[PATCH v13 5/6] doc: add AI-assisted patch review to contributing guide

[Aaron Conole]

Stephen Hemminger <stephen at networkplumber.org> writes:

> Add a new section to the contributing guide describing the
> analyze-patch.py script which uses AI providers to review patches
> against DPDK coding standards before submission to the mailing list.
>
> The new section covers basic usage, provider selection, patch series
> handling, LTS release review, and output format options. A note
> clarifies that AI review supplements but does not replace human
> review.
>
> Also add a reference to the script in the new driver guide's
> test tools checklist.
>
> Signed-off-by: Stephen Hemminger <stephen at networkplumber.org>
> ---

Acked-by: Aaron Conole <aconole at redhat.com>

>  doc/guides/contributing/new_driver.rst |  2 +
>  doc/guides/contributing/patches.rst    | 59 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++
>  2 files changed, 61 insertions(+)
>
> diff --git a/doc/guides/contributing/new_driver.rst b/doc/guides/contributing/new_driver.rst
> index 555e875329..6c0d356cfd 100644
> --- a/doc/guides/contributing/new_driver.rst
> +++ b/doc/guides/contributing/new_driver.rst
> @@ -210,3 +210,5 @@ Be sure to run the following test tools per patch in a patch series:
>  * `check-doc-vs-code.sh`
>  * `check-spdx-tag.sh`
>  * Build documentation and validate how output looks
> +* Optionally run ``analyze-patch.py`` for AI-assisted review
> +  (see :ref:`ai_assisted_review` in the Contributing Guide)
> diff --git a/doc/guides/contributing/patches.rst b/doc/guides/contributing/patches.rst
> index 5f554d47e6..1e50799c19 100644
> --- a/doc/guides/contributing/patches.rst
> +++ b/doc/guides/contributing/patches.rst
> @@ -183,6 +183,10 @@ Make your planned changes in the cloned ``dpdk`` repo. Here are some guidelines
>  
>  * Code and related documentation must be updated atomically in the same patch.
>  
> +* Consider running the :ref:`AI-assisted review <ai_assisted_review>` tool
> +  before submitting to catch common issues early.
> +  This is encouraged but not required.
> +
>  Once the changes have been made you should commit them to your local repo.
>  
>  For small changes, that do not require specific explanations, it is better to keep things together in the
> @@ -503,6 +507,61 @@ Additionally, when contributing to the DTS tool, patches should also be checked
>  the ``dts-check-format.sh`` script in the ``devtools`` directory of the DPDK repo.
>  To run the script, extra :ref:`Python dependencies <dts_deps>` are needed.
>  
> +
> +.. _ai_assisted_review:
> +
> +AI-Assisted Patch Review
> +------------------------
> +
> +Contributors may optionally use the ``devtools/analyze-patch.py`` script
> +to get an AI-assisted review of patches before submitting them to the mailing list.
> +The script checks patches against the DPDK coding standards and contribution
> +guidelines documented in ``AGENTS.md``.
> +
> +The script supports multiple AI providers (Anthropic Claude, OpenAI ChatGPT,
> +xAI Grok, Google Gemini).  An API key for the chosen provider must be set
> +in the corresponding environment variable (see ``--list-providers``).
> +
> +Basic usage::
> +
> +   # Review a single patch (default provider: Anthropic Claude)
> +   devtools/analyze-patch.py my-patch.patch
> +
> +   # Use a different provider
> +   devtools/analyze-patch.py -p openai my-patch.patch
> +
> +   # Review for an LTS branch (enables stricter rules)
> +   devtools/analyze-patch.py -r 24.11 my-patch.patch
> +
> +   # List available providers and their API key variables
> +   devtools/analyze-patch.py --list-providers
> +
> +For a patch series in an mbox file, the ``--split-patches`` option reviews
> +each patch individually::
> +
> +   devtools/analyze-patch.py --split-patches series.mbox
> +
> +   # Review only a range of patches
> +   devtools/analyze-patch.py --split-patches --patch-range 1-5 series.mbox
> +
> +When reviewing for a Long Term Stable (LTS) release, use the ``-r`` option
> +with the target version.  Any DPDK release with minor version ``.11``
> +(e.g., 23.11, 24.11) is automatically recognized as LTS,
> +and the script will enforce stricter rules: bug fixes only, no new features or APIs.
> +
> +Output can be formatted as plain text (default), Markdown, HTML, or JSON::
> +
> +   devtools/analyze-patch.py -f markdown -o review.md my-patch.patch
> +
> +The review guidelines in ``AGENTS.md`` focus on correctness bug detection
> +and other DPDK-specific requirements. Commit message formatting and
> +SPDX/copyright compliance are checked by ``checkpatches.sh`` and are
> +not duplicated in the AI review.
> +
> +.. note::
> +
> +   Always verify AI suggestions before acting on them.
> +
>  .. _contrib_check_compilation:
>  
>  Checking Compilation