Run your first task

1. Prepare a small test repository

Create or choose a disposable repository you own, with an initial commit and a README. Give the Barge GitHub App access to it. Avoid production credentials, customer data, deployment workflows, paid integrations, and large setup steps. You will review the result before choosing whether to merge anything.

Use this task text:

In this test repository, create docs/first-barge-task.md with a short checklist
for reviewing a draft pull request: read the diff, run the project's existing
checks if any, and confirm no secrets were added. Link to that file from README.md.
Make no application-code, dependency, workflow, or deployment changes. Do not merge.

The two expected file changes make success easy to inspect. Do not substitute an unfamiliar production repository for this example.

2. Start in the browser

Select New work (or Start your first session after setup). Paste the task above into Task or issue. Enter task instructions here, not a Linear issue key or URL. Choose your test Repository. Set Starting ref and Pull request base to its default branch, usually main. Leave Keep session open for follow-ups off. Select Start in cloud once.

Cloud start reads the GitHub ref. It does not upload uncommitted work from your laptop. Use local handoff for that.

Success check: a session appears with your task and repository. If submission returns an uncertain result, open My sessions before submitting again.

3. Follow progress and stop if necessary

Open the session. Watch its status, event output, and stage timeline: queued, provisioning, workspace preparation, agent work, and finalization. After opening a PR, Barge may run automated review, fix, and manual-test passes. A quiet period alone does not prove failure; read the latest event and heartbeat information.

To stop an active task, use Cancel on its session (CLI alternative: barge cancel <session-id>). Wait for the cancelled state and inspect any already-created GitHub branch or draft PR. Cancellation does not undo a push, close a PR, or reverse provider charges already incurred. If cancellation fails or work continues unexpectedly, report a blocker.

Success check: the session progresses to a terminal state, or your explicit cancellation is shown. A completed session alone is not proof its checks passed.

4. Review the draft PR

Open the session’s GitHub PR link. Verify the repository and base branch, then:

1. Read the description, Barge summary, automated review, and manual-test result. Look for failed, blocked, or unverified checks as well as successful ones.
2. Inspect the diff. For this example, expect only docs/first-barge-task.md and a README link. Confirm no credentials or unrelated files were added.
3. Run the repository’s existing checks yourself where appropriate. A documentation example may have no configured test suite; that is different from passing tests.
4. Leave the PR as a draft, close it, or merge it on GitHub only after your review.

Barge does not automatically merge a successful run. Its review is additional information for your decision. Failed or cancelled tasks can leave partial work; inspect that before retrying.

Success check: you can explain the two-file diff, see which checks actually ran, and locate the draft PR without help. If no PR exists, do not count this walkthrough as complete.