recurring-backlog-item-creator

Automatically create and manage GitHub issues in your project backlog using a YAML configuration file with the recurring-backlog-item-creator. This tool helps streamline backlog management by automating the process of generating recurring issues based on specific schedules, ultimately saving time and reducing errors.

Overview

The repository features:

• gh-issue-config-filter: A command-line interface (CLI) tool designed to filter issues from a YAML configuration file according to the current month.
• GitHub Actions workflow: This workflow automatically generates issues and associates them with GitHub Projects based on the results filtered by the CLI tool.

Motivation

Managing product backlogs often involves the creation of recurring issues that follow different schedules:

• Monthly Issues: Security reviews, performance monitoring—created every month.
• Quarterly Issues: Planning sessions, roadmap reviews—created in March, June, September, and December.
• Yearly Issues: Annual reviews, budget planning—created once a year.
• Custom Schedules: Any combination of specific months.

Tracking these recurring issues manually can be tedious and prone to mistakes. This tool simplifies the task by automating issue creation and management within GitHub Projects.

Components

gh-issue-config-filter

This CLI tool filters backlog items from a YAML configuration file based on the current month. For detailed information, refer to the documentation inside the gh-issue-config-filter directory.

Usage

To utilize this repository:

1. Set Up a YAML Configuration File: Create a configuration file in your repository by following the template provided in config-template.yml.
2. Configure GitHub Token Permissions: Depending on your project type—organization or user—you need to set appropriate permissions for the GitHub token used in the workflow. Different setups (using a GitHub App or a Personal Access Token) are available, ensuring all permissions are correctly configured for issue creation and project management.
3. Create GitHub Actions Workflow: Set up a workflow file (e.g., .github/workflows/create-monthly-issues.yml) that schedules the creation of issues automatically on the first day of each month or allows for manual triggering.

Example Configuration

A basic configuration for monthly issues might look like the following:

defaults:
  project_id: "PVT_xxx"
  target_repo: "owner/repo"

issues:
  - name: "Monthly Security Review"
    template_file: ".github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/security-review.md"
    creation_months: [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12]
    title_suffix: "- {{YearMonth}}"
    fields:
      Priority: "High"
      Status: "Ready"

This configuration allows for the automated creation of the "Monthly Security Review" issue in the specified project.

For further details, refer to the documentation in the repository to explore the full capabilities and configurations available.