release: v0.14.2

.gitea/workflows/post-merge.yml

@@ -82,6 +82,8 @@ jobs:
           fetch-depth: 0
           token: ${{ secrets.REPO_TOKEN }}
       - name: Set up environment
+        env:
+          REPO_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.REPO_TOKEN }}
         run: make setup-release
       - name: Configure git
         run: |
@@ -106,13 +108,8 @@ jobs:
             echo "No tag found — skipping publish"
             exit 0
           fi
-          HEAD_MSG=$(git log -1 --format=%s)
-          if echo "$HEAD_MSG" | grep -q "^release: ${TAG}"; then
-            echo "Publishing release $TAG..."
-            python3 -m devx.ci.publish "$TAG" "${{ github.repository }}"
-          else
-            echo "HEAD is not a release commit for $TAG — skipping publish"
-          fi
+          echo "Publishing release $TAG (idempotent — skips if already published)..."
+          python3 -m devx.ci.publish "$TAG" "${{ github.repository }}"
       - name: Notify on failure
         if: failure()
         env:

AGENTS.md

@@ -66,9 +66,8 @@ src/devx/
 │   ├── sync_wiki.py     # Sync documentation to Gitea wiki
 │   ├── push_badges.py   # Generate and push quality badges (--retries for retry on git push failures)
 │   ├── notify_failure.py    # Create Gitea issues on CI failures (--auto-login)
-│   ├── merge_junit.py   # Merge JUnit XML reports from parallel runners
 │   ├── distribute_files.py  # Distribute files across parallel runners
-│   ├── integration_guard.py # Run pytest with cross-runner fail-fast + JUnit output
+│   ├── integration_guard.py # Run pytest with cross-runner fail-fast
 │   ├── check_translations.py  # Translation completeness check
 │   └── doc_coverage.py  # Documentation coverage check
 ├── tools/               # Developer tooling modules (run locally or by CI)
@@ -81,7 +80,7 @@ src/devx/
 └── molecule/            # Optional molecule testing helpers (for Ansible projects)
     ├── discover_runners.py    # Dynamic Gitea runner discovery
     ├── distribute_molecule.py # Distribute molecule scenarios across runners (--roles-root for multi-role)
-    ├── molecule_ci_guard.py   # Run molecule with cross-runner fail-fast + JUnit output (--roles-root, --junit-output)
+    ├── molecule_ci_guard.py   # Run molecule with cross-runner fail-fast (--roles-root)
     ├── molecule_all.py        # Run all molecule scenarios locally
     └── platforms.py           # Supported molecule platforms
 ```
@@ -163,7 +162,7 @@ the PR. Then add the `ready-to-merge` label. The auto-merge workflow will:
 1. **Validate** PR title format (`DEVX-N: <vikunja task title>`) and match against Vikunja task title
 2. **Check** that at least one substantive APPROVE review exists
 3. Wait for all CI checks to pass (including the `pr-review` job)
-4. Squash-merge with title: `DEVX-N <conventional commit message>` (space-separated, no colon after DEVX-N)
+4. Squash-merge with title: `DEVX-N: <conventional commit message>`
 5. The post-merge workflow marks the Vikunja task as done
 6. The release workflow automatically versions, tags, and publishes
 
@@ -260,7 +259,7 @@ by `python -m devx.tools.install_tools` and configured by
 
 ### git-cliff Commit Preprocessing
 
-Merge commits on master have the format `DEVX-N <conventional commit>`. The
+Merge commits on master have the format `DEVX-N: <conventional commit>`. The
 `cliff.toml` includes a `commit_preprocessors` entry that strips the `DEVX-N `
 prefix before parsing. This ensures all merged work appears in the changelog.
 
@@ -283,7 +282,7 @@ setuptools via `dynamic = ["version"]` in `pyproject.toml`.
 | Branch name | `DEVX-N-short-description` | `DEVX-12-add-release-script` |
 | Branch commits | `<conventional commit>` | `feat: add release script` |
 | PR title | `DEVX-N: <vikunja task title>` | `DEVX-12: Add release automation` |
-| Merge commit | `DEVX-N <conventional commit>` | `DEVX-12 feat: add release script` |
+| Merge commit | `DEVX-N: <conventional commit>` | `DEVX-12: feat: add release script` |
 
 ### Task ID Resolution
 

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -2,6 +2,62 @@
 
 All notable changes to this project will be documented in this file.
 
+## [0.14.2] - 2026-06-26
+
+### Bug Fixes
+
+- Make repo arg optional in publish CLI, auto-detect from GITHUB_REPOSITORY
+
+## [0.14.1] - 2026-06-25
+
+### Bug Fixes
+
+- Handle 'already a release' error idempotently in publish
+
+## [0.14.0] - 2026-06-25
+
+### Features
+
+- Add FORCE_DEPLOY env var, --git flag, --from-tag flag
+
+## [0.13.0] - 2026-06-25
+
+### Features
+
+- Add --force flag to classify_changes, fix api_clients coverage
+
+### Bug Fixes
+
+- Squash-merge format uses space not colon after task ID
+- Revert squash-merge format to use colon after task ID
+
+## [0.1.0] - 2026-06-25
+
+## [0.12.5] - 2026-06-25
+
+### Bug Fixes
+
+- Make PyPI publish failures non-fatal
+
+## [0.12.4] - 2026-06-25
+
+### Bug Fixes
+
+- Pass REPO_TOKEN to setup-release so tea login is configured
+- Guarantee Gitea release for every tag
+
+## [0.12.3] - 2026-06-25
+
+### Refactor
+
+- Remove JUnit reporting from devx
+
+## [0.12.2] - 2026-06-25
+
+### Bug Fixes
+
+- Remove auto-rebase from auto-merge to prevent CI feedback loop
+
 ## [0.12.1] - 2026-06-25
 
 ### Bug Fixes

README.md

@@ -16,12 +16,12 @@ quality badges.
 
 [![CI](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions/workflows/ci.yml/badge.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
 [![License: GPL-3.0](https://img.shields.io/badge/license-GPL--3.0-blue)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/src/branch/master/LICENSE)
-[![Coverage](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/9a9a53effd27fe580c2aa39edf77673e9a9a7e0f/coverage.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
-[![Tests](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/9a9a53effd27fe580c2aa39edf77673e9a9a7e0f/tests.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
-[![Docs](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/9a9a53effd27fe580c2aa39edf77673e9a9a7e0f/docs.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/wiki)
-[![Code Quality](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/9a9a53effd27fe580c2aa39edf77673e9a9a7e0f/quality.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
-[![Version](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/9a9a53effd27fe580c2aa39edf77673e9a9a7e0f/version.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/releases)
-[![Python](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/9a9a53effd27fe580c2aa39edf77673e9a9a7e0f/python.svg)](https://www.python.org/downloads/)
+[![Coverage](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/3fb76ae012113ad6f982f184d4753cad29a5f22e/coverage.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
+[![Tests](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/3fb76ae012113ad6f982f184d4753cad29a5f22e/tests.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
+[![Docs](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/3fb76ae012113ad6f982f184d4753cad29a5f22e/docs.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/wiki)
+[![Code Quality](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/3fb76ae012113ad6f982f184d4753cad29a5f22e/quality.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
+[![Version](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/3fb76ae012113ad6f982f184d4753cad29a5f22e/version.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/releases)
+[![Python](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/3fb76ae012113ad6f982f184d4753cad29a5f22e/python.svg)](https://www.python.org/downloads/)
 
 ## Why devx?
 
@@ -175,11 +175,8 @@ python -m devx.ci.discover_runners --owner oblachno-oss --repo devx --indices
 python -m devx.ci.distribute_files --pattern "tests/integration/test_*.py" \
   --runner-index 1 --max-runners 3 --github-env
 
-# Merge JUnit XML reports from parallel runners
-python -m devx.ci.merge_junit --pattern "junit-results/runner-*.xml" --output junit-merged.xml
-
-# Run pytest with cross-runner fail-fast and JUnit output
-python -m devx.ci.integration_guard --junit-output junit-results/runner-1.xml -- test_a.py test_b.py
+# Run pytest with cross-runner fail-fast
+python -m devx.ci.integration_guard -- test_a.py test_b.py
 ```
 
 ### Developer tools
@@ -227,7 +224,7 @@ python -m devx.molecule.distribute_molecule --list              # list all scena
 python -m devx.molecule.distribute_molecule --list-platforms    # list platforms
 
 # Run molecule tests with cross-runner fail-fast
-python -m devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard --junit-output junit.xml pair1 pair2
+python -m devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard pair1 pair2
 python -m devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard --roles-root ansible/roles pair1 pair2
 
 # Run all molecule scenarios locally (sequential)
@@ -274,8 +271,7 @@ devx --version
 | `devx ci discover-runners` | Discover available Gitea Actions runners |
 | `devx ci distribute-files` | Distribute files across parallel runners (round-robin) |
 | `devx ci doc-coverage` | Check documentation coverage for CLI commands and modules |
-| `devx ci integration-guard` | Run pytest with cross-runner fail-fast and JUnit output |
-| `devx ci merge-junit` | Merge JUnit XML reports from parallel runners |
+| `devx ci integration-guard` | Run pytest with cross-runner fail-fast |
 | `devx ci notify-failure` | Create a Gitea issue when a CI workflow fails |
 | `devx ci post-merge` | Update Vikunja task after a merge to master |
 | `devx ci pr-review` | Run automated PR review |

docs/index.md

@@ -12,12 +12,12 @@ project to be reusable across all oblachno-oss repositories.
 
 [![CI](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions/workflows/ci.yml/badge.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
 [![License: GPL-3.0](https://img.shields.io/badge/license-GPL--3.0-blue)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/src/branch/master/LICENSE)
-[![Coverage](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/9a9a53effd27fe580c2aa39edf77673e9a9a7e0f/coverage.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
-[![Tests](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/9a9a53effd27fe580c2aa39edf77673e9a9a7e0f/tests.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
-[![Docs](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/9a9a53effd27fe580c2aa39edf77673e9a9a7e0f/docs.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/wiki)
-[![Code Quality](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/9a9a53effd27fe580c2aa39edf77673e9a9a7e0f/quality.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
-[![Version](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/9a9a53effd27fe580c2aa39edf77673e9a9a7e0f/version.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/releases)
-[![Python](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/9a9a53effd27fe580c2aa39edf77673e9a9a7e0f/python.svg)](https://www.python.org/downloads/)
+[![Coverage](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/3fb76ae012113ad6f982f184d4753cad29a5f22e/coverage.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
+[![Tests](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/3fb76ae012113ad6f982f184d4753cad29a5f22e/tests.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
+[![Docs](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/3fb76ae012113ad6f982f184d4753cad29a5f22e/docs.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/wiki)
+[![Code Quality](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/3fb76ae012113ad6f982f184d4753cad29a5f22e/quality.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/actions)
+[![Version](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/3fb76ae012113ad6f982f184d4753cad29a5f22e/version.svg)](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/releases)
+[![Python](https://git.oblachno.oblachno.fyi/oblachno-oss/devx/raw/commit/3fb76ae012113ad6f982f184d4753cad29a5f22e/python.svg)](https://www.python.org/downloads/)
 
 ## Overview
 
@@ -100,7 +100,7 @@ devx is a self-contained Python package under `src/devx/`:
 - **CI automation** (`devx.ci`) — release, publish, auto_merge, pr_review,
   classify_changes, sync_wiki, push_badges, check_translations, doc_coverage,
   validate_commit_msg, detect_release_commit, notify_failure, post_merge,
-  discover_runners, distribute_files, merge_junit, integration_guard
+  discover_runners, distribute_files, integration_guard
 - **Dev tools** (`devx.tools`) — setup, install_tools, check_test_speed,
   configure_repo, generate_badges, generate_cliff_config, install_checkmake
 - **Molecule tools** (`devx.molecule`) — Optional, for projects with Ansible

docs/tech/architecture.md

@@ -31,9 +31,8 @@ src/devx/
 │   ├── sync_wiki.py         # Sync documentation to Gitea wiki
 │   ├── push_badges.py       # Generate and push quality badges
 │   ├── notify_failure.py    # Create Gitea issues on CI failures
-│   ├── merge_junit.py       # Merge JUnit XML reports from parallel runners
 │   ├── distribute_files.py  # Distribute files across parallel runners
-│   ├── integration_guard.py # Run pytest with cross-runner fail-fast + JUnit
+│   ├── integration_guard.py # Run pytest with cross-runner fail-fast
 │   ├── discover_runners.py  # Dynamic Gitea runner discovery
 │   ├── check_translations.py  # Translation completeness check
 │   └── doc_coverage.py      # Documentation coverage check
@@ -296,18 +295,11 @@ Distributes files matching a glob pattern across N parallel runners
 (round-robin). Writes the assigned file list for the current runner to
 `$GITHUB_ENV`. Used for splitting test suites across CI runners.
 
