Agent Persona Exploration - 2026-02-19

[github-actions[bot]]

This report documents systematic testing of the agentic-workflows custom agent across 7 representative automation scenarios from 5 software engineering personas. Testing was conducted on 2026-02-19 against workflow run §22164678230.

Persona Overview

• Agent: agentic-workflows (create intent)
• Scenarios Tested: 7 (across 5 personas)
• Average Quality Score: 4.6/5.0
• Personas: Backend Engineer, Frontend Developer, DevOps Engineer, QA Tester, Product Manager

Key Findings

• 🟢 Excellent trigger selection: All 7 scenarios used the correct trigger type; workflow_run was correctly applied for deployment monitoring (DO1)
• 🟢 Consistent safe-outputs usage: Every scenario included safe-outputs, keeping writes auditable and scoped
• 🟡 Network config inconsistency: 2/7 scenarios unnecessarily listed api.github.com in network.allowed — redundant when GitHub MCP is configured
• 🟡 Safe-output naming drift: One scenario used add_pr_comment instead of the standard add_comment safe-output name
• 🔴 Playwright visual content gap: The FE1 visual regression scenario suggested embedding base64 screenshots in PR comments — impractical due to GitHub's comment size limits

Top Patterns

1. Most common trigger: pull_request with path filters (4/7 scenarios) — correctly reduces noise
2. Universal tool: GitHub MCP recommended in all 7 scenarios; editor and bash used contextually
3. Security practices observed: Minimal permissions consistently applied; path filters always used for PR triggers; workflow_dispatch added alongside schedule to enable manual testing (DO2)

View High Quality Responses (Score ≥ 4.8)

BE1 — Schema Migration Safety (5.0/5)
Trigger: pull_request with path filters on migrations/**, *.sql. Engine: claude. Tools: github MCP + editor. Network: fully air-gapped. Correctly used add_pr_review_comment (not add_comment) for inline PR feedback. Structured prompt covers missing rollback scripts, data loss risks, and locking concerns.

DO1 — Deployment Incident Reporter (5.0/5)
Trigger: workflow_run (on deploy workflow failure) — the correct trigger for monitoring another workflow. Correctly included actions: read permission to fetch run logs. Safe-output scoped to create_issue. Claude engine for structured analysis.

DO2 — Infrastructure Cost Report (5.0/5)
Trigger: schedule + workflow_dispatch for safe manual testing. Network restricted to specific dashboard domain only. web-fetch correctly used for external cost dashboard. Conditional issue title logic (normal report vs anomaly alert).

PM1 — Weekly Feature Digest (4.8/5)
Specific MCP toolsets named (issues, pull_requests) rather than just default — shows good tool scoping. Copilot engine appropriate for summarization tasks.

View Areas for Improvement

Network Config Redundancy (BE2, QA1 — Score ≤ 4.4)
Both scenarios listed api.github.com in network.allowed. This is unnecessary because GitHub MCP handles all API communication internally. Including it may mislead users into thinking direct API egress is required.

Playwright Visual Content (FE1 — Score 4.2/5)
The agent correctly recommended Playwright for screenshot capture but suggested embedding base64 images directly in PR comments. This will fail or produce truncated results above ~65KB. Better approach: store screenshots as artifacts, or use a image hosting URL. The agent needs guidance on GitHub's comment size constraints.

Safe-Output Name Drift (QA1)
Used add_pr_comment instead of the canonical add_comment. While both may be understood contextually, non-standard names can cause runtime failures. The agent should consistently use names from the official safe-outputs registry.

Missing Engine Suggestions (FE1, DO2)
2/7 scenarios did not specify an engine. This creates ambiguity — users won't know which engine to pick and may default to something suboptimal.

Recommendations

1. Document GitHub MCP network behavior: Add a clear note to agent instructions that api.github.com does NOT need to be listed in network.allowed when using the GitHub MCP — the MCP handles all GitHub API calls internally without direct egress.

2. Add safe-outputs reference table: Include a quick-reference table of canonical safe-output names (add_comment, add_pr_review_comment, create_issue, create_pr) in the agent's create prompt to prevent naming drift.

3. Add Playwright artifact guidance: When recommending Playwright for visual content, include a note about GitHub's PR comment size limits and the preferred approach of using GitHub Actions artifacts or external image hosting for screenshots.

References:

• §22164678230

AI generated by Agent Persona Explorer

[github-actions[bot]]

🤖 Beep boop! The smoke test agent was here! Just passing through to make sure everything is working smoothly. Carry on! 🚀

📰 BREAKING: Report filed by Smoke Copilot for issue #16687

[github-actions[bot]]

💥 WHOOSH! 🦸 THE SMOKE TEST AGENT HAS ARRIVED!

⚡ KA-POW! Claude was here, running diagnostics at LIGHTNING SPEED!

🎯 MISSION REPORT: All systems checked — 10 core tests, 7 PR review tests. The agentic workflows infrastructure stands STRONG, guardian of GitHub Actions everywhere!

💫 ZZZAP! The smoke test agent swoops in, validates the universe, and zooms away into the digital sunset...

🦸 "With great agentic power comes great agentic responsibility!"

Run §22164908321 — COMPLETE! 🏆

💥 [THE END] — Illustrated by Smoke Claude for issue #16687