## Thinking Path
> - Paperclip is the open source app people use to manage AI agents for
work
> - Contributions flow through GitHub PRs against
`paperclipai/paperclip`, but most contributors author their work inside
their own private Paperclip instance
> - Those instances mint instance-local issue ids and deep links
(`PAPA-123`, `/PAP/issues/...`, `agent://...`, localhost/tailnet URLs)
that only the author can open
> - When contributors paste those references into a public PR, reviewers
hit clutter and broken links and have to ask for cleanup
> - There was no written guidance telling contributors (human or agent)
to keep those references out
> - This pull request adds that guidance to `CONTRIBUTING.md` and
surfaces it as a PR-template checklist item plus an inline hint
> - The benefit is cleaner PRs that reference only public, openable
GitHub issues/PRs, with internal context restated in plain English
## Linked Issues or Issue Description
Fixes: #8292
## What Changed
- `CONTRIBUTING.md`: new **No Internal Issue References** subsection
explaining what to leave out (internal ticket ids, instance UI/deep
links, localhost/tailnet URLs) and to restate useful context in plain
English; added a cross-reference sentence from the existing "Link Issues
or Describe Them In-PR" guidance.
- `.github/PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE.md`: new checklist item, plus an inline
hint in the Linked Issues comment block, directing contributors to
reference only public GitHub issues/PRs.
## Verification
Docs-only change. Rendered Markdown locally and confirmed the new
`#no-internal-issue-references` anchor resolves from the cross-reference
link, and that the template checklist item appears in the rendered list.
No code paths affected.
## Risks
Low risk — documentation and PR-template text only; no runtime, build,
or schema impact. An optional automated CI gate was intentionally
deferred to a follow-up to avoid regex false positives.
## Model Used
Claude Opus 4.7 (claude-opus-4-7), extended thinking, agentic tool use
via Claude Code.
## Checklist
- [x] I have included a thinking path that traces from project context
to this change
- [x] I have specified the model used (with version and capability
details)
- [x] I have checked ROADMAP.md and confirmed this PR does not duplicate
planned core work
- [x] I have searched GitHub for duplicate or related PRs and linked
them above
- [x] I have either (a) linked existing issues with `Fixes: #` / `Closes
#` / `Refs #` OR (b) described the issue in-PR following the relevant
issue template
- [x] I have not referenced internal/instance-local Paperclip issues or
links (only public GitHub `#NNN` / `github.com/paperclipai/paperclip`
URLs)
- [x] I have run tests locally and they pass
- [ ] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [ ] If this change affects the UI, I have included before/after
screenshots
- [x] I have updated relevant documentation to reflect my changes
- [x] I have considered and documented any risks above
- [x] All Paperclip CI gates are green
- [ ] Greptile is 5/5 with no open P2s, recommendations, or follow-ups
- [x] I will address all Greptile and reviewer comments before
requesting merge
Co-authored-by: Paperclip <noreply@paperclip.ing>
Devin Foley
8a062be94d