feat: enhance hierarchy issue rendering logic for open and closed parents

action.yml

@@ -45,6 +45,10 @@ inputs:
     description: 'Icon to be used for duplicity warning. Icon is placed before the record line.'
     required: false
     default: '🔔'
+  open-hierarchy-sub-issue-icon:
+    description: 'Icon prepended to open children under a closed hierarchy parent.'
+    required: false
+    default: '🟡'
   published-at:
     description: 'Use `published-at` timestamp instead of `created-at` as the reference point of previous Release.'
     required: false
@@ -181,6 +185,7 @@ runs:
         INPUT_HIERARCHY: ${{ inputs.hierarchy }}
         INPUT_DUPLICITY_SCOPE: ${{ inputs.duplicity-scope }}
         INPUT_DUPLICITY_ICON: ${{ inputs.duplicity-icon }}
+        INPUT_OPEN_HIERARCHY_SUB_ISSUE_ICON: ${{ inputs.open-hierarchy-sub-issue-icon }}
         INPUT_WARNINGS: ${{ inputs.warnings }}
         INPUT_HIDDEN_SERVICE_CHAPTERS: ${{ inputs.hidden-service-chapters }}
         INPUT_SERVICE_CHAPTER_ORDER: ${{ inputs.service-chapter-order }}

docs/features/issue_hierarchy_support.md

@@ -6,7 +6,12 @@ Represent issue → sub-issue relationships directly in release notes, aggregati
 ## How It Works
 - Enabled via input `hierarchy: true` (default: `false`). When disabled, all issues render flat.
 - Parent issues are detected; sub-issues (and nested hierarchy issues) are fetched and ordered by level. Levels indent with two spaces per depth; nested items use list markers (`-`).
-- Only closed sub-issues that contain a change increment (merged PR to default branch) are rendered; open ones, and PR to non default branch are ignored.
+- When the parent hierarchy issue is **open**:
+  - Leaf sub-issues: only closed ones with a change increment are rendered; open ones and those closed or delivered in a previous release are ignored.
+  - Nested sub-hierarchy children: filtered by change increment only — an open child that aggregates PRs from deeper levels is still rendered.
+- When the parent hierarchy issue is **closed**:
+  - All children (sub-issues and nested sub-hierarchy children) are rendered. Open children are prefixed with the `open-hierarchy-sub-issue-icon` (default `🟡`) to signal incomplete work.
+  - Set `open-hierarchy-sub-issue-icon` to an empty string to disable the highlighting.
 - Each hierarchy issue line can expand with its own extracted release notes block if present (prefixed with `_Release Notes_:` heading within the item block).
 
 ## Configuration
@@ -23,6 +28,12 @@ Represent issue → sub-issue relationships directly in release notes, aggregati
       - {"title": "New Features 🎉", "label": "feature"}
 ```
 
+Optional inputs related to hierarchy:
+
+| Input | Default | Description |
+|---|---|---|
+| `open-hierarchy-sub-issue-icon` | `🟡` | Icon prepended to open sub-issues and open sub-hierarchy issues rendered under a closed hierarchy parent. Set to an empty string to disable highlighting. |
+
 ## Example Result
 ```markdown
 ### New Features 🎉
@@ -33,6 +44,7 @@ Represent issue → sub-issue relationships directly in release notes, aggregati
   - Updated `scala213 = "2.13.13"`
   - Feature: _Add user MFA enrollment flow_ #123 developed by @alice in #124
     - Add user MFA enrollment flow
+  - 🟡 Feature: _Add OAuth2 login_ #125  ← open sub-issue under closed Epic
 ```
 (1st four indented bullets under Epic line represent the extracted release notes from the parent hierarchy issue's body.)
