Git Workflow
Covers branching strategies, conventional commits, CI/CD automation, repository hygiene, and git internals. GitHub CLI usage is handled by a separate github-cli skill; this skill focuses on git workflow patterns and CI/CD configuration.
Quick Reference
| Area | Key Practice |
|---|
| Branching | Trunk-based development with short-lived feature branches |
| Commits | Conventional commits with imperative mood |
| History | Linear history via rebase; squash noisy commits |
| PRs | Small, stacked changes; no mega PRs |
| Main branch | Always deployable; broken main is an emergency |
| CI/CD | Modular GitHub Actions with reusable workflows |
| Merging | Green CI + review required before merge |
| Versioning | Semantic Release or Changesets (never manual) |
| Branches | Max 48 hours lifespan; auto-prune stale/merged |
| Secrets | OIDC Connect in pipelines; never hardcode tokens |
| Signing | Sign commits with SSH or GPG keys for verified authorship |
Branch Naming
| Type | Use For | Example |
|---|
| feat | New features | feat/add-user-auth |
| fix | Bug fixes | fix/login-redirect |
| chore | Maintenance | chore/update-deps |
| docs | Documentation | docs/api-reference |
| refactor | Code restructuring | refactor/auth-module |
Conventional Commit Types
| Type | Purpose | Version Bump |
|---|
feat | New features | Minor |
fix | Bug fixes | Patch |
docs | Documentation only | None |
style | Formatting, no logic changes | None |
refactor | Neither fix nor feature | None |
perf | Performance improvements | Patch |
test | Adding or correcting tests | None |
build | Build system or external dependencies | None |
ci | CI configuration changes | None |
chore | Tooling, maintenance, non-src changes | None |
revert | Revert a previous commit | Varies |
Append ! after type/scope for breaking changes (major version bump).
Pre-Merge Checks
All PRs require before merge:
- Lint
- Type check
- Tests
- Security scan
- Review approval (human or automated)
Auto-merge is acceptable for low-risk PRs when pipeline succeeds.
Troubleshooting
| Issue | Resolution |
|---|
| Merge conflicts on long-running branch | Rebase onto main frequently; break remaining work into new branch if over 48 hours |
| Broken main branch | Treat as emergency; revert offending commit, then fix forward on a branch |
| Lost commits or data recovery | Use git reflog and object inspection (git cat-file, git fsck) |
| CI pipeline failures | Check reusable workflow versions; verify OIDC permissions |
| Stacked PR conflicts after rebase | Restack entire chain from base; Graphite handles automatically with gt restack |
| Large file accidentally committed | Use git filter-repo to remove from history (not git filter-branch) |
Common Mistakes
| Mistake | Correct Pattern |
|---|
| Keeping feature branches alive longer than 48 hours | Merge or rebase daily; break large work into stacked PRs |
| Committing directly to main without branch protection | Enable branch protection rules requiring CI and review |
| Using merge commits that clutter history | Rebase and squash to maintain linear history |
| Hardcoding tokens in GitHub Actions workflows | Use OIDC Connect for authentication in CI/CD pipelines |
| Creating monolithic CI workflows in a single file | Split into reusable workflows and composite actions |
Fix bug as commit message | fix(scope): correct bug description (conventional) |
feat: Added feature (past tense) | feat: add feature (imperative mood, lowercase) |
Using git filter-branch for history rewriting | Use git filter-repo (faster, safer, officially recommended) |
| Pushing to main directly | Create feature branch first |
| Unsigned commits in shared repositories | Configure commit signing with SSH or GPG keys |
Delegation
- Audit repository branch hygiene and stale branches: Use
Explore agent to list and classify branch age and merge status - Set up CI/CD pipelines with reusable workflows: Use
Task agent to create modular GitHub Actions configurations - Design branching strategy for a new project: Use
Plan agent to evaluate trunk-based vs Git Flow based on team needs
References
- branching-strategies.md -- Git Flow, GitHub Flow, GitLab Flow, One-Flow comparison and selection criteria
- trunk-based-development.md -- Core principles, workflow steps, feature flags, and anti-patterns
- stacked-changes.md -- Stacked PRs concept, manual stacking, Graphite automation, best practices
- conventional-commits.md -- Commit format, types, scopes, breaking changes, and full workflow
- github-actions.md -- Reusable workflows, matrix testing, deployment environments, security
- git-internals.md -- Object model, SHA hashing, index, references, packfiles, garbage collection
- automation-scripts.md -- Branch pruning, semantic release, security scanning, stacked PR helpers
- issue-templates.md -- Bug report, feature request, task, and minimal issue templates
- advanced-operations.md -- Commit signing, interactive rebase, worktrees, bisect, reflog recovery, and --force-with-lease
