GitHub Issue Search for Solutions

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when...	Use github-actions-inspection instead when...
Looking up upstream bug reports for an OSS library error message	Investigating a failing workflow run in your own repository
Finding closed-issue workarounds before filing a new bug	Pulling logs, statuses, or job conclusions from `gh run`
Surveying reactions/comments to gauge issue popularity or fix availability	Rerunning failed jobs or watching an in-progress workflow

Search GitHub repository issues to find solutions, workarounds, and discussions for open source software problems.

For detailed examples, advanced patterns, and best practices, see REFERENCE.md.

When to Use

Use this skill automatically when:

User encounters errors or problems with open source software
User mentions a library/package name with an error message
User asks "has anyone reported this issue before?"
User needs workarounds for known bugs
User wants to understand if a problem is already tracked
Debugging reveals potential upstream issues

Core Capabilities

Search Issues by Error Message

When encountering an error, search the repository for related issues:

Error Message -> Extract Keywords -> Search Issues -> Find Solutions

MCP Tool Used: mcp__github__search_issues

Search Query Construction:

Extract error type (e.g., "TypeError", "ECONNREFUSED", "panic")
Extract key terms from error message
Identify repository from context (package.json, go.mod, error stack trace)
Construct targeted search query

Search Patterns

By Error Message:

Query: "TypeError: Cannot read property 'map' of undefined repo:facebook/react"

By Symptom:

Query: "memory leak kubernetes deployment repo:kubernetes/kubernetes"

By Feature/Behavior:

Query: "authentication timeout websocket repo:socketio/socket.io"

By Version:

Query: "breaking change v2.0.0 migration repo:vuejs/vue"

Search Strategy Summary

Strategy	When to Use	Key Approach
Error-focused	Specific error message	Extract unique error terms, search repo
Symptom-based	Observable behavior, no exact error	Describe behavior + version/component
Version-specific	Issue after upgrading	Version number + issue type, check migration
Workaround discovery	Known issue, need temp fix	Search closed issues for code snippets

Using GitHub MCP Tools

Search Issues

Tool: mcp__github__search_issues

Parameters:
- query: Search query with GitHub search syntax
- owner: Repository owner (optional, can be in query)
- repo: Repository name (optional, can be in query)
- sort: "comments", "created", "updated", "reactions"
- order: "asc" or "desc"
- perPage: Number of results (max 100)
- page: Page number for pagination

Examples:

// Search by error message
{
  "query": "TypeError map undefined repo:facebook/react",
  "sort": "updated",
  "order": "desc",
  "perPage": 20
}

// Search by label and state
{
  "query": "label:bug is:closed memory leak repo:nodejs/node",
  "sort": "reactions",
  "order": "desc"
}

// Search recent issues
{
  "query": "authentication failed created:>2024-01-01 repo:auth0/auth0-spa-js",
  "sort": "created",
  "order": "desc"
}

Get Issue Details

Tool: mcp__github__issue_read

Parameters:
- method: "get" (issue details), "get_comments" (comments)
- owner: Repository owner
- repo: Repository name
- issue_number: Issue number
- perPage: Results per page
- page: Page number

Example:

// Get issue details
{
  "method": "get",
  "owner": "facebook",
  "repo": "react",
  "issue_number": 12345
}

// Get issue comments (where solutions often are)
{
  "method": "get_comments",
  "owner": "facebook",
  "repo": "react",
  "issue_number": 12345,
  "perPage": 50
}

Quick Reference: Search Query Syntax

Filter	Syntax	Example
Repository	`repo:owner/repo`	`repo:facebook/react`
Open only	`is:open`	`bug is:open`
Closed only	`is:closed`	`fix is:closed`
Issues only	`is:issue`	`error is:issue`
Label	`label:name`	`label:bug`
Exclude label	`-label:name`	`-label:wontfix`
Created after	`created:>DATE`	`created:>2024-01-01`
Updated after	`updated:>DATE`	`updated:>2024-11-01`
Author	`author:user`	`author:octocat`
Reactions	`reactions:>N`	`reactions:>10`
Comments	`comments:>N`	`comments:>5`
Exclude term	`-term`	`-test -mock`
Organization	`org:name`	`org:kubernetes`

Agentic Optimizations

Context	Command
Quick error search	`mcp__github__search_issues` with error keywords + `repo:` filter
Find workarounds	Search closed issues: `query + is:closed repo:owner/repo`
Popular issues	Sort by reactions: `sort: "reactions"`
Recent issues	Filter by date: `created:>YYYY-MM-DD`
Get solution details	`mcp__github__issue_read` with `method: "get_comments"`

Related Skills

System Debugging - Use issue search during debugging
Helm Debugging - Search helm/helm for Helm issues
Package Management - Search dependency issues
Git Operations - Link issues in commits/PRs

github-issue-search