 

release_notes_generator/action_inputs.py

@@ -39,6 +39,7 @@
     PRINT_EMPTY_CHAPTERS,
     DUPLICITY_SCOPE,
     DUPLICITY_ICON,
+    OPEN_HIERARCHY_SUB_ISSUE_ICON,
     ROW_FORMAT_LINK_PR,
     ROW_FORMAT_ISSUE,
     ROW_FORMAT_PR,
@@ -156,8 +157,7 @@ def get_chapters() -> list[dict[str, str]]:
         Get list of the chapters from the action inputs. Each chapter is a dict.
         """
         # Get the 'chapters' input from environment variables
-        chapters_input: str = get_action_input(CHAPTERS, default="")  # type: ignore[assignment]
-        # mypy: string is returned as default
+        chapters_input: str = get_action_input(CHAPTERS, default="")
 
         # Parse the received string back to YAML array input.
         try:
@@ -184,8 +184,7 @@ def get_duplicity_scope() -> DuplicityScopeEnum:
         """
         Get the duplicity scope parameter value from the action inputs.
         """
-        duplicity_scope = get_action_input(DUPLICITY_SCOPE, "both").upper()  # type: ignore[union-attr]
-        # mypy: string is returned as default
+        duplicity_scope = get_action_input(DUPLICITY_SCOPE, "both").upper()
 
         try:
             return DuplicityScopeEnum(duplicity_scope)
@@ -198,15 +197,21 @@ def get_duplicity_icon() -> str:
         """
         Get the duplicity icon from the action inputs.
         """
-        return get_action_input(DUPLICITY_ICON, "🔔")  # type: ignore[return-value]  # string is returned as default
+        return get_action_input(DUPLICITY_ICON, "🔔")
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def get_open_hierarchy_sub_issue_icon() -> str:
+        """
+        Get the icon prepended to open sub-issues rendered under a closed hierarchy parent.
+        """
+        return get_action_input(OPEN_HIERARCHY_SUB_ISSUE_ICON, "🟡")
 
     @staticmethod
     def get_published_at() -> bool:
         """
         Get the published at parameter value from the action inputs.
         """
-        return get_action_input(PUBLISHED_AT, "false").lower() == "true"  # type: ignore[union-attr]
-        # mypy: string is returned as default
+        return get_action_input(PUBLISHED_AT, "false").lower() == "true"
 
     @staticmethod
     def get_skip_release_notes_labels() -> list[str]:
@@ -225,35 +230,31 @@ def get_verbose() -> bool:
         Get the verbose parameter value from the action inputs.
         Safe for non-GitHub test contexts where the input may be unset (returns False by default).
         """
-        raw = get_action_input(VERBOSE, "false")  # type: ignore[assignment]
+        raw = get_action_input(VERBOSE, "false")
         # Some test contexts (unit/integration) do not populate GitHub inputs; fall back to default.
         raw_normalized = (raw or "false").strip().lower()
         return os.getenv(RUNNER_DEBUG, "0") == "1" or raw_normalized == "true"
-        # mypy: string is returned as default
 
     @staticmethod
     def get_release_notes_title() -> str:
         """
         Get the release notes title from the action inputs.
         """
-        return get_action_input(RELEASE_NOTES_TITLE, RELEASE_NOTE_TITLE_DEFAULT)  # type: ignore[return-value]
-        # mypy: string is returned as default
+        return get_action_input(RELEASE_NOTES_TITLE, RELEASE_NOTE_TITLE_DEFAULT)
 
     @staticmethod
     def is_coderabbit_support_active() -> bool:
         """
         Get the CodeRabbit support active parameter value from the action inputs.
         """
-        return get_action_input(CODERABBIT_SUPPORT_ACTIVE, "false").lower() == "true"  # type: ignore[union-attr]
+        return get_action_input(CODERABBIT_SUPPORT_ACTIVE, "false").lower() == "true"
 
     @staticmethod
     def get_coderabbit_release_notes_title() -> str:
         """
         Get the CodeRabbit release notes title from the action inputs.
