Pausing the Merge Queue

Understand the pause feature and how it can be utilized during CI incidents.

Mergify’s Merge Queue offers a feature known as “pausing” that grants users increased control over the automation process during special circumstances. Let’s explore what pausing involves, its impacts, and its typical use cases.

What Does Pausing Do?

Section titled What Does Pausing Do?

When you pause the merge queues:

  1. Pause All Queues: All active merge queues will be suspended, not just a specific one. This affects all queues in the project.

  2. Addition to the Queue Continues: Even with paused merge queues, new pull requests can still join the queue. This ensures pull requests remain organized and ready for when operations resume.

  3. Stops Scheduling and Actions: After pausing the merge queues, Mergify will not schedule new checks, update, or merge pull requests. Pull requests can enter the queue but won’t be acted upon.

  4. Cancel Running Checks: As soon as the queues are paused, Mergify cancels any running checks and waits for the queues to be resumed.

How to Pause the Merge Queues

Section titled How to Pause the Merge Queues

From the Dashboard

Section titled From the Dashboard

Navigate to your Mergify dashboard. There you’ll find an option to pause the merge queues. Clicking on this will suspend all active queues.

Pause button is in the top right corner in Mergify's dashboard

Using the API

Section titled Using the API

You can also pause the merge queues programmatically using the Mergify API. For detailed steps on how to achieve this, refer to our API documentation.

Typical Use Cases

Section titled Typical Use Cases

CI Incidents

Section titled CI Incidents

During a major incident with the Continuous Integration (CI) system, the pause feature can be invaluable. If there’s a likelihood that checks will fail and consequently eject the pull request from the queue, it’s beneficial to pause the merge queues.

Non-CI Incidents

Section titled Non-CI Incidents

If an incident is unrelated to the CI, like a production issue, but you wish to halt merging while allowing checks to run, then the scheduled freeze feature is a more suitable choice.

Benefits of Using the Pause Feature

Section titled Benefits of Using the Pause Feature

  1. Maintain Queue Integrity: During CI failures or other disruptions, pausing ensures pull requests stay in the queue, preserving their order.

  2. Flexibility: It provides an immediate response tool during unexpected complications, giving you control over the merge process.

  3. Reduce Noise: Constantly failing checks during a CI incident can create unnecessary notifications. Pausing the queue mitigates this.

The pause feature of the Mergify merge queue offers users an enhanced layer of control and adaptability during special situations. Familiarizing yourself with when and how to pause your merge queues can optimize your workflow and reduce disruptions.