-### `merge_junit.py`
-
-Merges JUnit XML reports from parallel matrix runners into a single
-consolidated report. Exit code is non-zero if any merged suite reports
-failures, making it suitable as a CI gating step.
-
 ### `integration_guard.py`
 
 Runs pytest with the same cross-runner failure detection mechanism used by
 `molecule_ci_guard`. If any other integration-tests matrix runner reports
 failure, the current pytest subprocess is killed and this runner exits early.
-Generates JUnit XML via pytest's `--junitxml` flag.
 
 ## Developer tools (`devx.tools`)
 
@@ -382,9 +374,8 @@ platforms.
 
 Runs molecule tests sequentially while polling the Gitea API for other runner
 failures. If any other molecule matrix runner reports failure, the current
-molecule subprocess is killed and this runner exits early. Generates JUnit
-XML when `--junit-output` is provided. Supports both single-role (4-part) and
-multi-role (5-part) pair encoding.
+molecule subprocess is killed and this runner exits early. Supports both
+single-role (4-part) and multi-role (5-part) pair encoding.
 
 ### `molecule_all.py`
 

docs/tech/ci-cd-workflow.md

@@ -447,12 +447,10 @@ python -m devx.molecule.distribute_molecule --list-platforms
 ### `molecule_ci_guard.py`
 
 Runs molecule tests sequentially while polling the Gitea API for other runner
-failures. Aborts early if another runner fails the same job. Generates JUnit
-XML when `--junit-output` is provided.
+failures. Aborts early if another runner fails the same job.
 
 ```bash
-python -m devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard [--roles-root <dir>] \
-  [--junit-output <file>] pair1 pair2 ...
+python -m devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard [--roles-root <dir>] pair1 pair2 ...
 ```
 
 ### `validate_commit_msg.py`
@@ -503,16 +501,6 @@ python -m devx.ci.distribute_files --pattern <glob> --runner-index <i> \
   --max-runners <n> [--github-env] [--skip-if-excess]
 ```
 
-### `merge_junit.py`
-
-Merges JUnit XML reports from parallel matrix runners into a single
-consolidated report. Exit code is non-zero if any merged suite reports
-failures.
-
-```bash
-python -m devx.ci.merge_junit --pattern <glob> --output <file>
-```
-
 ### `integration_guard.py`
 
 Runs pytest with cross-runner failure detection. If any other
@@ -520,7 +508,7 @@ integration-tests matrix runner reports failure, the current pytest
 subprocess is killed and this runner exits early.
 
 ```bash
-python -m devx.ci.integration_guard --junit-output <file> -- <pytest args>
+python -m devx.ci.integration_guard -- <pytest args>
 ```
 
 ## Release process summary

docs/user/cli-commands.md

@@ -137,13 +137,13 @@ Options:
 
 ### `devx ci integration-guard`
 
-Run pytest with cross-runner failure detection and JUnit XML output. If any
+Run pytest with cross-runner failure detection. If any
 other integration-tests matrix runner reports failure, the current pytest
 subprocess is killed and this runner exits early with code 1.
 
