Rules Reference¶

Complete guide to all 30+ labeling rules available in PR Auto-Labeler.

Overview¶

Rules are organized into 9 categories based on what they detect. Each rule:

✅ Is disabled by default — you explicitly enable what you need
🎯 Has a specific purpose — detects one type of change
🏷️ Applies one or more labels — can be customized
📊 Includes detailed detection logic — transparent and predictable

How to Choose Rules

Start small: Enable 3-5 rules that matter most to your team
Test first: Use debug mode to see how rules behave
Expand gradually: Add more rules as you see value

Rule Categories¶

🎨 Frontend & UI

Detect changes to UI components and styles

2 rules | View Details →
🗄️ Database

Track migrations and schema changes

4 rules | View Details →
⚙️ Environment & Config

Monitor configuration and environment changes

3 rules | View Details →
🧪 Testing

Ensure test coverage and quality

3 rules | View Details →
📦 Dependencies

Track dependency additions and updates

3 rules | View Details →
☁️ CI/CD & Infrastructure

Monitor infrastructure and deployment configs

3 rules | View Details →
🔒 Security

Flag security-sensitive changes

2 rules | View Details →
💻 Code Semantics

Detect feature additions, refactors, and breaking changes

4 rules | View Details →
📄 PR Metadata

Check PR size, description, and metadata quality

4 rules | View Details →

Quick Reference¶

All Rules at a Glance¶

Frontend & UI (2)Database (4)Environment (3)Testing (3)Dependencies (3)CI/CD & Infra (3)Security (2)Code Semantics (4)PR Metadata (4)

Rule	Label	Detection
`ui-change`	`ui-change`	`.jsx`, `.tsx`, `.vue`, `.html` files
`style-change`	`style-change`	`.css`, `.scss`, `.sass` only (no JS)

Learn More →

Rule	Label	Detection
`migration`	`migration`	Files in `migrations/` directories
`risky-migration`	`risky-migration`	`DROP`, `TRUNCATE` operations
`safe-migration`	`safe-migration`	`CREATE`, `INSERT`, `ADD` operations
`schema-change`	`schema-change`	`ALTER`, `MODIFY COLUMN` operations

Learn More →

Rule	Label	Detection
`env-change`	`env-change`	`.env`, `config.yml`, `config.json`
`new-env-variable`	`new-env-variable`	New vars in diffs
`potential-secret-leak`	`potential-secret-leak`	`API_KEY`, `PASSWORD`, `SECRET`

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Rule	Label	Detection
`test-only-change`	`test-only-change`	Only test files changed
`test-missing`	`test-missing`	Code changed, no test changes
`test-improvement`	`test-improvement`	Tests + code changed

Learn More →

Rule	Label	Detection
`dependency-change`	`dependency-change`	`package.json`, `requirements.txt`, etc.
`new-dependency`	`new-dependency`	New packages added
`dependency-downgrade`	`dependency-downgrade`	Version downgraded

Learn More →

Rule	Label	Detection
`ci-change`	`ci-change`	`.github/workflows/`, `.gitlab-ci.yml`
`docker-change`	`docker-change`	`Dockerfile`, `docker-compose.yml`
`infra-change`	`infra-change`	Terraform, Kubernetes, Helm configs

Learn More →

Rule	Label	Detection
`security-change`	`security-change`	Auth, crypto, JWT, OAuth changes
`risky-code`	`risky-code`	`eval`, `exec`, `dangerouslySetInnerHTML`

Learn More →

Rule	Label	Detection
`function-removed`	`function-removed`	Functions/classes deleted
`new-feature`	`new-feature`	New files, "feat:" commits
`non-functional-change`	`non-functional-change`	Docs/text only
`refactor`	`refactor`	Multiple renames, restructuring

Learn More →

Rule	Label	Detection
`large-pr`	`large-pr`	>500 lines changed (configurable)
`missing-description`	`missing-description`	PR description <30 chars
`no-linked-issue`	`no-linked-issue`	No "Closes #123" or "Fixes #456"
`work-in-progress`	`work-in-progress`	Draft PR or "WIP"/"DNM" in title

Learn More →

Common Rule Combinations¶

🎨 Frontend Team¶

Focus on UI changes, testing, and dependencies:

enabled_rules: '[
  "ui-change",
  "style-change",
  "test-missing",
  "dependency-change"
]'

🗄️ Backend Team¶

Track database, security, and testing:

enabled_rules: '[
  "migration",
  "risky-migration",
  "test-missing",
  "security-change",
  "new-dependency"
]'

🔒 Security-Focused¶

Flag all security-related changes:

enabled_rules: '[
  "potential-secret-leak",
  "security-change",
  "risky-code",
  "risky-migration",
  "dependency-downgrade",
  "env-change"
]'

⚙️ DevOps Team¶

Monitor infrastructure and CI/CD:

enabled_rules: '[
  "ci-change",
  "docker-change",
  "infra-change",
  "env-change",
  "dependency-change"
]'

📊 Quality Enforcement¶

Enforce PR quality standards:

enabled_rules: '[
  "large-pr",
  "test-missing",
  "missing-description",
  "no-linked-issue",
  "work-in-progress"
]'

Rule Behavior¶

Detection Logic¶

Each rule:

Analyzes PR data — Changed files, diffs, metadata
Applies detection patterns — File paths, content patterns, PR properties
Returns labels — List of labels to apply (can be empty)
Logs activity — When debug mode is enabled

Label Application¶

Labels are applied cumulatively — multiple rules can add labels
Labels are added, not replaced — existing labels remain
Labels are created automatically — if they don't exist in the repo
Labels can be customized — via label_overrides

Performance¶

All rules run in parallel where possible
Average execution time: 2-5 seconds for typical PRs
Rules are stateless — no side effects or dependencies

Customization¶

Override Label Names¶

Match your team's existing label conventions:

label_overrides: '{
  "ui-change": "area/frontend",
  "test-missing": "needs-tests",
  "large-pr": "size/XL",
  "security-change": "security-review-required"
}'

Adjust Thresholds¶

Customize the large PR threshold:

large_pr_threshold: '300'  # Default is 500

Debug Mode¶

Enable detailed logging to understand rule execution:

enable_debug: true

Debug output includes:

Files being analyzed
Rules being evaluated
Pattern matches found
Labels being applied
Execution time per rule

Debug Output Example

[UI Change Rule] UI file detected: src/components/Button.tsx
[UI Change Rule] Labels to apply: ui-change
[Test Missing Rule] Source changed: src/components/Button.tsx
[Test Missing Rule] No test changes detected
[Test Missing Rule] Labels to apply: test-missing
✅ Applied labels: ui-change, test-missing

Next Steps¶

Explore detailed documentation for each rule category:

Or jump to: