External Tracking

External Tracking

Skill for integrating with external project management tools (Jira, Linear, Trello, Asana) where the agent cannot directly manipulate the board via CLI.

Input

• A project tracked in an external system
• A local BACKLOG.md that mirrors the current sprint

Output

• Correctly named branches and PRs linking to external tickets
• Manual sync instructions for the human user

Process

Phase 0: The "Manual Sync" Pattern

Since the agent cannot click buttons in Jira/Linear/Trello, it relies on Ticket IDs and Human Sync.

┌─────────────┐     ┌─────────────┐     ┌─────────────┐
│  EXTERNAL    │    │   LOCAL     │     │   AGENT     │
│  SYSTEM      │◀──▶│  BACKLOG.md │◀──▶│   WORK      │
│ (Source of   │    │ (Mirror)    │     │ (Execution) │
│  Truth ID)   │    │             │     │             │
└─────────────┘     └─────────────┘     └─────────────┘

Phase 1: Setup

1. Get the Ticket ID format:

   • Jira: PROJ-123
   • Linear: LIN-123
   • Trello: #123 (card number)

2. Update BACKLOG.md: Ensure every item in local backlog has the External ID.

   ## Sprint 1
   - [ ] [PROJ-101] User Login
   - [ ] [PROJ-102] Dashboard
   

Phase 2: Execution Workflow

Step 1: Start Work

1. Agent: Reads BACKLOG.md, picks [PROJ-101] User Login.
2. Agent: Creates branch codex/PROJ-101-user-login.
3. Agent: Asks user: "I am starting PROJ-101. Please move it to In Progress in [Jira/Linear]."

Step 2: Implementation

• Agent: Implements code + tests (TDD).
• Agent: Commits with ID in message: feat: [PROJ-101] implemented login logic.

Step 3: Pull Request

• Agent: Opens PR in GitHub (for code review).
• PR Title: [PROJ-101] User Login Implementation.
• PR Description:

  ## Ticket
  [Link to Jira/Linear ticket]
  
  ## Summary
  ...
  

Step 4: Finish

1. Agent: Asks user: "PR #5 created. Please move PROJ-101 to Review/QA in [Jira/Linear]."
2. Human: Reviews PR, merges, and updates external ticket to Done.

Platform Specifics

Jira

• Branch: feature/PROJ-123-brief-description
• Commit: [PROJ-123] message
• Smart Commits: If enabled, use PROJ-123 #comment task done in commit message (optional).

Linear

• Branch: linear/prom-123-feature-name (Linear can auto-link this)
• PR: Include Closes LINEAR-123 in description if integration enabled.

Trello

• Link: Paste Trello card URL in PR description.
• Power-Up: If GitHub Power-Up enabled, attach PR to card manually.

Rules

1. ALWAYS use the External ID in branch names and commit messages
2. ALWAYS ask the human to update the external status (Don't assume integration exists)
3. NEVER invent a fake ID — if missing, ask the user
4. NEVER mix multiple external tickets in one branch (unless clearly stated)

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