PR Answer Packs

PR Answer Packs attach scoped repository context to GitHub pull requests. Snipara listens to the PR event, builds a source-grounded pack for the changed surface, and publishes it back to GitHub as a Check Run and optional sticky comment.

The flow

The pack is generated for the pull request, not for a generic repository search. That is the difference: the active AI client gets context aligned to the current branch, changed paths, indexed symbols, and relevant project history.

Where this fits

PR Answer Packs are one surface in a larger repository continuity workflow. The same evidence should look different before editing, while resuming, and during review.

Start Work Brief shape

The Start Work Brief is the pre-edit artifact that feeds a better PR later. In the current implementation, snipara-companion team-sync start-work can fetch the hosted brief when the workspace is configured, and the same evidence model then flows into resume and review. That is not a claim that every repository already has a generated backend brief.

After implementation and review, the PR Answer Pack should reuse the same evidence: what changed, which decisions still apply, which assumptions went stale, and what tests prove the touched surface.

GitHub-native surfaces

The first useful surface is GitHub itself. Snipara publishes the pack where reviewers and agents already look, while the dashboard keeps status and regeneration controls available for maintainers.

What a pack contains

Answer Pack schema v1

The current GitHub surface is the Check Run plus sticky PR comment. Treat this schema as the product contract for how an Answer Pack should be read by agents and humans.

{
  "version": "pr-answer-pack-v1",
  "repository": "owner/repo",
  "pull_request": {
    "number": 31,
    "head_sha": "eeaa70d",
    "base_branch": "main",
    "title": "Refactor authentication middleware"
  },
  "scope": {
    "changed_files": ["apps/web/src/lib/github/app.ts"],
    "impacted_symbols": ["getInstallationToken", "loadPrivateKey"],
    "context_documents": ["docs/development/CODING_STANDARDS.md"]
  },
    "sections": [
      "PR Scope",
      "Changed Files",
      "Impacted Symbols",
      "Repository Context",
      "Related Conventions And Architecture",
      "Implementation History",
      "Team Sync Review",
      "Reviewer Hints",
      "Verification Checklist",
      "Source Map",
      "Agent Handoff",
      "Caveats"
    ],
  "publication": {
    "github_check_name": "Snipara Answer Pack",
    "sticky_comment_marker": "<!-- snipara-pr-answer-pack -->"
  }
}

What agents should do with it

Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, Codex, Cursor, and other AI coding clients should treat the pack as the first context briefing for the PR. It does not replace reading files or running tests. It reduces rescanning and gives the agent a better starting map.

• scoped repository cognition
• relevant architectural continuity
• high-quality contextual grounding
• source-aware implementation history

Setup

PR Answer Packs are generated by the hosted Snipara GitHub App. For repository onboarding, run npx create-snipara --github from the repository root, approve the GitHub App in the browser, and connect the detected repository. Once connected, pull request events queue Answer Packs and push events keep the repository index fresh.

npx create-snipara --github