 ```bash
-devx ci integration-guard --junit-output junit-results/runner-1.xml -- test_a.py test_b.py
-devx ci integration-guard --junit-output junit-results/runner-1.xml -- -x -v --tb=short test_a.py
+devx ci integration-guard -- test_a.py test_b.py
+devx ci integration-guard -- -x -v --tb=short test_a.py
 ```
 
 Environment variables:
@@ -154,16 +154,6 @@ Environment variables:
 - `MATRIX_INDEX` — current matrix index (runner-index)
 - `GITEA_REPOSITORY` — repository in `owner/repo` format
 
-### `devx ci merge-junit`
-
-Merge multiple JUnit XML reports from parallel runners into a single
-consolidated report. Exit code is non-zero if any merged test suite reports
-failures, making it suitable as a CI gating step after matrix jobs.
-
-```bash
-devx ci merge-junit --pattern "junit-results/runner-*.xml" --output junit-merged.xml
-```
-
 ### `devx ci notify-failure`
 
 Create a Gitea issue when a CI workflow fails. Uses the tea CLI for issue
@@ -461,7 +451,6 @@ current molecule subprocess is killed and this runner exits early with code 1.
 ```bash
 devx molecule guard pair1 pair2 pair3
 devx molecule guard --roles-root ansible/roles pair1 pair2
-devx molecule guard --junit-output junit-results/runner-1.xml pair1 pair2
 ```
 
 Each pair is encoded as:
@@ -470,7 +459,6 @@ Each pair is encoded as:
 
 Options:
 - `--roles-root <dir>` — roles root directory for multi-role repos
-- `--junit-output <file>` — generate JUnit XML report
 
 Environment variables:
 - `GITEA_URL` — base URL of the Gitea instance

src/devx/__init__.py

@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
 """devx — reusable development and CI/CD tools for oblachno-oss projects."""
 
-__version__ = "0.12.1"
+__version__ = "0.14.2"

src/devx/api_clients.py

@@ -192,6 +192,17 @@ class GiteaClient:
         r = self._request("GET", f"/pulls/{pr_number}")
         return r.json()
 
+    def list_prs(self, state: str = "all", **params: Any) -> list[dict[str, Any]]:
+        """List pull requests, optionally filtered by state.
+
+        Args:
+            state: ``open``, ``closed``, ``all`` (default).
+            **params: Additional query params (e.g. ``q="keyword"`` for title search).
+        """
+        params.setdefault("state", state)
+        r = self._request("GET", "/pulls", params=params)
+        return r.json()
+
     def get_pr_files(self, pr_number: str | int) -> list[dict[str, Any]]:
         """Fetch the list of files changed in a pull request."""
         r = self._request("GET", f"/pulls/{pr_number}/files")
@@ -345,5 +356,28 @@ class VikunjaClient:
     def post_comment(self, task_id: int, comment: str) -> None:
         self._request("PUT", f"/tasks/{task_id}/comments", json={"comment": comment})
 
+    def list_comments(self, task_id: int) -> list[dict[str, Any]]:
+        """List all comments on a task."""
+        r = self._request("GET", f"/tasks/{task_id}/comments")
+        return r.json()
+
     def update_task(self, task_id: int, **fields: Any) -> None:
+        """Update task fields via POST (full replacement semantics).
+
+        Warning: Vikunja's POST /tasks/{id} replaces the entire task body.
+        Unspecified fields are reset to their type defaults. Use
+        ``update_task_safe`` to preserve existing fields.
+        """
         self._request("POST", f"/tasks/{task_id}", json=fields)
+
+    def update_task_safe(self, task_id: int, **fields: Any) -> dict[str, Any]:
+        """Safely update task fields using read-merge-write pattern.
+
+        Fetches the full task body, merges the provided fields on top,
+        and POSTs the complete body back. This prevents accidental
+        resets of done status, title, etc.
+        """
+        task = self.get_task(task_id)
+        task.update(fields)
+        r = self._request("POST", f"/tasks/{task_id}", json=task)
+        return r.json()

src/devx/ci/auto_merge.py

@@ -237,23 +237,17 @@ def main(branch: str, pr_title: str, repo: str, pr_number: str) -> None:
         client.merge_pr(pr_num, merge_title)
     except APIError as e:
         if e.status == 405 and "behind" in e.message.lower():
-            # Head branch is behind master — pull master and rebase, then retry
-            click.echo(_("Head branch is behind master. Pulling and rebasing..."))
-            try:
-                run_cmd(["git", "config", "user.name", "devx-ci-bot"])
-                run_cmd(["git", "config", "user.email", "devx-ci-bot@oblachno.fyi"])
-                run_cmd(["git", "fetch", "origin", "master"])
-                run_cmd(["git", "rebase", "origin/master"])
-                run_cmd(["git", "push", "--force-with-lease", "origin", f"HEAD:{branch}"])
-                click.echo(_("Rebased and pushed. Retrying merge..."))
-                client.merge_pr(pr_num, merge_title)
-            except (APIError, Exception) as retry_err:
-                raise click.ClickException(
-                    _(
-                        "Merge failed after rebase retry: {error}\nPlease rebase the PR manually.",
-                        error=str(retry_err),
-                    )
-                ) from None
+            # Head branch is behind master — do NOT auto-rebase.
+            # Auto-rebasing creates a feedback loop: the force-push triggers
+            # a new pull_request synchronize event, which starts a new CI run,
+            # which runs auto-merge again, which rebases again, etc.
+            raise click.ClickException(
+                _(
+                    "Branch is behind master. Rebase manually:\n"
+                    "  git fetch origin master && git rebase origin/master && git push --force-with-lease\n"
+                    "Then re-add the ready-to-merge label.",
+                )
+            ) from None
         else:
             raise click.ClickException(
                 _(

src/devx/ci/classify_changes.py

@@ -615,11 +615,29 @@ def _write_github_output(key: str, value: str) -> None:
     help="Write results to $GITHUB_OUTPUT file (for CI workflow steps). "
     "Outputs 'user-facing-changed' and '<tag>-changed' for each configured tag.",
 )
-def main(base: str | None, head: str, quiet: bool, check: str, github_output: bool) -> None:
+@click.option(
+    "--force",
+    is_flag=True,
+    default=False,
+    help="Force user-facing-changed=true regardless of actual changes. "
+    "Used by workflow_dispatch with force-deploy input.",
+)
+def main(base: str | None, head: str, quiet: bool, check: str, github_output: bool, force: bool) -> None:
     """Classify git changes and output results."""
     classifier = _get_classifier()
     available_tags = list(classifier.config.tags.keys())
 
+    # --force can also be activated via FORCE_DEPLOY env var (for workflow_dispatch)
+    if os.environ.get("FORCE_DEPLOY", "").lower() == "true":
+        force = True
+
+    if force and github_output:
+        _write_github_output("user-facing-changed", "true")
+        for tag in available_tags:
+            _write_github_output(f"{tag}-changed", "true")
+        click.echo("Forced user-facing-changed=true via --force flag.")
+        return
+
     if base is None:
         base = get_latest_tag()
         if not base:

src/devx/ci/detect_release_commit.py

@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 #!/usr/bin/env python3
 """Detect whether the latest git commit is a release commit.
 
-Release commits have the format ``release: vX.Y.Z [skip ci]``.
+Release commits have the format ``release: vX.Y.Z``.
 This script writes ``is-release=true`` or ``is-release=false`` to
 ``$GITHUB_OUTPUT`` for use in CI workflow conditionals.
 

src/devx/ci/integration_guard.py

@@ -6,18 +6,13 @@ Wraps ``pytest`` with the same Gitea API polling mechanism used by
 reports failure, the current pytest subprocess is killed and this runner
 exits early with code 1.
 
-JUnit XML is generated via pytest's ``--junitxml`` flag (passed through
-to the pytest invocation).
-
 Usage::
 
     python3 -m devx.ci.integration_guard \\
-        --junit-output junit-results/runner-1.xml \\
         -- test_file1.py test_file2.py
 
     # With pytest options
     python3 -m devx.ci.integration_guard \\
-        --junit-output junit-results/runner-1.xml \\
         -- -x -v --tb=short test_file1.py
 
 Environment variables:
@@ -51,12 +46,7 @@ POLL_INTERVAL = 10
 
 @click.command(context_settings={"ignore_unknown_options": True})
 @click.argument("pytest_args", nargs=-1, type=click.UNPROCESSED, required=True)
-@click.option(
-    "--junit-output",
-    default=None,
-    help="Path for JUnit XML output (passed to pytest as --junitxml).",
-)
-def cli(pytest_args: tuple[str, ...], junit_output: str | None) -> None:
+def cli(pytest_args: tuple[str, ...]) -> None:
     """Run pytest with cross-runner failure detection."""
     gitea_url = os.environ.get("GITEA_URL", "")
     token = os.environ.get("REPO_TOKEN", "")
@@ -93,8 +83,6 @@ def cli(pytest_args: tuple[str, ...], junit_output: str | None) -> None:
         poller.start()
 
     cmd = [sys.executable, "-m", "pytest"]
-    if junit_output:
-        cmd.extend(["--junitxml", junit_output])
     cmd.extend(pytest_args)
 
     click.echo(f"Running: {' '.join(cmd)}")

src/devx/ci/merge_junit.py

@@ -1,97 +0,0 @@
-#!/usr/bin/env python3
-"""Merge multiple JUnit XML reports into a single report.
-
-Used by CI workflows to consolidate JUnit XML files produced by
-parallel matrix runners into a single merged report for archival
-and dashboard consumption.
-
-Usage::
-
-    python3 -m devx.ci.merge_junit \\
-        --pattern "junit-results/runner-*.xml" \\
-        --output junit-merged.xml
-
-Exit code is non-zero if any merged test suite reports failures,
-making this suitable as a CI gating step after matrix jobs.
-"""
-
-from __future__ import annotations
-
-import glob
-import sys
-import xml.etree.ElementTree as ET  # nosec B405
-
-import click
-
-from devx.i18n import _
-
-
-def merge_files(pattern: str) -> tuple[ET.Element, int, int]:
-    """Merge JUnit XML files matching *pattern* into a single ``<testsuites>`` element.
-
-    Returns ``(merged_element, total_tests, total_failures)``.
-    If no files match, returns an empty ``<testsuites>`` with zero counts.
-    """
-    files = sorted(glob.glob(pattern))
-    merged = ET.Element("testsuites")
-    total_tests = 0
-    total_failures = 0
-
-    for f in files:
-        tree = ET.parse(f)  # nosec B314
-        suite = tree.getroot()
-        # Handle both <testsuites> (wrapper) and <testsuite> (single) roots
-        if suite.tag == "testsuites":
-            for child in suite:
-                merged.append(child)
-                total_tests += int(child.get("tests", 0))
-                total_failures += int(child.get("failures", 0))
-        else:
-            merged.append(suite)
-            total_tests += int(suite.get("tests", 0))
-            total_failures += int(suite.get("failures", 0))
-
-    merged.set("tests", str(total_tests))
-    merged.set("failures", str(total_failures))
-    return merged, total_tests, total_failures
-
-
-@click.command()
-@click.option(
-    "--pattern",
-    default="junit-results/runner-*.xml",
-    show_default=True,
-    help="Glob pattern for input JUnit XML files.",
-)
-@click.option(
-    "--output",
-    default="junit-merged.xml",
-    show_default=True,
-    help="Output path for the merged JUnit XML file.",
-)
-def main(pattern: str, output: str) -> None:
-    merged, total_tests, total_failures = merge_files(pattern)
-
-    if total_tests == 0:
-        click.echo(_("No JUnit reports found matching {pattern} — skipping merge.", pattern=pattern))
-        return
-
-    ET.indent(merged)
-    tree = ET.ElementTree(merged)
-    tree.write(output, encoding="UTF-8", xml_declaration=True)
-    click.echo(
-        _(
-            "Merged {count} reports: {tests} tests, {failures} failures → {output}",
-            count=len(glob.glob(pattern)),
-            tests=total_tests,
-            failures=total_failures,
-            output=output,
-        )
-    )
-
-    if total_failures > 0:
-        sys.exit(1)
-
-
-if __name__ == "__main__":  # pragma: no cover
-    main()

src/devx/ci/publish.py

@@ -135,13 +135,21 @@ def publish_to_gitea_registry(registry_url: str, token: str) -> None:
         check=False,
     )
     if result.returncode != 0:
-        raise click.ClickException(
-            _(
-                "Oops! Gitea PyPI registry publish failed:\n{stderr}",
-                stderr=result.stderr.strip(),
+        # Twine writes errors to stdout (not stderr), so check both.
+        combined = f"{result.stdout}\n{result.stderr}".strip()
+        # 409 Conflict means the package version is already published —
+        # this is not an error, just a sign we're re-running publish.
+        if "409" in combined or "Conflict" in combined:
+            click.echo(_("Gitea PyPI registry: {tag} already published — continuing.", tag=""))
+        else:
+            raise click.ClickException(
+                _(
+                    "Oops! Gitea PyPI registry publish failed:\n{stderr}",
+                    stderr=combined,
+                )
