Create pull requests

Create pull requests (PRs) to change, review, and merge code in a Git repository. You can create PRs from branches in the upstream repository or from branches in your fork of the repository. Your team can review the PRs and give feedback on changes. Reviewers can step through the proposed changes, leave comments, and vote to approve or reject the PRs. Depending on branch policies and other requirements, your PR might need to meet various criteria before you can complete the PR and merge the changes into the target branch.

For PR guidelines and management considerations, see About pull requests.

Prerequisites

• Access:
  • Basic access: To view or review PRs, you must be a member of an Azure DevOps project with at least Basic access.
  • Stakeholder access: For public projects, users granted Stakeholder access have full access to Azure Repos.
  • Repos enabled: Repos must be enabled on your project. If the Repos hub and associated pages don’t display, see Turn an Azure DevOps service on or off to reenable Repos.
  • Project membership:
    • If you don’t have a project, create one or sign up for free.
    • If you aren’t a project member, get added.
    • Azure DevOps CLI: You can create and manage PRs from the Azure command-line interface (CLI) with the azure-devops extension. For more information, see Get started with Azure DevOps CLI.
      • Azure Repos CLI commands for PRs use az repos pr .
      • Access:
        • Basic access: To view or review PRs, you must be a member of an Azure DevOps project with at least Basic access. If you aren't a project member, get added.
        • Repos enabled: Repos must be enabled on your project. If the Repos hub and associated pages don’t display, see Turn an Azure DevOps service on or off to reenable Repos.
        • Readers security group: To contribute to a PR, you must be a member of the Readers security group or have the corresponding permissions.
        • Contributors security group: To create and complete a PR, you must be a member of the Contributors security group or have the corresponding permissions.

        For more information about permissions and access, see Default Git repository and branch permissions and About access levels.

        Create a pull request

        You can create a new PR from the Azure DevOps project website, from Visual Studio, or from the Azure DevOps CLI.

        From the Azure DevOps project website, you can create a new PR from:

        • The Pull requests page.
        • A feature branch pushed to your repo.
        • An existing PR, by using cherry-pick.
        • The Development control in a linked Azure Boards work item.

        Create a PR from the Pull requests page

        You can create PRs for any branch from your project's Pull requests page on the web.

        1. On the Repos >Pull requests page, select New pull request at upper right.
        2. Select the branch with the changes and the branch you want to merge the changes into, such as the main branch.
        3. Enter your PR details and create the PR.

        Create a PR from a pushed branch

        After you push or update a feature branch, Azure Repos displays a prompt to create a PR.

        • On the Pull requests page:
        • On the Files page:

        Select Create a pull request to go to a page where you can enter your PR details and create the PR.

        Create a PR from a linked work item

        You can create a PR directly from an Azure Boards work item linked to the branch.

        

        1. In Azure Boards, from Backlogs or Queries in the Work view, open a work item that's linked to the branch.
        2. In the Development area of the work item, select Create a pull request.

        The link takes you to a page where you can enter your PR details and create the PR.

        To create a pull request:

        1. In the Git menu, select Manage Branches.
        2. Right-click a branch and select Create Pull Request.
        3. Edit the source and target branches as needed, enter a title and optional description, and select Create.

        Visual Studio 2019 version 16.8 and later versions provides a Git version control experience while maintaining the Team Explorer Git user interface. To use Team Explorer, uncheck Tools > Options > Preview Features > New Git user experience from the menu bar. You can exercise Git features from either interface interchangeably.

        To create PRs from Visual Studio Team Explorer:

        1. Connect to your project from Visual Studio.
        2. Select View >Team Explorer to open Team Explorer. You can also press Ctrl+\, Ctrl+M.
        3. From Home, select Pull Requests to view lists of PRs opened by you or assigned to you.
        4. From the Pull Requests view, select New Pull Request.
        5. Select the source and target branches, enter a title and optional description, and select Create.
        6. After the PR is created, select Open in browser to open the new PR in the Azure DevOps web portal.

