Flag instead of closing on first PR template miss; add script-request eligibility check

close-invalid-pr-template.yml now comments and labels (missing pr template,
stale) instead of closing immediately, clears itself once fixed. stale_pr_close.yml
gains the engagement-gated/keep-open/maintainer-reset behavior already used in
DevScripts, so a template-stale PR only closes via its own re-check.

request-script.yml discussion template gets an optional Justification field;
a new workflow verifies stars/age against GitHub for the submitted repo and
either does nothing (eligible), labels investigation (ineligible + justified),
or closes the discussion (ineligible, no justification).

Moved the AI Assistance section to the end of pull_request_template.md.

.github/DISCUSSION_TEMPLATE/request-script.yml

@@ -58,9 +58,9 @@ body:
 
         Before continuing, verify that the requested project meets the minimum requirements below.
 
-        **Projects with fewer than 1,000 stars are generally not eligible for a script request.**
+        **Projects with fewer than 1,000 stars, or younger than 6 months, are generally not eligible for a script request.**
 
-        Exceptions are only considered where there is a clearly verifiable, significant public adoption signal.
+        An automated check verifies the star count and project age for GitHub-hosted projects. If the project doesn't meet these requirements, fill in **Justification for an exception** below — without one, the request is closed automatically. With one, it's flagged for manual review instead. Exceptions are rare and require a clearly verifiable, significant public adoption signal.
 
   - type: input
     id: repository-stars
@@ -134,6 +134,22 @@ body:
         - label: I understand that requests outside the project scope may be closed without an extensive explanation.
           required: true
 
+  - type: textarea
+    id: justification
+    attributes:
+      label: Justification for an exception
+      description: >-
+        Only needed if the project has fewer than 1,000 stars or is younger than 6 months (e.g. it has no GitHub
+        presence, so stars don't apply). Explain the significant public adoption signal. Leave blank if the project
+        meets the normal requirements — requests that don't meet the requirements and have no justification here are
+        closed automatically.
+      placeholder: |
+        Example:
+        No public GitHub repository, but the project has 50k+ active installs reported by its own telemetry
+        dashboard and is covered by several established self-hosting publications.
+    validations:
+      required: false
+
   - type: markdown
     attributes:
       value: |

.github/pull_request_template.md

@@ -17,16 +17,6 @@ Fixes #
 **Tested on:** <!-- e.g. PVE 9.2 / Debian 13 / fresh install + update. Write "not tested" if you could not run it. -->
 
 
----
-
-## 🤖 AI Assistance (**X** in brackets)
-
-> If you used an AI tool (GitHub Copilot, Claude, ChatGPT, etc.) to write or generate any scripts in this PR, you **must** confirm compliance below.  
-> Select exactly one option.
-
-- [ ] **No AI used** – Scripts were written without AI assistance.
-- [ ] **AI was used** – I confirm the scripts were built using [`AGENTS.md`](https://github.com/community-scripts/DevScripts/blob/main/AGENTS.md) and [`.github/agents/pve-script-creator.agent.md`](https://github.com/community-scripts/DevScripts/blob/main/.github/agents/pve-script-creator.agent.md) as guidance, and the output has been reviewed and corrected to match those guidelines.
-
 ---
 
 ## 🛠️ Type of Change (**X** in brackets)
@@ -70,3 +60,13 @@ Guidance:
 -->
 
 <!-- The advisory block is only active once it is OUTSIDE this comment. -->
+
+---
+
+## 🤖 AI Assistance (**X** in brackets)
+
+> If you used an AI tool (GitHub Copilot, Claude, ChatGPT, etc.) to write or generate any scripts in this PR, you **must** confirm compliance below.  
+> Select exactly one option.
+
+- [ ] **No AI used** – Scripts were written without AI assistance.
+- [ ] **AI was used** – I confirm the scripts were built using [`AGENTS.md`](https://github.com/community-scripts/DevScripts/blob/main/AGENTS.md) and [`.github/agents/pve-script-creator.agent.md`](https://github.com/community-scripts/DevScripts/blob/main/.github/agents/pve-script-creator.agent.md) as guidance, and the output has been reviewed and corrected to match those guidelines.

