Git Hygiene

/git-hygiene — Git Repository Hygiene

Checks a Git repository for hygiene issues: stale branches, large files, inconsistent commits.

Modes

Checks

1. Stale Branches

Branches with no commits for >30 days:

git for-each-ref --sort=committerdate --format='%(refname:short) %(committerdate:relative)' refs/heads/

• 30 days: WARNING

• 90 days: Deletion candidate

• Exclude master/main/develop
• Finding: GIT-01: Branch {name} — last commit {N} days ago

2. Large Files in History

Top 10 largest objects in Git history:

git rev-list --objects --all | git cat-file --batch-check='%(objecttype) %(objectname) %(objectsize) %(rest)' | awk '/^blob/ {print $3, $4}' | sort -rn | head -10

• 5MB: WARNING (remove via git filter-branch or BFG)

• 50MB: ERROR

• Finding: GIT-02: {file} is {size}MB in history

3. Conventional Commits

Check last 20 commits:

git log --oneline -20

Valid prefixes: feat:, fix:, docs:, style:, refactor:, test:, chore:, perf:, ci:, build:, revert:

• Commit without valid prefix: WARNING
• Calculate compliance rate (X/20)
• Finding: GIT-03: Commit {hash} has no conventional commit prefix

4. .gitignore Completeness

Check for important entries:

• Finding: GIT-04: .gitignore missing entry {entry}
• Finding: GIT-05: No .gitignore present

5. Unmerged Branches

Branches not merged into master/main:

git branch --no-merged master 2>/dev/null || git branch --no-merged main

• List with last commit date
• Finding: GIT-06: Branch {name} is not merged (last commit: {date})

6. Orphaned Worktrees

Worktree entries that point to missing directories, or worktrees whose branches have been deleted. Relevant when using superpowers:using-git-worktrees for feature isolation — worktrees can become orphaned after branch cleanup.

git worktree list --porcelain
# Look for worktrees where the branch no longer exists or the path is missing
git worktree prune --dry-run
# Shows what would be cleaned up

• Worktree path no longer exists: WARNING
• Worktree branch has been deleted: WARNING
• git worktree prune --dry-run reports entries: WARNING
• Finding: GIT-07: Orphaned worktree detected at {path} (branch: {branch})
• Fix: git worktree remove {path} or git worktree prune

Output Format

## Git Hygiene: [Project Name]

### 1. Stale Branches
   WARNING: 2 stale branches
   - GIT-01: feature/old-login — last commit 45 days ago
   - GIT-01: hotfix/temp — last commit 120 days ago (deletion candidate)

### 2. Large Files
   OK: No files >5MB in history

### 3. Conventional Commits
   OK: 18/20 commits compliant (90%)
   - GIT-03: abc1234 "quick fix" — no prefix
   - GIT-03: def5678 "update stuff" — no prefix

### 4. .gitignore
   WARNING: 1 missing entry
   - GIT-04: .gitignore missing entry .env.production

### 5. Unmerged Branches
   OK: All branches merged

### 6. Orphaned Worktrees
   OK: No orphaned worktrees

---
Result: 6 checks, 4 OK, 2 WARNING, 0 ERROR

Rules

• Read-only — does not delete branches, changes nothing
• Works with any Git repository
• Check remote branches only if origin is reachable
• No force-push recommendations without explicit request