post_pr_comment

Type

string (Handlebars template)

Description

The post_pr_comment action posts a comment on the GitHub PR. The comment supports Handlebars templating, allowing you to include dynamic content from the PR context.

This action works with both has_asana_tasks: true and has_asana_tasks: false, making it the most flexible action.

Syntax

yaml

then:
  post_pr_comment: |
    Your comment here

    Can include {{pr.title}} and other variables

Examples

Simple Notification

Post a basic comment:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: opened
    then:
      update_fields:
        '1234567890': '0987654321'
      post_pr_comment: |
        ✅ Asana task updated to "In Review"

Dynamic Content

Include PR details:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: closed
      merged: true
    then:
      mark_complete: true
      post_pr_comment: |
        ✅ PR #{{pr.number}} merged!

        Asana task marked complete.
        Author: @{{pr.author}}

Conditional Messages

Use helpers for logic:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: labeled
      label: 'build_created'
    then:
      update_fields:
        '1234567890': '0987654321'
      post_pr_comment: |
        🚀 Build created!

        Build #{{extract_from_comments "Build #(\\d+)"}}
        Version: {{or (extract_from_comments "Version: ([\\d.]+)") "Unknown"}}

Missing Task Warning

Prompt for Asana URL:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: opened
      has_asana_tasks: false
    then:
      post_pr_comment: |
        ⚠️ No Asana task found in PR description.

        Please add the Asana task URL to track this work:
        ```
        https://app.asana.com/0/PROJECT/TASK
        ```

Task Creation Confirmation

Notify about auto-created tasks:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: opened
      has_asana_tasks: false
      author: 'dependabot[bot]'
    then:
      create_task:
        project: '1234567890'
        workspace: '0987654321'
        title: '{{clean_title pr.title}}'
      post_pr_comment: |
        🤖 Automated task created in Asana

        This dependency update has been tracked automatically.

Build Status Updates

Post build information:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: labeled
      label: 'build_created'
    then:
      update_fields:
        '1234567890': '{{extract_from_comments "Build #(\\d+)"}}'
      post_pr_comment: |
        📦 Build Ready

        Build: {{extract_from_comments "Build #(\\d+)"}}
        Version: {{extract_from_comments "Version: ([\\d.]+)"}}

        Asana task updated with build information.

QA Instructions

Provide context for reviewers:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: labeled
      label: 'ready-for-qa'
    then:
      update_fields:
        '1234567890': '0987654321'  # Status → "QA Requested"
      post_pr_comment: |
        ✅ Ready for QA!

        ## Testing Notes

        {{sanitize_markdown pr.body}}

        Asana task updated to "QA Requested".

Multi-line with Formatting

Use markdown in comments:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: closed
      merged: true
    then:
      update_fields:
        '1234567890': '0987654321'
      mark_complete: true
      post_pr_comment: |
        ## ✅ PR Merged!

        **Title**: {{pr.title}}
        **Author**: @{{pr.author}}
        **Branch**: `{{pr.head_ref}}` → `{{pr.base_ref}}`

        Asana task has been marked complete.

        ---

        🤖 Automated by [Asana GitHub Sync]({{pr.url}})

Template Variables

All context variables are available:

Variable	Description	Example
`pr.number`	PR number	`42`
`pr.title`	PR title	`"Add feature"`
`pr.body`	PR description	Full text
`pr.author`	PR author	`"octocat"`
`pr.assignee`	PR assignee (if set)	`"reviewer"`
`pr.url`	PR URL	`https://github.com/...`
`pr.merged`	Merge status	`true` / `false`
`pr.draft`	Draft status	`true` / `false`
`pr.base_ref`	Target branch	`"main"`
`pr.head_ref`	Source branch	`"feature"`
`event.name`	Event name	`"pull_request"`
`event.action`	Event action	`"opened"`
`label.name`	Label name (if labeled)	`"ready-for-qa"`

Template Helpers

All helpers work in comments:

Helper	Purpose	Example
`extract_from_body`	Extract from PR body	`\{\{extract_from_body "Version: ([\\d.]+)"\}\}`
`extract_from_title`	Extract from PR title	`\{\{extract_from_title "\\[(\\w+)\\]"\}\}`
`extract_from_comments`	Extract from PR comments	`\{\{extract_from_comments "Build #(\\d+)"\}\}`
`clean_title`	Remove commit prefixes	`\{\{clean_title pr.title\}\}`
`sanitize_markdown`	Clean markdown for display	`\{\{sanitize_markdown pr.body\}\}`
`map_github_to_asana`	Map GitHub user	`\{\{map_github_to_asana pr.author\}\}`
`or`	Fallback value	`\{\{or pr.assignee "Unassigned"\}\}`

Comment Deduplication

Automatic Deduplication

The action automatically prevents duplicate comments when workflows re-run. Comments are deduplicated by exact body match.

How It Works

Before posting a comment:

Action fetches all existing PR comments
Compares new comment body with existing comments
If exact match found → skips posting
If no match → posts the comment

Matching Rules

Comments are considered duplicates if the entire body text matches exactly:

yaml

# These are DIFFERENT (both will be posted):
"✅ Task updated"
"✅ Task Updated"  # Different capitalization

# These are DIFFERENT:
"✅ Task updated"
"✅ Task updated "  # Extra space at end

# These are THE SAME (only posted once):
"✅ Task updated"
"✅ Task updated"  # Exact match

Exact Match Only

Even minor differences (whitespace, capitalization, punctuation) will result in a new comment being posted.