.github/workflows/close-invalid-pr-template.yml

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-name: Close PRs Missing Template
+name: Flag PRs Missing Template
 
 on:
   pull_request_target:
@@ -14,10 +14,12 @@ jobs:
       issues: write
       contents: read
     steps:
-      - name: Close PR if it does not follow the PR template
+      - name: Check PR against the template, comment and label instead of closing
         uses: actions/github-script@v9
         with:
           script: |
+            const MARKER = "<!-- pr-template-check -->";
+            const LABELS = ["missing pr template", "stale"];
             const pr = context.payload.pull_request;
             const prNumber = pr.number;
             const author = pr.user.login;
@@ -44,11 +46,11 @@ jobs:
               return;
             }
 
-            const labels = pr.labels.map((label) => label.name);
+            const prLabels = pr.labels.map((label) => label.name);
             const skipLabels = ["automated pr", "keep-open"];
 
-            if (skipLabels.some((label) => labels.includes(label))) {
-              core.info(`PR #${prNumber} has a skip label (${labels.join(", ")}) — skipping template validation.`);
+            if (skipLabels.some((label) => prLabels.includes(label))) {
+              core.info(`PR #${prNumber} has a skip label (${prLabels.join(", ")}) — skipping template validation.`);
               return;
             }
 
@@ -114,50 +116,52 @@ jobs:
               failures.push("At least one **Type of Change** checkbox must be checked.");
             }
 
+            const comments = await github.paginate(github.rest.issues.listComments, {
+              owner, repo, issue_number: prNumber, per_page: 100
+            });
+            const mine = comments.find(c => c.body && c.body.includes(MARKER));
+
             if (failures.length === 0) {
               core.info(`PR #${prNumber} follows the PR template.`);
+              if (mine && !mine.body.startsWith(MARKER + "\n✅")) {
+                await github.rest.issues.updateComment({
+                  owner, repo, comment_id: mine.id,
+                  body: MARKER + "\n✅ **Template check passed.** Thanks for fixing the description — the `stale` mark has been removed.",
+                });
+              }
+              for (const name of LABELS) {
+                if (prLabels.includes(name)) {
+                  await github.rest.issues.removeLabel({ owner, repo, issue_number: prNumber, name });
+                }
+              }
               return;
             }
 
-            core.info(`Closing PR #${prNumber} — template validation failed.`);
+            core.info(`PR #${prNumber} — template validation failed, flagging instead of closing.`);
 
             const templateUrl =
               "https://github.com/community-scripts/ProxmoxVE/blob/main/.github/pull_request_template.md";
             const failureList = failures.map((item) => `- ${item}`).join("\n");
 
-            const comment = [
-              `👋 Hi @${author},`,
-              ``,
-              `This pull request was closed because it does not follow the [PR template](${templateUrl}).`,
-              ``,
-              `Please fix the following and open a new PR (or reopen this one after updating the description):`,
-              ``,
-              failureList,
-              ``,
-              `> Use the template sections, fill in the description, check all prerequisite boxes, and select at least one type of change.`,
-              ``,
-              `Maintainers can add the \`keep-open\` label to exempt a PR from this check.`,
-              ``,
-              `Thank you for contributing! 🙏`,
-            ].join("\n");
+            const text =
+              MARKER + "\n" +
+              `👋 Hi @${author},\n\n` +
+              `This pull request does not follow the [PR template](${templateUrl}) yet:\n\n` +
+              failureList + "\n\n" +
+              `**Edit the PR description** to fix it — no new PR needed. This check runs again on every edit and clears itself once everything is in place.\n\n` +
+              `Until then the PR is marked \`stale\` and will be closed in **7 days**.\n\n` +
+              `Maintainers can add the \`keep-open\` label to exempt a PR from this check.\n\n` +
+              `Thank you for contributing! 🙏`;
 
