Update developer-docs-consolidator to write to scratchpad/dev.md

[Copilot]

Relocates the developer-docs-consolidator workflow output from .github/agents/developer.instructions.agent.md to scratchpad/dev.md, aligning input and output locations.

Changes

• Target path: Updated from .github/agents/developer.instructions.agent.md to scratchpad/dev.md across workflow phases (context, consolidation, validation, reporting)
• Frontmatter: Removed agent-specific frontmatter requirements (description, applyTo fields) - output is now plain markdown
• Structure: Simplified consolidated file template to standard markdown without YAML frontmatter

Rationale

The consolidated output is a development reference document, not an agent instruction file. Keeping both source specs and consolidated output in scratchpad/ simplifies the mental model and file organization.

Warning

Firewall rules blocked me from connecting to one or more addresses (expand for details)

I tried to connect to the following addresses, but was blocked by firewall rules:

• https://api.github.com/repos/github/gh-aw/actions/artifacts/5475309222/zip
  • Triggering command: /usr/bin/curl curl -L -H Accept: application/vnd.github+json -H Authorization: ****** /tmp/artifact/agent-artifacts.zip REDACTED (http block)

If you need me to access, download, or install something from one of these locations, you can either:

• Configure Actions setup steps to set up my environment, which run before the firewall is enabled
• Add the appropriate URLs or hosts to the custom allowlist in this repository's Copilot coding agent settings (admins only)

Original prompt

---

This section details on the original issue you should resolve

<issue_title>[q] Update developer-docs-consolidator to write to scratchpad/dev.md</issue_title>
<issue_description># Q Workflow Optimization Report

Issue Analysis

Based on issue #14938 comment by @pelikhan requesting "/q update prompt to write file at scratchpad/dev.md", this PR updates the developer-docs-consolidator workflow to write its output to scratchpad/dev.md instead of .github/agents/developer.instructions.agent.md.

Changes Made

developer-docs-consolidator.md (.github/workflows/)

Updated all references to the target output file:

1. Target File Path (Line 71):

   • Before: .github/agents/developer.instructions.agent.md
   • After: scratchpad/dev.md

2. Consolidated File Structure (Line 264):

   • Removed agent-specific frontmatter requirements (description and applyTo fields)
   • Simplified structure to just markdown content

3. All Prompt References:

   • Updated instructions in Phase 4 (consolidation)
   • Updated PR template in Phase 5
   • Updated success criteria and validation steps

Rationale

This change improves workflow consistency:

• Input and output in same location: Both source files and consolidated output stay in scratchpad/
• Simpler structure: Removes agent-specific frontmatter requirements that aren't needed for a scratchpad documentation file
• Clearer intent: The file is a development reference, not a formal agent instruction file

Expected Improvements

• ✅ More intuitive file organization (scratchpad → scratchpad)
• ✅ Simplified output format (no frontmatter boilerplate)
• ✅ Easier to locate consolidated documentation
• ✅ Consistent with user request from issue Developer Documentation Consolidation - 2026-02-11 #14938

Validation

Workflow compiled successfully:

• ✅ developer-docs-consolidator.md compiled without errors
• ✅ No warnings generated
• ✅ Lock file generated successfully at .github/workflows/developer-docs-consolidator.lock.yml

References

• Triggered by: Issue Developer Documentation Consolidation - 2026-02-11 #14938, comment by @pelikhan

• Command: /q update prompt to write file at scratchpad/dev.md

• Workflow analyzed: developer-docs-consolidator.md

• Fixes Developer Documentation Consolidation - 2026-02-11 #14938

AI generated by Q

• expires on Feb 14, 2026, 12:47 AM UTC

---

[!NOTE]
This was originally intended as a pull request, but the git push operation failed.

Workflow Run: View run details and download patch artifact

The patch file is available in the agent-artifacts artifact in the workflow run linked above.

