🏥 Safe Output Health Report - October 29, 2025

[github-actions[bot]]

🏥 Safe Output Health Report - October 29, 2025

Executive Summary

Conducted comprehensive health audit of safe output jobs across the last 24 hours. Analyzed 131 workflow runs with 106 safe output job executions. Overall success rate is 67% with 34 failures requiring attention.

Critical Finding: Two safe output job types have severe reliability issues:

• create_pull_request: 18% success rate (13 of 16 failed)
• push_to_pull_request_branch: 43% success rate (13 of 23 failed)

The primary root causes are artifact availability race conditions (9 failures) and git branch lifecycle mismatches (6 failures).

Full Report Details

Safe Output Job Statistics

Job Type	Total Executions	Failures	Successes	Success Rate
create_discussion	11	0	11	100% ✅
add_comment	17	0	17	100% ✅
create_issue	37	6	31	83% ⚠️
push_to_pull_request_branch	23	13	10	43% 🔴
create_pull_request	16	13	3	18% 🔴
missing_tool	2	2	0	0% ⚠️
TOTAL	106	34	72	67%

Error Clusters

Cluster 1: Artifact Not Found (9 occurrences - 26.5% of failures)

Affected Jobs: create_pull_request, push_to_pull_request_branch, create_issue

Sample Error:

Unable to download artifact(s): Artifact not found for name: aw.patch
Unable to download artifact(s): Artifact not found for name: agent_output.json

Sample Runs: §18813884690, §18884796668, §18890591960

Root Cause: Race condition between agent job completing and safe output jobs starting. Agent uploads artifacts (aw.patch, agent_output.json) but safe output jobs try to download them before they're fully available or retained by GitHub Actions.

Impact: Critical - Prevents safe output jobs from executing entirely, resulting in lost agent work.

Cluster 2: Git Branch Not Found (6 occurrences - 17.6% of failures)

Affected Jobs: push_to_pull_request_branch

Sample Error:

Branch doc-cleanup-custom-safe-outputs-d7625b9e5f3735cb does not exist on origin, can't push to it: 
The process '/usr/bin/git' failed with exit code 128

Sample Runs: §18841045921, §18856467834, §18881674823

Root Cause: Safe output job expects to push to a branch that was created locally by the agent but never pushed to remote, or was a temporary PR branch that got deleted.

Context Example: Workflow "Changeset Generator" on PR event creates local changes but the branch doc-cleanup-custom-safe-outputs-d7625b9e5f3735cb doesn't exist on origin when push is attempted.

Impact: High - Prevents changes from being pushed to PR branches, breaking the PR update workflow.

Cluster 3: Git Patch Application Failed (2 occurrences - 5.9% of failures)

Affected Jobs: push_to_pull_request_branch

Sample Error:

Failed to apply patch: The process '/usr/bin/git' failed with exit code 128

Sample Runs: §18816855563, §18863305407

Root Cause: Git patch format issues, merge conflicts, or repository state mismatch when applying agent-generated patches.

Impact: Medium - Prevents changes from being applied even when branch exists.

Cluster 4: Git Push Failed (4 occurrences - 11.8% of failures)

Affected Jobs: create_pull_request

Sample Error:

Git push failed: The process '/usr/bin/git' failed with exit code 128
Git push failed: The process '/usr/bin/git' failed with exit code 1

Sample Runs: §18862182162, §18874390713, §18883307839

Root Cause: Various git push failures - possibly permission issues, branch protection, or network issues.

Impact: High - Prevents PR creation workflow from completing.

Cluster 5: Issue Assignment Failed (2 occurrences - 5.9% of failures)

Affected Jobs: create_issue

Sample Error:

Failed to assign issue: The process '/usr/bin/gh' failed with exit code 1
Failed to assign issue #2569 to `@copilot`: The process '/usr/bin/gh' failed with exit code 1

Sample Runs: §18823649455, §18855781708

Root Cause: Attempting to assign issues to bot accounts (e.g., @copilot) which is not allowed, or insufficient permissions.

