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Add .github/dependabot.yml to open weekly dependency PRs - #548

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Add .github/dependabot.yml to open weekly dependency PRs#548
turbomam wants to merge 2 commits into
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add-dependabot-config

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@turbomam

@turbomam turbomam commented Apr 17, 2026

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What this does

Configures Dependabot to open weekly PRs for Python and GitHub Actions dependencies.

  • Minor / patch updates → one grouped PR per week per ecosystem (not N separate PRs)
  • Major updates → individual PRs (Dependabot default; needed for per-PR review)
  • Labels: dependencies (+ github-actions for Actions)

What it explicitly does NOT do

  • Does not merge anything. Every Dependabot PR still requires a human merge click.
  • Does not change branch protection, auto-merge, or any other repo setting.
  • Does not touch poetry.lock directly — Dependabot will resolve and propose updates through its own PRs.

Strengths

  • Capability-only; no compulsion. The config only causes Dependabot to propose PRs. Nothing merges automatically.
  • Grouped minor/patch reduces review burden. One weekly PR per ecosystem for small bumps, vs a PR per package (which can be 10+ with 33 open alerts).
  • Addresses latent vulnerability exposure. The repo currently has 33 open Dependabot alerts (1 critical, 10 high) with no configured mechanism to propose fixes.
  • Easily reversible. Deleting the file turns Dependabot back off.

Weaknesses / things worth flagging

Admin-required follow-ups (partially addresses #546)

These need admin permission (my role is maintain). Worth doing once this PR lands to get the most value:

  1. Enable branch protection on master with qc.yml jobs as required status checks. Today: no protection configured (gh api repos/.../branches/master/protection returns 404). This is the biggest single gap in the repo's merge-safety posture.
  2. Enable allow_auto_merge at repo level (Settings → General → Pull Requests). Adds the per-PR auto-merge button; does not force anything.
  3. Optional: wire Copilot code review as auto-requested reviewer for non-Dependabot PRs.

Risk

Low. If the team wants to decline, closing this PR reverts to the status quo (no Dependabot PRs; alerts continue to accumulate).

Copilot AI review requested due to automatic review settings April 17, 2026 16:47

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Pull request overview

Adds a Dependabot configuration to automate weekly dependency update pull requests for Python (Poetry via pip ecosystem) and GitHub Actions, with grouping intended to reduce PR noise.

Changes:

  • Introduces .github/dependabot.yml with weekly schedules for pip and github-actions.
  • Groups Python minor/patch updates into a single weekly PR and applies dependency-related labels.
  • Adds grouping and labeling for GitHub Actions updates.

💡 Add Copilot custom instructions for smarter, more guided reviews. Learn how to get started.

Comment thread .github/dependabot.yml
Comment on lines +35 to +38
groups:
actions:
patterns:
- "*"

Copilot AI Apr 17, 2026

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The PR description says major updates should remain individual PRs, but this GitHub Actions group will currently match all updates (including majors) because it doesn’t restrict update-types. To keep majors ungrouped (Dependabot default), add update-types: ["minor", "patch"] to this actions group (or split into separate minor/patch group and leave majors ungrouped).

Copilot uses AI. Check for mistakes.
Configures Dependabot to open grouped weekly PRs for Python and
GitHub Actions dependencies. Minor/patch updates are bundled into one
weekly PR per ecosystem to reduce review overhead; major updates get
individual PRs so they can be reviewed separately.

No automation is forced — Dependabot only opens PRs; merges remain
manual.

Partially addresses #546.
Without update-types on the actions group, major Actions updates would
have been swept into the group too, contradicting the PR description
that says majors stay individual. Mirror the pip group's restriction.
@realmarcin
realmarcin force-pushed the add-dependabot-config branch from ab915f2 to a21d765 Compare August 15, 2026 07:23
realmarcin added a commit that referenced this pull request Aug 16, 2026
A backlog doc that misstates status is worse than none, and this one shipped
with three errors of exactly that kind — all introduced by describing state that
changed later the same day.

* It listed #548, #550, #551 and #552 as four untouched April drafts. #550 and
  #551 were closed hours before this file was written (obsolete, and
  false-premise). Only two are open.
* It described #546 as "30 Dependabot alerts". All 33 were stale — every one
  named a package already pinned at or past its patched version — and have since
  been dismissed with per-alert evidence. Calling them outstanding overstates the
  exposure, which is the opposite of what a security line should do.
* It called two of #788's regressions sibling-repo work and miscounted which
  four they were. `alpha-Lactose` and `Carboxymethyl cellulose` were **live** —
  `find_chebi_by_name` returned the monohydrate and the sodium salt — and are
  now overridden locally, so the shipped artifact is correct while the upstream
  rows remain wrong. `Cysteine-HCl` is a pre-existing bad grounding, not one of
  the four.

Also dropped the exact sibling-repo line numbers, which had already drifted
(954 -> 1017, 1183 -> 1246). Citing line numbers in an external, unpinned file
guarantees this.
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