How do I install the Git Author Rewrite skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add daedalus/git-author-rewrite in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Git Author Rewrite safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Git Author Rewrite?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Git Author Rewrite free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Git Author Rewrite?

daedalus (@daedalus) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Git Author Rewrite by daedalus — Agent Skill

Name: Git Author Rewrite
Author: daedalus

Git Author Rewrite

Rewrite all commit authors and committers in a git branch or repository history to a new name/email combination. Use this skill whenever the user mentions changing git commit authors, rewriting git attribution, mass updating committer info, fixing author names/emails across a branch history, or wants to correct commit attribution for an entire repo. Trigger even if the user doesn't explicitly mention "git-author-rewrite" or uses casual phrases like "change who wrote these commits" or "update my email on all past commits".

daedalus f5d2152 2 files · 4.1 KB Updated Sep 17, 2026

File contents

git-author-rewrite

Rewrite all commit authors in a git branch to a new name/email combination. Useful for correcting attribution across an entire branch history.

Workflow

1. Get current context

# Get repo URL and current branch
git remote get-url origin
git branch --show-current

2. Clone to /tmp/ for safe rewriting

Never rewrite in-place. Always work on a clone:

git clone <repo-url> /tmp/<repo>-rewrite
cd /tmp/<repo>-rewrite
git checkout <branch>

3. Rewrite all commit authors

Use git filter-branch with --env-filter to update both author and committer:

cd /tmp/<repo>-rewrite
git filter-branch --env-filter '
GIT_AUTHOR_NAME="New Name"
GIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL="new@email.com"
GIT_COMMITTER_NAME="New Name"
GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL="new@email.com"
' -- --all

Notes:

--all rewrites all branches and tags
The env-filter sets both author and committer to ensure consistency
WARNING about git-filter-branch is normal; it's acceptable for this use case

4. Verify the rewrite

Check that authors were updated correctly:

git log --format="%h %an <%ae> %s" | head -10

5. Clean up filter-branch artifacts

Remove backup refs and repack:

git for-each-ref --format='%(refname)' refs/original/ | xargs -n 1 git update-ref -d 2>/dev/null
git reflog expire --expire=now --all
git gc --prune=now

6. Apply to original repo (optional, not automatic)

If user wants to replace their local repo:

cd <original-repo>
git remote add rewritten /tmp/<repo>-rewrite
git fetch rewritten
git reset --hard rewritten/master

Important constraints

Never push unless explicitly asked
Always work on a clone in /tmp/ to avoid corrupting the working directory
Verify before applying - once rewritten, commits have new hashes
This rewrites history - all commit SHAs will change
Team members will need to re-clone or reset if this is pushed to shared branches

Example

User: "change the author of every commit in this branch to user name Dario clavijo email clavijodario@gmail.com"

Agent:

Gets repo URL and branch name
Clones to /tmp/ImpactGuard-rewrite
Runs filter-branch with the new author info
Verifies with git log
Cleans up backup refs
Informs user the rewritten repo is at /tmp/ImpactGuard-rewrite and explains how to apply it

---name: git-author-rewritedescription: Rewrite all commit authors and committers in a git branch or repository history to a new name/email combination. Use this skill whenever the user mentions changing git commit authors, rewriting git attribution, mass updating committer info, fixing author names/emails across a branch history, or wants to correct commit attribution for an entire repo. Trigger even if the user doesn't explicitly mention "git-author-rewrite" or uses casual phrases like "change who wrote these commits" or "update my email on all past commits".---# git-author-rewriteRewrite all commit authors in a git branch to a new name/email combination. Useful for correcting attribution across an entire branch history.## Workflow### 1. Get current context```bash# Get repo URL and current branchgit remote get-url origingit branch --show-current```### 2. Clone to /tmp/ for safe rewritingNever rewrite in-place. Always work on a clone:```bashgit clone <repo-url> /tmp/<repo>-rewritecd /tmp/<repo>-rewritegit checkout <branch>```### 3. Rewrite all commit authorsUse `git filter-branch` with `--env-filter` to update both author and committer:```bashcd /tmp/<repo>-rewritegit filter-branch --env-filter 'GIT_AUTHOR_NAME="New Name"GIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL="new@email.com"GIT_COMMITTER_NAME="New Name"GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL="new@email.com"' -- --all```Notes:- `--all` rewrites all branches and tags- The env-filter sets both author and committer to ensure consistency- WARNING about git-filter-branch is normal; it's acceptable for this use case### 4. Verify the rewriteCheck that authors were updated correctly:```bashgit log --format="%h %an <%ae> %s" | head -10```### 5. Clean up filter-branch artifactsRemove backup refs and repack:```bashgit for-each-ref --format='%(refname)' refs/original/ | xargs -n 1 git update-ref -d 2>/dev/nullgit reflog expire --expire=now --allgit gc --prune=now```### 6. Apply to original repo (optional, not automatic)If user wants to replace their local repo:```bashcd <original-repo>git remote add rewritten /tmp/<repo>-rewritegit fetch rewrittengit reset --hard rewritten/master```## Important constraints- **Never push** unless explicitly asked- **Always work on a clone** in `/tmp/` to avoid corrupting the working directory- **Verify before applying** - once rewritten, commits have new hashes- This rewrites history - all commit SHAs will change- Team members will need to re-clone or reset if this is pushed to shared branches## ExampleUser: "change the author of every commit in this branch to user name Dario clavijo email clavijodario@gmail.com"Agent:1. Gets repo URL and branch name2. Clones to `/tmp/ImpactGuard-rewrite`3. Runs filter-branch with the new author info4. Verifies with `git log`5. Cleans up backup refs6. Informs user the rewritten repo is at `/tmp/ImpactGuard-rewrite` and explains how to apply it

Frequently asked questions