        You can also create PRs from the Branches view in Team Explorer by right-clicking the branch name and selecting Create Pull Request.

        

        To create a new PR in your project, use az repos pr create. To open the PR in your browser after creation, use the --open parameter.

        az repos pr create [--auto-complete ] [--bypass-policy ] [--bypass-policy-reason] [--delete-source-branch ] [--description] [--detect ] [--draft ] [--merge-commit-message] [--open] [--org] [--project] [--repository] [--reviewers] [--source-branch] [--squash ] [--subscription] [--target-branch] [--title] [--transition-work-items ] [--work-items] 

        Parameters

        Parameter	Description
        --auto-complete	Set the pull request to complete automatically and merge into the target branch when all policies pass. Accepted values: false , true .
        --bypass-policy	Bypass any required policies and complete the pull request once it's mergeable. Accepted values: false , true .
        --bypass-policy-reason	Reason for bypassing required policies.
        --delete-source-branch	Delete the source branch after the pull request is completed and merged into the target branch. Accepted values: false , true .
        --description -d	Description for the new pull request, which can include Markdown. Each value is a new line. For example: --description "First Line" "Second Line" .
        --detect	Automatically detect organization. Accepted values: false , true .
        --draft	Create the pull request in draft mode as work in progress. Accepted values: false , true .
        --merge-commit-message	Message that shows when you merge commits.
        --open	Open the pull request in your web browser.
        --org --organization	Azure DevOps organization URL. You can configure the default organization using az devops configure -d organization=ORG_URL . Required if not configured as default or picked up via git config. Example: https://dev.azure.com/MyOrganizationName/ .
        --project -p	Name or ID of the project. You can configure the default project using az devops configure -d project=NAME_OR_ID . Required if not configured as default or picked up via git config.
        --repository -r	Name or ID of the repository to create the pull request in. Required parameter.
        --reviewers	Additional users or groups to include as reviewers on the new pull request. Space separated.
        --source-branch -s	Name of the source branch. Example: "dev" .
        --squash	Squash the commits in the source branch when merging into the target branch. Accepted values: false , true .
        --subscription	Name or ID of the Azure subscription. You can configure the default subscription by using az account set -s NAME_OR_ID .
        --target-branch -t	Name of the target branch. If not specified, defaults to the default branch of the target repository.
        --title	Title for the new pull request.
        --transition-work-items	Transition any work items linked to the PR into the next logical state when the PR changes status. For example change, Active work items to Resolved. Accepted values: false , true .
        --work-items	IDs of work items to link to the new pull request. Space separated.

        Example

        The following command creates a PR from the new branch to the default main branch of the Fabrikam repository, opens the PR in the browser, and shows the command output in a table. The example uses the default configuration: az devops configure --defaults organization=https://dev.azure.com/fabrikamprime project="Fabrikam Fiber" .

        az repos pr create --repository Fabrikam --source-branch new --open --output table ID Created Creator Title Status IsDraft Repository ---- ---------- ------------------- ---------------------------- -------- --------- ------------ 30 2021-10-31 jamalh@fabrikam.com Updated note-new-git-tool.md Active False Fabrikam 

        You can add many other PR details at or after PR creation. To add details, reviewers, work items, and completion options to the PR, see Add details or edit PRs.

        Azure DevOps CLI commands aren't supported for Azure DevOps Server.

        Add updates with cherry-pick

        You can copy commits from one branch to another by using cherry-pick. Unlike a merge or rebase, cherry-pick only brings the changes from the commits you select, instead of all the changes in a branch.

        To cherry-pick changes from a completed PR, select Cherry-pick on the PR's Overview page. To copy changes from an active PR, select Cherry-pick from the PR's More options menu. This action creates a new branch with the copied changes. You can then create a new PR from the new branch. For detailed instructions, see Copy changes with cherry-pick.

