Knowledge

Gitar remembers context across code reviews. A correction explained in one PR can guide a later review, so the same repository convention does not need explaining in every thread.

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Where team knowledge comes from

Knowledge combines team-authored guidance with facts learned from repository work. Each entry retains its source, keeping an explicit instruction distinct from an observation. Knowledge captures guidance from rule files. Rules still define the workflows and actions that Gitar runs.

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Connected knowledge sources

Connected integrations and tools let Gitar consult engineering knowledge beyond the repository. Relevant documentation can explain why a design exists or which constraints a change must preserve. Source access follows the connections and credentials configured for the organization. Gitar uses the available context for the task, while team learnings carry reusable guidance across reviews.

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Web knowledge

Gitar can search the web and read documentation during a code review when a question needs context beyond the repository. Web references help check assumptions about a dependency against its documented behavior. Web lookups supply reference material for the review. Team knowledge carries repository conventions and explanations from earlier work, so Gitar can consider both the library’s documented behavior and the way the team uses it.

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How Gitar learns from comments

Gitar looks for explanations that remain useful beyond the current PR. A comment can teach a fact even when the finding is fixed rather than dismissed, and learning does not require a special command. Gitar reads the comment with its available thread and file context, then writes a short, self-contained note. The note keeps the limits of the explanation, including which files or subsystem it concerns. Learning and handling feedback on the current PR are separate. Dismissing a finding does not, by itself, teach Gitar to ignore similar findings in future PRs.

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How knowledge reaches a review

Gitar selects knowledge for each review using the changed code and PR context. The reviewer receives a focused set of relevant entries. For example, a comment explains that generated getters must be fixed in their schema. On a later PR touching the same kind of generated file, Gitar can use that convention to identify the source that needs changing. The comment does not create a blanket exception for all getters.

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Source citations

Knowledge citations link a code review finding to the source of the guidance it uses. A citation can point to a repository instruction or the earlier PR comment that explained a convention. For example, a finding about a generated getter can cite the comment that established the schema as the source of truth. The next reviewer can inspect that explanation without searching old PR threads. Gitar links a citation when the knowledge entry has a source URL. Guidance without an available URL remains readable as text. Citations support the explanation behind a finding, while its inline location identifies the code under review.

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Repository and organization scope

Repository instructions and comment learnings belong to their source repository. Organization instructions and configuration repository guidance can apply across the organization’s repositories, with relevance checked for each review. Cross-Repo Analysis checks whether a change breaks another repository. Knowledge supplies conventions and constraints that help Gitar interpret a change. The features address different parts of the review.

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How knowledge stays relevant

Knowledge from instruction sources refreshes as Gitar processes those sources. Changed instructions replace their earlier content, and deleted instructions retire the associated knowledge after a successful refresh. An instruction edit in an unmerged PR does not replace the shared knowledge used by other reviews. Gitar can also narrow where an entry applies when a review shows that its scope was too broad. A convention that matched an unrelated change can become more specific, preserving the guidance for the files where it belongs.

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Inspect and manage knowledge

Enterprise organization admins can open Dashboard -> Knowledge to browse the knowledge library. Filter by repository or source to inspect the guidance Gitar has collected. An entry shows its content and recorded usage. Source links lead back to the original material when a URL is available. Marking an entry stale removes it from future knowledge retrieval while retaining its history.

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