<objective> Enforce consistent Git conventions using conventional commits. Handles commit message format, branch naming, stale branch detection, attribution rules, and PR creation. This is the base git skill - the dev-workflow skill can override commit format with ticket prefixes for work repositories. </objective>

<commit_format>

Conventional Commits

All commits use conventional commit format:

Format: {type}({scope}): {message}

The scope is optional. The message should be lowercase, imperative mood, no period at end.

Types:

Type	When to Use
`feat`	New feature or capability
`fix`	Bug fix
`docs`	Documentation only
`style`	Formatting, whitespace (no code change)
`refactor`	Code restructuring (no behavior change)
`test`	Adding or updating tests
`chore`	Build, tooling, dependencies, maintenance
`perf`	Performance improvement
`ci`	CI/CD pipeline changes
`build`	Build system changes

Examples:

code

feat: add user authentication
fix: resolve memory leak in worker pool
docs: update API documentation for v2 endpoints
refactor: simplify error handling in middleware
chore(deps): update dependencies to latest
feat(auth): add OAuth2 support
ci: add GitHub Actions workflow for linting

Breaking changes: Add ! after type or scope:

code

feat!: remove deprecated API endpoints
feat(auth)!: change token format to JWT

</commit_format>

<branch_naming>

Branch Naming

Format: {type}/{description}

Use the same types as commits. Description should be lowercase with hyphens.

Examples:

code

feat/user-authentication
fix/memory-leak-worker
docs/api-v2-endpoints
refactor/error-handling
chore/update-dependencies

Always create a feature branch. Never commit directly to main or master.

bash

# Create and switch to new branch
git checkout -b feat/your-feature-name

</branch_naming>

<attribution_rules>

Attribution Rules

Never include in commit messages:

•Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>
•Any mention of Claude or AI assistance

Commit message template:

bash

git commit -m "$(cat <<'EOF'
feat: your commit message here
EOF
)"

Note: No trailing Co-Authored-By line. Claude Code may try to add this automatically - the tool-governance hook or this skill should catch and remove it. </attribution_rules>

<workflow> ## Complete Git Commit Workflow

•
Create branch (if not already on one):
bash
```
git checkout -b feat/your-feature-name
```

•

Check for stale branch (merged PR):

bash

BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current)
PR_STATE=$(gh pr list --head "$BRANCH" --state merged --json state -q '.[0].state' 2>/dev/null)
if [[ "$PR_STATE" == "MERGED" ]]; then
  echo "ERROR: Branch '$BRANCH' has a merged PR! Create a new branch."
  exit 1
fi

•

Stage specific files:

bash

git add <specific-files>  # Never use git add . or git add -A

•

Commit with conventional format:

bash

git commit -m "$(cat <<'EOF'
feat: description of changes
EOF
)"

•
Push:
bash
```
git push -u origin "$BRANCH"
```

</workflow>

<stale_branch_check>

Stale Branch Detection

CRITICAL: Before pushing to ANY branch, check if it has a merged PR:

bash

BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current)

# Skip check for main/master
if [[ "$BRANCH" != "main" && "$BRANCH" != "master" ]]; then
  PR_STATE=$(gh pr list --head "$BRANCH" --state merged --json number,state -q '.[0].state' 2>/dev/null)

  if [[ "$PR_STATE" == "MERGED" ]]; then
    echo "ERROR: Branch '$BRANCH' has a merged PR!"
    echo "You should NOT push to this branch."
    echo ""
    echo "To fix:"
    echo "  1. git checkout main && git pull"
    echo "  2. git checkout -b NEW-BRANCH-NAME"
    echo "  3. Cherry-pick or recreate your changes"
    echo "  4. Push to the new branch"
    exit 1
  fi
fi

Why this matters:

•Pushing to a branch with a merged PR creates orphaned commits
•The changes won't be included in any PR
•CI/CD pipelines may not trigger correctly </stale_branch_check>

<pr_workflow>

Pull Request Creation

•

Push branch:

bash

git push -u origin "$(git branch --show-current)"

•

Create PR with gh CLI:

bash

gh pr create --title "feat: description" --body "$(cat <<'EOF'
## Summary
- Change 1
- Change 2

## Test plan
- [ ] Tests pass
- [ ] Manual verification
EOF
)"

•
Open PR in browser:
bash
```
gh pr view --web
```

Complete command (create + open):

bash

gh pr create --title "feat: description" --body "Summary of changes" && gh pr view --web

PR title format: Use the same conventional commit format as commits. </pr_workflow>

<validation> ## Pre-Commit Checklist

• On a feature branch (not main/master)
• Commit message uses conventional format (type: message)
• No Claude attribution in commit message
• Only specific files staged (not git add .)
• Branch does NOT have a merged PR

Pre-Push Checklist

• Stale branch check passed
• Branch is up to date with remote
• Not pushing directly to main/master </validation>

<success_criteria> This skill is working correctly when:

•All commits use type: message conventional format
•No commits contain unwanted attribution
•Branches follow type/description naming
•Stale branches (with merged PRs) are detected before pushing
•PRs are created with conventional commit titles
•No commits land directly on main/master </success_criteria>