             )
-        )
-    click.echo(_("Published to Gitea PyPI registry."))
+    else:
+        click.echo(_("Published to Gitea PyPI registry."))
 
 
 def _default_gitea_registry_url() -> str:
@@ -161,9 +169,37 @@ def _default_gitea_registry_url() -> str:
     return f"{base}/api/packages/{owner}/pypi"
 
 
+def get_latest_tag() -> str | None:
+    """Get the latest git tag, or None if no tags exist."""
+    try:
+        result = subprocess.run(  # nosec
+            ["git", "describe", "--tags", "--abbrev=0"],
+            capture_output=True,
+            text=True,
+            check=True,
+        )
+        return result.stdout.strip()
+    except subprocess.CalledProcessError:
+        return None
+
+
+def is_release_commit(tag: str) -> bool:
+    """Check if HEAD commit message starts with 'release: <tag>'."""
+    try:
+        result = subprocess.run(  # nosec
+            ["git", "log", "-1", "--format=%s"],
+            capture_output=True,
+            text=True,
+            check=True,
+        )
+        return result.stdout.strip().startswith(f"release: {tag}")
+    except subprocess.CalledProcessError:
+        return False
+
+
 @click.command()
-@click.argument("tag")
-@click.argument("repo")
+@click.argument("tag", required=False)
+@click.argument("repo", required=False)
 @click.option(
     "--registry-url",
     default=None,
@@ -178,7 +214,37 @@ def _default_gitea_registry_url() -> str:
     help="Skip package build and PyPI publish (for non-Python repos that only "
     "need a Gitea release with git-cliff notes).",
 )
-def main(tag: str, repo: str, registry_url: str | None, skip_build: bool) -> None:
+@click.option(
+    "--from-tag",
+    is_flag=True,
+    default=False,
+    help="Auto-detect latest tag and check if HEAD is a release commit. "
+    "Skips publish if no tag or HEAD is not a release commit for that tag.",
+)
+def main(
+    tag: str | None,
+    repo: str | None,
+    registry_url: str | None,
+    skip_build: bool,
+    from_tag: bool,
+) -> None:
+    if repo is None:
+        repo = os.environ.get("GITHUB_REPOSITORY", "")
+    if not repo:
+        raise click.ClickException(_("REPO argument is required (or set GITHUB_REPOSITORY env var)."))
+    if from_tag:
+        detected_tag = get_latest_tag()
+        if not detected_tag:
+            click.echo(_("No tag found — skipping publish."))
+            return
+        if not is_release_commit(detected_tag):
+            click.echo(_("HEAD is not a release commit for {tag} — skipping publish.", tag=detected_tag))
+            return
+        tag = detected_tag
+        click.echo(_("Publishing release {tag}...", tag=tag))
+
+    if not tag:
+        raise click.ClickException(_("Tag is required (or use --from-tag)."))
     gitea_token = os.environ.get("REPO_TOKEN", "")
     if not gitea_token:
         raise click.ClickException(_("ERROR: REPO_TOKEN is not set."))
@@ -194,18 +260,27 @@ def main(tag: str, repo: str, registry_url: str | None, skip_build: bool) -> Non
     if not skip_build:
         build_package()
 
-        if pypi_token:
-            # Standard PyPI flow takes precedence when PYPI_TOKEN is set
-            publish_to_pypi(pypi_token)
-        elif registry_url:
-            # Gitea PyPI registry flow
-            publish_to_gitea_registry(registry_url, gitea_token)
-        else:
+        try:
+            if pypi_token:
+                # Standard PyPI flow takes precedence when PYPI_TOKEN is set
+                publish_to_pypi(pypi_token)
+            elif registry_url:
+                # Gitea PyPI registry flow
+                publish_to_gitea_registry(registry_url, gitea_token)
+            else:
+                click.echo(
+                    _(
+                        "PYPI_TOKEN not set and no registry URL configured — "
+                        "skipping PyPI publish. No worries, we'll just create the Gitea release."
+                    )
+                )
+        except click.ClickException as e:
             click.echo(
                 _(
-                    "PYPI_TOKEN not set and no registry URL configured — "
-                    "skipping PyPI publish. No worries, we'll just create the Gitea release."
-                )
+                    "PyPI publish failed (non-fatal — continuing to Gitea release):\n{error}",
+                    error=str(e),
+                ),
+                err=True,
             )
     else:
         click.echo(_("--skip-build: skipping package build and PyPI publish."))
@@ -227,6 +302,9 @@ def main(tag: str, repo: str, registry_url: str | None, skip_build: bool) -> Non
     try:
         tea.create_release(repo, tag=tag, title=tag, body=release_body)
     except TeaCLIError as e:
+        if "already" in str(e).lower() and "release" in str(e).lower():
+            click.echo(_("Gitea release {tag} already exists — skipping creation.", tag=tag))
+            return
         raise click.ClickException(_("Release creation failed: {error}", error=str(e))) from None
 
     click.echo(

src/devx/ci/release.py

@@ -279,7 +279,7 @@ def commit_release_changes(new_version: str) -> bool:
     if status.returncode == 0:
         click.echo(_("No staged changes — version and changelog already up to date."))
         return False
-    run_cmd(["git", "commit", "--no-verify", "-m", f"release: v{new_version} [skip ci]"])
+    run_cmd(["git", "commit", "--no-verify", "-m", f"release: v{new_version}"])
     return True
 
 

src/devx/ci/validate_commit_msg.py

@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ task ID format for each project.
 
 import re
 import subprocess  # nosec B404
+import sys
 
 import click
 
@@ -23,6 +24,17 @@ from devx.i18n import _
 MASTER_TASK_ID_RE = re.compile(rf"^{TASK_PREFIX}-\d+:")
 
 
+def get_latest_commit_msg() -> str:
+    """Get the latest commit message from git."""
+    result = subprocess.run(  # nosec
+        ["git", "log", "-1", "--format=%B"],
+        capture_output=True,
+        text=True,
+        check=True,
+    )
+    return result.stdout.strip()
+
+
 def first_line(text: str) -> str:
     return text.split("\n")[0]
 
@@ -41,11 +53,26 @@ def get_branch() -> str:
 
 
 @click.command()
-@click.argument("commit_msg_file")
+@click.argument("commit_msg_file", required=False)
 @click.option("--branch", default=None, help="Override branch detection (for CI use).")
-def main(commit_msg_file: str, branch: str | None) -> None:
-    with open(commit_msg_file) as f:
-        msg = f.read().strip()
+@click.option(
+    "--git",
+    "from_git",
+    is_flag=True,
+    default=False,
+    help="Read commit message from git log instead of a file.",
+)
+def main(commit_msg_file: str | None, branch: str | None, from_git: bool) -> None:
+    if from_git:
+        msg = get_latest_commit_msg()
+    elif commit_msg_file:
+        if commit_msg_file == "-":
+            msg = sys.stdin.read().strip()
+        else:
+            with open(commit_msg_file) as f:
+                msg = f.read().strip()
+    else:
+        raise click.ClickException(_("Provide a commit message file or use --git."))
 
     if branch is None:
         branch = get_branch()

src/devx/cli.py

@@ -158,17 +158,10 @@ def ci_distribute_files(args: tuple[str, ...]) -> None:
     _run_module("devx.ci.distribute_files", list(args))
 
 
-@ci.command("merge-junit")
-@click.argument("args", nargs=-1)
-def ci_merge_junit(args: tuple[str, ...]) -> None:
-    """Merge multiple JUnit XML reports into a single report."""
-    _run_module("devx.ci.merge_junit", list(args))
-
-
 @ci.command("integration-guard")
 @click.argument("args", nargs=-1)
 def ci_integration_guard(args: tuple[str, ...]) -> None:
-    """Run pytest with cross-runner failure detection and JUnit output."""
+    """Run pytest with cross-runner failure detection."""
     _run_module("devx.ci.integration_guard", list(args))
 
 

src/devx/molecule/molecule_ci_guard.py

@@ -13,17 +13,12 @@ A background thread polls the Gitea API. If any other molecule matrix runner
 reports failure, the current molecule subprocess is killed and this runner
 exits early with code 1.
 
-JUnit XML is generated when ``--junit-output`` is provided, recording each
-pair as a testcase with pass/fail status and elapsed time.
-
 Usage::
 
     # Single-role (grm-style)
     python3 -m devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard pair1 pair2 ...
     # Multi-role (infra-style)
     python3 -m devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard --roles-root ansible/roles pair1 pair2 ...
-    # With JUnit output
-    python3 -m devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard --junit-output junit-results/runner-1.xml pair1 pair2 ...
 
 Environment variables:
     GITEA_URL           Base URL of the Gitea instance.
@@ -43,7 +38,6 @@ import subprocess  # nosec B404
 import sys
 import threading
 import time
-import xml.etree.ElementTree as ET  # nosec B405
 from pathlib import Path
 
 import click
@@ -158,53 +152,15 @@ def resolve_role_dir(role: str, roles_root: Path | None, repo_root: Path) -> Pat
     return repo_root / "ansible" / "roles" / "gitea-runner"
 
 
-def write_junit_report(
-    output_path: str,
-    testcases: list[dict],
-    runner_index: int,
-) -> None:
-    """Write a JUnit XML report from collected test case results.
-
-    Each testcase dict has: role, scenario, time (float), passed (bool), error (str|None).
-    """
-    suite = ET.Element(
-        "testsuite",
-        name=f"molecule-runner-{runner_index}",
-        tests=str(len(testcases)),
-        failures=str(sum(1 for tc in testcases if not tc["passed"])),
-    )
-    for tc in testcases:
-        classname = tc["role"] if tc["role"] else "molecule"
-        elem = ET.SubElement(
-            suite,
-            "testcase",
-            classname=classname,
-            name=tc["scenario"],
-            time=f"{tc['time']:.1f}",
-        )
-        if not tc["passed"]:
-            fail = ET.SubElement(elem, "failure")
-            fail.text = tc.get("error") or "molecule test failed"
-    tree = ET.ElementTree(suite)
-    ET.indent(tree)
-    Path(output_path).parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
-    tree.write(output_path, encoding="UTF-8", xml_declaration=True)
-
-
 @click.command()
 @click.argument("pairs", nargs=-1, required=True)
-@click.option(
-    "--junit-output",
-    default=None,
-    help="Path to write JUnit XML report (e.g. junit-results/runner-1.xml).",
-)
 @click.option(
     "--roles-root",
     type=click.Path(exists=True, file_okay=False, path_type=Path),
     default=None,
     help="Root directory for multi-role pairs (e.g. ansible/roles). Required when pairs use 5-part format.",
 )
-def cli(pairs: tuple[str, ...], junit_output: str | None, roles_root: Path | None) -> None:
+def cli(pairs: tuple[str, ...], roles_root: Path | None) -> None:
     """Run molecule pairs sequentially, stop if another CI runner fails."""
     gitea_url = os.environ.get("GITEA_URL", "")
     token = os.environ.get("REPO_TOKEN", "")
@@ -249,8 +205,6 @@ def cli(pairs: tuple[str, ...], junit_output: str | None, roles_root: Path | Non
         )
         poller.start()
 
-    testcases: list[dict] = []
-
     try:
         for pair in pairs:
             if failed_event.is_set():
@@ -263,7 +217,6 @@ def cli(pairs: tuple[str, ...], junit_output: str | None, roles_root: Path | Non
             env = build_env_for_pair(pair, base_env)
             cwd = resolve_role_dir(role, roles_root, repo_root)
 
-            start = time.time()
             process = subprocess.Popen(  # nosec B603
                 cmd,
                 cwd=str(cwd),
@@ -282,18 +235,6 @@ def cli(pairs: tuple[str, ...], junit_output: str | None, roles_root: Path | Non
                             with contextlib.suppress(ProcessLookupError):
                                 os.killpg(os.getpgid(process.pid), signal.SIGKILL)
                             process.wait()
-                        elapsed = time.time() - start
-                        testcases.append(
-                            {
-                                "role": role,
-                                "scenario": scenario,
-                                "time": elapsed,
-                                "passed": False,
-                                "error": "Cancelled — another runner failed",
-                            }
-                        )
-                        if junit_output:
-                            write_junit_report(junit_output, testcases, current_index)
                         sys.exit(1)
                     time.sleep(1)
             except KeyboardInterrupt:
@@ -303,23 +244,9 @@ def cli(pairs: tuple[str, ...], junit_output: str | None, roles_root: Path | Non
                 sys.exit(1)
 
             rc = process.returncode
-            elapsed = time.time() - start
-            passed = rc == 0
-
-            testcases.append(
-                {
-                    "role": role,
-                    "scenario": scenario,
-                    "time": elapsed,
-                    "passed": passed,
