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Fix HITL gate ignoring human feedback #657

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Merged
jwbron merged 4 commits into from
Feb 14, 2026
Merged

Fix HITL gate ignoring human feedback #657

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d8c109e
Fix HITL gate ignoring human feedback on plan/refine phases
Feb 14, 2026
8731c04
Address review feedback on HITL revision loop
egg-reviewer[bot] Feb 14, 2026
d889a7a
Fix HITL circuit breaker leaking feedback into next phase
egg-reviewer[bot] Feb 14, 2026
b481ea8
Restore completed_at on circuit breaker fall-through to approval path
egg-reviewer[bot] Feb 14, 2026
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109 changes: 104 additions & 5 deletions orchestrator/routes/pipelines.py
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Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -1455,6 +1455,12 @@ def _spawn_and_wait(
# Phases that pause for human approval before advancing (HITL gates)
_HITL_GATE_PHASES = {"refine", "plan"}

# Keywords that indicate human approval at HITL gates
_APPROVE_KEYWORDS = {"approved", "approve", "lgtm", "yes", ""}

# Bare option labels that indicate "request changes" without actionable feedback
_BARE_OPTION_LABELS = {"request changes", "request_changes"}


def _build_checker_prompt(
pipeline_id: str,
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -1892,6 +1898,8 @@ def _run_pipeline(pipeline_id: str, repo_path: Path) -> None:
store.save_pipeline(pipeline)
return

hitl_revision_feedback: str | None = None

while True:
pipeline = store.load_pipeline(pipeline_id)

Expand Down Expand Up @@ -1947,7 +1955,8 @@ def _run_pipeline(pipeline_id: str, repo_path: Path) -> None:
phase_gateway_mode = "public"

phase_failed = False
review_feedback: str | None = None
review_feedback: str | None = hitl_revision_feedback
hitl_revision_feedback = None

# --- Inner review cycle ---
while True:
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -2353,7 +2362,7 @@ def _run_pipeline(pipeline_id: str, repo_path: Path) -> None:
# contract load/save inside _populate_contract_from_plan.
# The contract was created at worktree_repo_path above, so
# both operations must use the same path.
if current_phase.value == "plan":
if current_phase.value == "plan" and phase_execution.review_cycles == 0:
_populate_contract_from_plan(
worktree_repo_path, pipeline_id, pipeline_mode, pipeline.issue_number
)
Expand All @@ -2370,14 +2379,15 @@ def _run_pipeline(pipeline_id: str, repo_path: Path) -> None:
phase_label = "analysis" if current_phase.value == "refine" else current_phase.value
question = (
f"The {current_phase.value} phase has completed. "
f"Please review the {phase_label} and approve to continue."
f"Please review the {phase_label} and approve to continue, "
f"or provide feedback to request changes."
)

dq = get_decision_queue(pipeline_id, repo_path)
decision = dq.queue_decision(
question=question,
context=draft_content,
options=["approve"],
options=["approve", "request changes"],
timeout_seconds=pipeline.config.decision_timeout,
)

Expand Down Expand Up @@ -2407,12 +2417,101 @@ def _run_pipeline(pipeline_id: str, repo_path: Path) -> None:
decision_id=decision.id,
)

# Resume — reload since decision resolution may have modified state
# Check resolution — did the human approve or request changes?
resolved_decision = dq.get_decision(decision.id)
resolution = (resolved_decision.resolution or "").strip()

if resolution.lower() not in _APPROVE_KEYWORDS:
# If the resolution is just a bare option label (e.g. "request changes")
# with no actionable feedback, re-queue asking for specifics.
if resolution.lower() in _BARE_OPTION_LABELS:
logger.info(
"HITL gate: bare option label without feedback, requesting specifics",
pipeline_id=pipeline_id,
phase=current_phase.value,
resolution=resolution,
)
followup = dq.queue_decision(
question=(
f"You selected \"{resolution}\" but didn't provide specific feedback. "
f"Please describe what changes you'd like to see in the {phase_label}."
),
context=draft_content,
options=["approve", "request changes"],
timeout_seconds=pipeline.config.decision_timeout,
)
try:
dq.wait_for_decision(followup.id)
except DecisionTimeoutError:
# Timeout: resolution will be None, so
# (resolution or "").strip() → "", which is in
# _APPROVE_KEYWORDS — intentionally treating
# timeout as approval (same as no-text approve).
logger.warning(
"HITL follow-up timed out, advancing",
pipeline_id=pipeline_id,
decision_id=followup.id,
)
resolved_followup = dq.get_decision(followup.id)
resolution = (resolved_followup.resolution or "").strip()
# If the follow-up is also bare or an approval, just approve
if resolution.lower() in _APPROVE_KEYWORDS or resolution.lower() in _BARE_OPTION_LABELS:
logger.info(
"HITL follow-up: no actionable feedback, treating as approval",
pipeline_id=pipeline_id,
phase=current_phase.value,
)
# Fall through to approval path below
else:
# Got real feedback on the follow-up — proceed to revision
pass # Fall through to the revision block below

# Re-check: resolution may have been updated by the follow-up path
if resolution.lower() not in _APPROVE_KEYWORDS and resolution.lower() not in _BARE_OPTION_LABELS:
# Human provided feedback — re-run the phase with corrections
logger.info(
"HITL gate: changes requested, re-running phase",
pipeline_id=pipeline_id,
phase=current_phase.value,
feedback_preview=resolution[:200],
)
pipeline = store.load_pipeline(pipeline_id)
pipeline.status = PipelineStatus.RUNNING
phase_execution = pipeline.get_phase_execution(current_phase)
phase_execution.status = PipelineStatus.RUNNING
phase_execution.completed_at = None # Reset — phase is re-running
phase_execution.review_cycles += 1

# Circuit breaker: don't allow unbounded HITL revision loops
max_cycles = pipeline.config.max_review_cycles
if phase_execution.review_cycles >= max_cycles:
logger.warning(
"HITL revision circuit breaker — advancing despite feedback",
pipeline_id=pipeline_id,
phase=current_phase.value,
review_cycles=phase_execution.review_cycles,
max_review_cycles=max_cycles,
)
store.save_pipeline(pipeline)
# Fall through to the approval path below
else:
hitl_revision_feedback = resolution
store.save_pipeline(pipeline)
report_pipeline_status(
pipeline,
event_type="phase.revision_requested",
message=f"Human requested changes to {current_phase.value}",
)
continue # Re-enter outer loop → re-run phase with feedback

# Approved — resume and advance
pipeline = store.load_pipeline(pipeline_id)
pipeline.status = PipelineStatus.RUNNING
# Restore phase status to COMPLETE now that the HITL gate is cleared
phase_execution = pipeline.get_phase_execution(current_phase)
phase_execution.status = PipelineStatus.COMPLETE
if phase_execution.completed_at is None:
phase_execution.completed_at = datetime.utcnow()
store.save_pipeline(pipeline)

# Determine next phase
Expand Down