Issue Triage

Issue Triage Skill

Efficiently triage GitHub issues for Java projects with categorization and prioritization.

When to Use

• User says "triage issues" / "check recent issues"
• Regular maintenance workflow
• After vacation/break (backlog processing)
• Weekly/monthly issue review

Prerequisites

Recommended: GitHub MCP server configured for optimal token usage

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claude mcp add github --transport http \
  https://api.githubcopilot.com/mcp/

Alternative: Use gh CLI (less token-efficient)

Workflow

1. Fetch Issues

With GitHub MCP (recommended):

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Tool: list_issues
Parameters: {
  "state": "open",
  "sort": "updated", 
  "per_page": 10
}

With gh CLI:

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gh issue list --state open --limit 10 --json number,title,labels,body,url

2. Categorize Each Issue

Analyze issue content and assign category:

Bug Report ✅

Indicators:

• Has stack trace or error message
• Steps to reproduce provided
• Expected vs actual behavior described
• Mentions specific version numbers

Actions:

• Label: bug
• Verify reproducibility from description
• Check for duplicate bugs
• Add to milestone if critical

Example:

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Issue #234: "NPE when loading plugin from directory"
- Stack trace: ✅
- Reproduction steps: ✅
- Version info: ✅
→ Label: bug, high-priority

Feature Request 💡

Indicators:

• Asks for new functionality
• Use case described
• "It would be nice if..." / "Could you add..."
• Rationale provided

Actions:

• Label: enhancement
• Assess alignment with project goals
• Mark for discussion if non-trivial
• Ask for community feedback

Question/Support ❓

Indicators:

• "How do I..." / "Can someone help..."
• Configuration/usage questions
• Not a bug or feature request

Actions:

• Label: question
• Provide answer or link to docs
• Suggest StackOverflow for complex help
• Close after answer if resolved

Duplicate 🔄

Search for similar issues:

• Use GitHub search: is:issue <keywords>
• Check recently closed issues
• Look for same error messages

Actions:

• Link to original: "Duplicate of #123"
• Close with polite comment
• Ask reporter to comment on original if they have additional info

Invalid/Unclear ⚠️

Indicators:

• Missing critical information
• Off-topic or spam
• Not enough context to proceed

Actions:

• Request clarification with template
• Set "needs-more-info" label
• Auto-close if no response after 14 days

3. Priority Assessment

Critical (P0) 🔴

Criteria:

• Security vulnerability
• Data loss/corruption risk
• Complete functionality breakdown
• Affects production systems

Actions:

• Label: critical
• Notify maintainers immediately
• Add to current milestone
• Consider hotfix release

Examples:

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- "SQL injection vulnerability in plugin loader"
- "All plugins fail to load after upgrade"
- "ClassLoader leak causes OutOfMemoryError"

High (P1) 🟠

Criteria:

• Core feature broken
• Affects many users
• Workaround exists but painful
• Regression from previous version

Actions:

• Label: high-priority
• Add to next milestone
• Include in release notes

Examples:

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- "Plugin dependencies not resolved correctly"
- "Hot reload crashes application"

Medium (P2) 🟡

Criteria:

• Edge case bug
• Enhancement with clear value
• Documentation gap
• Affects some users occasionally

Actions:

• Label: medium-priority
• Consider for future milestone
• Good for contributors

Examples:

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- "Improve error message for invalid plugin"
- "Add plugin lifecycle listener"

Low (P3) 🟢

Criteria:

• Nice-to-have feature
• Cosmetic issues
• Very rare edge case
• Documentation improvements

Actions:

• Label: low-priority
• "Contributions welcome" tag
• Backlog for future

Examples:

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- "Add more examples to README"
- "Typo in JavaDoc"

4. Response Templates

Need More Information

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Thanks for reporting this issue! 

To investigate further, could you provide:
- Java version (java -version)
- Library version
- Minimal reproducible example
- Full stack trace (if applicable)
- Configuration files (if relevant)

This will help us diagnose and fix the issue faster.

Duplicate

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Thanks for reporting! This is being tracked in #123.

Closing as duplicate. Feel free to add any additional context 
or information to the original issue.

Won't Fix (with rationale)

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Thank you for the suggestion. After consideration, this doesn't 
align with the project's current direction because [reason].

Consider [alternative approach] instead, which might better 
serve your use case.

If you feel strongly about this, please open a discussion in 
our [forum/discussions] to gather community feedback.

Acknowledged Bug

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Confirmed! This is a valid bug. 