-                    "error": f"Exit code: {rc}" if not passed else None,
-                }
-            )
 
             if rc != 0:
                 click.echo(_("FAILED: {pair} exited with code {code}", pair=pair, code=rc))
-                if junit_output:
-                    write_junit_report(junit_output, testcases, current_index)
                 sys.exit(rc)
 
             click.echo(_("PASSED: {pair}", pair=pair))
@@ -336,8 +263,6 @@ def cli(pairs: tuple[str, ...], junit_output: str | None, roles_root: Path | Non
                 )
 
         click.echo(_("All molecule tests passed."))
-        if junit_output:
-            write_junit_report(junit_output, testcases, current_index)
     finally:
         stop_event.set()
 

src/devx/translations.json

@@ -383,6 +383,14 @@
     "ru": "Another molecule runner failed. Stopping this runner early.",
     "zh": "Another molecule runner failed. Stopping this runner early."
   },
+  "Branch is behind master. Rebase manually:\n  git fetch origin master && git rebase origin/master && git push --force-with-lease\nThen re-add the ready-to-merge label.": {
+    "bg": "Branch is behind master. Rebase manually:\n  git fetch origin master && git rebase origin/master && git push --force-with-lease\nThen re-add the ready-to-merge label.",
+    "de": "Branch is behind master. Rebase manually:\n  git fetch origin master && git rebase origin/master && git push --force-with-lease\nThen re-add the ready-to-merge label.",
+    "en": "Branch is behind master. Rebase manually:\n  git fetch origin master && git rebase origin/master && git push --force-with-lease\nThen re-add the ready-to-merge label.",
+    "pl": "Gałąź jest w tyle za master. Wykonaj rebase ręcznie:\n  git fetch origin master && git rebase origin/master && git push --force-with-lease\nNastępnie dodaj ponownie etykietę ready-to-merge.",
+    "ru": "Branch is behind master. Rebase manually:\n  git fetch origin master && git rebase origin/master && git push --force-with-lease\nThen re-add the ready-to-merge label.",
+    "zh": "Branch is behind master. Rebase manually:\n  git fetch origin master && git rebase origin/master && git push --force-with-lease\nThen re-add the ready-to-merge label."
+  },
   "Bumping version: {current} -> v{new_version}": {
     "bg": "Bumping version: {current} -> v{new_version}",
     "de": "Bumping version: {current} -> v{new_version}",
@@ -591,6 +599,14 @@
     "ru": "Generated {file} with prefix '{prefix}'.",
     "zh": "Generated {file} with prefix '{prefix}'."
   },
+  "Gitea PyPI registry: {tag} already published — continuing.": {
+    "bg": "Gitea PyPI registry: {tag} вече е публикуван — продължава.",
+    "de": "Gitea PyPI-Registry: {tag} bereits veröffentlicht — wird fortgesetzt.",
+    "en": "Gitea PyPI registry: {tag} already published — continuing.",
+    "pl": "Gitea PyPI registry: {tag} już opublikowano — kontynuacja.",
+    "ru": "Gitea PyPI registry: {tag} уже опубликован — продолжаем.",
+    "zh": "Gitea PyPI registry: {tag} 已发布 — 继续。"
+  },
   "Gitea release {tag} already exists — skipping creation.": {
     "bg": "Gitea release {tag} вече съществува — прескачане на създаването.",
     "de": "Gitea-Release {tag} existiert bereits — Erstellung übersprungen.",
@@ -623,6 +639,14 @@
     "ru": "HEAD is already a release commit ('{msg}') and tag {tag} points to HEAD. Skipping.",
     "zh": "HEAD is already a release commit ('{msg}') and tag {tag} points to HEAD. Skipping."
   },
+  "HEAD is not a release commit for {tag} — skipping publish.": {
+    "bg": "HEAD is not a release commit for {tag} — skipping publish.",
+    "de": "HEAD is not a release commit for {tag} — skipping publish.",
+    "en": "HEAD is not a release commit for {tag} — skipping publish.",
+    "pl": "HEAD nie jest commitem wydania dla {tag} — pomijanie publikacji.",
+    "ru": "HEAD is not a release commit for {tag} — skipping publish.",
+    "zh": "HEAD is not a release commit for {tag} — skipping publish."
+  },
   "HTTP error: {status} — {message}": {
     "bg": "HTTP грешка: {status} — {message}",
     "de": "HTTP-Fehler: {status} — {message}",
@@ -639,14 +663,6 @@
     "ru": "HTTP {status} Запрещено — у вашего токена нет прав администратора.\nУбедитесь, что токен принадлежит владельцу репозитория или администратору организации.\nЛибо настройте защиту ветки вручную в разделе Настройки → Ветки.",
     "zh": "HTTP {status} 禁止访问 — 您的令牌缺少管理员权限。\n请确保令牌属于仓库所有者或组织管理员。\n或者，您可以在 设置 → 分支 中手动配置分支保护。"
   },
-  "Head branch is behind master. Pulling and rebasing...": {
-    "bg": "Head branch is behind master. Pulling and rebasing...",
-    "de": "Head branch is behind master. Pulling and rebasing...",
-    "en": "Head branch is behind master. Pulling and rebasing...",
-    "pl": "Gałąź head jest w tyle za master. Pobieranie i rebasing...",
-    "ru": "Head branch is behind master. Pulling and rebasing...",
-    "zh": "Head branch is behind master. Pulling and rebasing..."
-  },
   "Host Docker not available, starting local dockerd...": {
     "bg": "Хост Docker не е наличен, стартиране на локален dockerd...",
     "de": "Host-Docker nicht verfügbar, lokaler dockerd wird gestartet...",
@@ -719,14 +735,6 @@
     "ru": "Mapped file {file} not found. Update mapping.json or create the file.",
     "zh": "Mapped file {file} not found. Update mapping.json or create the file."
   },
-  "Merge failed after rebase retry: {error}\nPlease rebase the PR manually.": {
-    "bg": "Merge failed after rebase retry: {error}\nPlease rebase the PR manually.",
-    "de": "Merge failed after rebase retry: {error}\nPlease rebase the PR manually.",
-    "en": "Merge failed after rebase retry: {error}\nPlease rebase the PR manually.",
-    "pl": "Scalanie nie powiodło się po ponownej próbie rebase: {error}\nProszę wykonać rebase PR ręcznie.",
-    "ru": "Merge failed after rebase retry: {error}\nPlease rebase the PR manually.",
-    "zh": "Merge failed after rebase retry: {error}\nPlease rebase the PR manually."
-  },
   "Merge failed with HTTP {status}: {message}\nPlease check the PR is ready and you have merge rights.": {
     "bg": "Сливането неуспешно с HTTP {status}: {message}\nПроверете дали PR е готов и имате права за сливане.",
     "de": "Merge fehlgeschlagen mit HTTP {status}: {message}\nBitte prüfen Sie, ob der PR bereit ist und Sie Merge-Rechte haben.",
@@ -735,14 +743,6 @@
     "ru": "Слияние не удалось: HTTP {status}: {message}\nПроверьте, что PR готов и у вас есть права на слияние.",
     "zh": "合并失败: HTTP {status}: {message}\n请检查 PR 是否准备就绪且您具有合并权限。"
   },
-  "Merged {count} reports: {tests} tests, {failures} failures → {output}": {
-    "bg": "Merged {count} reports: {tests} tests, {failures} failures → {output}",
-    "de": "Merged {count} reports: {tests} tests, {failures} failures → {output}",
-    "en": "Merged {count} reports: {tests} tests, {failures} failures → {output}",
-    "pl": "Scalono {count} raportów: {tests} testów, {failures} niepowodzeń → {output}",
-    "ru": "Merged {count} reports: {tests} tests, {failures} failures → {output}",
-    "zh": "Merged {count} reports: {tests} tests, {failures} failures → {output}"
-  },
   "Module {mod} has no main() function": {
     "bg": "Модул {mod} няма функция main()",
     "de": "Modul {mod} hat keine main()-Funktion",
@@ -791,14 +791,6 @@
     "ru": "Отлично! Задача Vikunja {task_id} (ID {vikunja_id}) обновлена и отмечена как выполненная.",
     "zh": "不错！Vikunja 任务 {task_id} (ID {vikunja_id}) 已更新并标记为完成。"
   },
-  "No JUnit reports found matching {pattern} — skipping merge.": {
-    "bg": "No JUnit reports found matching {pattern} — skipping merge.",
-    "de": "No JUnit reports found matching {pattern} — skipping merge.",
-    "en": "No JUnit reports found matching {pattern} — skipping merge.",
-    "pl": "Nie znaleziono raportów JUnit pasujących do {pattern} — pomijanie scalania.",
-    "ru": "No JUnit reports found matching {pattern} — skipping merge.",
-    "zh": "No JUnit reports found matching {pattern} — skipping merge."
-  },
   "No changes between {base} and {head}.": {
     "bg": "No changes between {base} and {head}.",
     "de": "No changes between {base} and {head}.",
@@ -815,6 +807,14 @@
     "ru": "No staged changes — version and changelog already up to date.",
     "zh": "No staged changes — version and changelog already up to date."
   },
+  "No tag found — skipping publish.": {
+    "bg": "No tag found — skipping publish.",
+    "de": "No tag found — skipping publish.",
+    "en": "No tag found — skipping publish.",
+    "pl": "Nie znaleziono tagu — pomijanie publikacji.",
+    "ru": "No tag found — skipping publish.",
+    "zh": "No tag found — skipping publish."
+  },
   "No tags found — treating all changes as user-facing.": {
     "bg": "No tags found — treating all changes as user-facing.",
     "de": "No tags found — treating all changes as user-facing.",
@@ -983,6 +983,14 @@
     "ru": "Per-test speed check FAILED: {count} test(s) exceed {limit}s limit.",
     "zh": "Per-test speed check FAILED: {count} test(s) exceed {limit}s limit."
   },
+  "Provide a commit message file or use --git.": {
+    "bg": "Provide a commit message file or use --git.",
+    "de": "Provide a commit message file or use --git.",
+    "en": "Provide a commit message file or use --git.",
+    "pl": "Podaj plik komunikatu commitu lub użyj --git.",
+    "ru": "Provide a commit message file or use --git.",
+    "zh": "Provide a commit message file or use --git."
+  },
   "Published to Gitea PyPI registry.": {
     "bg": "Публикувано в Gitea PyPI registry.",
     "de": "In der Gitea PyPI-Registry veröffentlicht.",
@@ -999,6 +1007,14 @@
     "ru": "Опубликовано в PyPI.",
     "zh": "已发布到 PyPI。"
   },
+  "Publishing release {tag}...": {
+    "bg": "Publishing release {tag}...",
+    "de": "Publishing release {tag}...",
+    "en": "Publishing release {tag}...",
+    "pl": "Publikowanie wydania {tag}...",
+    "ru": "Publishing release {tag}...",
+    "zh": "Publishing release {tag}..."
+  },
   "Pushed release commit to master.": {
     "bg": "Pushed release commit to master.",
     "de": "Pushed release commit to master.",
@@ -1007,13 +1023,13 @@
     "ru": "Pushed release commit to master.",
     "zh": "Pushed release commit to master."
   },
-  "Rebased and pushed. Retrying merge...": {
-    "bg": "Rebased and pushed. Retrying merge...",
-    "de": "Rebased and pushed. Retrying merge...",
-    "en": "Rebased and pushed. Retrying merge...",
-    "pl": "Rebase i wypchnięto. Ponowna próba scalenia...",
-    "ru": "Rebased and pushed. Retrying merge...",
-    "zh": "Rebased and pushed. Retrying merge..."
+  "PyPI publish failed (non-fatal — continuing to Gitea release):\n{error}": {
+    "bg": "Публикуването в PyPI неуспешно (некритично — продължава към Gitea release):\n{error}",
+    "de": "PyPI-Veröffentlichung fehlgeschlagen (nicht fatal — Gitea-Release wird fortgesetzt):\n{error}",
+    "en": "PyPI publish failed (non-fatal — continuing to Gitea release):\n{error}",
+    "pl": "Publikacja PyPI nie powiodła się (niekrytyczne — kontynuacja Gitea release):\n{error}",
+    "ru": "Публикация в PyPI не удалась (некритично — продолжаем создание Gitea release):\n{error}",
+    "zh": "PyPI 发布失败（非致命 — 继续创建 Gitea release）：\n{error}"
   },
   "Release creation failed: {error}": {
     "bg": "Release creation failed: {error}",
@@ -1111,6 +1127,22 @@
     "ru": "Tag consistency check failed.",
     "zh": "Tag consistency check failed."
   },
+  "Tag is required (or use --from-tag).": {
+    "bg": "Tag is required (or use --from-tag).",
+    "de": "Tag is required (or use --from-tag).",
+    "en": "Tag is required (or use --from-tag).",
+    "pl": "Tag jest wymagany (lub użyj --from-tag).",
+    "ru": "Tag is required (or use --from-tag).",
+    "zh": "Tag is required (or use --from-tag)."
+  },
+  "REPO argument is required (or set GITHUB_REPOSITORY env var).": {
+    "bg": "REPO argument is required (or set GITHUB_REPOSITORY env var).",
+    "de": "REPO argument is required (or set GITHUB_REPOSITORY env var).",
+    "en": "REPO argument is required (or set GITHUB_REPOSITORY env var).",
+    "pl": "Argument REPO jest wymagany (lub ustaw zmienną GITHUB_REPOSITORY).",
+    "ru": "REPO argument is required (or set GITHUB_REPOSITORY env var).",
+    "zh": "REPO argument is required (or set GITHUB_REPOSITORY env var)."
+  },
   "Tag v{version} already existed. Publish workflow should already have been triggered.": {
     "bg": "Tag v{version} already existed. Publish workflow should already have been triggered.",
     "de": "Tag v{version} already existed. Publish workflow should already have been triggered.",

tests/unit/test_api_clients.py

@@ -278,6 +278,35 @@ class TestGiteaClient:
             timeout=DEFAULT_TIMEOUT,
         )
 
+    def test_list_prs(self) -> None:
+        client = GiteaClient("https://git.example.com", "tok", "owner", "repo")
+        client._session.request = MagicMock(
+            return_value=_mock_response([{"number": 1, "title": "feat: add"}, {"number": 2, "title": "fix: bug"}])
+        )
+
+        result = client.list_prs()
+        assert len(result) == 2
+        assert result[0]["number"] == 1
