Treat non-waiting workflow runs as skipped in approve_workflow_run

[Copilot]

PR Sous Chef's Process Safe Outputs step has been failing ~8% of runs, generating a steady stream of duplicate [aw] Failed jobs issues. The suspected cause was a whole-batch validation abort, but the logs from run 32543132845 show something narrower.

Root cause

##[error]6 safe output(s) failed:
  - approve_workflow_run: Workflow run 32542848528 is not awaiting approval (status: completed)
  - approve_workflow_run: Workflow run 32542848455 is not awaiting approval (status: completed)
  ... (6 total, all approve_workflow_run)

The per-item loop in safe_output_handler_manager.cjs already degrades gracefully — every item is processed, which is why Upload Safe Outputs Items still succeeds. The bug is item classification, not batch abort.

approve_workflow_run returned a fatal failure whenever the target run was no longer in waiting. On a 15-minute cadence this is a routine race: by the time the safe_outputs job runs, the run has usually already been approved by a human or by an earlier PR Sous Chef run. Nothing is left to do, yet the hard failure fed core.setFailed and failed the step.

Changes

• actions/setup/js/approve_workflow_run.cjs
  • run.status !== "waiting" now returns a skipped result so the manager's existing result.skipped === true branch reports it in the summary without failing the step.
  • Max-count-reached now uses the same result shape as other handlers (add_comment, create_issue): skipped: true + reasonCode: "MAX_COUNT_REACHED".
• actions/setup/js/approve_workflow_run.test.cjs — assertions updated for both result shapes.

if (run.status !== "waiting") {
  const reason = `Workflow run ${runId} is not awaiting approval (status: ${run.status || "none"})`;
  core.warning(reason);
  return { success: false, skipped: true, reasonCode: "NOT_AWAITING_APPROVAL", reason, error: reason };
}

Genuine authorization and configuration errors — fork without fork: true, protected file changes, disallowed workflow, unauthorized PR, API errors — remain fatal.

• Fixes [deep-report] PR Sous Chef: safe_outputs step fails whole batch on one invalid item (recurring, prior fix didn't stick) #54755

[pelikhan]

@copilot approve workflow run only applies to "action_required" state

[Copilot]

@copilot approve workflow run only applies to "action_required" state

Good catch — the handler was gating on status === "waiting" only, so runs held in the action-required state were never approvable at all.

Fixed in a0d1b9d with an isAwaitingApproval() helper that accepts status: "action_required" (the state the fork-PR approval endpoint applies to), plus status: "waiting" and conclusion: "action_required" for runs GitHub reports as completed while pending the approval decision. Test fixtures now default to action_required, with added cases for the other two shapes. Reference docs, glossary, spec, and the agent-facing tool description in safe_outputs_tools.json were updated to match.

[pelikhan]

@copilot this is not just for forks, it is also happening for agent-initiated PRs like copilot/* PRs.

Check current PRs and review workflow runs. You should find runs n the action required state.

Extend the safe output to only consider PRs from this repo by default.

Workflows from forks must be explicitely allowed in allowed-repos list. (Defaults to current repo)

[Copilot]

@copilot this is not just for forks, it is also happening for agent-initiated PRs like copilot/* PRs.

Check current PRs and review workflow runs. You should find runs n the action required state....

Confirmed from the Actions API: runs in the action-required state include same-repo agent PRs (e.g. copilot/fix-github-actions-job-failure on run 32598809282, conclusion: action_required), not just forks.

Replaced the boolean fork option with an allowed-repos allowlist:

• The handler now resolves each associated PR's head.repo.full_name instead of the misleading head.repo.fork flag (which is true for same-repo PRs inside a forked repository).
• The current repository is always allowed, so copilot/* and other in-repo branches are approvable by default.
• PRs from any other repository (forks) are refused unless their slug matches an allowed-repos entry; wildcards such as org/* are supported. The rejection message names the head repo and points to allowed-repos.
• fork: is removed from the schema, Go config, handler config, docs (reference, glossary, spec, automation guide), and pr-sous-chef.md; workflows recompiled.

[pelikhan]

@copilot resolve the merge conflicts on this branch.

[Copilot]

@pelikhan Unfortunately I hit an unexpected error while processing your comment. I've automatically reported this to GitHub.

You can ask me to try again later by mentioning me in a new comment.

If you want to contact GitHub about this error, please mention the following identifier so they can better serve you: 87ab1ef2-4dbe-4dea-8da7-644c6ed9b43d

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[Copilot]

Pull request overview

Makes workflow-run approval races non-fatal while introducing repository-scoped fork authorization.

Changes:

• Classifies non-awaiting runs and max-limit cases as skipped.
• Replaces fork with allowed-repos.
• Updates tests, schemas, documentation, and generated workflow output.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
pkg/workflow/safe_outputs_handler_registry.go	Emits allowed repositories.
pkg/workflow/js/safe_outputs_tools.json	Updates tool description.
pkg/workflow/approve_workflow_run.go	Parses allowed repositories.
pkg/workflow/approve_workflow_run_test.go	Updates parser tests.
pkg/workflow/approve_workflow_run_integration_test.go	Verifies generated configuration.
pkg/parser/schemas/main_workflow_schema.json	Replaces the fork schema option.
docs/src/content/docs/specs/safe-outputs-specification.md	Updates approval requirements.
docs/src/content/docs/reference/safe-outputs-pull-requests.md	Documents new behavior.
docs/src/content/docs/reference/glossary.md	Updates the glossary entry.
docs/src/content/docs/reference/frontmatter-full.md	Updates frontmatter reference.
actions/setup/js/safe_outputs_tools.json	Updates runtime tool description.
actions/setup/js/approve_workflow_run.test.cjs	Covers states and repository allowlists.
actions/setup/js/approve_workflow_run.cjs	Implements skipping and repository checks.
.github/workflows/pr-sous-chef.md	Removes obsolete fork configuration.
.github/workflows/pr-sous-chef.lock.yml	Regenerates compiled workflow output.
.github/skills/agentic-workflows/SKILL.md	Removes an unrelated routing entry.
.github/aw/safe-outputs-automation.md	Updates automation guidance.

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• Files reviewed: 17/17 changed files
• Comments generated: 3
• Review effort level: Balanced