CI does not run when a pull request is retargeted to main

[Astro-Han]

What happened

The required CI / test check is not triggered when a pull request is synchronized while targeting another branch and is then retargeted to main.

The CI workflow filters pull requests with branches: [main] but uses the default pull_request activity types. A base-branch change emits an edited event, while the default activity types are only opened, synchronize, and reopened.

PR #4161 demonstrated the gap:

• Its head was force-pushed while the base was still fix/peer-mesh-cleanup.
• Six seconds later, the base was changed to main.
• No automatic CI run was created for that revision.
• A later force-push emitted synchronize and immediately triggered the expected pull-request workflows.

Expected: retargeting an eligible pull request to main produces the required test check for the current revision.

How to reproduce

1. Open a pull request targeting a branch other than main.
2. Push or force-push its head.
3. Retarget the pull request to main.
4. Observe that no CI / test run is created for the current pull request revision.
5. Push or rebase the branch again.
6. Observe that the resulting synchronize event triggers CI.

Environment

• Repository: apache/maka
• Workflow: .github/workflows/ci.yml on current main
• Surface: GitHub Actions
• Observed pull request: feat(desktop): manage the supervised Local Host #4161
• Observed on: 2026-08-29

Logs, screenshots, or additional context

The current workaround is to push or rebase the branch again after retargeting it.

A naive types: [opened, synchronize, reopened, edited] change would also start the workflow for unrelated title or body edits. With the current pull-request concurrency group, such an edit could cancel an in-progress valid run. The fix should therefore ensure that unrelated edits do not run, cancel, or satisfy the required check.

The existing CI / test check should remain the single authority; the fix should not introduce a parallel workflow or required check.

The later force-push triggered the expected run: https://github.com/apache/maka/actions/runs/33255615336

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Filed with AI assistance (OpenAI Codex): the agent inspected the pull-request timeline, workflow configuration, and exact workflow runs; the human contributor reviewed this report before filing.

[jackeyfaker77]

take

[jackeyfaker77]

I'd like to work on this. I plan to update the existing CI workflow so that retargeting a pull request to main triggers the required CI / test check, while unrelated edits such as title or body changes do not run or cancel CI and do not satisfy the required check. I will also add focused regression coverage for the trigger and concurrency behavior.