ADO Pilot uses specialized terminology across configuration, billing, and integration. Every term defined here has an explicit anchor (`#kebab-case`) so other pages can deep-link to a single definition. Terms are listed alphabetically. Each entry is one to three sentences; follow the cross-links for full treatment. ## A ### Auto-overage {#auto-overage} The overage policy that lets reviews continue after included review credits are exhausted by billing the excess at the tier's overage rate. Contrasts with [hard-block](#hard-block); see [Overage behavior](../billing/overage-behavior.md). ## B ### Billing period {#billing-period} A recurring monthly interval anchored to your Stripe subscription start date. [Review credit](#review-credit) consumption resets at the period boundary; unused RCs do not carry over. See [Review credits explained](../billing/review-credits-explained.md). ### Blocker {#blocker} The highest [severity](#severity) level for a [finding](#finding) — an issue the reviewer believes must be fixed before merge. One or more blockers force a `FAIL` [verdict](#verdict). ## D ### Delegated OAuth {#delegated-oauth} A previously-planned [authentication](../connecting-ado/auth-methods.md) method where users sign in with their Microsoft / Entra ID credentials and ADO Pilot acts on their behalf. This flow was removed before general availability. The current supported auth methods are the [PAT](../connecting-ado/creating-a-pat.md) and the [service principal](#service-principal) (available on Business plan and above). ## F ### File exclusion patterns {#file-exclusion-patterns} Glob patterns (org / project / repo, additive merge) that exclude files from review and from [review credit](#review-credit) billing. Defaults cover binary formats (images, archives, fonts, and similar), files ending in `.lock`, and `.map` source maps. See [File exclusions](../configuring/file-exclusions.md). ### Finding {#finding} A specific code issue identified by an AI review. Each finding has a [severity](#severity), a category (security, bug, performance, error-handling, maintainability, testing), and an optional code suggestion. Only [second-pass](#pass-2)–confirmed findings are posted as inline comments. ### First pass {#pass-1} The initial broad-scan review phase, tuned for high recall — it may over-report. Typically 30–50% of first-pass candidates are dropped by the [second pass](#pass-2) before any findings reach the PR. ## H ### Hard-block {#hard-block} An overage policy where, once included [review credits](#review-credit) are exhausted, new reviews are rejected and no RC is consumed. It is not a default on the standard tiers — Starter, Team, and Business all default to [auto-overage](#auto-overage); hard-block applies to Enterprise or custom contracts with a negotiated hard cap, or when an [overage cap](#overage-cap) of zero is set. See [Overage behavior](../billing/overage-behavior.md). ## I ### Iteration {#iteration} An Azure DevOps concept representing a single push to a pull request's source branch. Iterations are numbered sequentially (1, 2, 3, …) and are the unit of change ADO Pilot reviews. ## O ### Org {#org} Short for _organization_ — an Azure DevOps cloud organization. Internally identified by `orgId` (the ADO organization GUID). One org maps to one ADO Pilot [tenant](#tenant). ### Overage cap {#overage-cap} An optional per-tenant ceiling on [auto-overage](#auto-overage) spending. Once overage RCs consumed reach the cap, reviews [hard-block](#hard-block) even on auto-overage tiers. Configured on the Billing page. ### Overage rate {#overage-rate} The per-RC price for reviews beyond a tier's included allocation, applied while the subscription is in [auto-overage](#auto-overage) mode. See [Pricing](../getting-started/pricing-overview.md). ## P ### Personal access token (PAT) {#pat} A long-lived credential issued by Azure DevOps. ADO Pilot requires three scopes: Code (read), Code (status), and Pull Request Threads (read & write). Code (read) is enforced during onboarding for any organization with at least one project; Pull Request Threads is enforced during onboarding whenever there's a pull request to test against; Code (status) is not checked until your first review — see [Creating a PAT](../connecting-ado/creating-a-pat.md). ## R ### Rescission {#rescission} A [second-pass](#pass-2) action that drops a [first-pass](#pass-1) [finding](#finding) from the final review because it is a false positive or low-value. Rescinded findings are never posted to the PR. ### Review credit (RC) {#review-credit} The billing unit for AI reviews. One RC corresponds to roughly 500 billable diff lines, with a one-RC minimum per review. Consumption is metered monthly and unused RCs do not roll over. See [Review credits explained](../billing/review-credits-explained.md). ## S ### Second pass {#pass-2} The refinement phase. The second pass re-evaluates first-pass candidates, confirms true issues, [rescinds](#rescission) false positives, and writes the user-facing comment text. Only second-pass–confirmed findings are posted to your PR. ### Service hook {#service-hook} The Azure DevOps mechanism that fires HTTP webhooks when a subscribed event occurs (for ADO Pilot, `git.pullrequest.created` and `git.pullrequest.updated`). Two hooks are registered per project at install time; each call carries the tenant's [webhook credential](#webhook-jwt) for authentication. ### Service principal {#service-principal} An Entra ID app identity. Customers grant admin consent to ADO Pilot's multi-tenant app registration, which creates a service principal in their tenant and lets the backend mint short-lived (≈1 h) tokens without storing customer secrets. Available on Business plan and above — see [Setting up Service Principal auth](../connecting-ado/service-principal-setup.md). ### Severity {#severity} The importance of a [finding](#finding) — `blocker` (must fix), `warning` (strongly suggested), or `suggestion` (nice-to-have). Severities roll up into the final [verdict](#verdict). See [Severities and categories](../reviews/severities-and-categories.md). ### Status check {#status-check} A PR status indicator posted by ADO Pilot with `genre: adopilot` and `name: ai-pr-review`. It can be wired up as a required branch policy in Azure DevOps. See [Status check reference](status-check-reference.md). ## T ### Target branch filters {#target-branch-filters} Glob patterns (org / project / repo, additive merge) specifying which target branches trigger reviews — for example `main`, `release/*`, or `*` for all branches. Matching happens after the `refs/heads/` prefix is stripped. ### Tenant {#tenant} One ADO Pilot customer, mapped one-to-one with an Azure DevOps organization. Each tenant has isolated data, settings, and billing. ### Trial {#trial} The initial free allocation: 20 review credits granted to every new signup. Trial RCs are consumed before paid-plan RCs; once exhausted with no payment method on file, reviews [hard-block](#hard-block). ## V ### Verdict {#verdict} The final outcome of a review — `PASS` (no blockers or warnings), `ADVISORY` (warnings, no blockers), or `FAIL` (one or more [blockers](#blocker)). Determines the [status check](#status-check) state and, when configured as a required branch policy, gates PR completion. ## W ### Webhook credential {#webhook-jwt} A per-tenant credential ADO Pilot issues at onboarding, via our API gateway's native subscription-key mechanism, and stores as a confidential input on the Azure DevOps [service hook](#service-hook) subscription. Unlike a shared secret, it has no fixed expiry and nothing to rotate on a schedule — if you cancel your plan, ADO Pilot revokes it immediately at the gateway. Validated at our webhook gateway before the event is forwarded to the backend.