GitLab Dist-Git Data Flow

This document describes how the AI Workflows system interacts with GitLab for CentOS Stream and RHEL dist-git repositories.

Repository Structure

graph TD
    GITLAB["GitLab<br/>(gitlab.com)"]

    subgraph "Upstream Repositories"
        CENTOS["CentOS Stream Dist-Git<br/>gitlab.com/redhat/centos-stream/rpms/*"]
        RHEL["RHEL Dist-Git<br/>gitlab.com/redhat/rhel/rpms/*<br/>(Internal)"]
    end

    subgraph "Bot Forks"
        FORK_CENTOS["Fork: centos_rpms_*<br/>gitlab.com/jotnar-bot/"]
        FORK_RHEL["Fork: rhel_rpms_*<br/>gitlab.com/jotnar-bot/"]
    end

    GITLAB --> CENTOS
    GITLAB --> RHEL
    CENTOS -.Fork.-> FORK_CENTOS
    RHEL -.Fork.-> FORK_RHEL

    FORK_CENTOS -.Merge Request.-> CENTOS
    FORK_RHEL -.Merge Request.-> RHEL

    style CENTOS fill:#e1f5fe
    style RHEL fill:#f3e5f5
    style FORK_CENTOS fill:#c8e6c9
    style FORK_RHEL fill:#c8e6c9

System Architecture

graph TD
    GITLAB[("GitLab<br/>gitlab.com/redhat")]

    subgraph "Python Services (Direct Git/API)"
        SUPERVISOR["Supervisor<br/>(gitlab_utils.py)"]
    end

    subgraph "MCP Server Layer"
        MCP_GITLAB["GitLab Tools<br/>(gitlab_tools.py)"]
        MCP_DISTGIT["Dist-Git Tools<br/>(distgit_tools.py)"]
    end

    subgraph "AI Agents (Use MCP Tools)"
        AGENTS["Rebase Agent<br/>Backport Agent<br/>MR Agent"]
    end

    SUPERVISOR <-->|"Direct API<br/>Search MRs"| GITLAB

    AGENTS -->|"Use MCP Tools"| MCP_GITLAB
    AGENTS -->|"Use MCP Tools"| MCP_DISTGIT

    MCP_GITLAB <-->|"Git & API Operations<br/>Fork, Clone, Push,<br/>Open MR, Comments"| GITLAB
    MCP_DISTGIT <-->|"Create Z-Stream<br/>Branches"| GITLAB

    style SUPERVISOR fill:#e8f4f8,stroke:#0277bd,stroke-width:3px
    style MCP_GITLAB fill:#fff4e6,stroke:#f57c00,stroke-width:3px
    style MCP_DISTGIT fill:#fff4e6,stroke:#f57c00,stroke-width:3px
    style AGENTS fill:#e8f5e9,stroke:#388e3c,stroke-width:3px
    style GITLAB fill:#ffebee,stroke:#c62828,stroke-width:3px

MCP Server GitLab Tools

Git Operations

Tool	Purpose	API/Git
fork_repository	Create or get existing fork	GitLab API
clone_repository	Clone repo to local path	Git CLI
push_to_remote_repository	Push branch to remote	Git CLI

Merge Request Management

Tool	Purpose	Returns
open_merge_request	Create MR from fork to upstream	MR URL, is_new
get_merge_request_details	Get MR source/target/comments	MergeRequestDetails
add_merge_request_comment	Add comment to MR	Success message
add_blocking_merge_request_comment	Add unresolved discussion (blocks merge)	Success message
add_merge_request_labels	Add labels to MR	Success message
create_merge_request_checklist	Add internal checklist note	Success message

Pipeline Operations

Tool	Purpose	Returns
get_failed_pipeline_jobs_from_merge_request	Get failed CI jobs	List[FailedPipelineJob]
retry_pipeline_job	Retry specific pipeline job	Job status