+        client._session.request.assert_called_once_with(
+            "GET",
+            "https://git.example.com/repos/owner/repo/pulls",
+            params={"state": "all"},
+            timeout=DEFAULT_TIMEOUT,
+        )
+
+    def test_list_prs_with_params(self) -> None:
+        client = GiteaClient("https://git.example.com", "tok", "owner", "repo")
+        client._session.request = MagicMock(return_value=_mock_response([{"number": 3, "title": "docs: update"}]))
+
+        result = client.list_prs(state="closed", q="docs")
+        assert len(result) == 1
+        client._session.request.assert_called_once_with(
+            "GET",
+            "https://git.example.com/repos/owner/repo/pulls",
+            params={"state": "closed", "q": "docs"},
+            timeout=DEFAULT_TIMEOUT,
+        )
+
     def test_get_pr_reviews(self) -> None:
         client = GiteaClient("https://git.example.com", "tok", "owner", "repo")
         client._session.request = MagicMock(return_value=_mock_response([{"id": 1, "state": "APPROVED"}]))
@@ -566,6 +595,46 @@ class TestVikunjaClient:
             json={"done": True},
         )
 
+    def test_list_comments(self) -> None:
+        client = VikunjaClient("https://work.example.com", "tok")
+        client._session.request = MagicMock(
+            return_value=_mock_response([{"id": 1, "comment": "first"}, {"id": 2, "comment": "second"}])
+        )
+
+        result = client.list_comments(42)
+        assert len(result) == 2
+        assert result[0]["comment"] == "first"
+        client._session.request.assert_called_once_with(
+            "GET",
+            "https://work.example.com/tasks/42/comments",
+            timeout=DEFAULT_TIMEOUT,
+        )
+
+    def test_update_task_safe(self) -> None:
+        client = VikunjaClient("https://work.example.com", "tok")
+        client._session.request = MagicMock(
+            side_effect=[
+                _mock_response({"id": 42, "title": "My task", "done": False}),
+                _mock_response({"id": 42, "title": "My task", "done": True}),
+            ]
+        )
+
+        result = client.update_task_safe(42, done=True)
+        assert result["done"] is True
+        assert result["title"] == "My task"
+        assert client._session.request.call_count == 2
+        client._session.request.assert_any_call(
+            "GET",
+            "https://work.example.com/tasks/42",
+            timeout=DEFAULT_TIMEOUT,
+        )
+        client._session.request.assert_any_call(
+            "POST",
+            "https://work.example.com/tasks/42",
+            timeout=DEFAULT_TIMEOUT,
+            json={"id": 42, "title": "My task", "done": True},
+        )
+
     @patch("devx.api_clients.time.sleep")
     def test_http_error_raises_api_error(self, mock_sleep: MagicMock) -> None:
         client = VikunjaClient("https://work.example.com", "tok")

tests/unit/test_auto_merge.py

@@ -253,31 +253,34 @@ class TestMain:
     @patch.dict("os.environ", {"REPO_TOKEN": "tok", "VIKUNJA_TOKEN": "tok"}, clear=True)
     @patch("devx.ci.auto_merge.validate_pr_title_matches_vikunja")
     @patch("devx.ci.auto_merge.GiteaClient")
-    def test_merge_behind_master_rebases(
+    def test_merge_behind_master_raises_no_rebase(
         self, mock_client_cls: MagicMock, _mock_validate: MagicMock, tmp_path, monkeypatch
     ) -> None:  # type: ignore[no-untyped-def]
+        """When branch is behind master, auto-merge should NOT rebase.
+
+        Auto-rebasing creates a feedback loop: the force-push triggers a new
+        pull_request synchronize event, which starts a new CI run, which runs
+        auto-merge again, which rebases again, etc.
+        """
         monkeypatch.chdir(tmp_path)
 
         mock_client = MagicMock()
         mock_client.get_pr_commits.return_value = [
             {"commit": {"message": "fix: resolve timeout"}},
         ]
-        mock_client.merge_pr.side_effect = [
-            APIError(405, "HEAD branch is behind master"),
-            None,  # Second call succeeds
-        ]
+        mock_client.merge_pr.side_effect = APIError(405, "HEAD branch is behind master")
         mock_client_cls.return_value = mock_client
 
-        with patch("devx.ci.auto_merge.run_cmd") as mock_run:
-            runner = CliRunner()
-            result = runner.invoke(
-                main,
-                ["DEVX-19-fix-bug", "DEVX-19: Fix timeout", "owner/repo", "7"],
-            )
-            assert result.exit_code == 0, result.output
-            assert mock_client.merge_pr.call_count == 2
-            # Should have fetched, rebased, and pushed
-            assert mock_run.call_count == 5  # config name, config email, fetch, rebase, push
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        result = runner.invoke(
+            main,
+            ["DEVX-19-fix-bug", "DEVX-19: Fix timeout", "owner/repo", "7"],
+        )
+        assert result.exit_code != 0
+        assert "behind master" in result.output.lower()
+        assert "rebase manually" in result.output.lower()
+        # Must NOT have called merge_pr twice (no retry after rebase)
+        assert mock_client.merge_pr.call_count == 1
 
     @patch.dict("os.environ", {"REPO_TOKEN": "tok", "VIKUNJA_TOKEN": "tok"}, clear=True)
     @patch("devx.ci.auto_merge.validate_pr_title_matches_vikunja")
@@ -344,10 +347,10 @@ class TestMain:
     @patch.dict("os.environ", {"REPO_TOKEN": "tok", "VIKUNJA_TOKEN": "tok"}, clear=True)
     @patch("devx.ci.auto_merge.validate_pr_title_matches_vikunja")
     @patch("devx.ci.auto_merge.GiteaClient")
-    def test_rebase_retry_failure_raises(
+    def test_merge_behind_master_does_not_force_push(
         self, mock_client_cls: MagicMock, _mock_validate: MagicMock, tmp_path, monkeypatch
     ) -> None:  # type: ignore[no-untyped-def]
-        """When rebase retry also fails, raises with helpful message."""
+        """Verify no git commands are run when branch is behind master."""
         monkeypatch.chdir(tmp_path)
 
         mock_client = MagicMock()
@@ -358,14 +361,14 @@ class TestMain:
         mock_client_cls.return_value = mock_client
 
         with patch("devx.ci.auto_merge.run_cmd") as mock_run:
-            mock_run.side_effect = click.ClickException("git rebase failed")
             runner = CliRunner()
             result = runner.invoke(
                 main,
                 ["DEVX-19-fix-bug", "DEVX-19: Fix timeout", "owner/repo", "7"],
             )
             assert result.exit_code != 0
-            assert "rebase" in result.output.lower()
+            # No git commands should be run (no rebase, no push)
+            mock_run.assert_not_called()
 
 
 def test_main_module_block() -> None:

tests/unit/test_classify_changes.py

@@ -742,3 +742,95 @@ class TestGithubOutput:
         assert "user-facing-changed=true" in content
         # No tag outputs since no tags are configured
         assert "ansible-changed" not in content
+
+    @patch("devx.ci.classify_changes._get_classifier")
+    def test_force_outputs_true(self, mock_clf: MagicMock, tmp_path: Path, monkeypatch: pytest.MonkeyPatch) -> None:
+        """--force with --github-output writes user-facing-changed=true and all tags true."""
+        mock_clf.return_value = self._make_classifier_with_ansible()
+        gh_file = tmp_path / "output.txt"
+        monkeypatch.setenv("GITHUB_OUTPUT", str(gh_file))
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        result = runner.invoke(main, ["--github-output", "--force"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        content = gh_file.read_text()
+        assert "user-facing-changed=true" in content
+        assert "ansible-changed=true" in content
+        assert "Forced user-facing-changed=true" in result.output
+
+    @patch("devx.ci.classify_changes._get_classifier")
+    def test_force_without_github_output_does_nothing(
+        self, mock_clf: MagicMock, tmp_path: Path, monkeypatch: pytest.MonkeyPatch
+    ) -> None:
+        """--force without --github-output falls through to normal classification."""
+        mock_clf.return_value = self._make_classifier_with_ansible()
+        monkeypatch.setenv("GITHUB_OUTPUT", str(tmp_path / "output.txt"))
+        with patch.object(classify_changes_mod, "get_latest_tag", return_value="v1.0"):
+            with patch.object(classify_changes_mod, "get_changed_files", return_value=[]):
+                runner = CliRunner()
+                result = runner.invoke(main, ["--force", "--quiet"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        assert result.output.strip() == "false"
+
+    @patch("devx.ci.classify_changes._get_classifier")
+    def test_force_no_tags(self, mock_clf: MagicMock, tmp_path: Path, monkeypatch: pytest.MonkeyPatch) -> None:
+        """--force with --github-output and no tags writes only user-facing-changed=true."""
+        mock_clf.return_value = ChangeClassifier(
+            ClassifierConfig(
+                infrastructure=[".gitea/**"],
+                tags={},
+            )
+        )
+        gh_file = tmp_path / "output.txt"
+        monkeypatch.setenv("GITHUB_OUTPUT", str(gh_file))
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        result = runner.invoke(main, ["--github-output", "--force"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        content = gh_file.read_text()
+        assert "user-facing-changed=true" in content
+        assert "ansible-changed" not in content
+
+    @patch("devx.ci.classify_changes._get_classifier")
+    def test_force_deploy_env_var(self, mock_clf: MagicMock, tmp_path: Path, monkeypatch: pytest.MonkeyPatch) -> None:
+        """FORCE_DEPLOY=true env var activates force mode without --force flag."""
+        mock_clf.return_value = self._make_classifier_with_ansible()
+        gh_file = tmp_path / "output.txt"
+        monkeypatch.setenv("GITHUB_OUTPUT", str(gh_file))
+        monkeypatch.setenv("FORCE_DEPLOY", "true")
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        result = runner.invoke(main, ["--github-output"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        content = gh_file.read_text()
+        assert "user-facing-changed=true" in content
+        assert "ansible-changed=true" in content
+
+    @patch("devx.ci.classify_changes._get_classifier")
+    def test_force_deploy_env_var_false(
+        self, mock_clf: MagicMock, tmp_path: Path, monkeypatch: pytest.MonkeyPatch
+    ) -> None:
+        """FORCE_DEPLOY=false does not activate force mode."""
+        mock_clf.return_value = self._make_classifier_with_ansible()
+        gh_file = tmp_path / "output.txt"
+        monkeypatch.setenv("GITHUB_OUTPUT", str(gh_file))
+        monkeypatch.setenv("FORCE_DEPLOY", "false")
+        with patch.object(classify_changes_mod, "get_latest_tag", return_value="v1.0"):
+            with patch.object(classify_changes_mod, "get_changed_files", return_value=[]):
+                runner = CliRunner()
+                result = runner.invoke(main, ["--github-output"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        content = gh_file.read_text()
+        assert "user-facing-changed=false" in content
+
+    @patch("devx.ci.classify_changes._get_classifier")
+    def test_force_flag_overrides_env_var(
+        self, mock_clf: MagicMock, tmp_path: Path, monkeypatch: pytest.MonkeyPatch
+    ) -> None:
+        """--force flag works even when FORCE_DEPLOY=false."""
+        mock_clf.return_value = self._make_classifier_with_ansible()
+        gh_file = tmp_path / "output.txt"
+        monkeypatch.setenv("GITHUB_OUTPUT", str(gh_file))
+        monkeypatch.setenv("FORCE_DEPLOY", "false")
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        result = runner.invoke(main, ["--github-output", "--force"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        content = gh_file.read_text()
+        assert "user-facing-changed=true" in content

tests/unit/test_cli.py

@@ -233,13 +233,6 @@ class TestNewCiCommands:
         assert result.exit_code == 0
         mock_run.assert_called_once_with("devx.ci.distribute_files", ["--pattern", "*.py"])
 
-    @patch("devx.cli._run_module")
-    def test_ci_merge_junit(self, mock_run: MagicMock) -> None:
-        runner = CliRunner()
-        result = runner.invoke(cli, ["ci", "merge-junit", "--", "--output", "merged.xml"])
-        assert result.exit_code == 0
-        mock_run.assert_called_once_with("devx.ci.merge_junit", ["--output", "merged.xml"])
-
     @patch("devx.cli._run_module")
     def test_ci_integration_guard(self, mock_run: MagicMock) -> None:
         runner = CliRunner()

tests/unit/test_integration_guard.py

@@ -43,26 +43,6 @@ class TestCli:
             assert result.exit_code == 1
             assert "failed" in result.output
 
-    def test_junit_output_passed_to_pytest(self) -> None:
-        with (
-            patch("devx.ci.integration_guard.subprocess.Popen") as mock_popen,
-            patch("time.sleep"),
-        ):
-            proc = MagicMock()
-            proc.poll.return_value = 0
-            proc.returncode = 0
-            mock_popen.return_value = proc
