pr-agent/docs/docs/tools/improve.md

## Overview

The `improve` tool scans the PR code changes, and automatically generates [meaningful](https://github.com/Codium-ai/pr-agent/blob/main/pr_agent/settings/pr_code_suggestions_prompts.toml#L41) suggestions for improving the PR code.
The tool can be triggered automatically every time a new PR is [opened](../usage-guide/automations_and_usage.md#github-app-automatic-tools-when-a-new-pr-is-opened), or it can be invoked manually by commenting on any PR:

```toml
/improve
```

![code_suggestions_as_comment_closed.png](https://codium.ai/images/pr_agent/code_suggestions_as_comment_closed.png){width=512}

![code_suggestions_as_comment_open.png](https://codium.ai/images/pr_agent/code_suggestions_as_comment_open.png){width=512}

!!! note "The following features are available only for Qodo Merge 💎 users:"
    - The `Apply this suggestion` checkbox, which interactively converts a suggestion into a committable code comment
    - The `More` checkbox to generate additional suggestions

## Example usage

### Manual triggering

Invoke the tool manually by commenting `/improve` on any PR. The code suggestions by default are presented as a single comment:

To edit [configurations](#configuration-options) related to the improve tool, use the following template:

```toml
/improve --pr_code_suggestions.some_config1=... --pr_code_suggestions.some_config2=...
```

For example, you can choose to present all the suggestions as commitable code comments, by running the following command:

```toml
/improve --pr_code_suggestions.commitable_code_suggestions=true
```

![improve](https://codium.ai/images/pr_agent/improve.png){width=512}

As can be seen, a single table comment has a significantly smaller PR footprint. We recommend this mode for most cases.
Also note that collapsible are not supported in _Bitbucket_. Hence, the suggestions can only be presented in Bitbucket as code comments.

### Automatic triggering

To run the `improve` automatically when a PR is opened, define in a [configuration file](https://qodo-merge-docs.qodo.ai/usage-guide/configuration_options/#wiki-configuration-file):

```toml
[github_app]
pr_commands = [
    "/improve",
    ...
]

[pr_code_suggestions]
num_code_suggestions_per_chunk = ...
...
```

- The `pr_commands` lists commands that will be executed automatically when a PR is opened.
- The `[pr_code_suggestions]` section contains the configurations for the `improve` tool you want to edit (if any)

### Assessing Impact

>`💎 feature`

Qodo Merge tracks two types of implementations for tracking implemented suggestions:

- Direct implementation - when the user directly applies the suggestion by clicking the `Apply` checkbox.
- Indirect implementation - when the user implements the suggestion in their IDE environment. In this case, Qodo Merge will utilize, after each commit, a dedicated logic to identify if a suggestion was implemented, and will mark it as implemented.

![code_suggestions_asses_impact](https://codium.ai/images/pr_agent/code_suggestions_asses_impact.png){width=512}

In post-process, Qodo Merge counts the number of suggestions that were implemented, and provides general statistics and insights about the suggestions' impact on the PR process.

![code_suggestions_asses_impact_stats_1](https://codium.ai/images/pr_agent/code_suggestions_asses_impact_stats_1.png){width=512}

![code_suggestions_asses_impact_stats_2](https://codium.ai/images/pr_agent/code_suggestions_asses_impact_stats_2.png){width=512}

## Suggestion tracking

>`💎 feature. Platforms supported: GitHub, GitLab`

Qodo Merge employs a novel detection system to automatically [identify](https://qodo-merge-docs.qodo.ai/core-abilities/impact_evaluation/) AI code suggestions that PR authors have accepted and implemented.

Accepted suggestions are also automatically documented in a dedicated wiki page called `.pr_agent_accepted_suggestions`, allowing users to track historical changes, assess the tool's effectiveness, and learn from previously implemented recommendations in the repository.
An example [result](https://github.com/Codium-ai/pr-agent/wiki/.pr_agent_accepted_suggestions):

[![pr_agent_accepted_suggestions1.png](https://qodo.ai/images/pr_agent/pr_agent_accepted_suggestions1.png){width=768}](https://github.com/Codium-ai/pr-agent/wiki/.pr_agent_accepted_suggestions)

This dedicated wiki page will also serve as a foundation for future AI model improvements, allowing it to learn from historically implemented suggestions and generate more targeted, contextually relevant recommendations.