-            await github.rest.issues.createComment({
-              owner,
-              repo,
-              issue_number: prNumber,
-              body: comment,
-            });
+            if (mine) {
+              if (mine.body !== text) {
+                await github.rest.issues.updateComment({ owner, repo, comment_id: mine.id, body: text });
+              }
+            } else {
+              await github.rest.issues.createComment({ owner, repo, issue_number: prNumber, body: text });
+            }
 
-            await github.rest.pulls.update({
-              owner,
-              repo,
-              pull_number: prNumber,
-              state: "closed",
-            });
-
-            await github.rest.issues.addLabels({
-              owner,
-              repo,
-              issue_number: prNumber,
-              labels: ["missing pr template"],
-            });
+            const toAdd = LABELS.filter(name => !prLabels.includes(name));
+            if (toAdd.length > 0) {
+              await github.rest.issues.addLabels({ owner, repo, issue_number: prNumber, labels: toAdd });
+            }

.github/workflows/request-script-eligibility.yml

@@ -0,0 +1,141 @@
+name: Request Script Eligibility Check
+
+# category.slug is the same string GitHub uses in the "new discussion" URL
+# (?category=request-script, linked from every repo's issue chooser), so this
+# guard matches the live category without needing its numeric id.
+on:
+  discussion:
+    types: [created, edited, reopened]
+
+jobs:
+  check-eligibility:
+    if: github.repository == 'community-scripts/ProxmoxVE' && github.event.discussion.category.slug == 'request-script'
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    permissions:
+      discussions: write
+      issues: write
+      contents: read
+    steps:
+      - name: Verify stars/age, flag or close
+        uses: actions/github-script@v9
+        with:
+          script: |
+            const owner = context.repo.owner;
+            const repo = context.repo.repo;
+            const discussion = context.payload.discussion;
+
+            if (!discussion || discussion.state === "closed") {
+              core.info("Discussion missing or already closed — skipping.");
+              return;
+            }
+
+            const body = discussion.body || "";
+            const lines = body.split("\n");
+            const fields = {};
+            let current = null;
+            for (const line of lines) {
+              const m = line.match(/^###\s+(.+?)\s*$/);
+              if (m) {
+                current = m[1].trim();
+                fields[current] = [];
+              } else if (current) {
+                fields[current].push(line);
+              }
+            }
+            function fieldText(label) {
+              const raw = (fields[label] || []).join("\n").trim();
+              return raw === "_No response_" ? "" : raw;
+            }
+
+            const sourceRepo = fieldText("Source Repository");
+            const justification = fieldText("Justification for an exception");
+
+            let eligible = false;
+            let verified = false;
+            const ghMatch = sourceRepo.match(/^https?:\/\/(?:www\.)?github\.com\/([^\/\s]+)\/([^\/\s#?]+?)(?:\.git)?\/?(?:[#?].*)?$/i);
+
+            if (ghMatch) {
+              const [, repoOwner, repoName] = ghMatch;
+              try {
+                const { data: repoData } = await github.rest.repos.get({ owner: repoOwner, repo: repoName });
+                const stars = repoData.stargazers_count;
+                const createdAt = new Date(repoData.created_at);
+                const now = new Date();
+                const ageMonths =
+                  (now.getFullYear() - createdAt.getFullYear()) * 12 +
+                  (now.getMonth() - createdAt.getMonth()) -
+                  (now.getDate() < createdAt.getDate() ? 1 : 0);
+                eligible = stars >= 1000 && ageMonths >= 6;