-
-            runner = CliRunner()
-            result = runner.invoke(
-                cli,
-                ["--junit-output", "junit-results/runner-1.xml", "--", "test_foo.py"],
-            )
-            assert result.exit_code == 0
-            call_args = mock_popen.call_args[0][0]
-            assert "--junitxml" in call_args
-            assert "junit-results/runner-1.xml" in call_args
-
     def test_pytest_args_passed_through(self) -> None:
         with (
             patch("devx.ci.integration_guard.subprocess.Popen") as mock_popen,

tests/unit/test_merge_junit.py

@@ -1,91 +0,0 @@
-"""Unit tests for devx.ci.merge_junit."""
-
-from pathlib import Path
-from xml.etree import ElementTree as ET
-
-import pytest
-from click.testing import CliRunner
-
-from devx.ci.merge_junit import main, merge_files
-
-
-def _write_suite(path: Path, name: str, tests: int, failures: int) -> None:
-    suite = ET.Element("testsuite", name=name, tests=str(tests), failures=str(failures))
-    for i in range(tests):
-        tc = ET.SubElement(suite, "testcase", classname="cls", name=f"test{i}", time="0.1")
-        if i < failures:
-            ET.SubElement(tc, "failure", message="fail")
-    tree = ET.ElementTree(suite)
-    tree.write(path, encoding="UTF-8", xml_declaration=True)
-
-
-class TestMergeFiles:
-    def test_merges_multiple_suites(self, tmp_path: Path) -> None:
-        _write_suite(tmp_path / "runner-1.xml", "r1", tests=3, failures=1)
-        _write_suite(tmp_path / "runner-2.xml", "r2", tests=2, failures=0)
-        merged, total_tests, total_failures = merge_files(str(tmp_path / "runner-*.xml"))
-        assert total_tests == 5
-        assert total_failures == 1
-        assert merged.tag == "testsuites"
-        assert len(merged) == 2
-
-    def test_no_files_returns_empty(self, tmp_path: Path) -> None:
-        merged, total_tests, total_failures = merge_files(str(tmp_path / "nonexistent-*.xml"))
-        assert total_tests == 0
-        assert total_failures == 0
-        assert merged.tag == "testsuites"
-        assert len(merged) == 0
-
-    def test_handles_testsuites_wrapper_root(self, tmp_path: Path) -> None:
-        wrapper = ET.Element("testsuites")
-        suite = ET.SubElement(wrapper, "testsuite", name="r1", tests="4", failures="2")
-        ET.SubElement(suite, "testcase", classname="c", name="t", time="0.1")
-        tree = ET.ElementTree(wrapper)
-        tree.write(tmp_path / "runner-1.xml", encoding="UTF-8", xml_declaration=True)
-        merged, total_tests, total_failures = merge_files(str(tmp_path / "runner-*.xml"))
-        assert total_tests == 4
-        assert total_failures == 2
-
-
-class TestCli:
-    def test_writes_merged_file(self, tmp_path: Path, monkeypatch: pytest.MonkeyPatch) -> None:
-        _write_suite(tmp_path / "runner-1.xml", "r1", tests=2, failures=0)
-        _write_suite(tmp_path / "runner-2.xml", "r2", tests=3, failures=0)
-        out = tmp_path / "merged.xml"
-        runner = CliRunner()
-        result = runner.invoke(
-            main,
-            ["--pattern", str(tmp_path / "runner-*.xml"), "--output", str(out)],
-        )
-        assert result.exit_code == 0
-        assert out.exists()
-        tree = ET.parse(out)
-        root = tree.getroot()
-        assert root.get("tests") == "5"
-        assert root.get("failures") == "0"
-
-    def test_exits_nonzero_on_failures(self, tmp_path: Path) -> None:
-        _write_suite(tmp_path / "runner-1.xml", "r1", tests=2, failures=1)
-        out = tmp_path / "merged.xml"
-        runner = CliRunner()
-        result = runner.invoke(
-            main,
-            ["--pattern", str(tmp_path / "runner-*.xml"), "--output", str(out)],
-        )
-        assert result.exit_code != 0
-        assert "failures" in result.output
-
-    def test_no_files_exits_zero(self, tmp_path: Path) -> None:
-        runner = CliRunner()
-        result = runner.invoke(
-            main,
-            ["--pattern", str(tmp_path / "nonexistent-*.xml"), "--output", str(tmp_path / "out.xml")],
-        )
-        assert result.exit_code == 0
-        assert "No JUnit" in result.output or "skipping" in result.output
-
-
-def test_main_module_block() -> None:
-    import devx.ci.merge_junit as mod
-
-    assert hasattr(mod, "main")

tests/unit/test_molecule_ci_guard.py

@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@ from __future__ import annotations
 import os
 import subprocess  # nosec B404
 import time
-import xml.etree.ElementTree as ET
 from pathlib import Path
 from unittest.mock import MagicMock, patch
 
@@ -22,7 +21,6 @@ from devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard import (
     parse_pair,
     poll_for_other_failures,
     resolve_role_dir,
-    write_junit_report,
 )
 
 
@@ -504,40 +502,6 @@ class TestResolveRoleDir:
         assert result == tmp_path / "ansible" / "roles" / "gitea-runner"
 
 
-class TestWriteJunitReport:
-    def test_writes_report_with_passing_tests(self, tmp_path: Path) -> None:
-        output = str(tmp_path / "junit-results" / "runner-1.xml")
-        testcases = [
-            {"role": "gitea-runner", "scenario": "default", "time": 5.2, "passed": True, "error": None},
-            {"role": "docker-base", "scenario": "lifecycle", "time": 3.1, "passed": True, "error": None},
-        ]
-        write_junit_report(output, testcases, 1)
-        tree = ET.parse(output)
-        root = tree.getroot()
-        assert root.get("tests") == "2"
-        assert root.get("failures") == "0"
-        assert len(root) == 2
-
-    def test_writes_report_with_failures(self, tmp_path: Path) -> None:
-        output = str(tmp_path / "runner-2.xml")
-        testcases = [
-            {"role": "", "scenario": "default", "time": 1.0, "passed": False, "error": "Exit code: 1"},
-        ]
-        write_junit_report(output, testcases, 2)
-        tree = ET.parse(output)
-        root = tree.getroot()
-        assert root.get("tests") == "1"
-        assert root.get("failures") == "1"
-        failure = root[0][0]
-        assert failure.tag == "failure"
-        assert failure.text == "Exit code: 1"
-
-    def test_creates_parent_directory(self, tmp_path: Path) -> None:
-        output = str(tmp_path / "deep" / "nested" / "dir" / "runner.xml")
-        write_junit_report(output, [], 0)
-        assert Path(output).exists()
-
-
 class TestCliMultiRole:
     def test_multi_role_pair_passes(self, tmp_path: Path) -> None:
         from click.testing import CliRunner
@@ -563,133 +527,3 @@ class TestCliMultiRole:
             )
             assert result.exit_code == 0
             assert "All molecule tests passed" in result.output
-
-    def test_junit_output_written(self, tmp_path: Path) -> None:
-        from click.testing import CliRunner
-
-        roles_root = tmp_path / "ansible" / "roles"
-        (roles_root / "gitea-runner").mkdir(parents=True)
-        junit_path = str(tmp_path / "junit-results" / "runner-1.xml")
-
-        with (
-            patch("devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard.subprocess.Popen") as mock_popen,
-            patch("devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard.subprocess.run") as mock_run,
-            patch("time.sleep"),
-        ):
-            proc = MagicMock()
-            proc.poll.return_value = 0
-            proc.returncode = 0
-            mock_popen.return_value = proc
-            mock_run.return_value = MagicMock(returncode=0)
-
-            runner = CliRunner()
-            result = runner.invoke(
-                cli,
-                [
-                    "--roles-root",
-                    str(roles_root),
-                    "--junit-output",
-                    junit_path,
-                    "gitea-runner|default|ubuntu-2204|ubuntu:22.04|",
-                ],
-            )
-            assert result.exit_code == 0
-            assert Path(junit_path).exists()
-
-    def test_junit_output_on_failure(self, tmp_path: Path) -> None:
-        from click.testing import CliRunner
-
-        roles_root = tmp_path / "ansible" / "roles"
-        (roles_root / "gitea-runner").mkdir(parents=True)
-        junit_path = str(tmp_path / "junit-results" / "runner-1.xml")
-
-        with (
-            patch("devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard.subprocess.Popen") as mock_popen,
-            patch("time.sleep"),
-        ):
-            proc = MagicMock()
-            proc.poll.return_value = 1
-            proc.returncode = 1
-            mock_popen.return_value = proc
-
-            runner = CliRunner()
-            result = runner.invoke(
-                cli,
-                [
-                    "--roles-root",
-                    str(roles_root),
-                    "--junit-output",
-                    junit_path,
-                    "gitea-runner|default|ubuntu-2204|ubuntu:22.04|",
-                ],
-            )
-            assert result.exit_code == 1
-            assert Path(junit_path).exists()
-            tree = ET.parse(junit_path)
-            assert tree.getroot().get("failures") == "1"
-
-    def test_junit_output_on_cancellation(self, tmp_path: Path) -> None:
-        """JUnit report is written when a runner is cancelled by another runner's failure."""
-        from click.testing import CliRunner
-
-        real_sleep = time.sleep
-        roles_root = tmp_path / "ansible" / "roles"
-        (roles_root / "gitea-runner").mkdir(parents=True)
-        junit_path = str(tmp_path / "junit-results" / "runner-1.xml")
-        call_count = [0]
-
-        def get_jobs_side_effect(*args, **kwargs):
-            call_count[0] += 1
-            if call_count[0] < 2:
-                return [{"name": "molecule-tests (1)", "conclusion": "running"}]
-            return [
-                {"name": "molecule-tests (0)", "conclusion": "running"},
-                {"name": "molecule-tests (1)", "conclusion": "failure"},
-            ]
-
-        with (
-            patch.dict(
-                os.environ,
-                {
-                    "GITEA_URL": "https://gitea.example",
-                    "REPO_TOKEN": "token",
-                    "RUN_ID": "123",
-                    "JOB_NAME": "molecule-tests",
-                    "MATRIX_INDEX": "0",
-                    "GITEA_REPOSITORY": "oblachno-oss/infra",
-                    "PATH": os.environ.get("PATH", ""),
-                },
-                clear=True,
-            ),
-            patch("devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard.POLL_INTERVAL", 0.01),
-            patch("devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard.subprocess.Popen") as mock_popen,
-            patch("devx.molecule.molecule_ci_guard.get_running_jobs", side_effect=get_jobs_side_effect),
-            patch("os.killpg"),
-            patch("os.getpgid") as mock_getpgid,
-            patch("time.sleep", side_effect=lambda x: real_sleep(0.1)),
-        ):
-            mock_getpgid.return_value = 123
-            proc = MagicMock()
-            proc.poll.return_value = None
-            proc.wait.return_value = 0
-            mock_popen.return_value = proc
-
-            runner = CliRunner()
-            result = runner.invoke(
-                cli,
-                [
-                    "--roles-root",
-                    str(roles_root),
-                    "--junit-output",
-                    junit_path,
-                    "gitea-runner|default|ubuntu-2204|ubuntu:22.04|",
-                ],
-            )
-            assert result.exit_code == 1
-            assert Path(junit_path).exists()
-            tree = ET.parse(junit_path)
-            root = tree.getroot()
-            assert root.get("failures") == "1"
-            # The failure message should mention cancellation
-            failure = root[0][0]
-            assert "Cancelled" in (failure.text or "")

tests/unit/test_publish.py

@@ -11,6 +11,8 @@ from devx.ci.publish import (
     _default_gitea_registry_url,
     build_package,
     generate_release_notes,
+    get_latest_tag,
+    is_release_commit,
     main,
     publish_to_gitea_registry,
     publish_to_pypi,
@@ -122,11 +124,18 @@ class TestPublishToGiteaRegistry:
 
     @patch("devx.ci.publish.subprocess.run")
     def test_failure_raises(self, mock_run: MagicMock) -> None:
-        mock_run.return_value = MagicMock(returncode=1, stderr="registry upload failed")
+        mock_run.return_value = MagicMock(returncode=1, stdout="", stderr="registry upload failed")
         with pytest.raises(click.ClickException) as exc:
             publish_to_gitea_registry("https://git.example.com/api/packages/owner/pypi", "gitea-tok")
         assert "Gitea PyPI registry" in str(exc.value)
 
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.subprocess.run")
+    def test_409_conflict_is_non_fatal(self, mock_run: MagicMock) -> None:
+        """409 Conflict (already published) should not raise — just continue."""
+        mock_run.return_value = MagicMock(returncode=1, stdout="ERROR 409 Conflict from url", stderr="")
+        # Should not raise
