forketyfork GitHub CLI reference
Repository setup
Repository metadata
Set a description and topics for discoverability:
gh repo edit --description "<description>" \
--add-topic "<topic1>" --add-topic "<topic2>"
Add a homepage link if applicable:
gh repo edit --homepage "<url>"
Default branch
Rename the default branch to main if it is still named master:
# Rename the branch on GitHub (also updates the default branch)
gh api repos/<org>/<repo>/branches/master/rename \
--method POST --field new_name=main
# Update your local clone to track the renamed branch
git branch -m master main
git fetch origin
git branch -u origin/main main
git remote set-head origin -a
Secret scanning and push protection
Enable via:
https://github.com/<org>/<repo>/settings/security_analysis
- Secret scanning: enabled
- Push protection: enabled
Code scanning (CodeQL)
Enable CodeQL with default settings via:
https://github.com/<org>/<repo>/settings/security_analysis
- CodeQL analysis: enabled with default setup
CI workflow permissions
In every GitHub Actions workflow file, add a top-level permissions block with
minimum required access:
permissions:
contents: read
Branch rulesets
On https://github.com/<org>/<repo>/settings/rules, create a ruleset named
"Protect the main" targeting the default branch with these settings:
- Require status checks to pass — add the CI build job as a required check
- Require branches to be up to date before merging
- Block force pushes
- Restrict deletions
- Require code scanning results
Dependabot configuration
Create .github/dependabot.yml with ecosystem-appropriate entries. Example for
Maven/Gradle:
version: 2
updates:
- package-ecosystem: "maven"
directory: "/"
schedule:
interval: "daily"
groups:
all-dependencies:
patterns:
- "*"
- package-ecosystem: "github-actions"
directory: "/"
schedule:
interval: "weekly"
groups:
all-actions:
patterns:
- "*"
Enable Dependabot features via:
https://github.com/<org>/<repo>/settings/security_analysis
- Dependency graph: enabled
- Dependabot alerts: enabled
- Grouped security updates: enabled
- Dependabot security updates: enabled
Issues
Create an issue:
gh issue create --title "<title>" --label "<labels>" --body "<body>"
For long bodies, write to a temp file and use --body-file:
gh issue create --title "<title>" --label "<labels>" --body-file .tmp/issue-body-$RANDOM.md
Search issues:
gh issue list --search "<query>"
gh issue list --label "bug"
Pull requests
Create a PR:
gh pr create --title "<title>" --body-file .tmp/pr-body-$RANDOM.md
Create a draft PR:
gh pr create --draft --title "<title>" --body-file .tmp/pr-body-$RANDOM.md
Include Fixes #<number> in PR body to auto-close the linked issue on merge.
View PR details:
gh pr view <number>
gh pr view --json number --jq '.number'
gh pr diff <number>
Fetch PR comments (paginated):
gh api repos/<org>/<repo>/pulls/<pr>/comments --paginate
Get root-level comments only:
gh api repos/<org>/<repo>/pulls/<pr>/comments --paginate \
--jq '[.[] | select(.in_reply_to_id == null)]'
Review threads and comments
Fetch review threads with resolution state:
gh api graphql -f query='
{
repository(owner: "<org>", name: "<repo>") {
pullRequest(number: <pr>) {
reviewThreads(first: 100) {
nodes {
isResolved
comments(first: 1) {
nodes {
databaseId
body
author { login }
path
}
}
}
}
}
}
}'
Reply to a review comment:
gh api repos/<org>/<repo>/pulls/<pr>/comments \
--method POST \
--field in_reply_to=<comment_id> \
--field body="<reply text>"
Post an issue comment:
gh api repos/<org>/<repo>/issues/<number>/comments \
--method POST \
--field body="<comment text>"
Avoid shell expansion issues by using a body file:
gh api repos/<org>/<repo>/pulls/<pr>/comments \
--method POST \
--field in_reply_to=<comment_id> \
--field body=@.tmp/reply.txt
Posting a pending review with inline comments
The default for any agent-posted review is pending — a draft visible only to the review author until they submit it manually from the GitHub UI. Never use event: COMMENT | APPROVE | REQUEST_CHANGES on the user's behalf without explicit authorization; those values publish the review immediately. Omitting event is what keeps the review pending.
Get the full PR head SHA. Abbreviated SHAs are rejected as "invalid GitObjectID":
gh api repos/<org>/<repo>/pulls/<pr> --jq '.head.sha'
Identify valid lines for inline comments. A comment must anchor to a line inside a diff hunk on the new side (RIGHT); lines in unchanged context between hunks are rejected with "Line could not be resolved". Each hunk header has the form @@ -X[,Y] +A[,B] @@; when a count (,Y or ,B) is omitted, treat it as 1. Valid new-side lines are A through A + (B-1) inclusive:
@@ -10,3 +12,5 @@→ new-side lines 12 through 16@@ -10 +12 @@→ new-side line 12 only (single-line hunk)@@ -10,3 +12 @@→ new-side line 12 only
Get each file's patch via:
gh api repos/<org>/<repo>/pulls/<pr>/files --paginate
Build the payload. Write it to a body file to avoid shell-expansion issues with backticks or special characters in the comment text:
{
"commit_id": "<full sha>",
"body": "<top-level summary>",
"comments": [
{ "path": "<file>", "line": 42, "side": "RIGHT", "body": "<inline comment>" }
]
}
POST the payload:
gh api -X POST repos/<org>/<repo>/pulls/<pr>/reviews \
--input .tmp/review-$RANDOM.json
Verify the response includes "state": "PENDING". Report the review ID to the user; the draft is visible only to them and does not notify the PR author. They submit it from the GitHub UI (Files changed → Finish your review).
Discard a pending review:
gh api -X DELETE repos/<org>/<repo>/pulls/<pr>/reviews/<review-id>