> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.kodus.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Code Review Flow

## Overview

Kody reviews your PRs automatically or on demand, adds clear suggestions, and helps your team decide when to merge. Below is the simple, user-facing view of how it works.

Reference: <a href="https://www.figma.com/board/ZZJcIJMJWGuyzRGMh3w5di/Kodus-Code-Review-Flow?node-id=4-274" target="_blank">Figma board</a>

## When Kody Runs

* PR opened
* New commit pushed to the PR (depending on cadence)
* Manual trigger via comment: `@kody start-review`

## When Kody Skips

* No new commits since the last run
* Only merge commits with no effective changes
* All changed files ignored by configured patterns
* PR exceeds the configured file limit
* Invalid or missing configuration

## What Kody Does

* Resolves which settings apply (global → repo → directory) and validates them
* Collects the relevant diffs and context for this PR
* Runs PR-level checks (e.g., custom rules and cross-file analysis when enabled)
* Reviews changed files with focus on the diff
* Filters and prioritizes suggestions to reduce noise (relevance, severity, dedupe, safeguards)
* Posts inline comments and, when applicable, a PR-level summary
* Optionally approves or requests changes if those policies are enabled
* Remembers the last analyzed commit to keep follow-ups incremental

## What You Get

* Inline comments with concrete suggestions
* Optional PR-level summary with highlights
* Optional status: approved or changes requested (if enabled)

## Status Reactions

Kody uses emoji reactions to show the live status of your code review directly in your Git provider. No guessing whether she’s working, done, or ran into a problem. She always replaces the previous emoji with the latest status (for example: 🚀 → 🎉, 👀, 👎 or 😕).

<Note>
  Supported on GitHub and GitLab. Azure DevOps and Bitbucket do not support
  reactions yet.
</Note>

### What each emoji means

* 🚀 Processing — Kody is working on your code:
  * Analyzing files
  * Checking rules and policies
  * Generating suggestions
* 🎉 Completed — Review finished:
  * All comments posted
  * Analysis complete
  * You can review the suggestions
* 👀 Skipped — Review was skipped. Common reasons include:
  * No new commits since the last run
  * Only merge commits detected
  * PR/MR exceeds the configured file limit
  * No relevant files to review (ignored patterns)
  * Branch not configured for review
  * PR/MR in draft mode (if configured to skip drafts)
* 👎 No license — The user is not licensed:
  * Kody cannot run without a valid license
  * Ensure the user that opened the PR/MR has a license assigned
  * Optionally, enable [Auto License Assignment](/how_to_use/en/auto_license_assignment) to assign licenses automatically
* 😕 Error — Something went wrong:
  * Temporary technical issue during the review
  * Try again; join our [Discord community](https://discord.gg/TFZBRk9fT6) if it persists

### Where reactions appear

* Automatic review (PR opened or new commit): reaction on the PR/MR description (top of the thread)
* Manual review (comment `@kody start-review`): reaction on your comment where you invoked Kody

### Example scenarios

* New PR (automatic): 🚀 while running → 🎉 when finished
* Manual command: 🚀 on your comment → 🎉 when finished
* No changes since last run: 👀 reaction
* Unlicensed user: 👎 reaction
* Temporary issue: 😕 reaction

### FAQs

**I don't see reactions**

* GitHub/GitLab: ✅ | Azure DevOps/Bitbucket: ❌ (not supported yet)

**Why did the emoji change?**

* Normal—Kody replaces previous status (🚀 → 🎉/👀/😕)

**I saw 👀 but wanted a review**

* Likely skipped: no new commits, merge-only, ignored files, or file limit
* Fix: comment `@kody start-review`

**I saw 👎**

* The user that opened the PR/MR is not licensed
* Fix: assign a license or enable [Auto License Assignment](/how_to_use/en/auto_license_assignment)

**I saw 😕**

* Retry with `@kody start-review`. If persists, check [Troubleshooting](/how_to_use/en/code_review/troubleshooting) or [Discord](https://discord.gg/TFZBRk9fT6)

## Settings That Matter

* Automated vs manual reviews and follow-up cadence
* Ignore patterns and base branches in scope
* Custom rules and cross-file analysis
* Suggestion controls: severity filter, grouping, and max suggestions
* File limits and timeouts

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="General Config" icon="sliders" href="/how_to_use/en/code_review/configs/general">
    Configure modes, cadence, branches, and suggestion options
  </Card>

  <Card title="Review Policy" icon="shield-check" href="/how_to_use/en/code_review/policy">
    Understand suggestions vs blocking and when to enable each
  </Card>

  <Card title="Troubleshooting" icon="triangle-exclamation" href="/how_to_use/en/code_review/troubleshooting">
    Fix common issues and learn about limits
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Tips

* Keep PRs small—large diffs reduce review quality
* Link specs/tickets in PR description
* Re-run with `@kody start-review` after addressing feedback