Automations

Overview

Create an automation to have Bits Code start a session when a trigger fires—such as a new Code Security finding or a recurring schedule. Bits Code delivers the results as a pull or merge request, or a Slack notification.

With Bits Code automations, you can:

• Generate code fixes on a schedule, without starting each session manually
• Have Bits Code respond to signals from other Datadog products, such as a new APM Recommendation, a flaky test, or a Code Security finding
• Route the resulting code changes directly to a pull or merge request, or notify a team in Slack

Prerequisites

To set up a Bits Code automation, each of the following must be true:

• You have the Bits Code Write (bits_dev_write) permission in Datadog.
• You have completed the Bits Code setup.
• If you plan to have your automations output Slack notifications, you have set up the Slack integration.

Create an automation

You can create a custom automation, or use a Datadog-provided automation template.

By default, newly created automations have an Active status, and appear in the My Automations list.

Create a custom automation

To create a custom Bits Code automation:

1. In Datadog, navigate to Bits AI > Bits Code > Automations.
2. Click New Automation.
3. In the Automation name field, enter a descriptive name for the automation.
4. In the Trigger section, configure a trigger.
5. In the Output section, configure one or more outputs.
6. Click Create Automation or Create & run now.

Create an automation from a template

Find Datadog-provided automation templates in the Automation Templates section. These may include:

• Create PRs based on APM Recommendations: Generates pull or merge requests based on APM Recommendations for a specific service.
• Fix frequent errors for a repo: Uses the Custom Prompt trigger to instruct Bits Code to scan the last 24 hours of logs, find the most frequent error, and open a pull or merge request with a fix.

Click a template tile to be taken to the new automation form. You must configure an output before creating the automation.

Triggers

A trigger defines when an automation runs and what Bits Code acts on. A trigger is built from up to three components:

• Product finding: a signal from within Datadog, such as an Error Tracking issue
• Custom prompt: a freeform instruction telling Bits Code what to do against a chosen repository
• Schedule: a recurring time interval, such as daily or on specific days of the week

Click Add Trigger to add a component. You can combine a product finding with a schedule, a custom prompt with a schedule, or use a product finding on its own.

To limit how many Bits Code sessions the automation can create in a given period (for example, 5 runs per Week), click Add Trigger > Set max runs. One automation execution may produce more than one session. Use this setting to control the volume of pull or merge requests, or Slack notifications, an automation produces.

Product finding trigger

A product finding trigger runs the automation in response to new issues in another Datadog product (for example, Error Tracking or Code Security). You can use a product finding trigger by itself, which runs the automation whenever there is a new finding, or with a schedule and lookback window you define (in the New findings within field).

When setting up a product finding trigger, you can configure additional filters, which vary by product. For example:

• Flaky Tests supports filtering by Repository, Branch (defaults to the repository’s default branch), and Status.
• Code Security (SAST) supports filtering by Repository, Severity, Rule to remediate, and a toggle to Filter out findings identified as false positives by Bits AI.

Custom prompt trigger

A custom prompt tells Bits Code what to do each time the automation runs, in freeform text, against a chosen repository. Use a custom prompt for recurring maintenance tasks that aren’t tied to a specific Datadog signal, such as updating dependencies or refreshing documentation.

Schedule trigger

A schedule trigger controls when an automation runs. It can be used in combination with a product finding or a custom prompt. When setting a schedule, you can choose from:

• Every…: Choose a preset interval (for example, Every day at 09:00 am).
• Custom Schedule: Choose specific days of the week and a time of day (for example, Mo, We, Fr at 03:00 pm).

Outputs

An output defines what Bits Code does after a session completes. An automation can have one or more outputs, including opening a pull or merge request and generating a Slack notification.

Pull or merge request output

You can configure your automation to:

• Create a PR or MR: Open a pull or merge request with the proposed changes
• Draft a PR or MR: Open a draft pull or merge request with the proposed changes

As the author of a Bits Code automation, you are the author of all pull or merge requests it generates.

Slack message output

You can configure your automation to send a Slack message summarizing the session and code changes. If you use a pull or merge request output in addition to a Slack output, Bits Code includes a link to the pull or merge request in the Slack message.

When you add a Slack message output, by default, Bits Code sends the message to the channel configured for the affected service in Catalog. You can set a fallback Slack channel, which is used when no channel is set in Catalog.

Manage automations

On Automations, view the automations you created on the My Automations tab. Switch to All to see automations created by anyone in your organization.

You can pause or resume any automation, but you can only edit or delete automations you created.

Further reading

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