Impact: Low - Issue is created but assignment fails. Workaround exists.

Cluster 6: Other Failures (11 occurrences - 32.4% of failures)

Various other git-related failures, process exit codes, and unclassified errors requiring individual investigation.

Root Cause Analysis

1. Artifact Availability Race Condition (Critical)

Problem: Agent job completes and uploads artifacts, but safe output jobs start before artifacts are fully available.

Evidence:

• 9 failures across multiple job types
• Consistent "Artifact not found" error pattern
• Affects both aw.patch and agent_output.json artifacts

Technical Details:

• GitHub Actions artifact upload is asynchronous
• Safe output jobs have needs: [agent] dependency but artifact availability is not guaranteed
• No retry logic in artifact download steps

2. Git Branch Lifecycle Mismatch (High Priority)

Problem: Disconnect between agent's local git operations and safe output job's remote git context.

Evidence:

• 6 failures with "Branch does not exist on origin" error
• All occur in push_to_pull_request_branch jobs
• Branches are referenced in workflow but not available remotely

Technical Details:

• Agent creates local branches or expects branches to exist
• Safe output jobs run in fresh runner context without local branches
• No mechanism to ensure branch exists on remote before push

3. Patch Application Robustness Issues (Medium Priority)

Problem: Git patch application fails with exit code 128 in various scenarios.

Evidence:

• 2 direct patch failures
• Additional failures in broader git operation category
• Exit code 128 indicates git fatal error

Potential Causes:

• Patch format incompatibility
• Repository state mismatch
• Merge conflicts
• File permission issues

4. GitHub CLI Permission Issues (Low Priority)

Problem: Attempting operations that require permissions not available to workflow.

Evidence:

• Failed assignments to bot accounts (@copilot)
• gh CLI exit code 1 (permission/validation error)

Impact: Minor - main operation (issue creation) succeeds, only assignment fails.

Recommendations

Critical Actions (Immediate)

1. Fix Artifact Race Condition

Priority: 🔴 Critical
Effort: Small
Impact: High (fixes 26.5% of failures)

Implementation:

# In safe output jobs, add retry logic for artifact downloads
- name: Download agent output
  uses: actions/download-artifact@v4
  with:
    name: agent_output.json
  # Add retry action wrapper
  continue-on-error: true
  
- name: Retry download if needed
  if: failure()
  uses: actions/download-artifact@v4
  with:
    name: agent_output.json
  # Wait before retry
  env:
    RETRY_DELAY: 5

Better Solution:

# Use Octokit to poll for artifact availability
- name: Wait for artifact availability
  uses: actions/github-script@v7
  with:
    script: |
      const maxAttempts = 10;
      const delay = 3000;
      
      for (let i = 0; i < maxAttempts; i++) {
        const artifacts = await github.rest.actions.listWorkflowRunArtifacts({
          owner: context.repo.owner,
          repo: context.repo.repo,
          run_id: context.runId
        });
        
        if (artifacts.data.artifacts.some(a => a.name === 'agent_output.json')) {
          core.info('Artifact found!');
          return;
        }
        
        core.info(`Attempt ${i+1}/${maxAttempts}: Artifact not found, waiting...`);
        await new Promise(resolve => setTimeout(resolve, delay));
      }
      
      core.setFailed('Artifact not available after retries');

2. Resolve Branch Lifecycle Issues

Priority: 🔴 Critical
Effort: Medium
Impact: High (fixes 17.6% of failures)

Approaches:

Option A: Ensure branch exists before safe output job

# In agent job, ensure branch is pushed
- name: Push branch to remote
  if: steps.changes.outputs.has_changes == 'true'
  run: |
    git push -u origin ${{ env.BRANCH_NAME }}

Option B: Create branch in safe output job if missing

# In push_to_pull_request_branch job
- name: Ensure branch exists
  run: |
    if ! git ls-remote --heads origin ${{ env.BRANCH_NAME }} | grep -q ${{ env.BRANCH_NAME }}; then
      echo "Branch doesn't exist on remote, creating..."
      git push -u origin HEAD:${{ env.BRANCH_NAME }}
    fi