To apply the patch locally:

# Download the artifact from the workflow run https://github.com/github/gh-aw/actions/runs/21928915669
# (Use GitHub MCP tools if gh CLI is not available)
gh run download 21928915669 -n agent-artifacts

# The patch file will be at agent-artifacts/tmp/gh-aw/aw.patch after download
# Apply the patch
git am agent-artifacts/tmp/gh-aw/aw.patch

Show patch preview (118 of 118 lines)

From 8e37148e83f76560497595a0dea4eede2454b876 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: "github-actions[bot]"
 <41898282+github-actions[bot]@users.noreply.github.com>
Date: Thu, 12 Feb 2026 00:44:50 +0000
Subject: [PATCH] Update developer-docs-consolidator to write to
 scratchpad/dev.md

Changes:
- Update target file path from .github/agents/developer.instructions.agent.md to scratchpad/dev.md
- Remove frontmatter requirements from consolidated file structure
- Simplify output path to keep within scratchpad directory
- Update all references in prompts and PR template

This change makes the output location more consistent with the input
sources (all in scratchpad/) and removes unnecessary agent-specific
frontmatter requirements.
---
 .../workflows/developer-docs-consolidator.md  | 23 +++++++------------
 1 file changed, 8 insertions(+), 15 deletions(-)

diff --git a/.github/workflows/developer-docs-consolidator.md b/.github/workflows/developer-docs-consolidator.md
index cd62aae..6b22738 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/developer-docs-consolidator.md
+++ b/.github/workflows/developer-docs-consolidator.md
@@ -68,7 +68,7 @@ Analyze markdown files in the specs directory, standardize their tone and format
 
 - **Repository**: ${{ github.repository }}
 - **Specs Directory**: `scratchpad/`
-- **Target File**: `.github/agents/developer.instructions.agent.md`
+- **Target File**: `scratchpad/dev.md`
 - **Cache Memory**: `/tmp/gh-aw/cache-memory/`
 
 ## Phase 0: Setup and Configuration
@@ -261,14 +261,9 @@ Place diagrams near the concepts they illustrate, with clear captions.
 
 ### 1. Design Consolidated Structure
 
-Create a logical structure for `developer.instructions.md`:
+Create a logical structure for `dev.md`:
 
 ``...

</details>



<!-- START COPILOT CODING AGENT SUFFIX -->

- Fixes github/gh-aw#15051

<!-- START COPILOT CODING AGENT TIPS -->
---

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[Copilot]

Pull request overview

Updates the developer-docs-consolidator agentic workflow spec so its consolidated output is written to scratchpad/dev.md (plain markdown) rather than an agent instructions file under .github/agents/.

Changes:

• Retarget consolidated output path to scratchpad/dev.md throughout the workflow spec.
• Remove agent-specific YAML frontmatter from the consolidated file template and validation checklist.
• Update report/PR-template text to reference the new output location.

Comments suppressed due to low confidence (2)

.github/workflows/developer-docs-consolidator.md:72

• The workflow prompt still says it produces a consolidated developer.instructions.md file (see earlier in this file), but the target has been changed to scratchpad/dev.md. This inconsistency can cause the agent to write to the wrong file—update the introductory description to reference scratchpad/dev.md (or dev.md) consistently.

- **Repository**: ${{ github.repository }}
- **Specs Directory**: `scratchpad/`
- **Target File**: `scratchpad/dev.md`
- **Cache Memory**: `/tmp/gh-aw/cache-memory/`

.github/workflows/developer-docs-consolidator.md:323

• Phase 5 removed the frontmatter validation bullet, but the report template later in this workflow still includes “✅ Frontmatter present and valid”. Update the report’s “Validation Results” checklist to match the new no-frontmatter output format so the generated report isn’t self-contradictory.

Check the generated file:
- ✅ Markdown is valid
- ✅ Code blocks have language tags
- ✅ Mermaid diagrams render correctly
- ✅ No broken links
- ✅ Consistent tone throughout

---

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[Copilot]

The report summary still says “Analyzed [N] markdown files in the specs directory…”, but this workflow’s input directory is scratchpad/. Consider changing “specs directory” to scratchpad/ here to keep terminology consistent with earlier sections and avoid confusion in generated reports.

This issue also appears in the following locations of the same file:

• line 69
• line 318

Suggested change

	Analyzed [N] markdown files in the specs directory, made [X] tone adjustments, added [Y] Mermaid diagrams, and consolidated content into `scratchpad/dev.md`.
	Analyzed [N] markdown files in the `scratchpad/` directory, made [X] tone adjustments, added [Y] Mermaid diagrams, and consolidated content into `scratchpad/dev.md`.

[Copilot]

This change updates the source workflow spec, but the compiled .github/workflows/developer-docs-consolidator.lock.yml must also be regenerated and committed; otherwise the actual GitHub Actions workflow won’t reflect the new output path. Run gh aw compile developer-docs-consolidator (or gh aw compile) after updating the .md, per .github/aw/github-agentic-workflows.md.

Suggested change

	- **Target File**: `scratchpad/dev.md`
	- **Target File**: `scratchpad/developer.instructions.md`