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AutoDev can automatically respond to reviews from bot accounts, enabling automated code quality workflows.

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What is Auto-Apply Bot Reviews?

AutoDev can automatically respond to reviews from bot accounts. For detailed information about this setting including how to enable it, when to use it, and configuration options, see the Auto-apply Bot Reviews documentation.

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How It Works

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Normal Review Workflow

Without auto-apply:
  1. Bot submits review
  2. Nothing happens (bot hasn’t connected repository)
  3. Review is ignored
With auto-apply enabled:
  1. Bot submits review
  2. AutoDev detects it’s a bot account
  3. Automatically triggers update workflow
  4. Uses GitHub App credentials
  5. PR is updated based on bot feedback

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Bot Detection

AutoDev identifies bots using GitHub’s API:
  • Checks reviewer’s type field
  • type: "Bot" = automated account
  • type: "User" = human account
Common bot accounts:
  • Dependabot
  • Renovate
  • CodeClimate
  • Snyk
  • Custom CI/CD bots

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Use Cases

For common use cases including code quality bots, security scanning, and dependency updates, see the Auto-apply Bot Reviews use cases in the settings documentation.

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Configuration

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Team-Level Setting

Auto-apply is configured per team:
  • All team members use same setting
  • Applies to all connected repositories
  • Can be toggled on/off anytime

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Per-Repository Behavior

Currently, the setting applies to all repositories in the team. Future versions may support per-repository configuration.

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Disabling Auto-Apply

For information about when and how to disable this feature, see when to disable Auto-apply Bot Reviews in the settings documentation.

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Troubleshooting

For detailed troubleshooting of bot reviews and auto-apply issues, see the AI Reviewer Troubleshooting guide.

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Best Practices

For best practices and configuration recommendations, see the Auto-apply Bot Reviews configuration tips in the settings documentation.

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Supported Bot Platforms

AutoDev auto-apply works with any bot account recognized by GitHub: Dependency Management:
  • Dependabot
  • Renovate
  • Greenkeeper
Code Quality:
  • CodeClimate
  • SonarCloud
  • Codacy
  • DeepSource
Custom Bots:
  • Any bot created with GitHub App
  • Custom CI/CD bots
  • Internal automation tools

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Limitations

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Current Limitations

  1. Team-level only:
    • Cannot configure per-repository
    • All repos use team setting
  2. All-or-nothing:
    • Cannot select specific bots
    • Either all bots or no bots
  3. No custom rules:
    • Cannot filter by bot type
    • Cannot set conditions

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Future Enhancements

Planned features:
  • Per-repository settings
  • Bot allowlist/blocklist
  • Conditional auto-apply rules
  • Custom workflow templates

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Alternative: Manual Bot Review Handling

If auto-apply doesn’t fit your workflow:

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Option 1: Disable Auto-Apply

  • Turn off auto-apply
  • Manually review bot feedback
  • Use “Update PR” when needed
  • More control, more manual work

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Option 2: Selective Application

  • Keep auto-apply off
  • Enable for specific tasks
  • Manual trigger for others
  • Balance automation and control

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Option 3: Apply Reviews from Other reviewers

You can also manually apply bot review feedback from other PRs using the Reflect command:
  1. Copy the bot review comment link from another PR
  2. Submit a review with “Request changes” on the current PR
  3. Use the Reflect command with the comment URL
This allows you to selectively apply bot reviews without enabling auto-apply. For detailed instructions, see Applying reviews from other PRs.

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Next Steps

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