What is gitlab-assistant?

A central hub that routes GitLab tasks to specialized skills using the glab CLI, coordinating multi-step workflows when needed.

When should I use gitlab-assistant vs a specific skill?

Use it for any GitLab operation or when unsure which skill to use; it will route to the most appropriate skill and handle multi-step workflows.

Can I chain multiple operations across different skills?

Yes. The hub coordinates multi-step workflows by invoking the relevant skills in sequence to complete the task.

gitlab-assistant

npx machina-cli add skill grandcamel/GitLab-Assistant-Skills/gitlab-assistant --openclaw

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SKILL.md

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GitLab Assistant

Central hub for GitLab automation using the glab CLI. Routes requests to the most appropriate specialized skill.

Quick Reference

I want to...	Use this skill	Risk
Work with merge requests	`gitlab-mr`	⚠️
Work with issues	`gitlab-issue`	⚠️
Check/run CI pipelines	`gitlab-ci`	⚠️
Clone/fork/create repos	`gitlab-repo`	⚠️
Manage releases	`gitlab-release`	⚠️
Manage labels	`gitlab-label`	⚠️
Manage milestones	`gitlab-milestone`	⚠️
Manage CI/CD variables	`gitlab-variable`	⚠️
Manage groups/teams	`gitlab-group`	⚠️
Search GitLab	`gitlab-search`	-
Protect branches	`gitlab-protected-branch`	⚠️
Manage webhooks	`gitlab-webhook`	⚠️
Repository file operations	`gitlab-file`	⚠️
Manage wiki pages	`gitlab-wiki`	⚠️
MR/Issue discussions	`gitlab-discussion`	⚠️
Project badges	`gitlab-badge`	⚠️
Container registry	`gitlab-container`	⚠️⚠️
Security vulnerabilities	`gitlab-vulnerability`	⚠️

Risk Legend: - Safe | ⚠️ Caution | ⚠️⚠️ Warning | ⚠️⚠️⚠️ Danger

Routing Rules

Rule 1: Explicit Resource Type

Route based on the GitLab resource being worked with:

Keywords	Route to
MR, merge request, pull request, review, approve, merge	`gitlab-mr`
issue, bug, ticket, task, feature request	`gitlab-issue`
CI, CD, pipeline, build, job, deploy, artifacts	`gitlab-ci`
repo, repository, project, clone, fork	`gitlab-repo`
release, tag, version, changelog	`gitlab-release`
label, tag (for issues/MRs)	`gitlab-label`
milestone, sprint, iteration	`gitlab-milestone`
variable, secret, env, CI variable	`gitlab-variable`
group, team, organization, members, namespace	`gitlab-group`
search, find, query (global/group/project)	`gitlab-search`
protect branch, branch protection, access rules	`gitlab-protected-branch`
webhook, hook, notification callback, integration	`gitlab-webhook`
file, blob, content, raw (repository files)	`gitlab-file`
wiki, documentation page	`gitlab-wiki`
discussion, thread, comment, note, reply	`gitlab-discussion`
badge, status badge, coverage badge	`gitlab-badge`
container, registry, docker, image, tag (container)	`gitlab-container`
vulnerability, security, scan, CVE, SAST, DAST	`gitlab-vulnerability`

Rule 2: Common Workflows

Workflow	Skills Involved
Code review	`gitlab-mr` (checkout, review, approve, merge)
Bug tracking	`gitlab-issue` (create, assign, close)
Deployment	`gitlab-ci` (run, status, artifacts)
Release process	`gitlab-release` + `gitlab-ci`
Project setup	`gitlab-repo` (create, clone)

Rule 3: Multi-Step Operations

For complex workflows that span multiple skills, coordinate them:

Example: "Release version 1.2.0"
1. gitlab-mr: Ensure all MRs are merged
2. gitlab-ci: Verify pipeline passes
3. gitlab-release: Create release with changelog

Skills Overview

gitlab-mr (Merge Requests)

Purpose: Create, review, approve, and merge MRs
Key commands: glab mr list, glab mr create, glab mr checkout, glab mr merge
Risk: ⚠️ (merge is destructive)
Triggers: MR, merge request, review, approve, merge, checkout

gitlab-issue (Issues)

Purpose: Track bugs, features, and tasks
Key commands: glab issue list, glab issue create, glab issue close
Risk: ⚠️ (close/delete are destructive)
Triggers: issue, bug, task, ticket, feature

gitlab-ci (CI/CD Pipelines)

Purpose: View, trigger, and manage CI/CD pipelines
Key commands: glab ci status, glab ci view, glab ci run, glab ci artifact
Risk: ⚠️ (run triggers compute resources)
Triggers: CI, pipeline, build, job, deploy, artifacts, lint

gitlab-repo (Repositories)

Purpose: Clone, fork, create, and manage repositories
Key commands: glab repo clone, glab repo fork, glab repo create
Risk: ⚠️⚠️ (delete is highly destructive)
Triggers: repo, repository, project, clone, fork

gitlab-release (Releases)

Purpose: Create and manage releases
Key commands: glab release create, glab release list, glab release view
Risk: ⚠️ (creates tags and releases)
Triggers: release, version, changelog, tag

gitlab-label (Labels)

Purpose: Manage project labels
Key commands: glab label create, glab label list
Risk: ⚠️ (affects issue/MR categorization)
Triggers: label, tag (for categorization)

gitlab-milestone (Milestones)

Purpose: Manage project milestones
Key commands: glab milestone create, glab milestone list
Risk: ⚠️ (affects planning)
Triggers: milestone, sprint, iteration

gitlab-variable (CI/CD Variables)