This feature is controlled by a boolean configuration parameter: `pr_code_suggestions.wiki_page_accepted_suggestions` (default is true).

!!! note "Wiki must be enabled"
    While the aggregation process is automatic, GitHub repositories require a one-time manual wiki setup.

    To initialize the wiki: navigate to `Wiki`, select `Create the first page`, then click `Save page`.

    ![pr_agent_accepted_suggestions_create_first_page.png](https://qodo.ai/images/pr_agent/pr_agent_accepted_suggestions_create_first_page.png){width=768}

    Once a wiki repo is created, the tool will automatically use this wiki for tracking suggestions.

!!! note "Why a wiki page?"
    Your code belongs to you, and we respect your privacy. Hence, we won't store any code suggestions in an external database.

    Instead, we leverage a dedicated private page, within your repository wiki, to track suggestions. This approach offers convenient secure suggestion tracking while avoiding pull requests or any noise to the main repository.

## `Extra instructions` and `best practices`

The `improve` tool can be further customized by providing additional instructions and best practices to the AI model.

### Extra instructions

You can use the `extra_instructions` configuration option to give the AI model additional instructions for the `improve` tool.
Be specific, clear, and concise in the instructions. With extra instructions, you are the prompter.

Examples for possible instructions:

```toml
[pr_code_suggestions]
extra_instructions="""\
(1) Answer in japanese
(2) Don't suggest to add try-except block
(3) Ignore changes in toml files
...
"""
```

Use triple quotes to write multi-line instructions. Use bullet points or numbers to make the instructions more readable.

### Best practices

> `💎 feature. Platforms supported: GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket`

Another option to give additional guidance to the AI model is by creating a `best_practices.md` file in your repository's root directory.
This page can contain a list of best practices, coding standards, and guidelines that are specific to your repo/organization.

The AI model will use this `best_practices.md` file as a reference, and in case the PR code violates any of the guidelines, it will create additional suggestions, with a dedicated label: `Organization
best practice`.

Example for a python `best_practices.md` content:

```markdown
## Project best practices
- Make sure that I/O operations are encapsulated in a try-except block
- Use the `logging` module for logging instead of `print` statements
- Use `is` and `is not` to compare with `None`
- Use `if __name__ == '__main__':` to run the code only when the script is executed
- Use `with` statement to open files
...
```

Tips for writing an effective `best_practices.md` file:

- Write clearly and concisely
- Include brief code examples when helpful
- Focus on project-specific guidelines, that will result in relevant suggestions you actually want to get
- Keep the file relatively short, under 800 lines, since:
  - AI models may not process effectively very long documents
  - Long files tend to contain generic guidelines already known to AI

#### Local and global best practices

By default, Qodo Merge will look for a local `best_practices.md` in the root of the relevant local repo.

If you want to enable also a global `best_practices.md` file, set first in the global configuration file:

```toml
[best_practices]
enable_global_best_practices = true
```

Then, create a `best_practices.md` file in the root of [global](https://qodo-merge-docs.qodo.ai/usage-guide/configuration_options/#global-configuration-file) configuration repository,  `pr-agent-settings`.

#### Best practices for multiple languages

For a git organization working with multiple programming languages, you can maintain a centralized global `best_practices.md` file containing language-specific guidelines.
When reviewing pull requests, Qodo Merge automatically identifies the programming language and applies the relevant best practices from this file.

To do this, structure your `best_practices.md` file using the following format:

```
# [Python]
...
# [Java]
...
# [JavaScript]
...
```

#### Dedicated label for best practices suggestions

Best practice suggestions are labeled as `Organization best practice` by default.
To customize this label, modify it in your configuration file:

```toml
[best_practices]
organization_name = "..."
```

And the label will be: `{organization_name} best practice`.