+        publish_to_gitea_registry("https://git.example.com/api/packages/owner/pypi", "gitea-tok")
+
 
 class TestDefaultGiteaRegistryUrl:
     @patch.dict("os.environ", {"DEVX_REPO_OWNER": "myorg"}, clear=True)
@@ -294,14 +303,21 @@ class TestMain:
     @patch("devx.ci.publish.TeaCLI")
     @patch("devx.ci.publish.publish_to_pypi")
     @patch("devx.ci.publish.build_package")
-    def test_publish_failure_raises_click(
+    def test_publish_failure_continues_to_gitea_release(
         self, mock_build: MagicMock, mock_publish: MagicMock, mock_tea_cls: MagicMock, mock_notes: MagicMock
     ) -> None:
+        """PyPI publish failure is non-fatal — Gitea release is still created."""
+        mock_tea = MagicMock()
+        mock_tea.list_releases.return_value = []
+        mock_tea_cls.return_value = mock_tea
         mock_publish.side_effect = click.ClickException("publish failed")
         runner = CliRunner()
         result = runner.invoke(main, ["v1.0.0", "owner/repo"])
-        assert result.exit_code == 1
-        assert "publish" in result.output
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        assert "non-fatal" in result.output
+        mock_tea.create_release.assert_called_once_with(
+            "owner/repo", tag="v1.0.0", title="v1.0.0", body="Release notes"
+        )
 
     @patch.dict("os.environ", {"REPO_TOKEN": "gitea-tok", "PYPI_TOKEN": "pypi-tok"})
     @patch("devx.ci.publish.generate_release_notes", return_value="Release notes")
@@ -371,5 +387,148 @@ class TestMain:
         runner = CliRunner()
         result = runner.invoke(main, ["v1.0.0", "owner/repo"])
         assert result.exit_code == 0
-        assert "Gitea release v1.0.0 created" in result.output
-        mock_tea.create_release.assert_called_once()
+
+    @patch.dict("os.environ", {"REPO_TOKEN": "gitea-tok"})
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.generate_release_notes", return_value="Release notes")
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.TeaCLI")
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.publish_to_pypi")
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.build_package")
+    def test_create_release_already_exists_is_idempotent(
+        self, mock_build: MagicMock, mock_publish: MagicMock, mock_tea_cls: MagicMock, mock_notes: MagicMock
+    ) -> None:
+        """If create_release fails with 'already exists', treat as success."""
+        mock_tea = MagicMock()
+        mock_tea.list_releases.side_effect = TeaCLIError("api error")
+        mock_tea.create_release.side_effect = TeaCLIError("there is already a release for this tag")
+        mock_tea_cls.return_value = mock_tea
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        result = runner.invoke(main, ["v1.0.0", "owner/repo"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        assert "already exists" in result.output
+
+    @patch.dict("os.environ", {"REPO_TOKEN": "gitea-tok"})
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.generate_release_notes", return_value="Release notes")
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.TeaCLI")
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.publish_to_pypi")
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.build_package")
+    def test_create_release_other_error_raises(
+        self, mock_build: MagicMock, mock_publish: MagicMock, mock_tea_cls: MagicMock, mock_notes: MagicMock
+    ) -> None:
+        """If create_release fails with a non-'already exists' error, raise."""
+        mock_tea = MagicMock()
+        mock_tea.list_releases.side_effect = TeaCLIError("api error")
+        mock_tea.create_release.side_effect = TeaCLIError("network error")
+        mock_tea_cls.return_value = mock_tea
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        result = runner.invoke(main, ["v1.0.0", "owner/repo"])
+        assert result.exit_code != 0
+        assert "Release creation failed" in result.output
+
+
+class TestFromTag:
+    def test_get_latest_tag_success(self) -> None:
+        import subprocess
+
+        with patch("devx.ci.publish.subprocess.run") as mock_run:
+            mock_run.return_value = subprocess.CompletedProcess(args=[], returncode=0, stdout="v1.2.3\n")
+            result = get_latest_tag()
+        assert result == "v1.2.3"
+
+    def test_get_latest_tag_no_tags(self) -> None:
+        import subprocess
+
+        with patch("devx.ci.publish.subprocess.run") as mock_run:
+            mock_run.side_effect = subprocess.CalledProcessError(1, [])
+            result = get_latest_tag()
+        assert result is None
+
+    def test_is_release_commit_match(self) -> None:
+        import subprocess
+
+        with patch("devx.ci.publish.subprocess.run") as mock_run:
+            mock_run.return_value = subprocess.CompletedProcess(
+                args=[], returncode=0, stdout="release: v1.2.3 [skip ci]\n"
+            )
+            result = is_release_commit("v1.2.3")
+        assert result is True
+
+    def test_is_release_commit_no_match(self) -> None:
+        import subprocess
+
+        with patch("devx.ci.publish.subprocess.run") as mock_run:
+            mock_run.return_value = subprocess.CompletedProcess(args=[], returncode=0, stdout="feat: add feature\n")
+            result = is_release_commit("v1.2.3")
+        assert result is False
+
+    def test_is_release_commit_git_error(self) -> None:
+        import subprocess
+
+        with patch("devx.ci.publish.subprocess.run") as mock_run:
+            mock_run.side_effect = subprocess.CalledProcessError(1, [])
+            result = is_release_commit("v1.2.3")
+        assert result is False
+
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.get_latest_tag", return_value=None)
+    def test_from_tag_no_tag_skips(self, _mock: MagicMock) -> None:
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        result = runner.invoke(main, ["--from-tag", "--skip-build", "", "owner/repo"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        assert "No tag found" in result.output
+
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.get_latest_tag", return_value=None)
+    def test_from_tag_no_repo_uses_env(self, _mock: MagicMock) -> None:
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        with patch.dict("os.environ", {"GITHUB_REPOSITORY": "owner/repo"}):
+            result = runner.invoke(main, ["--from-tag", "--skip-build"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        assert "No tag found" in result.output
+
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.get_latest_tag", return_value=None)
+    def test_from_tag_no_repo_no_env_raises(self, _mock: MagicMock) -> None:
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        with patch.dict("os.environ", {}, clear=True):
+            result = runner.invoke(main, ["--from-tag", "--skip-build"])
+        assert result.exit_code != 0
+        assert "REPO argument is required" in result.output
+
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.is_release_commit", return_value=False)
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.get_latest_tag", return_value="v1.0.0")
+    def test_from_tag_not_release_commit_skips(self, _mock_tag: MagicMock, _mock_rel: MagicMock) -> None:
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        result = runner.invoke(main, ["--from-tag", "--skip-build", "", "owner/repo"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        assert "not a release commit" in result.output
+
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.is_release_commit", return_value=True)
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.get_latest_tag", return_value="v1.0.0")
+    def test_from_tag_publishes(self, _mock_tag: MagicMock, _mock_rel: MagicMock) -> None:
+        with patch.dict("os.environ", {"REPO_TOKEN": "fake"}):
+            with patch("devx.ci.publish.TeaCLI") as mock_tea_cls:
+                mock_tea = MagicMock()
+                mock_tea.list_releases.return_value = []
+                mock_tea_cls.return_value = mock_tea
+                with patch("devx.ci.publish.generate_release_notes", return_value="notes"):
+                    runner = CliRunner()
+                    result = runner.invoke(main, ["--from-tag", "--skip-build", "", "owner/repo"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        assert "Publishing release v1.0.0" in result.output
+
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.is_release_commit", return_value=True)
+    @patch("devx.ci.publish.get_latest_tag", return_value="v1.0.0")
+    def test_from_tag_publishes_no_repo_arg(self, _mock_tag: MagicMock, _mock_rel: MagicMock) -> None:
+        with patch.dict("os.environ", {"REPO_TOKEN": "fake", "GITHUB_REPOSITORY": "owner/repo"}):
+            with patch("devx.ci.publish.TeaCLI") as mock_tea_cls:
+                mock_tea = MagicMock()
+                mock_tea.list_releases.return_value = []
+                mock_tea_cls.return_value = mock_tea
+                with patch("devx.ci.publish.generate_release_notes", return_value="notes"):
+                    runner = CliRunner()
+                    result = runner.invoke(main, ["--from-tag", "--skip-build"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+        assert "Publishing release v1.0.0" in result.output
+
+    def test_no_tag_no_from_tag_raises(self) -> None:
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        result = runner.invoke(main, ["", "owner/repo", "--skip-build"])
+        assert result.exit_code != 0
+        assert "Tag is required" in result.output

tests/unit/test_release.py

@@ -766,7 +766,7 @@ class TestCommitReleaseChanges:
         assert result is True
         calls = [c.args[0] for c in mock_run_cmd.call_args_list]
         assert ["git", "add", "src/devx/__init__.py", "CHANGELOG.md"] in calls
-        assert ["git", "commit", "--no-verify", "-m", "release: v0.2.0 [skip ci]"] in calls
+        assert ["git", "commit", "--no-verify", "-m", "release: v0.2.0"] in calls
 
     @patch("devx.ci.release.run_cmd")
     def test_skips_when_no_changes(self, mock_run_cmd: MagicMock) -> None:

tests/unit/test_validate_commit_msg.py

@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ from unittest.mock import patch
 
 from click.testing import CliRunner
 
-from devx.ci.validate_commit_msg import first_line, get_branch, main
+from devx.ci.validate_commit_msg import first_line, get_branch, get_latest_commit_msg, main
 from devx.config import CONVENTIONAL_RE, TASK_ID_RE
 
 
@@ -126,7 +126,7 @@ class TestMain:
     def test_usage_message_without_args(self) -> None:
         runner = CliRunner()
         result = runner.invoke(main, [])
-        assert result.exit_code == 2
+        assert result.exit_code != 0
 
     def test_branch_override_accepts_master_commit(self) -> None:
         """--branch master overrides branch detection (for CI use)."""
@@ -257,3 +257,45 @@ def test_main_module_block() -> None:
         namespace["main"]([msg_path], standalone_mode=False)
 
     os.unlink(msg_path)
+
+
+class TestGitMode:
+    def test_git_flag_reads_from_git(self, tmp_path) -> None:
+        with patch("devx.ci.validate_commit_msg.get_latest_commit_msg", return_value="feat: add feature"):
+            with patch("devx.ci.validate_commit_msg.get_branch", return_value="feature-branch"):
+                runner = CliRunner()
+                result = runner.invoke(main, ["--git"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+
+    def test_git_flag_master_valid(self) -> None:
+        msg = "DEVX-24: fix: resolve timeout"
+        with patch("devx.ci.validate_commit_msg.get_latest_commit_msg", return_value=msg):
+            with patch("devx.ci.validate_commit_msg.get_branch", return_value="master"):
+                runner = CliRunner()
+                result = runner.invoke(main, ["--git", "--branch", "master"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0
+
+    def test_git_flag_master_invalid(self) -> None:
+        msg = "fix: resolve timeout"
+        with patch("devx.ci.validate_commit_msg.get_latest_commit_msg", return_value=msg):
+            with patch("devx.ci.validate_commit_msg.get_branch", return_value="master"):
+                runner = CliRunner()
+                result = runner.invoke(main, ["--git", "--branch", "master"])
+        assert result.exit_code != 0
+
+    def test_no_file_no_git_raises(self) -> None:
+        runner = CliRunner()
+        result = runner.invoke(main, ["--branch", "master"])
+        assert result.exit_code != 0
+
+    def test_get_latest_commit_msg_success(self) -> None:
+        with patch("subprocess.run") as mock_run:
+            mock_run.return_value = subprocess.CompletedProcess(args=[], returncode=0, stdout="feat: test\n\nBody")
+            result = get_latest_commit_msg()
+        assert result == "feat: test\n\nBody"
+
+    def test_stdin_input(self) -> None:
+        with patch("devx.ci.validate_commit_msg.get_branch", return_value="feature-branch"):
+            runner = CliRunner()
+            result = runner.invoke(main, input="feat: add feature\n", args=["-", "--branch", "feature-branch"])
+        assert result.exit_code == 0