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ci-analysis skill: restore domain examples from eval regression analysis - #124416

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lewing merged 2 commits into
dotnet:mainfrom
lewing:ci-analysis-eval-regression-fix
Feb 14, 2026
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ci-analysis skill: restore domain examples from eval regression analysis#124416
lewing merged 2 commits into
dotnet:mainfrom
lewing:ci-analysis-eval-regression-fix

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@lewinglewing commented Feb 14, 2026

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Summary

Waza eval progression testing (16 runs across 4 skill versions, then 12 more runs validating fixes) revealed the tool-agnostic refactor (#124398) caused a 68% regression in tool calls (25→42) for the build progression task while other tasks were stable or improved.

Root cause: Three domain-specific examples were incorrectly classified as tool schema restatements and removed. These are domain knowledge the agent genuinely cannot infer from tool descriptions:

RestoredWhy it matters
refs/pull/{PR}/merge branch pattern + AzDO query paramsAgent can't infer the PR merge branch ref format
gh api .../git/commits/{sha} --jq '.parents[0].sha' + get_commit MCP alternativeMerge commit parent extraction pattern
log ID 5, line 500+ hints with emphasisMagic numbers for checkout log location
Stop signal in Step 4Agent was doing 5-7 extra tool calls after having enough data

Eval Results (Tool Calls)

Each fix was validated independently with a full 4-task eval run:

VersionBuild ProgressionCI StatusHelixRetryTotal
8fdec1f (pre-refactor best)25520555
833041c (tool-agnostic, #124398)42 📉10 📉21477
75f75d3 (restore domain examples)36724471
a9f5140 (+branch ref hints)32626468
aa4193b (this PR)25614449

Eval Results (Duration)

VersionBuild ProgressionCI StatusHelixRetryTotal
8fdec1f (pre-refactor best)5m20s1m28s3m13s1m03s11m04s
833041c (tool-agnostic, #124398)7m38s1m38s3m34s0m56s13m45s
aa4193b (this PR)4m25s1m08s2m28s0m45s8m46s

The final version matches the pre-refactor best on Build Progression (25 tools) and beats it overall (49 vs 55 total tools, 8m46s vs 11m04s).

Key Insight

Simple tasks (retry, CI status) benefit from less prescriptive guidance — retry improved from 5 to 4 calls. Complex multi-step tasks (build progression) need specific domain examples showing branch ref patterns, field names, and log locations. The rule of thumb: if removing an example leaves the agent unable to accomplish the task efficiently AND the information isn't in any tool description, it's a domain example — keep it.

Changes

  • build-progression-analysis.md: Restore key parameters, merge parent extraction example, checkout log hints, stop signal
  • delegation-patterns.md: ALL CAPS emphasis on log ID/line hints in subagent template
  • SKILL.md: Mention refs/pull/{PR}/merge in step 1

…ogression
Waza eval progression testing (16 runs across 4 skill versions) revealed
the tool-agnostic refactor (dotnet#124398) caused a 68% regression in tool
calls (25→42) for the build progression task. Root cause: domain-specific
examples were incorrectly classified as tool schema restatements.
Changes:
- build-progression-analysis.md: restore key AzDO query parameters
(branchName, queryOrder, top, project) as inline hints
- build-progression-analysis.md: restore gh api merge parent extraction
example and mention get_commit MCP alternative
- build-progression-analysis.md: restore logId:5 / startLine:500 hints
with bold emphasis for checkout log extraction
- build-progression-analysis.md: add stop signal — present findings when
the progression table and transition are identified
- delegation-patterns.md: add bold emphasis on log ID/line hints in
subagent prompt template
- SKILL.md: mention refs/pull/{PR}/merge branch pattern in step 1
These are domain examples (branch ref formats, field names, log locations,
jq expressions) that agents cannot infer from tool descriptions alone.
Simple tasks (retry) still benefit from less prescriptive guidance.
Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>
CopilotAI review requested due to automatic review settings February 14, 2026 01:48
@github-actionsgithub-actionsBot added the needs-area-label An area label is needed to ensure this gets routed to the appropriate area owners label Feb 14, 2026
@lewinglewing added area-skills Agent Skills and removed needs-area-label An area label is needed to ensure this gets routed to the appropriate area owners labels Feb 14, 2026

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Pull request overview

Restores domain-specific guidance in the ci-analysis skill docs that was removed during the tool-agnostic refactor, aiming to reduce unnecessary tool calls and improve efficiency for complex build progression investigations.

Changes:

  • Reintroduces AzDO build query specifics for refs/pull/{PR}/merge (project/ordering/top) and clarifies where pr.sourceSha lives.
  • Restores a concrete merge-parent extraction example for obtaining target branch HEAD from the merge commit.
  • Reinforces “checkout log ID 5 / line 500+” hints and adds an explicit stop signal once the progression table + transition are identified.

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 3 out of 3 changed files in this pull request and generated 1 comment.

FileDescription
.github/skills/ci-analysis/references/delegation-patterns.mdAdds emphasis to the checkout-log hint in the subagent delegation template.
.github/skills/ci-analysis/references/build-progression-analysis.mdRestores key domain examples/parameters for PR build listing, merge-parent extraction, checkout-log extraction, and stopping criteria.
.github/skills/ci-analysis/SKILL.mdUpdates PR analysis mode description to reference querying AzDO builds on the PR merge ref for full history.

Comment thread.github/skills/ci-analysis/references/delegation-patterns.md Outdated
Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>
@lewing
lewing merged commit 50e7fbb into dotnet:mainFeb 14, 2026
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@lewing
lewing deleted the ci-analysis-eval-regression-fix branch February 14, 2026 17:12
iremyux pushed a commit to iremyux/dotnet-runtime that referenced this pull request Mar 2, 2026
@github-actionsgithub-actionsBot locked and limited conversation to collaborators Mar 17, 2026
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@lewing@hoyosjs