#### Example results

![best_practice](https://codium.ai/images/pr_agent/org_best_practice.png){width=512}

### Auto best practices

>`💎 feature. Platforms supported: GitHub.`

`Auto best practices` is a novel Qodo Merge capability that:

1. Identifies recurring patterns from accepted suggestions
2. **Automatically** generates [best practices page](https://github.com/qodo-ai/pr-agent/wiki/.pr_agent_auto_best_practices) based on what your team consistently values
3. Applies these learned patterns to future code reviews

This creates an automatic feedback loop where the system continuously learns from your team's choices to provide increasingly relevant suggestions.
The system maintains two analysis phases:

- Open exploration for new issues
- Targeted checking against established best practices

Note that when a [custom best practices](https://qodo-merge-docs.qodo.ai/tools/improve/#best-practices) exist, Qodo Merge will still generate an 'auto best practices' wiki file, though it won't use it in the `improve` tool.
Learn more about utilizing 'auto best practices' in our [detailed guide](https://qodo-merge-docs.qodo.ai/core-abilities/auto_best_practices/).

#### Relevant configurations

```toml
[auto_best_practices]
# Disable all auto best practices usage or generation
enable_auto_best_practices = true  

# Disable usage of auto best practices file in the 'improve' tool
utilize_auto_best_practices = true 

# Extra instructions to the auto best practices generation prompt
extra_instructions = ""            

# Max number of patterns to be detected
max_patterns = 5                   
```

### Combining 'extra instructions' and 'best practices'

> `💎 feature`

The `extra instructions` configuration is more related to the `improve` tool prompt. It can be used, for example, to avoid specific suggestions ("Don't suggest to add try-except block", "Ignore changes in toml files", ...) or to emphasize specific aspects or formats ("Answer in Japanese", "Give only short suggestions", ...)

In contrast, the `best_practices.md` file is a general guideline for the way code should be written in the repo.

Using a combination of both can help the AI model to provide relevant and tailored suggestions.

## Usage Tips

### Implementing the proposed code suggestions

Each generated suggestion consists of three key elements:

1. A single-line summary of the proposed change
2. An expandable section containing a comprehensive description of the suggestion
3. A diff snippet showing the recommended code modification (before and after)

We advise users to apply critical analysis and judgment when implementing the proposed suggestions.
In addition to mistakes (which may happen, but are rare), sometimes the presented code modification may serve more as an _illustrative example_ than a direct applicable solution.
In such cases, we recommend prioritizing the suggestion's detailed description, using the diff snippet primarily as a supporting reference.

### Dual publishing mode

Our recommended approach for presenting code suggestions is through a [table](https://qodo-merge-docs.qodo.ai/tools/improve/#overview) (`--pr_code_suggestions.commitable_code_suggestions=false`).
This method significantly reduces the PR footprint and allows for quick and easy digestion of multiple suggestions.

We also offer a complementary **dual publishing mode**. When enabled, suggestions exceeding a certain score threshold are not only displayed in the table, but also presented as commitable PR comments.
This mode helps highlight suggestions deemed more critical.

To activate dual publishing mode, use the following setting:

```toml
[pr_code_suggestions]
dual_publishing_score_threshold = x
```

Where x represents the minimum score threshold (>=) for suggestions to be presented as commitable PR comments in addition to the table. Default is -1 (disabled).

### Self-review

> `💎 feature` Platforms supported: GitHub, GitLab

If you set in a configuration file:

```toml
[pr_code_suggestions]
demand_code_suggestions_self_review = true
```

The `improve` tool will add a checkbox below the suggestions, prompting user to acknowledge that they have reviewed the suggestions.
You can set the content of the checkbox text via:

```toml
[pr_code_suggestions]
code_suggestions_self_review_text = "... (your text here) ..."
```

![self_review_1](https://codium.ai/images/pr_agent/self_review_1.png){width=512}

!!! tip "Tip - Reducing visual footprint after self-review 💎"

    The configuration parameter `pr_code_suggestions.fold_suggestions_on_self_review` (default is True)
    can be used to automatically fold the suggestions after the user clicks the self-review checkbox.