        Switch source and target branches of your pull request

        Before the first time you save a PR, you can switch the source and target branches of the PR by selecting the Switch source and target branches icon next to the branch names. Once the PR is active, this icon goes away, but you can still change the target branch of the PR.

        

        Use pull request templates

        A pull request template is a file containing Markdown text that populates the PR description when you create a PR. Good PR descriptions tell PR reviewers what to expect, and can help track tasks like adding unit tests and updating documentation. Your team can create a default PR template that adds text to all new PR descriptions in the repo. Also, you can select from branch-specific templates or other templates your team defines. For more information about creating and using PR templates, see Improve pull request descriptions using templates.

        If your repo has a default template, all PRs in the repo have the default template's description text at creation. To add other templates, select Add a template and then choose a template from the dropdown list. You can edit the template text in your description, remove it, or add other text.

        

        Create draft PRs

        If your PR isn't ready for review, you can create a draft PR to indicate work in progress. When the PR is ready for review, you can publish it, and begin or resume the full review process.

        Draft PRs have the following differences from published PRs:

        

        • Build validation policies don't run automatically. You can queue build validations manually by selecting the more options menu in the PR.
        • Voting is disabled while in draft mode.
        • Required reviewers aren't automatically added. Notifications are sent only to reviewers that you explicitly add to the draft PR.
        • Draft PRs display in the PR list with a Draft badge.

        Creating draft PRs requires Azure DevOps Server 2019.1 update or later version.

        To create a draft PR, select the arrow next to Create and select Create as draft when creating the PR. You don't have to use title prefixes such as WIP or DO NOT MERGE.

        

        When you're ready to have the PR reviewed and completed, select Publish at upper right in the PR. Publishing a PR assigns required reviewers, evaluates policies, and kicks off voting.

        

        To change an existing published PR to a draft, choose Mark as draft. Marking a PR as draft removes all existing votes.

        

        To set a PR to draft, open the PR and select Mark as draft.

        • To open a pull request from Visual Studio, in the Git menu, select >View Pull Requests, and select a pull request to open it.
        • To open a pull request from Visual Studio Team Explorer, from the Pull Requests view, right-click the PR and select Open in browser.

        To create a PR as a draft, set the --draft parameter to true when you create the PR. (Requires Azure DevOps Server 2020 or later version.)

        az repos pr create --repository Fabrikam --source-branch new --draft true 

        To set an existing PR to draft, use az repos pr update --id --draft true .

        To remove draft status from a PR, set --draft to false .

        Azure DevOps CLI commands aren't supported for Azure DevOps Server.

        Add or edit pull request title and description

        On the New pull request page, enter a Title and detailed Description of your changes, so others can see what problems the changes solve. On a new PR as in existing PRs, you can see the Files and Commits in your PR on separate tabs. You can add reviewers, link work items, and add tags to the PR.

        When you're ready to have your changes reviewed, select Create to create the PR.

        

        

        Don't worry if you don't have all of the work items, reviewers, or details ready when you create your PR. You can add or update these items after you create the PR.

        Edit PR title and description

        Keep the PR title and description up to date so reviewers can understand the changes in the PR.

        You can update the title of an existing PR by selecting the current title and updating the text. Select the Save icon to save changes, or select the Undo icon to discard the changes.

        Edit the PR description by selecting the Edit icon in the Description section.

        

        When you create a PR in Visual Studio, enter a title and detailed description of your changes so others can see what problems the changes solve. Keep these fields up to date so reviewers can understand the changes in the PR.

        To edit the title, description, or any other details in an existing PR, open the PR in your browser.

        You can add details during PR creation with az repos pr create, or update details in existing PRs with az repos pr update.

        When you create a PR with az repos pr create , add a --title and a detailed --description of your changes so others can see what problems the changes solve. The --description parameter accepts Markdown entry, and each value in the argument is a new line of the PR description.

        az repos pr create --repository Fabrikam --source-branch new --title "Update the readme" --description "This PR updates the readme." "These are *new* changes." 

