Add --include-messages option to filter commits by subject regex

README.md

@@ -149,16 +149,17 @@ linear-release update --stage="in review" --name="Release 1.2.0"
 
 ### CLI Options
 
-| Option              | Commands                     | Description                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          |
-| ------------------- | ---------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
-| `--name`            | `sync`, `complete`, `update` | Custom release name. For `sync`, the value is applied to the targeted release — both newly created releases and existing ones get the provided name. For `complete` and `update`, sets the name on the targeted release.                                             |
-| `--release-version` | `sync`, `complete`, `update` | Release version identifier. For `sync`, defaults to short commit hash. For `complete` and `update`, selects an existing release with that version (errors if none exists); does not change a release's version. If omitted, targets the most recent started release. |
-| `--stage`           | `update`                     | Target deployment stage (required for `update`)                                                                                                                                                                                                                      |
-| `--include-paths`   | `sync`                       | Filter commits by changed file paths                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 |
-| `--json`            | `sync`, `complete`, `update` | Output result as JSON on stdout. Logs are emitted as JSON Lines (one object per line) on stderr.                                                                                                                                                                     |
-| `--quiet`           | `sync`, `complete`, `update` | Suppress info-level output. Warnings and errors are still printed.                                                                                                                                                                                                   |
-| `--verbose`         | `sync`, `complete`, `update` | Print detailed progress including debug diagnostics                                                                                                                                                                                                                  |
-| `--timeout`         | `sync`, `complete`, `update` | Max duration in seconds before aborting (default: 60)                                                                                                                                                                                                                |
+| Option               | Commands                     | Description                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          |
+| -------------------- | ---------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
+| `--name`             | `sync`, `complete`, `update` | Custom release name. For `sync`, the value is applied to the targeted release — both newly created releases and existing ones get the provided name. For `complete` and `update`, sets the name on the targeted release.                                             |
+| `--release-version`  | `sync`, `complete`, `update` | Release version identifier. For `sync`, defaults to short commit hash. For `complete` and `update`, selects an existing release with that version (errors if none exists); does not change a release's version. If omitted, targets the most recent started release. |
+| `--stage`            | `update`                     | Target deployment stage (required for `update`)                                                                                                                                                                                                                      |
+| `--include-paths`    | `sync`                       | Filter commits by changed file paths                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 |
+| `--include-messages` | `sync`                       | Filter commits whose subject (first line) matches a regex                                                                                                                                                                                                            |
+| `--json`             | `sync`, `complete`, `update` | Output result as JSON on stdout. Logs are emitted as JSON Lines (one object per line) on stderr.                                                                                                                                                                     |
+| `--quiet`            | `sync`, `complete`, `update` | Suppress info-level output. Warnings and errors are still printed.                                                                                                                                                                                                   |
+| `--verbose`          | `sync`, `complete`, `update` | Print detailed progress including debug diagnostics                                                                                                                                                                                                                  |
+| `--timeout`          | `sync`, `complete`, `update` | Max duration in seconds before aborting (default: 60)                                                                                                                                                                                                                |
 
 ### Command Targeting
 
@@ -209,6 +210,22 @@ Patterns use [Git pathspec](https://git-scm.com/docs/gitglossary#Documentation/g
 
 Path patterns can also be configured in your pipeline settings in Linear. If both are set, the CLI `--include-paths` option takes precedence.
 
+### Commit Message Filtering
+
+Use `--include-messages` to only scan commits whose subject (first line) matches a regular expression. Useful when the default commit range pulls in noise — direct pushes without issue links, bot commits, or merge commits you don't want appearing in releases.
+
+```bash
+# Only commits that mention a Linear issue identifier in the subject
+linear-release sync --include-messages="[A-Z]{2,}-[0-9]+"
+
+# Conventional Commits — keep user-impacting changes, drop chore/docs/test/ci
+linear-release sync --include-messages="^(feat|fix|perf):"
+```
+
+The regex is matched against the commit subject only (everything before the first newline) — body lines such as squash dumps or co-author trailers are ignored. Use the regex's own `|` alternation to combine multiple patterns; remember to escape regex metacharacters in shell strings.
+
+`--include-messages` composes with `--include-paths`: a commit must pass both filters to be scanned.
+
 ## How It Works
 