Branch Operations

Tool	Purpose	Returns
get_internal_rhel_branches	List RHEL dist-git branches	List[str]
create_zstream_branch (distgit_tools)	Create new Z-Stream branch	Success message

Workflow: Rebase/Backport to Merge Request

sequenceDiagram
    participant Agent as Rebase/Backport Agent
    participant MCP_Git as GitLab Tools (MCP)
    participant GitLab as GitLab API/Git
    participant Fork as Bot Fork
    participant Upstream as Upstream Repo

    Agent->>MCP_Git: fork_repository(upstream_url)
    MCP_Git->>GitLab: Check if fork exists
    alt Fork exists
        GitLab-->>MCP_Git: Return existing fork URL
    else Fork doesn't exist
        MCP_Git->>GitLab: Create new fork
        GitLab-->>MCP_Git: Return new fork URL
    end
    MCP_Git-->>Agent: Fork URL

    Agent->>MCP_Git: clone_repository(fork_url, branch, path)
    MCP_Git->>Fork: git init && git fetch
    Fork-->>MCP_Git: Clone successful
    MCP_Git-->>Agent: Cloned to path

    Note over Agent: Agent modifies files<br/>(rebase or backport)

    Agent->>MCP_Git: push_to_remote_repository(fork_url, path, branch)
    MCP_Git->>Fork: git push
    Fork-->>MCP_Git: Push successful
    MCP_Git-->>Agent: Pushed successfully

    Agent->>MCP_Git: open_merge_request(fork_url, title, desc, target, source)
    MCP_Git->>Upstream: Create MR or update existing
    MCP_Git->>Upstream: Add label: jotnar_needs_attention
    Upstream-->>MCP_Git: MR URL
    MCP_Git-->>Agent: MR URL, is_brand_new

    Agent->>MCP_Git: create_merge_request_checklist(mr_url, checklist)
    MCP_Git->>Upstream: Create internal note with checklist
    Upstream-->>MCP_Git: Success
    MCP_Git-->>Agent: Checklist created

Workflow: Merge Request Review Updates

sequenceDiagram
    participant MR_Agent as MR Agent
    participant MCP as GitLab Tools (MCP)
    participant GitLab as GitLab MR

    MR_Agent->>MCP: get_merge_request_details(mr_url)
    MCP->>GitLab: GET merge request details
    MCP->>GitLab: GET authorized comments (Developer+)
    GitLab-->>MCP: MR details + comments mentioning bot
    MCP-->>MR_Agent: MergeRequestDetails

    Note over MR_Agent: Analyze comments<br/>Determine actions needed

    alt Failed Pipeline
        MR_Agent->>MCP: get_failed_pipeline_jobs_from_merge_request(mr_url)
        MCP->>GitLab: GET latest pipeline jobs
        GitLab-->>MCP: List of failed jobs
        MCP-->>MR_Agent: List[FailedPipelineJob]

        MR_Agent->>MCP: add_blocking_merge_request_comment(mr_url, analysis)
        MCP->>GitLab: POST unresolved discussion
        GitLab-->>MCP: Discussion created
    end

    alt Reviewer Requested Changes
        MR_Agent->>MCP: clone_repository(source_repo, branch, path)
        Note over MR_Agent: Make requested changes
        MR_Agent->>MCP: push_to_remote_repository(fork_url, path, branch)
        MR_Agent->>MCP: add_merge_request_comment(mr_url, "Changes applied")
    end

Supervisor GitLab Operations

The Supervisor uses direct GitLab API calls (not MCP) for:

flowchart LR
    SUPERVISOR[Supervisor]

    SUPERVISOR -->|"search_gitlab_project_mrs()"| SEARCH["Search MRs by<br/>issue key"]

