` to parse the current output, but it's unreliable since the format isn't structured.
"

---

Label System

Applied Automatically on Issue Creation

| Template | Labels added | |----------|-------------| | Bug Report | `bug`, `status:needs-review` | | Feature Request | `enhancement`, `status:needs-review` |

Applied by Maintainers

| Label | When to apply | |-------|--------------| | `status:approved` | Issue accepted for implementation — PRs can now be opened | | `priority:high` | Critical bug or urgent feature | | `priority:medium` | Important but not blocking | | `priority:low` | Nice to have |

---

Maintainer Approval Workflow

1. New issue arrives with status:needs-review
2. Review the issue — is it valid, clear, and in scope?
3. If YES → add status:approved label
4. If NO → comment with reason, close if needed
5. Contributor can now open a PR linking this issue

---

Decision Tree

Is it a bug?                    → Use Bug Report template
Is it a new feature/improvement? → Use Feature Request template
Is it a question?               → Use Discussions, NOT issues
Is it a duplicate?              → Link to existing issue, close

---

Commands

# Search existing issues before creating
gh issue list --search "keyword"

# Create bug report
gh issue create --template "bug_report.yml" -