BuildBuddy - Remote CI/CD Debugging

VerifiedSafe

Debug failed CI/CD jobs by accessing BuildBuddy's remote build execution and caching data. Use MCP tools to fetch invocation metadata, full logs, targets, and actions, enabling rapid root cause analysis of failures. Ideal for investigating GitHub Actions pipeline failures or remote build issues.

Sby Skills Guide Bot
DevelopmentIntermediate
6/2/2026
Claude Code
#buildbuddy#ci-cd-debugging#remote-build#bazel

Recommended for

Automated summary

Uses BuildBuddy to debug CI/CD failures by analyzing build invocations, logs, and targets via MCP tools.

Strengths

  • Direct MCP integration without needing API keys
  • Structured access to build metadata, logs, and artifacts
  • Ideal for CI pipelines using BuildBuddy with Bazel

Limitations

  • Requires manual extraction of invocation ID from links
  • Only works for builds instrumented by BuildBuddy
  • Large logs may require pagination
When to use it

When you need to diagnose a CI build failure on a platform using BuildBuddy.

When not to use it

For local CI builds or those using a different remote build service.

Security analysis

Safe
Quality score90/100

The skill only uses safe, read-only commands (gh CLI to extract metadata) and MCP tools for build analysis. It explicitly discourages direct curl calls, and performs no destructive actions or data exfiltration.

No concerns found

How this analysis is made

Examples

Debug a failed BuildBuddy invocation
Our CI build failed on invocation abc123 in BuildBuddy. Can you investigate why and show me the error logs?
Analyze test targets from a build
Get the target details for the last failed build in this PR and tell me which test failed and why.

name: buildbuddy description: Use when debugging failed CI/CD jobs, analyzing build logs, or investigating GitHub Actions failures. Access BuildBuddy remote build execution and caching service for detailed build insights.

BuildBuddy - Remote Build Execution & CI Debugging

MCP Tools (Primary Interface)

Use BuildBuddy MCP tools via Context Forge. MCP handles authentication automatically.

Load tools with: ToolSearch query +buildbuddy

| Tool | Purpose | | --------------------------------- | ---------------------------------- | | buildbuddy-mcp-get-invocation | Build metadata, status, duration | | buildbuddy-mcp-get-log | Full build logs (stdout/stderr) | | buildbuddy-mcp-get-target | Target information and results | | buildbuddy-mcp-get-action | Action details and execution info | | buildbuddy-mcp-get-file | Download files by URI | | buildbuddy-mcp-execute-workflow | Trigger a BuildBuddy workflow |

Debugging Failed CI

Workflow

GitHub PR fails
      │
      ▼
gh pr checks ──► extract invocation ID from BuildBuddy URL
      │
      ▼
ToolSearch +buildbuddy ──► load MCP tools
      │
      ▼
buildbuddy-mcp-get-invocation ──► check success/failure, duration
      │
      ▼
buildbuddy-mcp-get-log ──► find error messages
      │
      ▼
Parse errors ──► fix root cause

Step 1: Get the Invocation ID

# Extract invocation ID from PR check links
gh pr checks --json link | jq -r '.[] | select(.link | contains("buildbuddy")) | .link' | grep -o '[^/]*$' | head -1

The invocation ID is the last path segment of the BuildBuddy URL: https://jomcgi.buildbuddy.io/invocation/<invocation_id>

Step 2: Investigate with MCP Tools

Use the invocation ID with MCP tools — no API key or curl needed:

  1. Get overview: buildbuddy-mcp-get-invocation — check .invocation.success, command, duration
  2. Get logs: buildbuddy-mcp-get-log — search for error/fail/fatal messages
  3. Get targets: buildbuddy-mcp-get-target — find which targets failed
  4. Get actions: buildbuddy-mcp-get-action — dig into specific action failures
  5. Get files: buildbuddy-mcp-get-file — download test outputs or artifacts

Tips

  • Reproduce locally with bazel test //... --config=ci
  • BuildBuddy logs may be paginated — use page tokens for large logs
  • Check .invocation.success boolean to quickly determine pass/fail
  • A PreToolUse hook blocks direct curl to the BuildBuddy API — use MCP tools instead

From the file to a first result

The download contains exactly the content displayed on this page. This copy may differ from the latest version in the source repository.

