# GitLab Issue Traceability

## Commit Messages

When a commit fixes or resolves a GitLab issue:

- Include `Closes #N` (or `Fixes #N`) on its own line at the end of the commit message body, where N is the GitLab issue number.
- If the fix addresses multiple issues, include one `Closes #N` per issue, each on its own line.
- The CI pipeline's `after_script` will auto-comment on the referenced issues with a link to the deploy pipeline.

Example:
```
Fix duplicate chart entries on compliance page

Aggregate /trends and /category-trend by report_date instead of per-upload row.

Closes #12
```

## Issue References in Code

When working from a GitLab issue, reference the issue number in:
- The commit message (required — `Closes #N`)
- The spec's `bugfix.md` introduction (for traceability from spec to issue)
- Test file header comments (optional — helps future developers find context)

## Closing Issues

- Prefer closing issues via commit message keywords (`Closes`, `Fixes`, `Resolves`) so GitLab auto-closes them when the pipeline succeeds on the default branch.
- If a commit was pushed without the keyword, close the issue via the API after confirming the deploy succeeded.

## Pipeline Notifications

The `deploy-staging` and `deploy-production` jobs in `.gitlab-ci.yml` have `after_script` blocks that parse `#N` references from the commit message and post a comment on each referenced issue with a link to the pipeline. This requires `GITLAB_PAT` to be set as a CI/CD variable in the project settings.

### Setup Required

1. Go to **Settings → CI/CD → Variables** in the GitLab project
2. Add variable: `GITLAB_PAT` = the project access token (already exists as `glpat-...` in `backend/.env`)
3. Mark it as **Protected** and **Masked**