# Reviewing Changes

> Inspect a proposal, approve its exact version, request changes, and understand what can merge.

**Experimental · private access. Public signup is not open.**

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A **Change** is a proposal to bring one published line of work into another,
usually the repository’s shared branch. It keeps the description, file
differences, discussion, decisions, and final outcome together.

## Inspect the proposal

1. Open the **Review** link from Kin or Space, or choose a proposal in **Changes**.
2. Read the title and description. Check which source is being proposed and
   which target will receive it. The revision identifiers name exact versions.
3. Inspect the changed files and discussion. Additions and removals show how
   the proposal differs from its comparison base.
4. Read the approval count, merge status, and reviewer history before deciding.

[![Depot Change with review history and a notice that a newer revision needs review.](/docs-assets/depot/review-desktop.png)](/docs-assets/depot/review-desktop.png)

*A real Change page in the disposable preview. The example includes a stale
approval, so the current source still needs a decision.*

Large proposals can have an incomplete preview. Use the file or folder filter
to inspect omitted work and follow the before/after file links when needed.
An approval covers the **entire source revision**, including files outside a
filtered or bounded preview. Ask Kin to explain or split work you cannot assess.

## Leave a decision

With a maintainer or repository admin role, choose the appropriate review
decision and choose **Submit review**:

- **Approve** says the displayed source version is acceptable.
- **Request changes** records the work you want revised. Explain the needed
  result so Kin can act on it.
- **Leave feedback** adds review context without approving the proposal.

Contributors can use **Leave a comment** to join the discussion. A comment does
not count as approval. If you lack a control, check
[People and permissions](/docs/depot/access/).

Comments and decisions stay on the Change. They do not automatically start Kin;
return to the conversation with the link when further work is needed.

## Understand review history

| Review state | What it means now |
| --- | --- |
| Current | The decision applies to the current source and the reviewer still has authority. |
| Stale | The source changed after this decision. It does not approve the new version. |
| Superseded | This reviewer made a later decisive review of the same version. |
| Permission lost | The reviewer no longer has the role needed for the decision to count. |

Only current authorized approvals count. A later comment does not replace a
decisive review. If Kin publishes more work, inspect the new revision and make
a fresh decision; earlier approvals remain visible in history.

**Ready to merge** means the repository’s current approval and merge rules are
met. Authorized peer maintainers can count as reviewers too. Check the reviewer
identity when you need to know whether a person approved the work.

## Merge approved work

An authorized peer can merge after the requirements are met. If you have the
role and the browser offers **Merge change**, expand it and choose
**Confirm merge**. Depot checks the source, target, and approvals again.

If either branch moved or permission changed, refresh and inspect the new state.
The fact that the page looked ready earlier does not authorize a different
result. Ask Kin to resolve a conflict and publish the outcome for review.

A merged Change retains its discussion and reviewable file differences. Follow
the merge revision or reopen **Code** to inspect the resulting shared version.
Approval by itself does not merge the files.

## Close a proposal

If the work should not land and your role allows it, choose **Close change** and
then **Confirm close**. This closes the proposal without merging its files.
The discussion remains in history. Closing is not deletion of the repository or
its published history.

Before leaving a page, submit any comment you want to retain. The browser can
warn about an unsent draft, but Depot does not save drafts for your next visit.

_Source authority: Kinra Site (src/content/docs/depot/review.md)._