+                verified = true;
+                core.info(`Verified ${repoOwner}/${repoName}: ${stars} stars, ${ageMonths} months old, eligible=${eligible}`);
+              } catch (err) {
+                core.warning(`Could not verify ${repoOwner}/${repoName}: ${err.message} — treating as unverifiable.`);
+              }
+            } else {
+              core.info("Source Repository is not a github.com URL — cannot auto-verify, treating as unverifiable.");
+            }
+
+            if (eligible) {
+              core.info(`Discussion #${discussion.number} meets the requirements — no action.`);
+              return;
+            }
+
+            const labels = (discussion.labels || []).map(l => l.name);
+            const reasonLine = verified
+              ? "the source repository does not meet the 1,000-star / 6-month minimum adoption requirement"
+              : "the source repository's star count and age could not be verified automatically";
+
+            if (justification) {
+              if (labels.includes("investigation")) {
+                core.info(`Discussion #${discussion.number} already flagged for investigation — skipping.`);
+                return;
+              }
+
+              try {
+                await github.rest.issues.createLabel({
+                  owner, repo, name: "investigation",
+                  color: "fbca04",
+                  description: "Below the normal script-request threshold; a justification was given and needs maintainer review.",
+                });
+              } catch (err) {
+                if (err.status !== 422) throw err;
+              }
+
+              const labelQuery = await github.graphql(
+                `query($owner: String!, $repo: String!) { repository(owner: $owner, name: $repo) { label(name: "investigation") { id } } }`,
+                { owner, repo }
+              );
+              const labelNodeId = labelQuery.repository.label.id;
+
+              await github.graphql(
+                `mutation($labelableId: ID!, $labelIds: [ID!]!) { addLabelsToLabelable(input: { labelableId: $labelableId, labelIds: $labelIds }) { clientMutationId } }`,
+                { labelableId: discussion.node_id, labelIds: [labelNodeId] }
+              );
+
+              await github.graphql(
+                `mutation($discussionId: ID!, $body: String!) { addDiscussionComment(input: { discussionId: $discussionId, body: $body }) { comment { id } } }`,
+                {
+                  discussionId: discussion.node_id,
+                  body:
+                    `Thanks for the justification — ${reasonLine}, so this has been flagged \`investigation\` for a maintainer ` +
+                    `to review manually rather than closed automatically.`,
+                }
+              );
+            } else {
+              await github.graphql(
+                `mutation($discussionId: ID!, $body: String!) { addDiscussionComment(input: { discussionId: $discussionId, body: $body }) { comment { id } } }`,
+                {
+                  discussionId: discussion.node_id,
+                  body:
+                    `This request doesn't meet the minimum requirements (1,000 stars, project at least 6 months old) — ` +
+                    `${reasonLine}, and no justification was given. Closing automatically.\n\n` +
+                    `If you believe this project qualifies for an exception, edit this discussion to fill in ` +
+                    `**Justification for an exception** and reopen it — it will then be flagged for manual review instead of closed again.`,
+                }
+              );
+
+              await github.graphql(
+                `mutation($discussionId: ID!) { closeDiscussion(input: { discussionId: $discussionId, reason: OUTDATED }) { discussion { id } } }`,
+                { discussionId: discussion.node_id }
+              );
+            }