 1. **Fetches the latest release** from your Linear pipeline to determine the commit range

src/args.test.ts

@@ -81,6 +81,25 @@ describe("parseCLIArgs", () => {
     expect(result.includePaths).toEqual(["apps/web/**", "packages/**"]);
   });
 
+  it("defaults --include-messages to null", () => {
+    const result = parseCLIArgs([]);
+    expect(result.includeMessages).toBeNull();
+  });
+
+  it("returns --include-messages as the raw pattern string", () => {
+    const result = parseCLIArgs(["--include-messages", "^(feat|fix):"]);
+    expect(result.includeMessages).toBe("^(feat|fix):");
+  });
+
+  it("treats empty --include-messages as no filter", () => {
+    const result = parseCLIArgs(["--include-messages", ""]);
+    expect(result.includeMessages).toBeNull();
+  });
+
+  it("throws a helpful error on invalid --include-messages regex", () => {
+    expect(() => parseCLIArgs(["--include-messages", "([unclosed"])).toThrow(/Invalid --include-messages regex/);
+  });
+
   it("throws on unknown flags (strict mode)", () => {
     expect(() => parseCLIArgs(["--unknown-flag"])).toThrow();
   });

src/args.ts

@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ export type ParsedCLIArgs = {
   releaseVersion?: string;
   stageName?: string;
   includePaths: string[];
+  includeMessages: string | null;
   jsonOutput: boolean;
   timeoutSeconds: number;
   logLevel: LogLevel;
@@ -20,6 +21,7 @@ export function parseCLIArgs(argv: string[]): ParsedCLIArgs {
       "release-version": { type: "string" },
       stage: { type: "string" },
       "include-paths": { type: "string" },
+      "include-messages": { type: "string" },
       json: { type: "boolean", default: false },
       timeout: { type: "string" },
       quiet: { type: "boolean", default: false },
@@ -47,6 +49,18 @@ export function parseCLIArgs(argv: string[]): ParsedCLIArgs {
   if (values.quiet) logLevel = LogLevel.Quiet;
   else if (values.verbose) logLevel = LogLevel.Verbose;
 
+  let includeMessages: string | null = null;
+  const rawIncludeMessages = values["include-messages"];
+  if (rawIncludeMessages !== undefined && rawIncludeMessages.length > 0) {
+    try {
+      new RegExp(rawIncludeMessages);
+    } catch (err) {
+      const detail = err instanceof Error ? err.message : String(err);
+      throw new Error(`Invalid --include-messages regex: ${detail}`);
+    }
+    includeMessages = rawIncludeMessages;
+  }
+
   return {
     command: positionals[0] || "sync",
     releaseName: values.name,
@@ -58,6 +72,7 @@ export function parseCLIArgs(argv: string[]): ParsedCLIArgs {
           .map((p) => p.trim())
           .filter((p) => p.length > 0)
       : [],
+    includeMessages,
     jsonOutput: values.json ?? false,
     timeoutSeconds,
     logLevel,

src/index.ts

@@ -52,6 +52,7 @@ Options:
   --release-version=<version>  Release version identifier
   --stage=<stage>            Deployment stage (required for update)
   --include-paths=<paths>    Filter commits by file paths (comma-separated globs)
+  --include-messages=<regex> Filter commits whose subject (first line) matches the regex
   --timeout=<seconds>        Abort if the operation exceeds this duration (default: 60)
   --json                     Output result as JSON (logs emitted as JSON Lines on stderr)
   --quiet                    Suppress info-level output (warnings and errors still printed)
@@ -68,6 +69,7 @@ Examples:
   linear-release complete
   linear-release update --stage=production
   linear-release sync --include-paths="apps/web/**,packages/**"
+  linear-release sync --include-messages="[A-Z]{2,}-[0-9]+"
 `);
   process.exit(0);
 }
@@ -87,8 +89,17 @@ try {
   error(`${message} (run linear-release --help for usage)`);
   process.exit(1);
 }
-const { command, releaseName, releaseVersion, stageName, includePaths, jsonOutput, timeoutSeconds, logLevel } =
-  parsedArgs;
+const {
+  command,
+  releaseName,
+  releaseVersion,
+  stageName,
+  includePaths,
+  includeMessages,
+  jsonOutput,
+  timeoutSeconds,
+  logLevel,
+} = parsedArgs;
 const cliWarnings = getCLIWarnings(parsedArgs);
 setLogLevel(logLevel);
 if (jsonOutput) {
@@ -214,6 +225,7 @@ async function syncCommand(): Promise<{
   const { issueReferences, revertedIssueReferences, prNumbers, debugSink } = scanCommits(
     commits,
     effectiveIncludePaths,
+    includeMessages,
   );
 