         """
-        return get_action_input(
-            CODERABBIT_RELEASE_NOTES_TITLE, CODERABBIT_RELEASE_NOTE_TITLE_DEFAULT
-        )  # type: ignore[return-value]
+        return get_action_input(CODERABBIT_RELEASE_NOTES_TITLE, CODERABBIT_RELEASE_NOTE_TITLE_DEFAULT)
 
     @staticmethod
     def get_coderabbit_summary_ignore_groups() -> list[str]:
@@ -279,7 +280,7 @@ def get_warnings() -> bool:
         """
         Get the warnings parameter value from the action inputs.
         """
-        return get_action_input(WARNINGS, "true").lower() == "true"  # type: ignore[union-attr]
+        return get_action_input(WARNINGS, "true").lower() == "true"
         # mypy: string is returned as default
 
     @staticmethod
@@ -377,9 +378,7 @@ def get_row_format_hierarchy_issue() -> str:
         """
         if ActionInputs._row_format_hierarchy_issue is None:
             ActionInputs._row_format_hierarchy_issue = ActionInputs._detect_row_format_invalid_keywords(
-                get_action_input(
-                    ROW_FORMAT_HIERARCHY_ISSUE, "{type}: _{title}_ {number}"
-                ).strip(),  # type: ignore[union-attr]
+                get_action_input(ROW_FORMAT_HIERARCHY_ISSUE, "{type}: _{title}_ {number}").strip(),
                 row_type=ActionInputs.ROW_TYPE_HIERARCHY_ISSUE,
                 clean=True,
             )
@@ -394,9 +393,8 @@ def get_row_format_issue() -> str:
             ActionInputs._row_format_issue = ActionInputs._detect_row_format_invalid_keywords(
                 get_action_input(
                     ROW_FORMAT_ISSUE, "{type}: {number} _{title}_ developed by {developers} in {pull-requests}"
-                ).strip(),  # type: ignore[union-attr]
+                ).strip(),
                 clean=True,
-                # mypy: string is returned as default
             )
         return ActionInputs._row_format_issue
 
@@ -407,12 +405,9 @@ def get_row_format_pr() -> str:
         """
         if ActionInputs._row_format_pr is None:
             ActionInputs._row_format_pr = ActionInputs._detect_row_format_invalid_keywords(
-                get_action_input(
-                    ROW_FORMAT_PR, "{number} _{title}_ developed by {developers}"
-                ).strip(),  # type: ignore[union-attr]
+                get_action_input(ROW_FORMAT_PR, "{number} _{title}_ developed by {developers}").strip(),
                 row_type=ActionInputs.ROW_TYPE_PR,
                 clean=True,
-                # mypy: string is returned as default
             )
         return ActionInputs._row_format_pr
 
@@ -421,8 +416,7 @@ def get_row_format_link_pr() -> bool:
         """
         Get the value controlling whether the row format should include a 'PR:' prefix when linking to PRs.
