Unify create-* close-older fields via shared CloseOlderConfig embed

docs/adr/54656-unify-close-older-config-via-shared-embed.md

@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+# ADR-54656: Unify close-older Config Fields via Shared Struct Embed
+
+**Date**: 2026-08-22
+**Status**: Draft
+**Deciders**: pelikhan, copilot-swe-agent
+
+---
+
+### Context
+
+`create-issue`, `create-discussion`, and `create-pull-request` each independently declared close-older enable (`CloseOlderIssues`, `CloseOlderDiscussions`, `CloseOlderPullRequests`) and key (`CloseOlderKey`) fields on their respective config structs. Downstream handler consumers in `safe_outputs_handler_registry.go` accessed these fields through parallel but structurally identical code paths. Any behavioural change to close-older logic required coordinated edits across three config struct definitions and three consumer call sites, with no compiler enforcement that they stayed in sync.
+
+### Decision
+
+We will introduce a shared `CloseOlderConfig` struct in `pkg/workflow/create_entity_helpers.go` containing canonical `Enabled *string` and `Key string` fields, and embed it inline into `CreateIssuesConfig`, `CreateDiscussionsConfig`, and `CreatePullRequestsConfig`. Existing public YAML keys (`close-older-issues`, `close-older-discussions`, `close-older-pull-requests`) are preserved: `Enabled` is tagged `yaml:"-"` so it is never directly settable from workflow frontmatter, and is instead populated after unmarshaling via `closeOlderEnabledFromConfigData`, which reads the already-preprocessed entity-specific value out of the raw config map. All downstream consumers are updated to read from `CloseOlderConfig.Enabled` and `CloseOlderConfig.Key`.
+
+### Alternatives Considered
+
+#### Alternative 1: Shared accessor functions without struct consolidation
+
+Keep per-entity fields on each config struct but introduce a shared interface or helper functions to access them uniformly. This would allow downstream code to call a common accessor rather than field-by-field paths, without changing the struct layout.
+
+**Why not chosen**: The struct duplication itself is the problem — the accessors would hide it but not eliminate it. New close-older options would still require changes in three places. The embed approach removes that duplication at the type level, giving the compiler the ability to catch missed updates.
+
+#### Alternative 2: Unified YAML key without backward-compatible aliasing
+
+Replace the three entity-specific YAML keys with a single `close-older-enabled` key across all handler configs, removing the aliasing step.
+
+**Why not chosen**: This would be a breaking change for all existing workflow YAML files that use `close-older-issues`, `close-older-discussions`, or `close-older-pull-requests` keys. The aliasing approach achieves consolidation internally while keeping the public API stable, which is required for backward compatibility.
+
+### Consequences
+
+#### Positive
+- Single source of truth for close-older configuration: `CloseOlderConfig` is defined once and embedded by reference everywhere.
+- Downstream consumers (`safe_outputs_handler_registry.go`) read from a uniform path (`c.CloseOlderConfig.Enabled`, `c.CloseOlderConfig.Key`) regardless of the originating handler type.
+- New close-older fields only need to be added to `CloseOlderConfig` to propagate across all three create handlers automatically.
+- Parser coverage for all three aliasing paths is validated by dedicated tests in `create_close_older_config_test.go`.
+
+#### Negative
+- Post-unmarshal population introduces a small amount of indirection: `Enabled` is not set by YAML unmarshaling directly but by an explicit call to `closeOlderEnabledFromConfigData` in each handler's `postUnmarshal` callback, reading the already-preprocessed entity-specific key. A reader unfamiliar with this pattern may be confused that `CloseOlderConfig.Enabled` has no YAML tag despite being populated from YAML input.
+- The embed uses `yaml:",inline"`, which means YAML tags on `CloseOlderConfig` fields coexist in the same namespace as the parent struct's tags; tag conflicts in future fields require care.
+
+#### Neutral
+- Existing per-entity YAML keys continue to work unchanged; no migration of consumer configs is required.
+- The `close-older-key` YAML tag is shared across all three handlers through the embed, making its semantics consistent by construction.
+- `isCloseOlderPullRequestsEnabled` is updated to dereference `config.CloseOlderConfig.Enabled` instead of the old `config.CloseOlderPullRequests` field.
+
+---
+
+*ADR created by [adr-writer agent]. Review and finalize before changing status from Draft to Accepted.*

pkg/workflow/compiler_safe_outputs_config_handlers_test.go

@@ -279,7 +279,9 @@ func TestHandlerConfigBooleanFields(t *testing.T) {
 			name: "close older discussions",
 			safeOutputs: &SafeOutputsConfig{
 				CreateDiscussions: &CreateDiscussionsConfig{
-					CloseOlderDiscussions: strPtr("true"),
+					CloseOlderConfig: CloseOlderConfig{
+						Enabled: strPtr("true"),
+					},
 				},
 			},
 			checkField: "create_discussion",

