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+---
+name: release-notes
+description: Generate release notes for the dotnet/diagnostics repository. Use when asked to generate release notes, a release summary, or a changelog.
+---
+
+# Release Notes Generation
+
+## Process
+
+### 1. Determine the baseline
+
+Find the **last published GitHub release** — not the latest git tag. This repo may have many version tags (e.g., `v10.0.*`, `v11.0.*`) that don't correspond to published releases.
+
+```bash
+# Get the most recent published GitHub release tag for dotnet/diagnostics
+release_tag=$(gh release list --repo dotnet/diagnostics --limit 1 --json tagName --jq '.[0].tagName')
+echo "$release_tag"
+```
+
+The last published release may be on a different branch (e.g., `release/9.0`). Even so, use the tag directly in `git log` — **do NOT use `git merge-base`**. The release branch often contains snap/backport merges that bring `main` commits into the release, so `merge-base` returns an ancestor that is already included in the release tag. Instead:
+
+```bash
+# Correct: use the tag directly — git handles cross-branch reachability
+git log <release-tag>..HEAD --oneline --first-parent
+```
+
+This ensures commits already reachable from the release tag (via snap merges or backports) are excluded.
+
+### 2. Get the commit list
+
+List all first-parent commits from the release tag to HEAD, excluding dependency flow PRs:
+
+```bash
+git log <release-tag>..HEAD --oneline --first-parent
+```
+
+Filter out:
+- `[main] Update dependencies from *`
+- `Update dependencies from *`
+- Pure test infrastructure changes (test reorganization, CI image updates, SDK bumps)
+- Build/CI plumbing (SDK updates, pipeline config, dependabot changes)
+
+### 3. Investigate each PR
+
+For each user-facing PR, launch **parallel explore agents** (one per group of 3-5 related PRs) to read:
+- PR body (`get` method)
+- Review comments (`get_review_comments` method)
+- General comments (`get_comments` method)
+
+Focus on:
+- **What** user-visible behavior changed
+- **Why** — what issue it solves, what feature it adds
+- **Breaking changes** or UX surprises discussed in review threads
+- Concrete examples (before/after output, error messages)
+
+### 4. Write the release notes
+
+Follow the format used in the latest release to get a sense of the current format used. For example, for `v9.0.661903` the structure follows the following pattern:
+
+```markdown
+### General announcements
+
+Brief summary.
+
+### dotnet-dump / SOS
+
+- **Feature/fix name**: Description focusing on WHY and user impact. (#PR)
+
+#### SOS Bug Fixes
+
+- **Command affected**: What was wrong, what's fixed. (#PR)
+
+### dotnet-trace
+
+- **collect-linux improvements**: Group related sub-items.
+
+### dotnet-counters
+
+- **Feature**: Description. (#PR)
+
+### Microsoft.Diagnostics.NETCore.Client
+
+- **Feature**: Description. (#PR)
+
+### Other notable changes
+
+- Items that don't fit above categories.
+```
+
+### 5. Style guidelines
+
+- Focus on **why** a change matters to users, not implementation details
+- Include issue references where available: `([#1234](https://github.com/dotnet/diagnostics/issues/1234), #5678)`
+- Group related fixes (e.g., all `collect-linux` terminal fixes together)
+- Call out breaking changes or UX changes explicitly
+- Omit purely internal changes (refactors, test moves, CI config) unless they have user impact
+- Use bold for command names and flags: **`!dumpheap -stat -bycount`**
+
+## Example output
+
+See the release at https://github.com/dotnet/diagnostics/releases/tag/v9.0.661903 for format reference.