Enhance CLI version checker with deep Copilot repository analysis

[Copilot]

Enhances the CLI version checker workflow to perform comprehensive deep analysis of the GitHub Copilot CLI repository, including release notes, CHANGELOG.md, and README.md files.

Changes

• Enhanced Copilot CLI version sources: Added explicit links to Copilot CLI repository, releases, CHANGELOG.md, and README.md with CRITICAL marker to always attempt deep analysis
• Added comprehensive analysis instructions: Detailed 4-step process for thoroughly analyzing Copilot CLI updates:
  1. Release Notes: Parse highlights, breaking changes, new commands/flags/configuration options
  2. CHANGELOG.md: Compare versions to identify all changes, categorize as Breaking/Features/Fixes/Security/Performance
  3. README.md: Review usage patterns, note new capabilities and configuration options
  4. Documentation Changes: Look for files indicating new features
• Added fallback strategy: If repository is inaccessible, use NPM metadata, CLI help comparison, and public announcements

Why This Matters

Copilot CLI is a critical dependency for gh-aw's engine: copilot configuration. Deep analysis ensures:

• New Copilot features can be leveraged in gh-aw workflows
• Breaking changes are identified before they impact users
• Configuration changes are documented for workflow authors
• Integration improvements can be made proactively

Current State

The workflow now has enhanced instructions for reading external dependency release notes:

• Codex: Fetches GitHub release notes, parses highlights and merged PRs
• GitHub MCP Server: Fetches GitHub release notes, parses changelog entries
• Playwright Browser: Fetches GitHub release notes
• Copilot CLI: ALWAYS performs deep analysis of repository, release notes, CHANGELOG.md, and README.md
• Claude Code: Uses NPM metadata (no public repository)
• Playwright MCP: Uses NPM metadata

Validation

✅ Workflow compiled successfully: ./gh-aw compile .github/workflows/cli-version-checker.md --validate
✅ No syntax errors or warnings
✅ Both markdown and lock files updated correctly

Original prompt

---

This section details on the original issue you should resolve

<issue_title>Enhance CLI version checker to read CHANGELOG.md, README.md, and docs for Copilot context</issue_title>
<issue_description>## Summary

Updates the CLI version checker workflow to read gh-aw's own documentation (CHANGELOG.md, README.md, and reference docs) before analyzing external CLI tool updates. This provides critical context for understanding how CLI updates (especially Copilot) interact with recent gh-aw changes.

Changes Made

Enhanced Research & Analysis Process

Added a new "CRITICAL - Read gh-aw Context First" section that instructs the workflow to:

1. Read CHANGELOG.md - Understand recent gh-aw changes:

   • Copilot CLI integration changes
   • Engine configuration updates
   • Breaking changes that might affect CLI tool usage
   • New features that depend on specific CLI versions

2. Read README.md - Review current project description and quick start guide

3. Read Reference Documentation:

   • docs/src/content/docs/reference/engines.md - Engine configuration and CLI tool integration
   • docs/src/content/docs/reference/frontmatter.md - Configuration options
   • docs/src/content/docs/reference/mcp-gateway.md - MCP server integration

Updated Issue Template

Added a new "gh-aw Context" section to the issue template that cross-references with CHANGELOG.md to identify:

• Recent Copilot integration changes
• Engine configuration updates
• Breaking changes that might be affected by CLI updates
• New features that depend on specific CLI versions

Why This Matters

Problem: The CLI version checker was analyzing external tool updates in isolation, without understanding recent changes to gh-aw itself.

Impact:

• Copilot CLI updates may affect how gh-aw integrates with it
• Recent gh-aw changes might already address compatibility issues
• New gh-aw features may require specific CLI versions
• Understanding context prevents duplicate work or breaking changes

Example: If gh-aw recently added support for a new Copilot CLI flag, the version checker can now identify when that flag becomes available in new Copilot versions.