    SEARCH --> CHECK{MR State?}

    CHECK -->|Opened| MONITOR["Monitor MR<br/>for merge"]
    CHECK -->|Merged| TRACK["Track merged<br/>build"]

    style SUPERVISOR fill:#e8f4f8
    style SEARCH fill:#fff9c4
    style MONITOR fill:#e1f5fe
    style TRACK fill:#c8e6c9

Function: search_gitlab_project_mrs(project, issue_key, state)

Purpose: Find merge requests related to a Jira issue
API Call: GET /api/v4/projects/{project}/merge_requests?search={issue_key}
Returns: Iterator of MergeRequest objects
Use Case: Supervisor tracks MR state to advance issue workflow

Repository Naming Conventions

Upstream Repositories

Type	Pattern	Example
CentOS Stream	`gitlab.com/redhat/centos-stream/rpms/{package}`	`gitlab.com/redhat/centos-stream/rpms/bash`
RHEL	`gitlab.com/redhat/rhel/rpms/{package}`	`gitlab.com/redhat/rhel/rpms/bash`

Bot Forks

Fork naming follows centpkg fork convention:

Upstream	Fork Name	Example
`redhat/centos-stream/rpms/bash`	`centos_rpms_bash`	`gitlab.com/jotnar-bot/centos_rpms_bash`
`redhat/rhel/rpms/bash`	`rhel_rpms_bash`	`gitlab.com/jotnar-bot/rhel_rpms_bash`

Pattern: The fork name is constructed from the upstream path. The path segments after redhat/ are joined with an underscore (_) to form a prefix, with centos-stream being shortened to centos. This prefix is then combined with the package name, following the format {namespace_prefix}_{package}.

Branch Naming

CentOS Stream Branches

c9s - CentOS Stream 9
c10s - CentOS Stream 10

RHEL Branches

rhel-9-main - RHEL 9 Y-stream (latest minor version)
rhel-9.8.0 - RHEL 9.8 Z-stream
rhel-10-main - RHEL 10 Y-stream

Authentication

GitLab API Token

Environment Variable: GITLAB_TOKEN
Used By: MCP Server, Supervisor
Format: OAuth2 token
Scope: API access, fork creation, MR management

Git Operations

HTTPS (MCP Server):

https://oauth2:{GITLAB_TOKEN}@gitlab.com/...

SSH (Dist-Git Tools):

ssh://{username}@pkgs.devel.redhat.com/rpms/{package}

Requires Kerberos authentication
Used for internal RHEL dist-git operations

Merge Request Labels

Label	Applied By	Meaning
`jotnar_needs_attention`	open_merge_request (auto)	MR needs human review
`jotnar_needs_inspection`	Agents	Specific attention required
`target::latest`	GitLab CI (auto)	Y-stream build
`target::zstream`	GitLab CI (auto)	Z-stream build
`feature::draft-builds::enabled`	Manual (when ready)	Enables Konflux draft builds when added

Last Updated: 2026-03-03

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GitLab Dist-Git Data Flow

Repository Structure

System Architecture

MCP Server GitLab Tools

Git Operations

Merge Request Management

Pipeline Operations

Branch Operations

Workflow: Rebase/Backport to Merge Request

Workflow: Merge Request Review Updates

Supervisor GitLab Operations

Repository Naming Conventions

Upstream Repositories

Bot Forks

Branch Naming

CentOS Stream Branches

RHEL Branches

Authentication

GitLab API Token

Git Operations

Merge Request Labels

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gitlab_distgit_data_flow.md

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gitlab_distgit_data_flow.md

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GitLab Dist-Git Data Flow

Repository Structure

System Architecture

MCP Server GitLab Tools

Git Operations

Merge Request Management

Pipeline Operations

Branch Operations

Workflow: Rebase/Backport to Merge Request

Workflow: Merge Request Review Updates

Supervisor GitLab Operations

Repository Naming Conventions

Upstream Repositories

Bot Forks

Branch Naming

CentOS Stream Branches

RHEL Branches

Authentication

GitLab API Token

Git Operations

Merge Request Labels