pkg/workflow/compiler_safe_outputs_config_test.go

@@ -64,10 +64,12 @@ func TestAddHandlerManagerConfigEnvVar(t *testing.T) {
 					BaseSafeOutputConfig: BaseSafeOutputConfig{
 						Max: strPtr("2"),
 					},
-					Category:              "general",
-					TitlePrefix:           "[Discussion] ",
-					Labels:                []string{"ai"},
-					CloseOlderDiscussions: strPtr("true"),
+					Category:    "general",
+					TitlePrefix: "[Discussion] ",
+					Labels:      []string{"ai"},
+					CloseOlderConfig: CloseOlderConfig{
+						Enabled: strPtr("true"),
+					},
 				},
 			},
 			checkContains: []string{

pkg/workflow/create_close_older_config_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,117 @@
+//go:build !integration
+
+package workflow
+
+import (
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
+)
+
+func TestParseCreateIssuesConfigMapsCloseOlderConfig(t *testing.T) {
+	compiler := NewCompiler(WithFailFast(true))
+	config := compiler.parseCreateIssuesConfig(map[string]any{
+		"create-issue": map[string]any{
+			"close-older-issues": true,
+			"close-older-key":    "issue-key",
+		},
+	})
+
+	require.NotNil(t, config)
+	require.NotNil(t, config.Enabled)
+	assert.Equal(t, "true", *config.Enabled)
+	assert.Equal(t, "issue-key", config.Key)
+}
+
+func TestParseCreateDiscussionsConfigMapsCloseOlderConfig(t *testing.T) {
+	compiler := NewCompiler(WithFailFast(true))
+	config := compiler.parseCreateDiscussionsConfig(map[string]any{
+		"create-discussion": map[string]any{
+			"close-older-discussions": "${{ true }}",
+			"close-older-key":         "discussion-key",
+		},
+	})
+
+	require.NotNil(t, config)
+	require.NotNil(t, config.Enabled)
+	assert.Equal(t, "${{ true }}", *config.Enabled)
+	assert.Equal(t, "discussion-key", config.Key)
+}
+
+func TestParseCreatePullRequestsConfigMapsCloseOlderConfig(t *testing.T) {
+	compiler := NewCompiler(WithFailFast(true))
+	config := compiler.parseCreatePullRequestsConfig(map[string]any{
+		"create-pull-request": map[string]any{
+			"close-older-pull-requests": true,
+			"close-older-key":           "pull-request-key",
+		},
+	})
+
+	require.NotNil(t, config)
+	require.NotNil(t, config.Enabled)
+	assert.Equal(t, "true", *config.Enabled)
+	assert.Equal(t, "pull-request-key", config.Key)
+}
+
+func TestParseCreateIssuesConfigNoCloseOlderWhenAbsent(t *testing.T) {
+	compiler := NewCompiler(WithFailFast(true))
+	config := compiler.parseCreateIssuesConfig(map[string]any{
+		"create-issue": map[string]any{},
+	})
+
+	require.NotNil(t, config)
+	assert.Nil(t, config.Enabled, "Enabled should be nil when not set")
+	assert.Empty(t, config.Key)
+}
+
+func TestParseCreateIssuesConfigCloseOlderExplicitFalse(t *testing.T) {
+	compiler := NewCompiler(WithFailFast(true))
+	config := compiler.parseCreateIssuesConfig(map[string]any{
+		"create-issue": map[string]any{
+			"close-older-issues": false,
+		},
+	})
+
+	require.NotNil(t, config)
+	require.NotNil(t, config.Enabled, "Enabled should be set (not nil) when explicitly false")
+	assert.Equal(t, "false", *config.Enabled)
+}
+
+func TestParseCreateDiscussionsConfigNoCloseOlderWhenAbsent(t *testing.T) {
+	compiler := NewCompiler(WithFailFast(true))
+	config := compiler.parseCreateDiscussionsConfig(map[string]any{
+		"create-discussion": map[string]any{},
+	})
+
+	require.NotNil(t, config)
+	assert.Nil(t, config.Enabled, "Enabled should be nil when not set")
+	assert.Empty(t, config.Key)
+}
+
+func TestParseCreatePullRequestsConfigNoCloseOlderWhenAbsent(t *testing.T) {
+	compiler := NewCompiler(WithFailFast(true))
+	config := compiler.parseCreatePullRequestsConfig(map[string]any{
+		"create-pull-request": map[string]any{},
+	})
+
+	require.NotNil(t, config)
+	assert.Nil(t, config.Enabled, "Enabled should be nil when not set")
+	assert.Empty(t, config.Key)
+}
+
+// TestParseCreateIssuesConfigCloseOlderEnabledIsNotAPublicKey verifies that the internal
+// canonical field name (matching the shared CloseOlderConfig.Enabled tag prior to this
+// change) is not accepted directly as a workflow-authored YAML key, since Enabled is now
+// tagged yaml:"-" and only populated via closeOlderEnabledFromConfigData.
+func TestParseCreateIssuesConfigCloseOlderEnabledIsNotAPublicKey(t *testing.T) {
+	compiler := NewCompiler(WithFailFast(true))
+	config := compiler.parseCreateIssuesConfig(map[string]any{
+		"create-issue": map[string]any{
+			"close-older-enabled": true,
+		},
+	})
+
+	require.NotNil(t, config)
+	assert.Nil(t, config.Enabled, "close-older-enabled must not be a supported public YAML key")
+}