Validation

✅ Workflow compiled successfully using gh-aw compile cli-version-checker
✅ No syntax errors or warnings
✅ Only markdown file modified (lock file excluded as per guidelines)

Files Modified

• .github/workflows/cli-version-checker.md - Added context reading instructions and updated issue template

References

• Triggered by: Update CLI tool versions: Claude Code 2.1.1, Copilot CLI 0.0.376, Sandbox Runtime 0.0.25 #9381 (comment requesting this enhancement)
• Request: "/q update the cli version checker to read the release notes, the changelog files, and the readme to scan for changes, specially for copilot."

AI generated by Q

---

[!NOTE]
This was originally intended as a pull request, but the git push operation failed.

Workflow Run: View run details and download patch artifact

The patch file is available in the agent-artifacts artifact in the workflow run linked above.

To apply the patch locally:

# Download the artifact from the workflow run https://github.com/githubnext/gh-aw/actions/runs/20823780160
# (Use GitHub MCP tools if gh CLI is not available)
gh run download 20823780160 -n agent-artifacts

# The patch file will be at agent-artifacts/tmp/gh-aw/aw.patch after download
# Apply the patch
git am agent-artifacts/tmp/gh-aw/aw.patch

Show patch preview (82 of 82 lines)

From dd8b5d51fe5c05c098fca16de9cf7ae475b5f24b Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Q Workflow Optimizer <[email protected]>
Date: Thu, 8 Jan 2026 16:27:34 +0000
Subject: [PATCH] feat: enhance CLI version checker to read gh-aw documentation
 for context

- Add CRITICAL section to read CHANGELOG.md, README.md, and reference docs
- Cross-reference CLI updates with recent gh-aw changes
- Special focus on Copilot CLI integration changes
- Update issue template to include gh-aw context section

This helps the version checker understand how CLI updates (especially
Copilot) interact with recent gh-aw changes, preventing duplicate work
and identifying compatibility requirements.
---
 .github/workflows/cli-version-checker.md | 31 +++++++++++++++++++++++-
 1 file changed, 30 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)

diff --git a/.github/workflows/cli-version-checker.md b/.github/workflows/cli-version-checker.md
index c308fed..4f6b795 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/cli-version-checker.md
+++ b/.github/workflows/cli-version-checker.md
@@ -69,11 +69,32 @@ For each CLI/MCP server:
 **Optimization**: Fetch all versions in parallel using multiple npm view or WebFetch calls in a single turn.
 
 ### Research & Analysis
+
+**CRITICAL - Read gh-aw Context First**:
+Before analyzing external CLI tool updates, read the following files from this repository to understand the...

</details>



<!-- START COPILOT CODING AGENT SUFFIX -->

- Fixes githubnext/gh-aw#9387

<!-- START COPILOT CODING AGENT TIPS -->
---

💡 You can make Copilot smarter by setting up custom instructions, customizing its development environment and configuring Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers. Learn more [Copilot coding agent tips](https://gh.io/copilot-coding-agent-tips) in the docs.

[pelikhan]

@copilot the idea was to read the release notes and changelog of EACH dependency, not gh-aw.

[Copilot]

@copilot the idea was to read the release notes and changelog of EACH dependency, not gh-aw.

You're absolutely right - I misunderstood the original request. Reverted in 648d917.

The workflow already has comprehensive instructions for reading release notes and changelogs of each external dependency (Codex, Copilot CLI, GitHub MCP Server, Playwright, etc.) in the "GitHub Release Notes (when available)" section. The incorrect changes that instructed reading gh-aw's own documentation have been removed.

[pelikhan]

@copilot instruct the workflow to always do a deep read on the GitHub/copilot repo, release and changelog file

[Copilot]

@copilot instruct the workflow to always do a deep read on the GitHub/copilot repo, release and changelog file

Added comprehensive deep analysis instructions for Copilot CLI in 68862c4.

The workflow now explicitly instructs to:

1. Fetch and parse release notes from github.com/github/copilot-cli/releases
2. Read CHANGELOG.md and compare versions for all changes
3. Review README.md for updated usage patterns
4. Extract breaking changes, new features, and configuration options

Includes fallback strategy (NPM metadata, CLI help comparison) if repository is inaccessible.