    This reduces the visual footprint of the suggestions, and also indicates to the PR reviewer that the suggestions have been reviewed by the PR author, and don't require further attention.

!!! tip "Tip - Demanding self-review from the PR author 💎"

    By setting:
    ```toml
    [pr_code_suggestions]
    approve_pr_on_self_review = true
    ```
    the tool can automatically add an approval when the PR author clicks the self-review checkbox.


    - If you set the number of required reviewers for a PR to 2, this effectively means that the PR author must click the self-review checkbox before the PR can be merged (in addition to a human reviewer).

    ![self_review_2](https://codium.ai/images/pr_agent/self_review_2.png){width=512}

    - If you keep the number of required reviewers for a PR to 1 and enable this configuration, this effectively means that the PR author can approve the PR by actively clicking the self-review checkbox.

        To prevent unauthorized approvals, this configuration defaults to false, and cannot be altered through online comments; enabling requires a direct update to the configuration file and a commit to the repository. This ensures that utilizing the feature demands a deliberate documented decision by the repository owner.

### Auto-approval

> `💎 feature. Platforms supported: GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket`

Under specific conditions, Qodo Merge can auto-approve a PR when a specific comment is invoked, or when the PR meets certain criteria.

**To ensure safety, the auto-approval feature is disabled by default.**
To enable auto-approval features, you need to actively set one or both of the following options in a pre-defined _configuration file_:

```toml
[config]
enable_comment_approval = true # For approval via comments
enable_auto_approval = true   # For criteria-based auto-approval
```

!!! note "Notes"
    - Note that this specific flag cannot be set with a command line argument, only in the configuration file, committed to the repository.
    - Enabling auto-approval must be a deliberate decision by the repository owner.

1\. **Auto-approval by commenting**

To enable auto-approval by commenting, set in the configuration file:

```toml
[config]
enable_comment_approval = true
```

After enabling, by commenting on a PR:

```
/review auto_approve
```

Qodo Merge will automatically approve the PR, and add a comment with the approval.

2\. **Auto-approval when the PR meets certain criteria**

To enable auto-approval based on specific criteria, first, you need to enable the top-level flag:

```toml
[config]
enable_auto_approval = true
```

There are two criteria that can be set for auto-approval:

- **Review effort score**

```toml
[config]
enable_auto_approval = true
auto_approve_for_low_review_effort = X # X is a number between 1 to 5
```

When the [review effort score](https://www.qodo.ai/images/pr_agent/review3.png) is lower or equal to X, the PR will be auto-approved.

___

- **No code suggestions**

```toml
[config]
enable_auto_approval = true
auto_approve_for_no_suggestions = true
```

When no [code suggestion](https://www.qodo.ai/images/pr_agent/code_suggestions_as_comment_closed.png) were found for the PR, the PR will be auto-approved.

### How many code suggestions are generated?

Qodo Merge uses a dynamic strategy to generate code suggestions based on the size of the pull request (PR). Here's how it works:

#### 1. Chunking large PRs

- Qodo Merge divides large PRs into 'chunks'.
- Each chunk contains up to `pr_code_suggestions.max_context_tokens` tokens (default: 14,000).

#### 2. Generating suggestions

- For each chunk, Qodo Merge generates up to `pr_code_suggestions.num_code_suggestions_per_chunk` suggestions (default: 3).

This approach has two main benefits:

- Scalability: The number of suggestions scales with the PR size, rather than being fixed.
- Quality: By processing smaller chunks, the AI can maintain higher quality suggestions, as larger contexts tend to decrease AI performance.

Note: Chunking is primarily relevant for large PRs. For most PRs (up to 500 lines of code), Qodo Merge will be able to process the entire code in a single call.

