pr-title-lint

pr-title-lint

Scaffold a CI check that rejects a pull request title that does not follow Conventional Commits.

This matters most when squash merge uses the PR title as the commit subject: an unchecked title becomes permanent history the moment the PR merges.

Where this fits

Concern	Skill
Switch a repo to squash-only with PR-title commit messages	gh-bootstrap
Enforce the PR title format itself, in CI	pr-title-lint (this skill)
Add the check name to required status checks on a ruleset	gh-bootstrap
Cut a versioned release	release
Local commit-message hooks (commitlint via prek)	prek

Protocol

1. Detect squash-merge with PR-title commit messages

REPO="$(gh repo view --json nameWithOwner --jq '.nameWithOwner')"
gh api "repos/$REPO" --jq '.squash_merge_commit_title'

A value of PR_TITLE means the squash commit subject is the PR title verbatim, so git log --oneline on the default branch becomes a list of PR titles. An unchecked title turns a typo, a missing type, or a vague summary into permanent history the moment the PR merges. This is the strongest reason to add the check; still offer to scaffold it if the value is COMMIT_OR_PR_TITLE or unset, since the title can still land as history.

2. Detect an existing check

grep -rl 'action-semantic-pull-request' .github/workflows/ 2>/dev/null
grep -rl 'commitlint' .github/workflows/ .commitlintrc* commitlint.config.* 2>/dev/null

If a workflow already runs action-semantic-pull-request against PR titles, or a commitlint job already lints PR titles (not just commit messages), stop and report it instead of adding a duplicate check.

3. Scaffold the workflow

Copy assets/pr-title.yml to .github/workflows/pr-title.yml. It pins amannn/action-semantic-pull-request by commit SHA (not a floating tag), and ships with:

• permissions: pull-requests: read — least privilege; the action only needs to read the PR title
• on.pull_request.types: [opened, edited, synchronize, reopened] — reruns the check whenever the title or the PR itself changes
• merge_group trigger with a job-level if: github.event_name == 'pull_request' — the job validates the title only on the PR, because a merge group event has no PR title; on merge_group the job is skipped, and a skipped job reports success
• Commented-out types and scopes lists, and a subjectPattern example, for the user to uncomment and tailor
• requireScope: false — most repos do not need a mandatory scope

Ask before overwriting an existing .github/workflows/pr-title.yml; show the diff first.

See references/conventional-commits.md for the full Conventional Commits summary, the squash-merge citations, and the action's configuration options.

4. Optional: commit-message linting via prek

If the user also wants to lint local commit messages (not just PR titles), that is a commit-msg hook, not a GitHub Actions job. Point them at prek and offer assets/commitlint.config.example as a starting config for prek to wire in.

5. Make it required (optional, needs authorization)

Adding pr-title-lint's check name to a ruleset's required status checks is gh-bootstrap's job, not this skill's. Hand off to gh-bootstrap for that step, and require explicit user authorization before any ruleset write — never add a required check to a live ruleset without asking first.

Before the check becomes required, tell the user about merge queues. If the branch uses a merge queue, GitHub waits for each required check on the merge_group event. A workflow without a merge_group trigger never reports that check. The queue waits for the check, then drops the PR, and the merge fails. Keep the merge_group trigger and the job-level if from the template. If the user removed the trigger, add it back before the check becomes required. Sources: Managing a merge queue and Handling skipped but required checks.

6. Verify

Open (or ask the user to open) a pull request with a title that does not match Conventional Commits, such as updated stuff, and confirm the pr-title check fails with a clear error. Then retitle the PR to something like fix: correct typo and confirm the check turns green.

What this skill is NOT for

• Configuring squash-only merging or squash_merge_commit_title — gh-bootstrap
• Adding the check name to a ruleset's required status checks — gh-bootstrap
• Cutting or publishing a release — release
• Local pre-commit or commit-message hooks — prek