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Term

Pull Request

A pull request is a proposal to merge changes from one branch into another — the standard workflow for code review and collaborative work on a repository.

Pull Request — explained in more detail

The term “pull request” (PR) comes from the GitHub world; GitLab calls the same concept a “merge request” (MR). The substance is identical: a developer asks for their branch changes to be taken into a target branch (usually main) — and reviewers check, comment, request adjustments, or approve.

Typical flow

  1. Create a branch off main, commit changes locally, push the branch.
  2. Open a pull request with a description and reference to the issue it solves.
  3. CI runs automatically — tests, lints, builds.
  4. Reviewers leave line-level comments, ask questions, suggest changes.
  5. The author responds with further commits in the branch.
  6. Once approved: merge into main, branch gets deleted.

Why it matters

Pull requests are the bridge between individual work and team code. They enforce small, documented units, enable knowledge transfer in review, and are the seam where CI/CD plugs in.

In the AI workflow

AI-generated changes typically land as pull requests — the human checks in review what the AI proposed, instead of pushing the code straight into main.

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