Option C: Use GitHub API instead of git push (Recommended)

# Use GitHub's Update Reference API
- name: Update PR branch via API
  uses: actions/github-script@v7
  with:
    script: |
      await github.rest.git.updateRef({
        owner: context.repo.owner,
        repo: context.repo.repo,
        ref: `heads/${branchName}`,
        sha: commitSha,
        force: true
      });

High Priority Actions

3. Improve Patch Application Robustness

Priority: 🟡 High
Effort: Medium
Impact: Medium (fixes 5.9% direct + related failures)

Actions:

• Validate patch format before applying
• Check for conflicts and provide fallback
• Add detailed error logging
• Consider file-by-file update fallback

- name: Apply patch with validation
  run: |
    if ! git apply --check aw.patch 2> patch_errors.txt; then
      echo "::warning::Patch has conflicts, attempting 3-way merge"
      if ! git apply --3way aw.patch; then
        echo "::error::Patch application failed"
        cat patch_errors.txt
        exit 1
      fi
    fi
    git apply aw.patch

4. Handle Git Push Failures Gracefully

Priority: 🟡 High
Effort: Small
Impact: Medium (fixes 11.8% of failures)

Actions:

• Add retry logic for transient network failures
• Check permissions before push
• Provide better error messages
• Add force-push option when appropriate

Medium Priority Actions

5. Fix Issue Assignment Logic

Priority: 🟢 Medium
Effort: Small
Impact: Low (fixes 5.9% of failures)

Implementation:

// In create_issue safe output script
const assignees = item.assignees
  .filter(a => a && !a.startsWith('@'))  // Remove @ mentions
  .filter(a => !['copilot', 'github-actions'].includes(a.toLowerCase()));  // Skip bots

if (assignees.length > 0) {
  try {
    await github.rest.issues.addAssignees({
      owner: context.repo.owner,
      repo: context.repo.repo,
      issue_number: issue.number,
      assignees: assignees
    });
  } catch (error) {
    core.info(`Could not assign issue: ${error.message} (continuing anyway)`);
  }
}

Process Improvements

6. Add Better Error Handling and Logging

• Standardize error message format across all safe output jobs
• Add structured logging for easier analysis
• Include relevant context (run ID, branch name, artifact name) in errors
• Set appropriate job output variables for downstream consumption

7. Implement Health Monitoring Dashboard

• Track safe output job success rates over time
• Alert on success rate drops below threshold
• Categorize failures by type automatically
• Provide actionable remediation guidance

Work Item Plans

Work Item 1: Implement Artifact Availability Retry Logic

Type: Bug Fix
Priority: Critical
Effort: Small (2-4 hours)

Description: Add retry logic with exponential backoff when downloading artifacts in safe output jobs to handle GitHub Actions artifact availability delays.

Acceptance Criteria:

• Artifact downloads retry up to 10 times with exponential backoff
• Clear logging indicates retry attempts
• Success rate for artifact-dependent jobs improves to >95%
• No performance degradation (max 30s additional wait time)

Technical Approach:

1. Create reusable GitHub Action or workflow step for artifact download with retry
2. Use Octokit to check artifact availability before download attempt
3. Implement exponential backoff (3s, 6s, 12s, ...)
4. Add detailed logging for debugging

Files to Modify:

• .github/workflows/compiled/*.yml - Update artifact download steps
• Create new shared action: .github/actions/download-artifact-with-retry/action.yml

Testing:

• Test with workflows that recently failed due to artifact issues
• Monitor for 7 days after deployment

---

Work Item 2: Fix Branch Lifecycle in push_to_pull_request_branch

Type: Bug Fix
Priority: Critical
Effort: Medium (4-8 hours)

Description: Resolve git branch lifecycle issues where safe output jobs attempt to push to branches that don't exist on remote.