         """
-        return get_action_input(ROW_FORMAT_LINK_PR, "true").lower() == "true"  # type: ignore[union-attr]
-        # mypy: string is returned as default
+        return get_action_input(ROW_FORMAT_LINK_PR, "true").lower() == "true"
 
     @staticmethod
     def validate_inputs() -> None:

release_notes_generator/model/record/hierarchy_issue_record.py

@@ -216,24 +216,42 @@ def to_chapter_row(self, add_into_chapters: bool = True) -> str:
 
         # add sub-hierarchy issues
         for sub_hierarchy_issue in self._sub_hierarchy_issues.values():
-            logger.debug("Rendering hierarchy issue row for sub-issue #%s", sub_hierarchy_issue.issue.number)
-            if sub_hierarchy_issue.contains_change_increment():
-                logger.debug("Sub-hierarchy issue #%s contains change increment", sub_hierarchy_issue.issue.number)
-                row = f"{row}\n{sub_hierarchy_issue.to_chapter_row()}"
+            logger.debug("Rendering sub-hierarchy issue row for #%s", sub_hierarchy_issue.issue.number)
+            if self.is_open:
+                if not sub_hierarchy_issue.contains_change_increment():
+                    continue
+            # Closed parent: render all sub-hierarchy issues regardless of state or change increment
+            logger.debug("Rendering sub-hierarchy issue #%s", sub_hierarchy_issue.issue.number)
+            if self.is_closed and sub_hierarchy_issue.is_open:
+                sub_row = sub_hierarchy_issue.to_chapter_row()
+                # Highlight open children under a closed parent to signal incomplete work
+                icon = ActionInputs.get_open_hierarchy_sub_issue_icon()
+                header_line, newline, remaining_lines = sub_row.partition("\n")
+                header_text = header_line.lstrip()
+                indent = header_line[: len(header_line) - len(header_text)]
+                sub_row = f"{indent}{icon} {header_text}{newline}{remaining_lines}"
+            else:
+                sub_row = sub_hierarchy_issue.to_chapter_row()
+            row = f"{row}\n{sub_row}"
 
         # add sub-issues
         if len(self._sub_issues) > 0:
             sub_indent = "  " * (self._level + 1)
             for sub_issue in self._sub_issues.values():
-                logger.debug("Rendering sub-issue row for issue #%d", sub_issue.issue.number)
-                if sub_issue.is_open:
-                    continue  # only closed issues are reported in release notes
-
-                if not sub_issue.contains_change_increment():
-                    continue  # skip sub-issues without change increment
-
-                logger.debug("Sub-issue #%s contains change increment", sub_issue.issue.number)
-                sub_issue_block = "- " + sub_issue.to_chapter_row()
+                logger.debug("Rendering sub-issue row for issue #%s", sub_issue.issue.number)
+                if self.is_open:
+                    if sub_issue.is_open:
+                        continue  # only closed issues are reported in release notes
+                    if not sub_issue.contains_change_increment():
+                        continue  # skip sub-issues without change increment
+                # Closed parent: render all sub-issues regardless of state or change increment
+
+                logger.debug("Rendering sub-issue #%s", sub_issue.issue.number)
+                open_icon_prefix = ""
+                if self.is_closed and sub_issue.is_open:
+                    # Highlight open children under a closed parent to signal incomplete work
+                    open_icon_prefix = ActionInputs.get_open_hierarchy_sub_issue_icon() + " "
+                sub_issue_block = "- " + open_icon_prefix + sub_issue.to_chapter_row()
                 ind_child_block = "\n".join(
                     f"{sub_indent}{line}" if line else "" for line in sub_issue_block.splitlines()
                 )

release_notes_generator/utils/constants.py

@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@
 CHAPTERS = "chapters"
 DUPLICITY_SCOPE = "duplicity-scope"
 DUPLICITY_ICON = "duplicity-icon"
+OPEN_HIERARCHY_SUB_ISSUE_ICON = "open-hierarchy-sub-issue-icon"
 PUBLISHED_AT = "published-at"
 SKIP_RELEASE_NOTES_LABELS = "skip-release-notes-labels"
 VERBOSE = "verbose"

release_notes_generator/utils/gh_action.py

@@ -20,10 +20,9 @@
 
 import os
 import sys
-from typing import Optional
 
 
-def get_action_input(name: str, default: Optional[str] = None) -> Optional[str]:
+def get_action_input(name: str, default: str = "") -> str:
     """
     Retrieve the value of a specified input parameter from environment variables.
 
@@ -32,9 +31,6 @@ def get_action_input(name: str, default: Optional[str] = None) -> Optional[str]:
 
     @return: The value of the specified input parameter, or an empty string if the environment
     """
-    if default is None:
-        return os.getenv(f'INPUT_{name.replace("-", "_").upper()}')
-
     return os.getenv(f'INPUT_{name.replace("-", "_").upper()}', default=default)