## Configuration options

??? example "General options"

    <table>
      <tr>
        <td><b>extra_instructions</b></td>
        <td>Optional extra instructions to the tool. For example: "focus on the changes in the file X. Ignore change in ...".</td>
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>commitable_code_suggestions</b></td>
        <td>If set to true, the tool will display the suggestions as commitable code comments. Default is false.</td>
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>dual_publishing_score_threshold</b></td>
        <td>Minimum score threshold for suggestions to be presented as commitable PR comments in addition to the table. Default is -1 (disabled).</td>
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>focus_only_on_problems</b></td>
        <td>If set to true, suggestions will focus primarily on identifying and fixing code problems, and less on style considerations like best practices, maintainability, or readability. Default is true.</td> 
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>persistent_comment</b></td>
        <td>If set to true, the improve comment will be persistent, meaning that every new improve request will edit the previous one. Default is true.</td>
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>suggestions_score_threshold</b></td>
        <td> Any suggestion with importance score less than this threshold will be removed. Default is 0. Highly recommend not to set this value above 7-8, since above it may clip relevant suggestions that can be useful. </td>
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>apply_suggestions_checkbox</b></td>
        <td> Enable the checkbox to create a committable suggestion. Default is true.</td>
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>enable_more_suggestions_checkbox</b></td>
        <td> Enable the checkbox to generate more suggestions. Default is true.</td>
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>enable_help_text</b></td>
        <td>If set to true, the tool will display a help text in the comment. Default is true.</td>
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>enable_chat_text</b></td>
        <td>If set to true, the tool will display a reference to the PR chat in the comment. Default is true.</td>
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>publish_output_no_suggestions</b></td>
        <td>If set to true, the tool will publish a comment even if no suggestions were found. Default is true.</td>
      <tr>
        <td><b>wiki_page_accepted_suggestions</b></td>
        <td>If set to true, the tool will automatically track accepted suggestions in a dedicated wiki page called `.pr_agent_accepted_suggestions`. Default is true.</td>
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>allow_thumbs_up_down</b></td>
        <td>If set to true, all code suggestions will have thumbs up and thumbs down buttons, to encourage users to provide feedback on the suggestions. Default is false. Note that this feature is for statistics tracking. It will not affect future feedback from the AI model.</td>
      </tr>
    </table>

??? example "Params for number of suggestions and AI calls"

    <table>
      <tr>
        <td><b>auto_extended_mode</b></td>
        <td>Enable chunking the PR code and running the tool on each chunk. Default is true.</td>
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>num_code_suggestions_per_chunk</b></td>
        <td>Number of code suggestions provided by the 'improve' tool, per chunk. Default is 3.</td>
      </tr>
      <tr>
        <td><b>max_number_of_calls</b></td>
        <td>Maximum number of chunks. Default is 3.</td>
      </tr>
    </table>

## Understanding AI Code Suggestions

- **AI Limitations:** AI models for code are getting better and better, but they are not flawless. Not all the suggestions will be perfect, and a user should not accept all of them automatically. Critical reading and judgment are required. Mistakes of the AI are rare but can happen, and it is usually quite easy for a human to spot them.
- **Purpose of Suggestions:**
  - **Self-reflection:** The suggestions aim to enable developers to _self-reflect_ and improve their pull requests. This process can help to identify blind spots, uncover missed edge cases, and enhance code readability and coherency. Even when a specific code suggestion isn't suitable, the underlying issue it highlights often reveals something important that might deserve attention.
  - **Bug detection:** The suggestions also alert on any _critical bugs_ that may have been identified during the analysis. This provides an additional safety net to catch potential issues before they make it into production. It's perfectly acceptable to implement only the suggestions you find valuable for your specific context.
- **Hierarchy:** Presenting the suggestions in a structured hierarchical table enables the user to _quickly_ understand them, and to decide which ones are relevant and which are not.
- **Customization:** To guide the model to suggestions that are more relevant to the specific needs of your project, we recommend to use the [`extra_instructions`](https://qodo-merge-docs.qodo.ai/tools/improve/#extra-instructions-and-best-practices) and [`best practices`](https://qodo-merge-docs.qodo.ai/tools/improve/#best-practices) fields.
- **Interactive usage:** The interactive [PR chat](https://qodo-merge-docs.qodo.ai/chrome-extension/) also provides an easy way to get more tailored suggestions and feedback from the AI model.