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:
To generate more suggestions (distinct from the ones already generated), for git-providers that don't support interactive checkbox option, you can manually run:
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):
Teams with specific preferences can enable committable code comments mode in their local configuration, or use [dual publishing mode](#dual-publishing-mode).
- 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.
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.
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):
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.
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.
Qodo Merge supports both simple and hierarchical best practices configurations to provide guidance to the AI model for generating relevant code suggestions.
???- tip "Writing effective best practices files"
The following guidelines apply to all best practices files:
- Write clearly and concisely
- Include brief code examples when helpful with before/after patterns
- Focus on project-specific guidelines that will result in relevant suggestions you actually want to get
- Keep each 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
- Use pattern-based structure rather than simple bullet points for better clarity
???- tip "Example of a best practices file"
Pattern 1: Add proper error handling with try-except blocks around external function calls.
Example code before:
```python
# Some code that might raise an exception
return process_pr_data(data)
```
Example code after:
```python
try:
# Some code that might raise an exception
return process_pr_data(data)
except Exception as e:
logger.exception("Failed to process request", extra={"error": e})
```
Pattern 2: Add defensive null/empty checks before accessing object properties or performing operations on potentially null variables to prevent runtime errors.
Example code before:
```python
def get_pr_code(pr_data):
if "changed_code" in pr_data:
return pr_data.get("changed_code", "")
return ""
```
Example code after:
```python
def get_pr_code(pr_data):
if pr_data is None:
return ""
if "changed_code" in pr_data:
return pr_data.get("changed_code", "")
return ""
```
#### Local best practices
For basic usage, create a `best_practices.md` file in your repository's root directory containing a list of best practices, coding standards, and guidelines specific to your repository.
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`.
#### Global hierarchical best practices
For organizations managing multiple repositories with different requirements, Qodo Merge supports a hierarchical best practices system using a dedicated global configuration repository.
**Supported scenarios:**
1.**Standalone repositories**: Individual repositories can have their own specific best practices tailored to their unique requirements
2.**Groups of repositories**: Repositories can be mapped to shared group-level best practices for consistent standards across similar projects
3.**Monorepos with subprojects**: Large monorepos can have both repository-level and subproject-level best practices, with automatic path-based matching
> **Note:** In this structure, `pr-agent-settings`, `codebase_standards`, `global`, `groups`, `metadata.yaml`, and `best_practices.md` are hardcoded names that must be used exactly as shown. All other names (such as `frontend_repos`, `backend_repos`, `repo_a`, `monorepo-name`, `service-a`, etc.) are examples and should be replaced with your actual repository and service names.
- Each folder (including the global folder) can contain a single `best_practices.md` file
- Organize repository best practices by creating subfolders within the `groups` folder. Group them by purpose, programming languages, or other categories
[//]: # (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.)
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
- 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
The `improve` tool will combine best practices from all available sources - global configuration, local configuration, and auto-generated files - to provide you with comprehensive recommendations.
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.
In addition to mistakes (which may happen, but are rare), sometimes the presented code modification may serve more as an _illustrative example_ than a directly applicable solution.
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`).
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 committable PR comments.
Where x represents the minimum score threshold (>=) for suggestions to be presented as committable PR comments in addition to the table. Default is -1 (disabled).
You can control the depth and comprehensiveness of the code suggestions by using the `pr_code_suggestions.suggestions_depth` parameter.
Available options:
-`selective` - Shows only suggestions above a score threshold of 6
-`regular` - Default mode with balanced suggestion coverage
-`exhaustive` - Provides maximum suggestion comprehensiveness
(Alternatively, use numeric values: 1, 2, or 3 respectively)
We recommend starting with `regular` mode, then exploring `exhaustive` mode, which can provide more comprehensive suggestions and enhanced bug detection.
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 💎"
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).
- 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.
Note: Chunking is primarily relevant for large PRs. For most PRs (up to 600 lines of code), Qodo Merge will be able to process the entire code in a single call.
<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>
<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>
<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>
<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>
- **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.
- **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 using 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.
- **Model Selection:** SaaS users can also [choose](https://qodo-merge-docs.qodo.ai/usage-guide/qodo_merge_models/) between different models. For specific programming languages or use cases, some models may perform better than others.
- **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.