.github/workflows/stale_pr_close.yml

@@ -22,90 +22,112 @@ jobs:
             const now = new Date();
             const owner = context.repo.owner;
             const repo = context.repo.repo;
-            
-            // --- When stale label is added, comment immediately ---
+            const TEMPLATE_LABEL = "missing pr template";
+            const MAINTAINERS = ["OWNER", "MEMBER", "COLLABORATOR"];
+            const days = d => (now - d) / (1000 * 60 * 60 * 24);
+            const staleNotice = author =>
+              `@${author} This PR has been marked as stale. It will be closed if no new commits are added in 7 days.`;
+
+            // Only fires for a maintainer's label: labels set with GITHUB_TOKEN raise no event.
             if (context.eventName === "pull_request_target" && context.payload.action === "labeled") {
-              const label = context.payload.label?.name;
-              if (label === "stale") {
-                const author = context.payload.pull_request.user.login;
+              const pr = context.payload.pull_request;
+              const labels = (pr.labels || []).map(l => l.name);
+              if (context.payload.label?.name === "stale" && !labels.includes(TEMPLATE_LABEL)) {
                 await github.rest.issues.createComment({
-                  owner,
-                  repo,
-                  issue_number: context.payload.pull_request.number,
-                  body: `@${author} This PR has been marked as stale. It will be closed if no new commits are added in 7 days.`
+                  owner, repo, issue_number: pr.number, body: staleNotice(pr.user.login)
                 });
               }
               return;
             }
-            
-            // --- Scheduled run: check all stale PRs ---
-            const { data: prs } = await github.rest.pulls.list({
-              owner,
-              repo,
-              state: "open",
-              per_page: 100
-            });
-            
+
+            const prs = await github.paginate(github.rest.pulls.list, { owner, repo, state: "open", per_page: 100 });
+
             for (const pr of prs) {
-              const hasStale = pr.labels.some(l => l.name === "stale");
-              if (!hasStale) continue;
-              
-              // Get timeline events to find when stale label was added
-              const { data: events } = await github.rest.issues.listEvents({
-                owner,
-                repo,
-                issue_number: pr.number,
-                per_page: 100
-              });
-              
-              // Find the most recent time the stale label was added
-              const staleLabelEvents = events
-                .filter(e => e.event === "labeled" && e.label?.name === "stale")
-                .sort((a, b) => new Date(b.created_at) - new Date(a.created_at));
-              
-              if (staleLabelEvents.length === 0) continue;
-              
-              const staleLabelDate = new Date(staleLabelEvents[0].created_at);
-              const daysSinceStale = (now - staleLabelDate) / (1000 * 60 * 60 * 24);
-              
-              // Check for new commits since stale label was added
-              const { data: commits } = await github.rest.pulls.listCommits({
-                owner,
-                repo,
-                pull_number: pr.number
-              });
-              
-              const lastCommitDate = new Date(commits[commits.length - 1].commit.author.date);
+              const labels = pr.labels.map(l => l.name);
               const author = pr.user.login;
-              
-              // If there are new commits after the stale label, remove it
-              if (lastCommitDate > staleLabelDate) {
-                await github.rest.issues.removeLabel({
-                  owner,
-                  repo,
-                  issue_number: pr.number,
-                  name: "stale"
+              const hasStale = labels.includes("stale");
+
+              if (labels.includes("keep-open")) {
+                if (hasStale) {
+                  await github.rest.issues.removeLabel({ owner, repo, issue_number: pr.number, name: "stale" });
+                }
+                continue;
+              }
+
+              const comments = await github.paginate(github.rest.issues.listComments, {
+                owner, repo, issue_number: pr.number, per_page: 100
+              });
+              const commits = await github.paginate(github.rest.pulls.listCommits, {
+                owner, repo, pull_number: pr.number, per_page: 100
+              });
+              const lastCommitDate = commits.length > 0
+                ? new Date(commits[commits.length - 1].commit.author.date)
+                : new Date(pr.created_at);
+              const humanComments = comments.filter(c => c.user?.type !== "Bot");
+
+              // -------------------------------------------------------
+              // Auto-label PRs with no activity in the last 14 days,
+              // but ONLY if someone other than the author has engaged.
+              // -------------------------------------------------------
+              if (!hasStale) {
+                const reviews = await github.paginate(github.rest.pulls.listReviews, {