Acceptance Criteria:

• push_to_pull_request_branch success rate improves to >90%
• Clear error messages when branch operations fail
• Graceful fallback when branch doesn't exist
• Documentation updated with branch lifecycle expectations

Technical Approach:
Option 1 (Recommended): Use GitHub API for branch updates instead of git push
Option 2: Ensure agent job always pushes branch before safe output jobs run
Option 3: Add branch existence check and creation in safe output job

Recommend Option 1 for reliability and cleaner separation of concerns.

Implementation Steps:

1. Refactor push_to_pull_request_branch to use GitHub API
2. Add branch existence check before operations
3. Create branch via API if missing
4. Update branch reference with new commit SHA

Files to Modify:

• Safe output job implementation for push_to_pull_request_branch
• Add error handling for API failures

Testing:

• Test with Changeset Generator workflow
• Test with doc-cleanup workflows
• Verify works for both existing and new branches

---

Work Item 3: Improve Patch Application Robustness

Type: Enhancement
Priority: High
Effort: Medium (4-6 hours)

Description: Make patch application more robust with validation, conflict detection, and fallback mechanisms.

Acceptance Criteria:

• Patch validation before application
• Detailed error messages on failure
• 3-way merge fallback for conflicts
• Success rate improves to >95%

Technical Approach:

1. Add git apply --check before actual patch application
2. Implement 3-way merge fallback (git apply --3way)
3. Add detailed logging of patch content and errors
4. Consider file-by-file fallback if patch completely fails

Files to Modify:

• push_to_pull_request_branch safe output implementation
• Add patch validation utility

---

Work Item 4: Fix Issue Assignment to Bot Accounts

Type: Bug Fix
Priority: Low
Effort: Small (1-2 hours)

Description: Prevent attempts to assign issues to bot accounts that cannot be assigned.

Acceptance Criteria:

• No more assignment failures for @copilot or @github-actions
• Issue creation succeeds even if assignment fails
• Clear logging of skipped bot assignments

Technical Approach:

1. Filter out bot account mentions before assignment
2. Validate assignees are real users
3. Make assignment non-critical (continue on failure)

Files to Modify:

• create_issue safe output implementation

---

Work Item 5: Standardize Error Handling Across Safe Output Jobs

Type: Refactoring
Priority: Medium
Effort: Large (8-16 hours)

Description: Create consistent error handling, logging, and retry logic across all safe output job types.

Acceptance Criteria:

• All safe output jobs use common error handling framework
• Consistent error message format
• Structured logging for easy parsing
• Retry logic where applicable

Technical Approach:

1. Create shared error handling utilities
2. Standardize log message format
3. Implement common retry framework
4. Add error categorization

Files to Modify:

• All safe output job implementations
• Create shared utilities module

Historical Context

This is the first comprehensive safe output health audit using the new monitoring system. Future audits will track trends over time.

Baseline Metrics Established:

• Overall Success Rate: 67%
• Most Reliable Jobs: create_discussion (100%), add_comment (100%)
• Most Problematic Jobs: create_pull_request (18%), push_to_pull_request_branch (43%)

Metrics and KPIs

• Overall Safe Output Success Rate: 67.9%
• Most Reliable Job Type: create_discussion, add_comment (100%)
• Most Problematic Job Type: create_pull_request (18%)
• Primary Failure Mode: Artifact not found (26.5% of failures)
• Secondary Failure Mode: Git branch issues (17.6% of failures)

Next Steps

Immediate (This Week)

• Implement artifact retry logic (Work Item 1)
• Fix branch lifecycle issues (Work Item 2)
• Deploy and monitor fixes

Short Term (Next 2 Weeks)

• Improve patch application (Work Item 3)
• Fix issue assignment (Work Item 4)
• Add monitoring dashboard

Long Term (Next Month)

• Standardize error handling (Work Item 5)
• Implement proactive monitoring
• Establish SLO targets (>95% success rate)

---

References:

• §18813884690 - Artifact not found for aw.patch
• §18841045921 - Branch does not exist on origin
• §18823649455 - Failed to assign issue to @copilot

AI generated by Safe Output Health Monitor

[github-actions[bot]]

This discussion was automatically closed because it was created by an agentic workflow more than 1 month ago.