[refactor-opportunist] Extract shared newbie docs-audit rubric fragment for base and ESTC workflows

[github-actions]

🏗️ Refactor Proposal

Summary: Extract the duplicated newbie-docs audit rubric into one shared fragment and keep only workflow-specific deltas in each workflow source.

Problem

gh-aw-newbie-contributor-patrol.md and gh-aw-estc-newbie-contributor-patrol-external.md duplicated the same baseline docs-audit instructions (data gathering, core checks, and reporting bar), so prompt updates required synchronized edits in two files.

Concrete evidence:

• Shared imports/config shape in both files, now both importing the new fragment:
  • .github/workflows/gh-aw-newbie-contributor-patrol.md:5-16
  • .github/workflows/gh-aw-estc-newbie-contributor-patrol-external.md:5-16
• Extracted duplicated baseline prompt sections from both workflows into:
  • .github/workflows/gh-aw-fragments/newbie-contributor-docs-core.md:1-21
• Both workflows changed together recently (coupling signal):
  • 17f7a24 (“disable stale checks”)
  • fa79dff (“update workflow versions”)
  • 91477ff (“remove stale check for remote workflows”)

Proposed Approach

Create one shared fragment for the baseline newbie-docs rubric and import it in both workflows. Keep ESTC-specific behavior local (Elastic docs MCP cross-reference + contradictions-as-blockers rule), and keep issue format text per workflow.

Proof of Concept

I partially implemented this refactor on one representative slice to verify viability:

Files changed:

• .github/workflows/gh-aw-fragments/newbie-contributor-docs-core.md (new)
• .github/workflows/gh-aw-newbie-contributor-patrol.md
• .github/workflows/gh-aw-estc-newbie-contributor-patrol-external.md
• .github/workflows/gh-aw-newbie-contributor-patrol.lock.yml (generated)
• .github/workflows/gh-aw-estc-newbie-contributor-patrol-external.lock.yml (generated)

Before → After:

• Before: both workflow sources contained copied baseline sections (### Data Gathering, ### What to Look For, ### Reporting Bar).
• After: shared baseline lives in gh-aw-fragments/newbie-contributor-docs-core.md; each workflow now imports it, and ESTC keeps only its extra sections:
  • .github/workflows/gh-aw-estc-newbie-contributor-patrol-external.md:105-116

Snippet (new shared core):

### Data Gathering
1. Discover documentation files ...
2. Follow the quick start ...

### What to Look For
- Missing prerequisites ...
- Inconsistent instructions ...
...

### Reporting Bar
Only report **blocking** or **high-impact** ...

Verification:

• make compile completed successfully (updated lock files).
• make lint completed successfully.
• PATH=$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH UV_CACHE_DIR=/tmp/gh-aw/agent/uv-cache make test completed successfully (53 passed).

Incremental Rollout Plan

This refactor can be completed incrementally:

1. Extract shared baseline rubric and migrate the two newbie workflows (completed in this POC).
2. Apply the same pattern to other workflow pairs that share a baseline + variant deltas.
3. Keep variant-specific checks local; evolve shared fragment only for true baseline behavior.

Risks and Mitigations

• Risk: Over-centralizing could hide variant-specific requirements.
  Mitigation: Keep only baseline checks in the shared fragment; preserve variant-only sections in source workflows.
• Risk: Prompt behavior drift after extraction.
  Mitigation: Compile lock files on every change and keep workflow-specific issue format blocks local.

Evidence

• .github/workflows/gh-aw-fragments/newbie-contributor-docs-core.md:1-21
• .github/workflows/gh-aw-newbie-contributor-patrol.md:5-16,93-117
• .github/workflows/gh-aw-estc-newbie-contributor-patrol-external.md:5-16,103-141
• Co-change commits: 17f7a24, fa79dff, 91477ff

Note

🔒 Integrity filter blocked 28 items

The following items were blocked because they don't meet the GitHub integrity level.

• #1128 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #378 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #600 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #700 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #608 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #764 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #490 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #937 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #589 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #359 search_issues: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #794 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #703 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #354 search_issues: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #420 search_issues: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #687 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• #643 search_pull_requests: has lower integrity than agent requires. The agent cannot read data with integrity below "approved".
• ... and 12 more items

To allow these resources, lower min-integrity in your GitHub frontmatter:

tools:
  github:
    min-integrity: approved  # merged | approved | unapproved | none

---

What is this? | From workflow: Trigger Refactor Opportunist

Give us feedback! React with 🚀 if perfect, 👍 if helpful, 👎 if not.