   verbose(`Debug sink: ${JSON.stringify(debugSink, null, 2)}`);

src/scan.test.ts

@@ -34,19 +34,19 @@ describe("scanCommits", () => {
     ];
 
     it("adds identifier when last action is re-add", () => {
-      const result = scanCommits(commits, null);
+      const result = scanCommits(commits, null, null);
       expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual(["BAC-39"]);
       expect(ids(result.revertedIssueReferences)).toEqual([]);
     });
 
     it("adds identifier when only add commits are present", () => {
-      const result = scanCommits(commits.slice(0, 2), null);
+      const result = scanCommits(commits.slice(0, 2), null, null);
       expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual(["BAC-39"]);
       expect(ids(result.revertedIssueReferences)).toEqual([]);
     });
 
     it("reverts identifier when add is followed by revert", () => {
-      const result = scanCommits(commits.slice(0, 4), null);
+      const result = scanCommits(commits.slice(0, 4), null, null);
       expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual([]);
       expect(ids(result.revertedIssueReferences)).toEqual(["BAC-39"]);
     });
@@ -64,7 +64,7 @@ describe("scanCommits", () => {
           message: 'Revert "Fixes DRIVE-320: memory leak in background location service"',
         },
       ];
-      const result = scanCommits(commits, null);
+      const result = scanCommits(commits, null, null);
       expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual([]);
       expect(ids(result.revertedIssueReferences)).toEqual(["DRIVE-320"]);
     });
@@ -74,7 +74,7 @@ describe("scanCommits", () => {
         { sha: "a1", message: "Bump v1-2 to v1-3" },
         { sha: "r1", message: 'Revert "Bump v1-2 to v1-3"' },
       ];
-      const result = scanCommits(commits, null);
+      const result = scanCommits(commits, null, null);
       expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual([]);
       expect(ids(result.revertedIssueReferences)).toEqual([]);
     });
@@ -90,7 +90,7 @@ describe("scanCommits", () => {
           message: 'Revert "ENG-200: something"',
         },
       ];
-      const result = scanCommits(commits, null);
+      const result = scanCommits(commits, null, null);
       expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual(["ENG-100"]);
       expect(ids(result.revertedIssueReferences)).toEqual(["ENG-200"]);
     });
@@ -104,7 +104,7 @@ describe("scanCommits", () => {
           message: 'Revert "ENG-100: fix"',
         },
       ];
-      const result = scanCommits(commits, null);
+      const result = scanCommits(commits, null, null);
       expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual([]);
       expect(ids(result.revertedIssueReferences)).toEqual(["ENG-100"]);
     });
@@ -118,7 +118,7 @@ describe("scanCommits", () => {
         },
         { sha: "a1", branchName: "user/eng-100" },
       ];
-      const result = scanCommits(commits, null);
+      const result = scanCommits(commits, null, null);
       expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual(["ENG-100"]);
       expect(ids(result.revertedIssueReferences)).toEqual([]);
     });
@@ -136,7 +136,7 @@ describe("scanCommits", () => {
           message: "Merge pull request #2\n\nFixes ENG-200",
         },
       ];
-      const result = scanCommits(commits, null);
+      const result = scanCommits(commits, null, null);
       expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual(["ENG-200"]);
       expect(ids(result.revertedIssueReferences)).toEqual(["ENG-100"]);
     });
@@ -146,9 +146,58 @@ describe("scanCommits", () => {
         { sha: "a1", branchName: "user/eng-100", message: "Fixes ENG-100" },
         { sha: "r1", message: 'Revert "Fixes ENG-100"' },
       ];
-      const result = scanCommits(commits, null);
+      const result = scanCommits(commits, null, null);
       expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual([]);
       expect(ids(result.revertedIssueReferences)).toEqual(["ENG-100"]);
     });
   });
+
+  describe("--include-messages filter", () => {
+    it("includes only commits whose subject matches the regex", () => {
+      const commits: CommitContext[] = [
+        { sha: "c1", message: "feat: add login. Fixes ENG-100" },
+        { sha: "c2", message: "chore: bump deps. Fixes ENG-200" },
+        { sha: "c3", message: "fix: handle null. Fixes ENG-300" },
+      ];
+      const result = scanCommits(commits, null, "^(feat|fix):");
+      expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual(["ENG-100", "ENG-300"]);
+      expect(result.debugSink.inspectedShas).toEqual(["c1", "c3"]);
+    });
+
+    it("matches against the subject (first line) only, ignoring body", () => {
+      const commits: CommitContext[] = [{ sha: "c1", message: "chore: tidy\n\nfeat: ENG-100 add login (in body)" }];
+      const result = scanCommits(commits, null, "^feat:");
+      expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual([]);
+      expect(result.debugSink.inspectedShas).toEqual([]);
+    });
+
+    it("supports unanchored substring patterns", () => {
+      const commits: CommitContext[] = [
+        { sha: "c1", message: "Squash: feat. Fixes ENG-100" },
+        { sha: "c2", message: "chore: bump" },
+      ];
+      const result = scanCommits(commits, null, "feat");
+      expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual(["ENG-100"]);
+    });
+
+    it("skips commits with no message when a regex is set", () => {
+      const commits: CommitContext[] = [
+        { sha: "c1", branchName: "user/eng-100", message: null },
+        { sha: "c2", branchName: "user/eng-200", message: "feat: add login" },
+      ];
+      const result = scanCommits(commits, null, "^feat:");
+      expect(ids(result.issueReferences)).toEqual(["ENG-200"]);
+      expect(result.debugSink.inspectedShas).toEqual(["c2"]);
+    });
+
+    it("records the pattern on the debug sink", () => {
+      const result = scanCommits([{ sha: "c1", message: "feat: x" }], null, "^feat:");
+      expect(result.debugSink.includeMessages).toBe("^feat:");
+    });
+
+    it("leaves includeMessages null when filter is disabled", () => {
+      const result = scanCommits([{ sha: "c1", message: "anything" }], null, null);
+      expect(result.debugSink.includeMessages).toBeNull();
+    });
+  });
 });