        Keep these fields up to date so reviewers can understand the changes in the PR. To update details of a PR, use az repos pr update with the required PR --id parameter.

        For example, to update the title and description for PR #21, use:

        az repos pr update --id 21 --description "These updates are *no longer new*." --title "Old updates" 

        Azure DevOps CLI commands aren't supported for Azure DevOps Server.

        Add reviewers to a pull request

        You can add reviewers in the Reviewers section of a new or existing PR. You can also make existing optional reviewers required, or change required reviewers to optional or remove them, unless they're required by policy.

        Branch policies can require a minimum number of reviewers, or automatically include certain optional or required reviewers in PRs. You can't remove reviewers that are required by branch policy. You can change branch policy optional reviewers to be required, or remove them.

        To see the branch policy that automatically added a reviewer, in the Reviewers section of the PR Overview page, right-click More options next to the reviewer.

        

        If the user or group you want to review your PR isn't a member of your project, you need to add them to the project before you can add them as reviewers.

        To add reviewers to a new PR:

        1. On the New pull request page, under Reviewers, select Search users and groups to add as reviewers.
        2. As you enter a name or email address, a dropdown list shows a list of matching users and groups. Select names from the list to add as optional reviewers.
        3. To add required reviewers, select Add required reviewers, and then select Search to add required reviewers to search for and select the names.

        

        To add reviewers to an existing PR:

        1. In the Reviewers section of the Overview page, select Add, and then select Required reviewer or Optional reviewer.
        2. As you enter a name or email address, a list of matching users or groups appears. Select the names to add as reviewers.

        To change a reviewer between required and optional, or remove a reviewer, select More options to the right of the reviewer name. To see the membership of a group or team designated as a reviewer, select the group's icon.

        To add reviewers, open the PR in your browser, and then make your updates on the PR's Overview page.

        You can add optional reviewers to a PR at creation with
        az repos pr create --reviewer "" "" .

        az repos pr create --repository Fabrikam --source-branch new --reviewer "[Fabrikam]\Fabrikam Team" "[Fabrikam Fiber]\Web" 

        To add required reviewers, or change reviewers between optional and required, open and update the PR in the browser.

        To manage reviewers for an existing PR, use az repos pr reviewer.

        • To add reviewers to an existing PR, use
          az repos pr reviewer add --id --reviewer "" "" .
        • To list the reviewers for a PR, use az repos pr reviewer list --id .
        • To remove reviewers from a PR, use az repos pr reviewer remove --id --reviewer "" .

        az repos pr reviewer add --id --reviewers [--detect ] [--org] [--subscription] 

        Parameters

        Parameter	Description
        --id	ID of the pull request. Required.
        --reviewers	Users or groups to include as reviewers on a pull request. Space separated. Required.
        --detect	Automatically detect organization. Accepted values: false , true .
        --org --organization	Azure DevOps organization URL. You can configure the default organization by using az devops configure -d organization= . Required if not configured as default or picked up via git config. Example: https://dev.azure.com/MyOrganizationName/ .
        --subscription	Name or ID of Azure subscription. You can configure the default subscription by using az account set -s .

        Azure DevOps CLI commands aren't supported for Azure DevOps Server.

        Link work items to a pull request

        To link work items to a new PR:

        1. On the New pull request page, under Work items to link, select Search work items by ID or title.
        2. Start to enter a work item ID or title, and select the work item to link from the dropdown list that appears. Search by title returns work items filtered by state; all work items with states having state categories Completed and Removed are excluded. These work items are also filtered by date and user, with only items created or updated in the last 30 days shown, and they should be created by, assigned to, or authorized as the current user.

        To link work items to an existing PR:

        

        1. On the PR Overview tab, in the Work items area, select +.
        2. Enter the ID of the work item or search for the work item title. Select the work item from the list that appears.

