Working with GitHub Issues in Aider

This tutorial shows how to use Aider's /run command to work with GitHub issues using the GitHub CLI.

Prerequisites

• GitHub CLI (gh) installed and authenticated
• Aider installed
• A GitHub repository with issues

Setting Up

First, start Aider in your repository:

bash
aider

Working with GitHub Issues

Listing Issues

To see the open issues in your repository:

/run gh issue list

Viewing an Issue

To view details of a specific issue:

/run gh issue view 123  # Replace 123 with the issue number

Creating a Branch for an Issue

To create and switch to a branch for working on an issue:

/run gh issue develop 123 -b fix-issue-123

This creates a new branch (named fix-issue-123) and checks it out.

Implementing the Solution

Now you can use Aider to implement the solution by explaining what needs to be done:

I need to implement a solution for issue #123 which requires [describe the requirement].

Testing Your Changes

Run tests to verify your changes:

/run npm test  # Or any appropriate test command for your project

Committing Changes

You can ask Aider to commit the changes:

Please commit these changes with an appropriate commit message.

Or manually commit using GitHub CLI:

/run git add .
/run git commit -m "Fix issue #123: [brief description]"

Creating a Pull Request

Create a pull request to merge your changes:

/run gh pr create --title "Fix issue #123" --body "This PR addresses issue #123 by implementing [description]"

Linking PR to Issue

Close the issue when the PR is merged:

/run gh issue close 123 --reason completed

Additional Useful Commands

Managing Pull Requests

List pull requests:

/run gh pr list

Check PR status:

/run gh pr status

Issue Comments

Add a comment to an issue:

/run gh issue comment 123 --body "I've implemented a fix in PR #456"

Example Workflow

Here's a practical example of a complete workflow:

# Start Aider in your repository
aider
List open issues
/run gh issue list
View details of issue #123
/run gh issue view 123
Create a branch for the issue
/run gh issue develop 123 -b fix-issue-123
Implement the solution with Aider
I need to fix the validation in user_controller.js for issue #123
Test the changes
/run npm test
Create a PR
/run gh pr create --title "Fix validation in user_controller.js" --body "Fixes #123 by adding proper input validation"
Check PR status
/run gh pr status

Tips for an Efficient Workflow

• Use /run to execute any shell command within Aider
• Take advantage of GitHub CLI's tab completion in your terminal before copying commands to Aider
• Use the --file option when starting Aider to focus on specific files:

aider --file user_controller.js

• Remember that Aider will auto-commit changes if you've enabled auto-commits
• Use /help in Aider to see available commands

This workflow combines the power of Aider's AI capabilities with GitHub CLI's repository management features, allowing you to manage issues and implement solutions without leaving your terminal.