src/scan.ts

@@ -14,12 +14,14 @@ import { CommitContext, DebugSink, IssueReference, PullRequestSource } from "./t
 export function scanCommits(
   commits: CommitContext[],
   includePaths: string[] | null,
+  includeMessages: string | null,
 ): {
   issueReferences: IssueReference[];
   revertedIssueReferences: IssueReference[];
   prNumbers: number[];
   debugSink: DebugSink;
 } {
+  const messageRegex = includeMessages ? new RegExp(includeMessages) : null;
   const lastAction = new Map<string, "added" | "reverted">();
   const addedRefs = new Map<string, IssueReference>();
   const revertedRefs = new Map<string, IssueReference>();
@@ -31,9 +33,18 @@ export function scanCommits(
     revertedIssues: {},
     pullRequests: [],
     includePaths,
+    includeMessages,
   };
 
   for (const commit of commits) {
+    if (messageRegex) {
+      const subject = (commit.message ?? "").split("\n", 1)[0]!;
+      if (!messageRegex.test(subject)) {
+        verbose(`Skipping commit ${commit.sha} — subject does not match --include-messages`);
+        continue;
+      }
+    }
+
     debugSink.inspectedShas.push(commit.sha);
 
     for (const { identifier, source } of extractRevertedIssueIdentifiersForCommit(commit)) {

src/types.ts

@@ -107,4 +107,5 @@ export type DebugSink = {
   revertedIssues: Record<string, IssueSource[]>; // Issue identifier -> array of sources (reverted)
   pullRequests: PullRequestSource[]; // PR numbers found in commits
   includePaths: string[] | null; // Path filters applied during commit scanning
+  includeMessages: string | null; // Commit-message regex source applied during scanning
 };