pkg/workflow/create_discussion.go

@@ -14,17 +14,16 @@ var discussionLog = logger.New("workflow:create_discussion")
 type CreateDiscussionsConfig struct {
 	BaseSafeOutputConfig          `yaml:",inline"`
 	SafeOutputAllowedLabelsConfig `yaml:",inline"`
-	TitlePrefix                   string   `yaml:"title-prefix,omitempty"`
-	Category                      string   `yaml:"category,omitempty"`                // Discussion category ID or name
-	MinBodyLength                 int      `yaml:"min-body-length,omitempty"`         // Minimum required discussion body length before footer/markers
-	Labels                        []string `yaml:"labels,omitempty"`                  // Labels to attach to discussions and match when closing older ones
-	TargetRepoSlug                string   `yaml:"target-repo,omitempty"`             // Target repository in format "owner/repo" for cross-repository discussions
-	AllowedRepos                  []string `yaml:"allowed-repos,omitempty"`           // List of additional repositories that discussions can be created in
-	CloseOlderDiscussions         *string  `yaml:"close-older-discussions,omitempty"` // When true, close older discussions with same title prefix or labels as outdated
-	CloseOlderKey                 string   `yaml:"close-older-key,omitempty"`         // Optional explicit deduplication key for close-older matching. When set, uses gh-aw-close-key marker instead of workflow-id markers.
-	RequiredCategory              string   `yaml:"required-category,omitempty"`       // Required category for matching when close-older-discussions is enabled
-	Expires                       int      `yaml:"expires,omitempty"`                 // Hours until the discussion expires and should be automatically closed
-	FallbackToIssue               *bool    `yaml:"fallback-to-issue,omitempty"`       // When true (default), fallback to create-issue if discussion creation fails due to permissions.
+	TitlePrefix                   string           `yaml:"title-prefix,omitempty"`
+	Category                      string           `yaml:"category,omitempty"`        // Discussion category ID or name
+	MinBodyLength                 int              `yaml:"min-body-length,omitempty"` // Minimum required discussion body length before footer/markers
+	Labels                        []string         `yaml:"labels,omitempty"`          // Labels to attach to discussions and match when closing older ones
+	TargetRepoSlug                string           `yaml:"target-repo,omitempty"`     // Target repository in format "owner/repo" for cross-repository discussions
+	AllowedRepos                  []string         `yaml:"allowed-repos,omitempty"`   // List of additional repositories that discussions can be created in
+	CloseOlderConfig              `yaml:",inline"` // Shared close-older settings; Enabled is sourced from close-older-discussions.
+	RequiredCategory              string           `yaml:"required-category,omitempty"` // Required category for matching when close-older-discussions is enabled
+	Expires                       int              `yaml:"expires,omitempty"`           // Hours until the discussion expires and should be automatically closed
+	FallbackToIssue               *bool            `yaml:"fallback-to-issue,omitempty"` // When true (default), fallback to create-issue if discussion creation fails due to permissions.
 }
 
 // parseCreateDiscussionsConfig handles create-discussion configuration
@@ -44,7 +43,9 @@ func (c *Compiler) parseCreateDiscussionsConfig(outputMap map[string]any) *Creat
 			return &CreateDiscussionsConfig{}
 		},
 		nil,
-		func(_ map[string]any, config *CreateDiscussionsConfig, expiresDisabled bool) {
+		func(configData map[string]any, config *CreateDiscussionsConfig, expiresDisabled bool) {
+			config.Enabled = closeOlderEnabledFromConfigData(configData, "close-older-discussions")
+
 			// Set default max if not specified
 			if config.Max == nil {
 				config.Max = defaultIntStr(1)
@@ -93,7 +94,7 @@ func (c *Compiler) parseCreateDiscussionsConfig(outputMap map[string]any) *Creat
 	if len(config.AllowedRepos) > 0 {
 		discussionLog.Printf("Allowed repos configured: %v", config.AllowedRepos)
 	}
-	if config.CloseOlderDiscussions != nil {
+	if config.Enabled != nil {
 		discussionLog.Print("Close older discussions flag set")
 		if config.RequiredCategory != "" {
 			discussionLog.Printf("Required category for close older discussions: %q", config.RequiredCategory)

