[copilot-opt] Retry-blocked: [WIP] Fix failing GitHub Actions job 'agent' — human review required

[github-actions]

Problem

The [WIP] Fix failing GitHub Actions job 'agent' task has been attempted twice by Copilot and closed without merging both times. Each attempt consumes a full agent session yet produces only a WIP-placeholder PR body with no concrete fix. The root cause appears to be that the CI failure itself stems from the action_required approval gating problem (see related issue #37901), which cannot be resolved by code changes alone — yet the agent keeps attempting a code-level fix.

Evidence

• Analysis window: 2026-05-25 to 2026-06-08
• Sessions analyzed: 50
• Key metrics and examples:
  • PR #34639 opened and closed 2026-05-25 (close reason: unknown — only WIP template body, no fix committed)
  • PR #37890 opened and closed 2026-06-08 (close reason: unknown — only WIP template body, no fix committed)
  • Both PRs target job URL patterns pointing at different CI runs, indicating the failure is recurring
  • Both PRs share the [WIP] prefix, confirming the agent did not complete its work before the PR was closed
  • 2 full agent sessions consumed with zero merged output

Proposed Change

1. Do not open a third agent attempt for this task until a human has reviewed the prior two PRs and identified what the agent is missing.
2. Investigate whether the underlying CI failure is an action_required gating issue (see #37901) — if so, the fix is a policy change, not a code change.
3. If a code fix is genuinely needed, provide the agent with explicit reproduction steps and the expected fix approach in the issue description before re-assigning.

Expected Impact

• Prevent a third wasted agent session on a task that cannot be resolved by code changes alone
• Identify the actual root cause (policy vs. code) and route the fix to the right owner
• Reduce retry-blocked PR accumulation

Notes

• Distinct root cause category: duplicate-PR / retry waste reduction
• Data quality: only 1 day of session data available; full 14-day window may contain additional related attempts
• No events.jsonl files were found in session logs

Prior Failed Attempts

The following Copilot PRs on this topic were closed without merging before this issue was created:

PR	Closed (YYYY-MM-DD)	Close reason
#34639	2026-05-25	unknown (WIP-only body, no fix)
#37890	2026-06-08	unknown (WIP-only body, no fix)

Retry count: 2 — human review required before a new implementation attempt.
Any agent attempting to implement this recommendation MUST read this section and the linked PRs, address all close reasons, and post a plan comment on this issue before opening a new PR.

Generated by ⚡ Copilot Opt · ⌖ 44.3 AIC · ⊞ 19.7K · ◷