docs agent failed: release notes listed commits already in the previous release

TL;DR

Fix the tag range: generate from the previous release tag (exclusive) to the new tag (inclusive). Duplicates mean the range started one tag too early.

Error

(release notes for v2.1.0 list commits already released in v2.0.0; no error text)

Steps

1. Identify the range the writer used: check the job logs or config for the from/to refs. Expected: the actual range, e.g. v1.9.0..v2.1.0 instead of v2.0.0..v2.1.0.
2. Correct it to start after the previous release: git log v2.0.0..v2.1.0 lists exactly the new commits. Expected: the range covers only new work.
3. Watch for tag weirdness: lightweight vs annotated tags, and tags on the wrong branch, both shift ranges silently. Verify with git tag --list and git log --oneline on the range. Expected: the range contains exactly the intended commits.
4. Regenerate the notes from the corrected range. Expected: no duplicates.

When to use

• Release notes repeat the previous release's commits
• A docs agent picks the range itself
• Tags were recreated or moved

When not to use

• Commits are genuinely new but look similar (not duplicates)
• The notes miss commits (a range that starts too late)
• You intentionally include prior context (mark it as such)

Tool compatibility

Git-based changelog tools (conventional-changelog, release-please, semantic-release) and custom writers.

Variant phrasings

duplicates after a hotfix tag

Hotfix tags between releases confuse range pickers. Anchor the range on the actual previous release tag.

agent uses dates instead of tags

Date ranges overlap across releases. Switch to tag ranges.

Why it happens

Range selection is usually "latest N tags" or a guessed previous tag. Any off-by-one in tag ordering pulls the previous release's commits into the new notes.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pstdUmBuXDf-CqeyCdL9gA