/mr-assign

Project resolution (project-agnostic)

This command works in any GitLab repo — nothing here is tied to a specific project. Resolve the target at runtime:

1. Instance, project path, and IDs — auto-detected by glab from the current repo's git remotes; never hardcode them. glab reads origin/upstream directly. When a numeric id is needed: glab api projects/$(git remote get-url origin | sed -E 's#^[a-z]+://[^/]+/##; s#^.*@[^:]+:##; s#\.git$##' | sed 's#/#%2F#g') | jq -r '.id'
2. Fork vs single-repo — if both origin and upstream remotes exist, treat origin as your fork (push target) and upstream as the MR/issue target; otherwise operate on origin.
3. Optional extras — if .claude/gitlab-config.json exists in the current repo, load developers (assignee/reviewer shortcuts) and labels (auto-label rules) from it. If it is absent, those features degrade gracefully: ask the user for the assignee/reviewer/labels instead of resolving a shortcut.

All URLs, namespaces, and IDs in the examples below (<GITLAB_URL>, <PROJECT_PATH>, projects/<FORK_ID>, etc.) are illustrative placeholders — resolve real values per the steps above.

Assigns a GitLab merge request to a developer using shortcut names or GitLab usernames.

⚠️ Important: This command sets the ASSIGNEE (person responsible for taking action), NOT the reviewer. For code review requests, use /mr-review-request instead.

⚠️ Permission Required: This command will ask for user confirmation before assigning the MR.

Assignee vs Reviewer - Quick Guide

Use /mr-assign when:

• ✅ Someone needs to take ownership of the MR
• ✅ Someone needs to merge the MR
• ✅ Someone needs to fix issues before merging
• ✅ Transferring responsibility to another developer

Use /mr-review-request when:

• ✅ Someone should review and approve the code
• ✅ You need feedback on your implementation
• ✅ Requesting code review from team members

Example Workflow:

# 1. Create MR and request reviews from team
/mr-create alice bob

# 2. If alice needs to merge it, assign to him
/mr-assign 1598 alice

# 3. If more reviews needed later
/mr-review-request 1598 carol

Usage

/mr-assign <mr-number> <developer>

Arguments:

• <mr-number> - MR number (e.g., 1598 or !1598)
• <developer> - Developer shortcut or GitLab username

Developer Shortcuts: resolved from the optional .claude/gitlab-config.json → developers map in the current repo. If no config file exists, pass a real GitLab username directly. Resolve a username to an id with glab api "users?username=<name>" | jq '.[0].id'.

Examples:

/mr-assign 1598 alice        # Assign MR !1598 to alice
/mr-assign !1598 bob       # Assign MR !1598 to bob
/mr-assign 1598 carol      # Assign MR !1598 to carol
/mr-assign 1598 dana        # Assign MR !1598 to dana.lee

What it does

1. Resolves developer shortcut to GitLab username
2. Fetches MR details to verify it exists
3. Asks user for permission to assign
4. Assigns MR to developer via GitLab API
5. Confirms assignment

Process

1. Parse arguments: Extract MR number and developer shortcut
2. Resolve developer: Look up GitLab username from shortcut
3. Fetch MR: Verify MR exists and get current state
4. ⚠️ ASK USER PERMISSION: Display assignment preview and await confirmation
5. Assign MR (if approved): PUT to /api/v4/projects/2/merge_requests/{iid}
6. Confirm: Display updated MR assignee

Example Output

Example 1: Assign using shortcut

🔍 Fetching MR !1598...
📋 MR #1598: feat(shipments): add pickup details to API responses
   Status: Open
   Author: dana.lee
   Current assignee: None

👤 Resolving developer shortcut: alice → alice

⚠️  Assign MR !1598 to alice? (yes/no)
> yes

✓ Assigning MR...
✓ MR !1598 assigned to alice

🔗 MR URL: <GITLAB_URL>/<PROJECT_PATH>/-/merge_requests/1598

Example 2: Re-assign to different developer

🔍 Fetching MR !1598...
📋 MR #1598: feat(shipments): add pickup details to API responses
   Status: Open
   Author: dana.lee
   Current assignee: alice

👤 Resolving developer shortcut: bob → bob

⚠️  Change assignee from alice to bob? (yes/no)
> yes

✓ Assigning MR...
✓ MR !1598 reassigned to bob

Example 3: User cancels

🔍 Fetching MR !1598...
📋 MR #1598: feat(shipments): add pickup details to API responses

⚠️  Assign MR !1598 to carol? (yes/no)
> no

✗ Assignment cancelled

Developer Management

Available Developers

Developers are defined in .claude/gitlab-config.json:

{
  "developers": {
    "alice": {
      "username": "alice",
      "name": "Alice"
    },
    "bob": {
      "username": "bob",
      "name": "Bob"
    },
    "carol": {
      "username": "carol",
      "name": "Carol"
    },
    "dana": {
      "username": "dana.lee",
      "name": "Dana Lee"
    }
  }
}

Adding New Developers

To add a new developer:

1. Edit .claude/gitlab-config.json
2. Add entry to developers section:

   "shortcut_name": {
     "shortcut": "shortcut_name",
     "username": "gitlab_username",
     "name": "Full Name",
     "gitlab_user_id": null,
     "email": null
   }

3. Save file
4. Use shortcut in /mr-assign or /mr-create

Finding GitLab Usernames

# Search for a user
glab api users?search=name | jq -r '.[] | {username, name}'

# Get specific user details
glab api users/username | jq -r '{id, username, name, email}'

GitLab API

Endpoint: PUT /api/v4/projects/{id}/merge_requests/{iid}

Parameters:

{
  "assignee_ids": [user_id]
}

Example API call:

# Get user ID
glab api users?username=alice | jq -r '.[0].id'

# Assign MR
glab api --method PUT projects/2/merge_requests/1598 \
  -F assignee_ids[]=<user_id>

Multiple Assignees

To assign multiple developers:

/mr-assign 1598 alice bob

This will assign both alice and bob to the MR.

Permissions

Requires user permission because:

• Changes MR state
• Affects who receives notifications
• May trigger workflows

Per GITLAB_PERMISSIONS.md:

• assign:mr is in requiresPermission list
• Must ask before making assignment

Troubleshooting

"Developer not found"

• Check spelling of shortcut
• Verify developer exists in .claude/gitlab-config.json
• Use exact GitLab username if shortcut not defined

"MR not found"

• Verify MR number is correct
• Check you have access to the project
• Ensure MR is in <PROJECT_PATH> project

"Permission denied"

• Your GitLab token needs api scope
• You must have Developer role or higher
• Check token in ~/.config/glab-cli/config.yml

"User does not have access to project"

• Developer must be a member of <PROJECT_PATH> project
• Ask project maintainer to add them
• Verify username is correct

Related Commands

• /mr-create [dev] - Create MR and assign in one command
• /mr-create --assignee <dev> - Create MR with assignee
• View .claude/core/GITLAB_PERMISSIONS.md for permission rules

Notes

• Assigning clears previous assignee (use multiple names for multiple assignees)
• Assignee receives email notification
• Can assign yourself using dana shortcut
• Works with both open and draft MRs

Created: 2025-12-27 Last updated: 2025-12-27 Config file: .claude/gitlab-config.json