        Remove a work item link by selecting the x icon next to the work item. Removing a link only removes the link between the work item and the PR. Links created in the branch or from commits remain in the work item.

        To link work items to your PR:

        1. Select the Overview tab in the PR.
        2. Select the add button in the Work Items area.
        3. Enter the ID of the work item or search for work items with titles that match your text. Select the work item from the list that appears. Search by title returns work items filtered by state; all work items with states having state categories Completed and Removed are excluded. These work items are also filtered by date and user, with only items created or updated in the last 30 days shown, and they should be created by, assigned to, or authorized as the current user.

        

        Remove work item links by selecting the remove button that appears when you hover over the work item. Removing a link only removes the link between a work item to a PR. Links created in the branch or from commits stay in the work item.

        To link work items, open the PR in your browser, and then make your updates on the PR's Overview page.

        You can link Azure Boards work items to PRs at PR creation with az repos pr create --work-items , where is the work item's ID.

        For example, the following command links work items #63 and #64 to a new PR in the new branch:

        az repos pr create --repository Fabrikam --source-branch new --work-items 63 64 

        To manage work items for an existing PR, use az repos pr work-item.

        • To link work items to an existing PR, use az repos pr work-item add --id --work-items .
        • To list the work items linked to a PR, use az repos pr work-item list --id .
        • To unlink a work item from a PR, use az repos pr work-item remove --id --work-items . Unlinking only removes the link between the work item and the PR. Links created in the branch or from commits stay in the work item.

        az repos pr work-item add --id --work-items [--detect ] [--org] [--subscription] 

        Parameters

        Parameter	Description
        --id	ID of the pull request. Required.
        --work-items	IDs of the work items to link. Space separated. Required.
        --detect	Automatically detect organization. Accepted values: false , true .
        --org --organization	Azure DevOps organization URL. You can configure the default organization by using az devops configure -d organization= . Required if not configured as default or picked up via git config. Example: https://dev.azure.com/MyOrganizationName/ .
        --subscription	Name or ID of Azure subscription. You can configure the default subscription by using az account set -s .

        Azure DevOps CLI commands aren't supported for Azure DevOps Server.

        Add tags to a pull request

        Use tags to show important details and help organize PRs. Tags can communicate extra information to reviewers, such as that the PR is still a work in progress, or is a hotfix for an upcoming release.

        

        To add a tag when creating a PR, type a tag name in the Tags section. After you create the PR, you can manage tags in the Tags section.

        

        Add attachments to pull requests

        You can attach files, including images, to your PR during or after creation. Select the paper clip icon below the Description field, or drag and drop files directly into the Description field of the PR.

        

        Change the target branch of an active pull request

        For most teams, nearly all PRs target a default branch, such as main or develop . If you sometimes need to target a different branch, it's easy to forget to change the target branch when you create the PR. If that happens, you can change the target branch of an active PR:

        1. Select More actions at upper-right on the PR Overview page, and then select Change target branch from the dropdown menu.
        2. In the Change target branch pane, select Choose a target branch, select the new branch, and then select Change.

        Email pull request notifications to stakeholders

        You can share a pull request by email to notify reviewers and communicate with team members. To share a PR:

        

        1. Select More options on the PR Overview page, and then select Share pull request.
        2. On the Share pull request screen, add recipients by typing their names in the To: field and selecting from the user names that appear. You can also remove recipients.
        3. Add an optional message in the Note (Optional) field, and then select Send. Recipients receive an email requesting their attention and linking to the PR.

        If you use the built-in email feature, you can only send the email to project members' individual addresses. Adding a team group or security group to the To: line isn't supported. If you add an email account that the system doesn't recognize, you receive a message that one or more recipients of your email don't have permissions to read the mailed pull request.

        For the email feature to work, your administrator for Azure DevOps Server must configure an SMTP server.