pkg/workflow/create_entity_helpers.go

@@ -13,6 +13,44 @@ type CreateParseOptions struct {
 	HandleExpires bool
 }
 
+// CloseOlderConfig holds shared close-older settings across create entity handlers.
+type CloseOlderConfig struct {
+	// Enabled is intentionally not a YAML field (yaml:"-"): it must not be settable
+	// directly from workflow frontmatter. It is populated after unmarshaling via
+	// closeOlderEnabledFromConfigData, keeping each entity's canonical key
+	// (e.g. close-older-issues) as the sole public YAML surface.
+	Enabled *string `yaml:"-"`
+	Key     string  `yaml:"close-older-key,omitempty"` // Optional explicit deduplication key for close-older matching. When set, uses gh-aw-close-key marker instead of workflow-id markers.
+}
+
+// closeOlderEnabledFromConfigData reads the close-older enabled value from sourceKey in
+// configData (normalized to a string form by preprocessBoolFieldAsString, which callers
+// must have already run for sourceKey) and returns a pointer suitable for
+// CloseOlderConfig.Enabled, or nil when sourceKey was not set. Also tolerates a raw bool
+// (e.g. if called before preprocessing) as a defensive fallback. Intended to be called
+// from postUnmarshal callbacks, once per entity handler.
+func closeOlderEnabledFromConfigData(configData map[string]any, sourceKey string) *string {
+	if configData == nil {
+		return nil
+	}
+	value, exists := configData[sourceKey]
+	if !exists {
+		return nil
+	}
+	switch v := value.(type) {
+	case string:
+		return &v
+	case bool:
+		str := "false"
+		if v {
+			str = "true"
+		}
+		return &str
+	default:
+		return nil
+	}
+}
+
 // parseCreateEntityConfig parses create-* config scaffolding shared by issue/discussion/PR handlers.
 //
 // Parameters:

pkg/workflow/create_issue.go

@@ -20,11 +20,10 @@ type CreateIssuesConfig struct {
 	DeduplicateByTitle            *TemplatableBoolOrInt `yaml:"deduplicate-by-title,omitempty"` // When true or 0, deduplicate by exact title match. When set to a positive integer N, also allow fuzzy matches up to edit distance N. When false or omitted, disable title-based deduplication. Accepts GitHub Actions expressions.
 	TargetRepoSlug                string                `yaml:"target-repo,omitempty"`          // Target repository in format "owner/repo" for cross-repository issues
 	AllowedRepos                  []string              `yaml:"allowed-repos,omitempty"`        // List of additional repositories that issues can be created in
-	CloseOlderIssues              *string               `yaml:"close-older-issues,omitempty"`   // When true, close older issues with same title prefix or labels as "not planned"
-	CloseOlderKey                 string                `yaml:"close-older-key,omitempty"`      // Optional explicit deduplication key for close-older matching. When set, uses gh-aw-close-key marker instead of workflow-id markers.
-	GroupByDay                    *string               `yaml:"group-by-day,omitempty"`         // When true, if an open issue was already created today (UTC), post new content as a comment on it instead of creating a duplicate. Works best with close-older-issues: true.
-	Expires                       int                   `yaml:"expires,omitempty"`              // Hours until the issue expires and should be automatically closed
-	Group                         *string               `yaml:"group,omitempty"`                // If true, group issues as sub-issues under a parent issue (workflow ID is used as group identifier)
+	CloseOlderConfig              `yaml:",inline"`      // Shared close-older settings; Enabled is sourced from close-older-issues.
+	GroupByDay                    *string               `yaml:"group-by-day,omitempty"` // When true, if an open issue was already created today (UTC), post new content as a comment on it instead of creating a duplicate. Works best with close-older-issues: true.
+	Expires                       int                   `yaml:"expires,omitempty"`      // Hours until the issue expires and should be automatically closed
+	Group                         *string               `yaml:"group,omitempty"`        // If true, group issues as sub-issues under a parent issue (workflow ID is used as group identifier)
 }
 
 // parseCreateIssuesConfig handles create-issue configuration
@@ -47,7 +46,9 @@ func (c *Compiler) parseCreateIssuesConfig(outputMap map[string]any) *CreateIssu
 			coerceStringOrArrayFields(configData, []string{"assignees"}, createIssueLog)
 			return true
 		},
-		func(_ map[string]any, config *CreateIssuesConfig, expiresDisabled bool) {
+		func(configData map[string]any, config *CreateIssuesConfig, expiresDisabled bool) {
+			config.Enabled = closeOlderEnabledFromConfigData(configData, "close-older-issues")
+
 			// Set default max if not specified
 			if config.Max == nil {
 				config.Max = defaultIntStr(1)