View the source and supporting files

This download contains SKILL.md only. Any scripts, references, templates and dependencies are not included. Get the required files from the source, preserving their directory structure, before continuing.

1. Download the file

Download SKILL.md

From the root of a test project, save the file as .skill-downloads/buildbuddy-remote-ci-cd-debugging-mmbiziyd/SKILL.md, or use the command below. This folder is for inspecting the skill before installation.

Command for macOS/Linux or WSL: requires a POSIX shell and curl. On Windows without WSL, use the download button and create the folder manually.

mkdir -p '.skill-downloads/buildbuddy-remote-ci-cd-debugging-mmbiziyd' && curl --fail --show-error --location 'https://skills-guides.com/api/skills/buildbuddy-remote-ci-cd-debugging-mmbiziyd/download' --output '.skill-downloads/buildbuddy-remote-ci-cd-debugging-mmbiziyd/SKILL.md.part' && mv '.skill-downloads/buildbuddy-remote-ci-cd-debugging-mmbiziyd/SKILL.md.part' '.skill-downloads/buildbuddy-remote-ci-cd-debugging-mmbiziyd/SKILL.md'

2. Check prerequisites

Read SKILL.md before using it. If it references scripts or external services, inspect them and prepare the required access in your test environment.

No recognized prerequisites section in this file. This does not mean it is self-contained: libraries, tools and access requirements may be mentioned elsewhere in the content or source repository.

The platforms on this page are catalog indications. The paths below follow tool documentation; they do not prove this skill has been run in those tools. No minimum tool version is confirmed for this listing.

3. Load the skill

After inspection, copy the complete folder into your project using one of the commands below, then open a new tool session. The command stops if a folder with the same name already exists: compare the files before replacing it.

Claude Code
test -f '.skill-downloads/buildbuddy-remote-ci-cd-debugging-mmbiziyd/SKILL.md' && test -s '.skill-downloads/buildbuddy-remote-ci-cd-debugging-mmbiziyd/SKILL.md' && mkdir -p '.claude/skills' && test ! -e '.claude/skills/buildbuddy' && cp -R '.skill-downloads/buildbuddy-remote-ci-cd-debugging-mmbiziyd' '.claude/skills/buildbuddy'

OpenSkills

OpenSkills must already be installed. The local install/read procedure is checked with OpenSkills 1.5.0, which requires Node.js ≥ 20.6.0. Catalog slugs are not resolved automatically.

Official OpenSkills installation
openskills install './.skill-downloads/buildbuddy-remote-ci-cd-debugging-mmbiziyd'

openskills read 'buildbuddy-remote-ci-cd-debugging-mmbiziyd'

Reading should display the installed file content and its base directory. It does not run the skill or install its dependencies.

For an agent that reads AGENTS.md, then sync the index. This command changes AGENTS.md: review the diff before using it.

openskills sync

Manual method or another tool: attach SKILL.md to a conversation, or open it in an agent that can read files. Include any required supporting resources. No universal folder is recognized by every tool.

4. Try a first task

Use a short, synthetic input: an API endpoint, a small document or an interface brief. In a new conversation, attach the file or give the agent its path, then adapt this request:

Read .skill-downloads/buildbuddy-remote-ci-cd-debugging-mmbiziyd/SKILL.md and apply its instructions to this example: [describe a test input]. Identify any missing files, dependencies or access. Produce the result requested by the skill without inventing data or running unreviewed scripts.

Expected result: output matching the skill instructions, or a precise list of missing prerequisites. A read confirmation alone does not validate a first use. If an external resource is unavailable, that path remains untested.

Related skills