Purpose: Manage CI/CD variables and secrets
Key commands: glab variable set, glab variable list
Risk: ⚠️⚠️ (contains secrets)
Triggers: variable, secret, env var, CI variable

gitlab-group (Groups - API)

Purpose: Manage groups, members, subgroups via API
Key commands: glab api groups, glab api groups/:id/members
Risk: ⚠️ (group management)
Triggers: group, team, organization, members, namespace

gitlab-search (Search - API)

Purpose: Search across GitLab (projects, issues, code, etc.)
Key commands: glab api "search?scope=...&search=..."
Risk: - (read-only)
Triggers: search, find, query

gitlab-protected-branch (Protected Branches - API)

Purpose: Manage branch protection rules
Key commands: glab api projects/:id/protected_branches
Risk: ⚠️ (affects branch access)
Triggers: protect branch, branch protection, access rules

gitlab-webhook (Webhooks - API)

Purpose: Manage project webhooks
Key commands: glab api projects/:id/hooks
Risk: ⚠️ (external integrations)
Triggers: webhook, hook, notification, integration

gitlab-file (Repository Files - API)

Purpose: Read/write repository files via API
Key commands: glab api projects/:id/repository/files/:path
Risk: ⚠️ (modifies files)
Triggers: file, blob, content, raw

gitlab-wiki (Wiki - API)

Purpose: Manage project wiki pages
Key commands: glab api projects/:id/wikis
Risk: ⚠️ (documentation changes)
Triggers: wiki, documentation page

gitlab-discussion (Discussions - API)

Purpose: Manage threaded discussions on MRs/issues
Key commands: glab api projects/:id/merge_requests/:iid/discussions
Risk: ⚠️ (comments)
Triggers: discussion, thread, comment, note, reply

gitlab-badge (Badges - API)

Purpose: Manage project badges
Key commands: glab api projects/:id/badges
Risk: ⚠️ (project display)
Triggers: badge, status badge, coverage badge

gitlab-container (Container Registry - API)

Purpose: Manage container registry images and tags
Key commands: glab api projects/:id/registry/repositories
Risk: ⚠️⚠️ (delete images is destructive)
Triggers: container, registry, docker, image

gitlab-vulnerability (Vulnerabilities - API)

Purpose: Manage security vulnerabilities (Ultimate)
Key commands: glab api projects/:id/vulnerabilities
Risk: ⚠️ (security state changes)
Triggers: vulnerability, security, scan, CVE

Connection Verification

Before any operation, verify GitLab is configured:

glab auth status

If not authenticated:

glab auth login

Check current repository context:

glab repo view

Common glab Commands Quick Reference

# Authentication
glab auth login              # Interactive login
glab auth status             # Check auth status

# Merge Requests
glab mr list                 # List MRs
glab mr create               # Create MR
glab mr view <id>            # View MR details
glab mr checkout <id>        # Checkout MR branch
glab mr merge <id>           # Merge MR

# Issues
glab issue list              # List issues
glab issue create            # Create issue
glab issue view <id>         # View issue
glab issue close <id>        # Close issue

# CI/CD
glab ci status               # Current pipeline status
glab ci view                 # Interactive pipeline view
glab ci run                  # Trigger pipeline
glab ci artifact             # Download artifacts

# Repository
glab repo clone <path>       # Clone repository
glab repo fork <path>        # Fork repository
glab repo view               # View repo info

Disambiguation

When request is ambiguous, ask for clarification:

Ambiguous Request	Clarifying Question
"Show me the status"	"Do you want CI pipeline status (`glab ci status`) or MR status (`glab mr list`)?"
"Create a new one"	"What would you like to create? An issue, MR, or repository?"
"List everything"	"What would you like to list? MRs, issues, pipelines, or repos?"

Overview

GitLab Assistant acts as a central hub for GitLab automation using the glab CLI. It routes requests to the most appropriate specialized skill (e.g., gitlab-mr, gitlab-issue) and coordinates multi-step workflows. Start here for any GitLab task to ensure the right tool handles it.

How This Skill Works

It uses GitLab resource keywords to route the task to a specialized skill (MR to gitlab-mr, issues to gitlab-issue). For multi-step processes, it sequences the relevant skills (gitlab-mr, gitlab-ci, gitlab-release) to complete the task using the glab CLI under the hood.

When to Use It

You want to work with a Merge Request (MR)
You need to manage issues
You need to run or check CI pipelines
You must clone, fork, or create a repo
You’re unsure which skill fits or you have a multi-step GitLab workflow

Quick Start

Step 1: Describe the GitLab task with a clear resource type (MR, issue, CI, repo, etc.).
Step 2: Let gitlab-assistant route to the appropriate skill (e.g., gitlab-mr, gitlab-issue) and perform actions via glab.
Step 3: Review results; if needed, continue with additional steps or adjust scope.

Best Practices

Clearly specify the resource and action (MR, issue, CI, etc.).
Provide explicit steps for multi-step tasks to keep routing deterministic.
Validate destructive actions in a test project before applying to production.
Include enough context (project, namespace, MR/issue numbers) to avoid ambiguity.
Ensure proper permissions and avoid exposing sensitive data in prompts.

Example Use Cases

Create and review an MR, then merge after approval.
Create an issue, assign it to a teammate, and set a due date.
Trigger a CI pipeline, monitor its status, and retrieve artifacts if successful.
Coordinate a release by creating a release entry after all MRs are merged and CI passes.
Update or add a webhook to integrate an external service with the project.

Frequently Asked Questions

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