noctcore-code-quality/skipped-tests-need-tracking

A skipped test must carry a tracking marker (issue URL or TODO(@owner)) so the debt has an owner.

Recommended preset: error · Autofix: no · Suggestions: no · Type information: not needed

Why

.skip / .fixme / xit / xdescribe are escape hatches. Left unowned they rot into permanent dark zones — nobody remembers why the test is off or who is meant to turn it back on. Requiring a tracking marker (an issue URL or a TODO(@owner)) within a few lines of the skip keeps a human attached to the debt.

.only is deliberately not covered here — no-focused-tests bans it outright, so it can never legitimately appear with or without tracking.

What it flags

Any line matching a skip form — it.skip( / test.skip( / describe.skip(, the .fixme( variants, xit(, xdescribe(, xtest( — with no tracking marker on that line or within the lookback window above it.

Faithful to the original text-scanning implementation, the source is scanned line by line, so a marker in a trailing comment, a preceding comment, or anywhere in the lookback window is honoured.

Incorrect · src/example.test.ts · 2 reports

// untracked
it.skip('later', () => {});
xdescribe('later', () => {});

Correct · src/example.test.ts

// tracked
// TODO(@alice): flaky under CI
it.skip('later', () => {});

it.skip('later', () => {}); // https://github.com/org/repo/issues/1

What it does not flag

• A test that is not skipped.
• A skip with a markers match on its own line or within the lookback lines above it.
• .only: no-focused-tests bans it outright.

Options

Option	Type	Default	Meaning
markers	string[] (regex sources)	["https?://\\S+", "TODO\\(@?\\S+\\)"]	Any pattern that, if found in the lookback window, satisfies the tracking requirement. Compiled with the u flag.
lookback	integer (≥0)	30	How many lines above the skip a marker may live and still count.

// Require a Jira-style key instead of a URL / TODO.
'noctcore-code-quality/skipped-tests-need-tracking': ['error', { markers: ['[A-Z]+-\\d+'] }]

When not to use it

If your project already enforces skip-tracking another way, or never skips tests.