bzr-reference

name: bzr-reference description: Use when working with Bugzilla via the bzr CLI — viewing, searching, creating, or updating bugs, comments, attachments, products, or saved queries. Covers the command surface, the --json output contract, authentication, and the read-before-write rule.

Using bzr (Bugzilla CLI)

bzr is a command-line client for Bugzilla. Use it to view, search, file, and update bugs and their comments, attachments, flags, and saved queries against a configured Bugzilla server. It shells out to a real server — there is no local database.

Output: prefer `--json`

When you will parse output, pass --json (bzr's canonical shorthand; --output json is the long form). Output also auto-flips to JSON when stdout is piped, but pass --json explicitly so intent is clear. Pipe to jq:

bzr bug view 12345 --json | jq -r '.summary'
bzr bug search "crash on boot" --json | jq -r '.[].id'

See reference/json-recipes.md for extraction patterns.

Authentication

A server is configured with bzr config set-server. The API key comes from an environment variable or the OS keychain. Check the active server and identity:

bzr config show     # lists servers and credential sources
bzr whoami          # confirms the authenticated user

If whoami fails, the server or credentials are not set up — see the bzr-setup skill.

Command groups

The full surface (with one example each) is in reference/commands.md. The groups: bug, comment, attachment, config, product, field, user, group, whoami, server, classification, component, template, query.

Two surface facts agents get wrong:

Components are read from bzr product view <product> — there is no bzr component list (bzr component only has admin create/update).
Flags are changed through bzr bug update --flag ... — there is no standalone bzr flags command.

Cardinal rules

Prefer --json when parsing. Tables are for humans.
Read before write. Never run bzr bug update without first viewing the bug's current state (bzr bug view), or you risk clobbering fields. The bzr-triage-bug skill walks this through.
Keep writes explicit and minimal. Change only the fields you intend to.

This reference is authored against bzr 0.4.4. If bzr --version is much newer and a command here is rejected, the surface may have moved; check bzr <group> --help.