I've added it to milestone X.Y and labeled it as [priority].
Contributions welcome if anyone wants to tackle it!

Reproduction verified with:
- Java 17
- Version 3.10.0
- Ubuntu 22.04

Feature Request - Under Consideration

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Interesting idea! This aligns with our goal of [project goal].

I've labeled this as 'enhancement' for further discussion.
Community feedback welcome - upvote with 👍 if you'd find 
this useful.

Some questions to consider:
- [question 1]
- [question 2]

Question Answered

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To achieve this, you can [solution].

Example:
\`\`\`java
[code example]
\`\`\`

Also check our documentation: [link]

Let me know if this solves your issue!

Token Optimization Strategies

Batch Processing

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# Process multiple issues in one prompt
"Triage issues #234-243, categorize and prioritize"

Savings: ~60% fewer tokens vs one-by-one

Use Structured GitHub MCP Calls

• One call to list issues → cache results
• Targeted calls for details only when needed
• Batch label updates

Savings: ~40% fewer tokens vs repeated bash calls

Cache Issue List

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# First prompt
"Fetch the last 20 issues, save list in memory"

# Subsequent prompts
"Analyze issue #5 from cached list"
"Mark #7-#9 as duplicate"

Focus on First Post + Recent Comments

• Don't read entire 50-comment threads
• Skim first post for context
• Check last 2-3 comments for updates

Anti-patterns

❌ Avoid:

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# One-by-one processing
"Check issue #234"
"Now check issue #235"
"Now check issue #236"
→ Wastes tokens on repeated context loading

# Over-analyzing
Reading entire 100-comment thread
Checking all related PRs
Deep diving into code for each issue
→ Diminishing returns after certain point

# Premature closing
Closing issues without proper investigation
Missing duplicates due to poor search
→ Frustrates users, creates duplicate work

✅ Prefer:

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# Batch operations
"Triage issues #234-250, categorize, prioritize"

# Quick triage decisions
Fast categorization → Can revisit if needed
Surface-level analysis for most issues
Deep dive only for critical/complex ones

# Thorough duplicate search
Quick keyword search before marking duplicate
Link to specific comment if clarification exists

Automation Opportunities

Auto-close stale issues

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# Issues with no activity for 90 days and "needs-more-info" label
"Find stale issues (>90 days, needs-more-info label), 
suggest closing with polite message"

Label by keywords

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# Auto-label based on content
"java.lang.NullPointerException" → bug
"add support for" → enhancement
"how do I" → question

Weekly summary

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# Generate triage summary
"Summarize issues from last week:
- New bugs: X
- Feature requests: Y
- Questions: Z
- Closed: W"

Integration with GitHub

With GitHub MCP

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// Structured workflow
1. list_issues → get open issues
2. get_issue → details for each
3. add_labels → categorize
4. create_comment → respond
5. close_issue → if needed

With gh CLI

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# List issues
gh issue list --json number,title,labels,body

# View specific issue
gh issue view 234

# Add labels
gh issue edit 234 --add-label "bug,high-priority"

# Comment
gh issue comment 234 --body "Thanks for reporting..."

# Close
gh issue close 234 --comment "Fixed in v2.1"

Metrics to Track

After each triage session, report:

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📊 Triage Summary
─────────────────
Issues processed: 15
├─ Bugs: 5 (2 critical, 3 high)
├─ Enhancements: 4
├─ Questions: 3
├─ Duplicates: 2
└─ Invalid: 1

Actions taken:
├─ Labeled: 15
├─ Responded: 12
├─ Closed: 3
└─ Milestoned: 5

Time saved: ~45 minutes (vs manual)
Token usage: 3,200 tokens

Best Practices

1. Regular cadence - Weekly triage prevents backlog
2. Be respectful - Users took time to report
3. Link resources - Docs, related issues, examples
4. Ask questions - Better to clarify than assume
5. Welcome contributions - Encourage community involvement
6. Track patterns - Common issues suggest documentation gaps
7. Celebrate reporters - Thank users for good bug reports
8. Close decisively - Don't let issues linger indefinitely

Example Workflow

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# Monday morning triage
claude code ~/projects/pf4j

> view .claude/skills/issue-triage/SKILL.md
> "Triage the last 15 issues from pf4j/pf4j,
   categorize, prioritize and suggest responses"

[Claude analyzes and presents summary]

> "Apply labels and post the suggested responses"

[Claude executes actions]

> "Generate summary for release notes"

Result: 15 issues triaged in ~10 minutes vs ~45 minutes manual