+                  owner, repo, pull_number: pr.number, per_page: 100
                 });
+                const engaged =
+                  reviews.some(r => r.user?.type !== "Bot" && r.user?.login !== author) ||
+                  humanComments.some(c => c.user?.login !== author);
+                if (!engaged) continue;
+
+                const lastCommentDate = humanComments.length > 0
+                  ? new Date(humanComments[humanComments.length - 1].created_at)
+                  : null;
+                const lastActivityDate = lastCommentDate && lastCommentDate > lastCommitDate
+                  ? lastCommentDate
+                  : lastCommitDate;
+
+                if (days(lastActivityDate) > 14) {
+                  await github.rest.issues.addLabels({ owner, repo, issue_number: pr.number, labels: ["stale"] });
+                  await github.rest.issues.createComment({ owner, repo, issue_number: pr.number, body: staleNotice(author) });
+                }
+                continue;
+              }
+
+              // -------------------------------------------------------
+              // Manage already-stale PRs
+              // -------------------------------------------------------
+              const events = await github.paginate(github.rest.issues.listEvents, {
+                owner, repo, issue_number: pr.number, per_page: 100
+              });
+              const staleDates = events
+                .filter(e => e.event === "labeled" && e.label?.name === "stale")
+                .map(e => new Date(e.created_at));
+              if (staleDates.length === 0) continue;
+              const staleLabelDate = new Date(Math.max(...staleDates));
+              const isTemplateIssue = labels.includes(TEMPLATE_LABEL);
+
+              // A push ends an inactivity mark; a template mark only ends via close-invalid-pr-template.yml's re-check.
+              if (!isTemplateIssue && lastCommitDate > staleLabelDate) {
+                await github.rest.issues.removeLabel({ owner, repo, issue_number: pr.number, name: "stale" });
                 await github.rest.issues.createComment({
-                  owner,
-                  repo,
-                  issue_number: pr.number,
+                  owner, repo, issue_number: pr.number,
                   body: `@${author} Recent activity detected. Removing stale label.`
                 });
+                continue;
               }
-              // If 7 days have passed since stale label, close the PR
-              else if (daysSinceStale > 7) {
-                await github.rest.pulls.update({
-                  owner,
-                  repo,
-                  pull_number: pr.number,
-                  state: "closed"
-                });
-                await github.rest.issues.createComment({
-                  owner,
-                  repo,
-                  issue_number: pr.number,
-                  body: `@${author} Closing stale PR due to inactivity (no commits for 7 days after stale label).`
-                });
-              }
+
+              // A maintainer comment after the mark restarts the 7 days.
+              const maintainerDates = humanComments
+                .filter(c => MAINTAINERS.includes(c.author_association) && c.user?.login !== author)
+                .map(c => new Date(c.created_at))
+                .filter(d => d > staleLabelDate);
+              const clockStart = maintainerDates.length > 0 ? new Date(Math.max(...maintainerDates)) : staleLabelDate;
+              if (days(clockStart) <= 7) continue;
+
+              await github.rest.issues.createComment({
+                owner, repo, issue_number: pr.number,
+                body: isTemplateIssue
+                  ? `@${author} Closing: the PR template requirements listed above were still missing 7 days later. Once they are in place, please open a new pull request.`
+                  : `@${author} Closing stale PR due to inactivity (no commits for 7 days after stale label).`
+              });
+              await github.rest.pulls.update({ owner, repo, pull_number: pr.number, state: "closed" });
             }

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -581,6 +581,10 @@ Exercise vigilance regarding copycat or coat-tailing sites that seek to exploit
     - guardian: bump Node.js from 24 to 26 [@github-actions[bot]](https://github.com/github-actions[bot]) ([#18375](https://github.com/community-scripts/ProxmoxVE/pull/18375))
     - nametag: bump Node.js from 20 to 24 [@github-actions[bot]](https://github.com/github-actions[bot]) ([#18376](https://github.com/community-scripts/ProxmoxVE/pull/18376))
 
+### 💾 Core
+
+  - fix: do not wait forever for verbose output a daemon keeps open [@MickLesk](https://github.com/MickLesk) ([core#185](https://github.com/community-scripts/core/pull/185))
+
 ## 2026-11-01
 
 ### 🆕 New Scripts

ct/fileflows.sh

@@ -102,7 +102,6 @@ function update_script() {
   fi
   msg_ok "Ensured ASP.NET Core Runtime"
 
-  rm -rf /opt/fileflows/{Server,FlowRunner,Libraries,Agent}
   fetch_and_deploy_from_url "https://fileflows.com/downloads/ff-latest.tar.xz" "/opt/fileflows"
 
   msg_info "Starting Service"