Fix `__GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE__` placeholder not substituted when wiki is disabled by Copilot · Pull Request #20236 · github/gh-aw

Copilot · 2026-03-09T16:39:39Z

When repo-memory is configured without wiki: true, the __GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE__ placeholder in repo_memory_prompt.md was left unsubstituted, causing validate_prompt_placeholders.sh to fail. This was particularly visible in repo-assist scheduled runs on repos without a GitHub Wiki.

Root cause

buildRepoMemoryPromptSection used a static empty string "" for GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE when wiki is disabled. Static values are only injected into the substitution step — and in older compiled lock files, this variable was absent entirely, leaving __GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE__ raw in the prompt.

Fix

Use ${{ '' }} (a GitHub Actions expression evaluating to empty string) instead of "" when wiki is disabled. This forces expression interpolation, ensuring GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE appears in both the prompt creation step and the substitution step of newly compiled workflows:

// Before
wikiNoteText := ""

// After — forces expression interpolation with empty value
wikiNoteText := "${{ '' }}"

Compiled output for non-wiki workflows now includes:

# Prompt creation step (new)
GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE: ${{ '' }}

# Substitution step (unchanged)
GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE: ''

All 166 workflow lock files recompiled to apply the change.

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…bled When wiki mode is disabled (memory.Wiki == false), the GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE env var now uses ${{ '' }} (a GitHub expression evaluating to empty string) instead of a plain static empty string. This forces expression interpolation, ensuring the __GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE__ placeholder in repo_memory_prompt.md is always substituted with an empty value. Previously, old compiled lock files might not include GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE in the substitution step at all, causing the validate_prompt_placeholders.sh check to fail. Fixes: repo-assist __GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE__ placeholder not substituted when Wiki is disabled. Recompile all 166 workflow lock files to apply the fix. Co-authored-by: pelikhan <4175913+pelikhan@users.noreply.github.com>

Copilot

Pull request overview

Fixes repo-memory prompt generation so the __GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE__ placeholder is always substituted (even when wiki mode is disabled), preventing validate_prompt_placeholders.sh failures in non-wiki repos.

Changes:

Use a GitHub Actions empty-string expression (${{ '' }}) for GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE when wiki is disabled.
Update unit test expectations to validate expression interpolation behavior.
Recompile workflow lock files to include GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE in prompt creation steps.

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 23 out of 23 changed files in this pull request and generated 2 comments.

File	Description
pkg/workflow/repo_memory_prompt.go	Switches non-wiki `GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE` to `${{ '' }}` to force expression interpolation.
pkg/workflow/repo_memory_test.go	Updates test to assert the new non-wiki expression value.
.github/workflows/*.lock.yml	Regenerated lock workflows to include `GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE: ${{ '' }}` in env for prompt creation steps.
.changeset/patch-wiki-note-empty-placeholder.md	Adds release note describing the placeholder substitution fix.

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pkg/workflow/repo_memory_prompt.go

pelikhan · 2026-03-09T17:12:48Z

@copilot apply changes based on the comments in this thread

pelikhan · 2026-03-09T17:15:11Z

@copilot fix tests CI / Integration Add with dispatch-workflow Dependencies (pull_request)Failing after 50s

- Add package-level constant `ghaEmptyStringExpr` for `${{ '' }}` and use it in both the production code and the test. - Reword the comment to clarify the expression ensures substitution in newly compiled (or regenerated) workflows by forcing the prompt- creation step to include GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE. Co-authored-by: pelikhan <4175913+pelikhan@users.noreply.github.com>

Copilot · 2026-03-09T17:19:49Z

@copilot apply changes based on the comments in this thread

Applied both review suggestions in 697aeac:

Added ghaEmptyStringExpr package-level constant and used it in both the production code and the test
Rewrote the comment to clarify the fix applies to newly compiled/regenerated workflows

Copilot · 2026-03-09T17:26:02Z

@copilot fix tests CI / Integration Add with dispatch-workflow Dependencies (pull_request)Failing after 50s

This failure is unrelated to my changes. The test TestAddWorkflowWithDispatchWorkflowFromSharedImport failed with HTTP 502: 502 Bad Gateway when fetching smoke-copilot.md from the GitHub API — a transient infrastructure error. The file exists on main and the test was passing in the previous run. The latest CI run on the current commit (697aeac) shows no test failures.

Initial plan

67b94b7

Copilot AI assigned Copilot and pelikhan Mar 9, 2026

Copilot started work on behalf of pelikhan March 9, 2026 16:39 View session

Copilot AI linked an issue Mar 9, 2026 that may be closed by this pull request

repo-assist: __GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE__ placeholder not substituted when Wiki is disabled #20222

Closed

Copilot AI changed the title ~~[WIP] Fix placeholder substitution for disabled Wiki~~ Fix __GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE__ placeholder not substituted when wiki is disabled Mar 9, 2026

Copilot finished work on behalf of pelikhan March 9, 2026 17:07

Merge branch 'main' into copilot/fix-placeholder-substitution-wiki

cd2a81b

pelikhan marked this pull request as ready for review March 9, 2026 17:09

Copilot AI review requested due to automatic review settings March 9, 2026 17:09

Copilot AI reviewed Mar 9, 2026

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pkg/workflow/repo_memory_prompt.go Outdated Show resolved Hide resolved

pkg/workflow/repo_memory_prompt.go Outdated Show resolved Hide resolved

Copilot started work on behalf of pelikhan March 9, 2026 17:12 View session

Copilot finished work on behalf of pelikhan March 9, 2026 17:20

Copilot started work on behalf of pelikhan March 9, 2026 17:20 View session

Copilot finished work on behalf of pelikhan March 9, 2026 17:26

Merge branch 'main' into copilot/fix-placeholder-substitution-wiki

21c9d5a

pelikhan merged commit 9028450 into main Mar 9, 2026
48 checks passed

pelikhan deleted the copilot/fix-placeholder-substitution-wiki branch March 9, 2026 17:46

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Fix `__GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE__` placeholder not substituted when wiki is disabled#20236

Fix `__GH_AW_WIKI_NOTE__` placeholder not substituted when wiki is disabled#20236
pelikhan merged 5 commits intomainfrom
copilot/fix-placeholder-substitution-wiki

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Copilot AI commented Mar 9, 2026 •

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