Dynamic Content and Deduplication

If your comment includes dynamic values, each unique value combination creates a new comment:

yaml

post_pr_comment: |
  ✅ Task updated by {{pr.author}}

This will post:

"✅ Task updated by alice" (first run)
"✅ Task updated by bob" (different author, new comment)
"✅ Task updated by alice" (already exists, skipped)

Best Practices

Use static messages for notifications:

yaml

# ✅ Good - posts once per PR
post_pr_comment: |
  ✅ Asana task updated to "In Review"

Or make dynamic content consistent:

yaml

# ✅ Good - predictable deduplication
post_pr_comment: |
  PR #{{pr.number}} is ready for review

Avoid variable timestamps or changing data:

yaml

# ❌ Problematic - always posts (timestamp changes)
post_pr_comment: |
  Updated at {{current_time}}

# ❌ Problematic - new comment every time status changes
post_pr_comment: |
  Current status: {{task.status}}

Common Patterns

Status Update Notification

Let team know task was updated:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: opened
      draft: false
    then:
      update_fields:
        '1234567890': '0987654321'
      post_pr_comment: |
        ✅ Asana task updated to "In Review"

Missing Task Prompt

Remind users to add Asana link:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: opened
      has_asana_tasks: false
    then:
      post_pr_comment: |
        ⚠️ No Asana task found!

        Please add the task URL to your PR description.

Completion Confirmation

Confirm work is done:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: closed
      merged: true
    then:
      mark_complete: true
      post_pr_comment: |
        ✅ Merged and deployed! Task marked complete in Asana.

Build Notifications

Share build information:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: labeled
      label: 'build_created'
    then:
      post_pr_comment: |
        📦 Build available!

        Build: {{extract_from_comments "Build #(\\d+)"}}

Summary with Details

Provide comprehensive update:

yaml

rules:
  - when:
      event: pull_request
      action: closed
      merged: true
    then:
      update_fields:
        '1234567890': '0987654321'
      mark_complete: true
      post_pr_comment: |
        ## 🎉 PR Merged!

        ### Changes
        {{pr.title}}

        ### Updated in Asana
        - Status → "Shipped"
        - Task marked complete

        ### Details
        - Merged from: `{{pr.head_ref}}`
        - Into: `{{pr.base_ref}}`
        - By: @{{pr.author}}

Comment Formatting

Markdown Support

GitHub comments support markdown:

yaml

post_pr_comment: |
  ## Heading

  **Bold text**
  *Italic text*

  - Bullet points
  - Work great

  ```code
  Code blocks too

Links


### Emoji

Use emoji for visual clarity:

```yaml
post_pr_comment: |
  ✅ Success
  ⚠️ Warning
  ❌ Error
  🚀 Deployed
  📦 Build
  🤖 Automated

@mentions

Mention GitHub users:

yaml

post_pr_comment: |
  @{{pr.author}} Your PR has been processed!

  cc: @team-lead

Validation Rules

Type: Must be string
Content: Cannot be empty string
Templates: Fully evaluated before posting
Compatibility: Works with all other actions

Common Errors

Empty comment

yaml

# ❌ Wrong - empty string not allowed
then:
  post_pr_comment: ""

# ✅ Correct - provide content
then:
  post_pr_comment: "Task updated"

Wrong type

yaml

# ❌ Wrong - must be string
then:
  post_pr_comment: true

# ✅ Correct - use string
then:
  post_pr_comment: "Comment text"

Template errors

yaml

# ⚠️ Careful - if template fails, comment may be empty
then:
  post_pr_comment: "{{invalid.variable}}"

# ✅ Better - use fallback
then:
  post_pr_comment: "{{or pr.assignee 'No assignee'}}"

When to Use Comments

✅ Good Use Cases

Notify about Asana updates
Request Asana task URL
Confirm task completion
Share extracted metadata
Provide context to team

⚠️ Use Sparingly

Don't spam every PR action
Avoid redundant "task updated" messages
Consider if information is already visible

❌ Avoid

Comments just to prove action ran
Duplicating GitHub's own notifications
Information that's in PR description

post_pr_comment ​

Type ​

Description ​

Syntax ​

Examples ​

Simple Notification ​

Dynamic Content ​

Conditional Messages ​

Missing Task Warning ​

Task Creation Confirmation ​

Build Status Updates ​

QA Instructions ​

Multi-line with Formatting ​

Template Variables ​

Template Helpers ​

Comment Deduplication ​

How It Works ​

Matching Rules ​

Dynamic Content and Deduplication ​

Best Practices ​

Common Patterns ​

Status Update Notification ​

Missing Task Prompt ​

Completion Confirmation ​

Build Notifications ​

Summary with Details ​

Comment Formatting ​

Markdown Support ​

@mentions ​

Validation Rules ​

Common Errors ​

Empty comment ​

Wrong type ​

Template errors ​

When to Use Comments ​

✅ Good Use Cases ​

⚠️ Use Sparingly ​

❌ Avoid ​

See Also ​

post_pr_comment

Type

Description

Syntax

Examples

Simple Notification

Dynamic Content

Conditional Messages

Missing Task Warning

Task Creation Confirmation

Build Status Updates

QA Instructions

Multi-line with Formatting

Template Variables

Template Helpers

Comment Deduplication

How It Works

Matching Rules

Dynamic Content and Deduplication

Best Practices

Common Patterns

Status Update Notification

Missing Task Prompt

Completion Confirmation

Build Notifications

Summary with Details

Comment Formatting

Markdown Support

@mentions

Validation Rules

Common Errors

Empty comment

Wrong type

Template errors

When to Use Comments

✅ Good Use Cases

⚠️ Use Sparingly

❌ Avoid

See Also