Finishing A Development Branch

Finishing a Development Branch

Overview

Guide completion of development work by presenting clear options and handling chosen workflow.

Core principle: Verify tests → Present options → Execute choice → Clean up.

Announce at start: "I'm using the finishing-a-development-branch skill to complete this work."

The Process

Step 1: Verify Tests

Before presenting options, verify tests pass:

# Run project's test suite
npm test / cargo test / pytest / go test ./...

If tests fail:

Tests failing (<N> failures). Must fix before completing:

[Show failures]

Cannot proceed with merge/PR until tests pass.

Stop. Don't proceed to Step 2.

If tests pass: Continue to Step 2.

Step 2: Determine Base Branch

# Try common base branches
git merge-base HEAD main 2>/dev/null || git merge-base HEAD master 2>/dev/null

Or ask: "This branch split from main - is that correct?"

Step 3: Present Options

Present exactly these 4 options:

Implementation complete. What would you like to do?

1. Merge back to <base-branch> locally
2. Push and create a Pull Request
3. Keep the branch as-is (I'll handle it later)
4. Discard this work

Which option?

Don't add explanation - keep options concise.

Step 4: Execute Choice

Option 1: Merge Locally

# Switch to base branch
git checkout <base-branch>

# Pull latest
git pull

# Merge feature branch
git merge <feature-branch>

# Verify tests on merged result
<test command>

# If tests pass
git branch -d <feature-branch>

Then: Cleanup worktree (Step 5)

Option 2: Push and Create PR

# Push branch
git push -u origin <feature-branch>

# Create PR
gh pr create --title "<title>" --body "$(cat <<'EOF'
## Summary
<2-3 bullets of what changed>

## Test Plan
- [ ] <verification steps>
EOF
)"

Then: Cleanup worktree (Step 5)

Option 3: Keep As-Is

Report: "Keeping branch . Worktree preserved at ."

Don't cleanup worktree.

Option 4: Discard

Confirm first:

This will permanently delete:
- Branch <name>
- All commits: <commit-list>
- Worktree at <path>

Type 'discard' to confirm.

Wait for exact confirmation.

If confirmed:

git checkout <base-branch>
git branch -D <feature-branch>

Then: Cleanup worktree (Step 5)

Step 5: Cleanup Worktree

For Options 1, 2, 4:

Check if in worktree:

git worktree list | grep $(git branch --show-current)

If yes:

git worktree remove <worktree-path>

For Option 3: Keep worktree.

Rescue: leaked secret

Use this section after the branch is already merged + pushed to a public remote and you notice the diff included a secret (personal email in commit author metadata, API key in a config example, internal hostname in a doc). The destructive nature means treat it as a separate flow, not Step 4 above.

Scope: rewriting public history is irreversible from your end and disruptive for downstream clones / forks. Confirm the leak is worth the cost before running.

Recipe (placeholders, substitute your own values)

# 1. Backup tag — recovery anchor before destruction
git tag backup-pre-rewrite

# 2. Install git-filter-repo if not present (it is NOT bundled with git)
brew install git-filter-repo            # macOS
# pip install git-filter-repo            # alternative

# 3. Run the rewrite. Example — replace all commits' author email
#    Use a complete callback; the body is a real Python expression
git filter-repo --email-callback '
return b"<numeric-id>+<username>@users.noreply.github.com" if email == b"<your-old-email>" else email
'

# 4. filter-repo strips the origin remote on purpose. Re-add it.
git remote add origin <your-repo-url>

# 5. Force-push with --force-with-lease (NOT --force)
#    --force-with-lease aborts if remote moved since last fetch — safer
git push --force-with-lease origin main

# 6. Notify forks/clones that history was rewritten — they must re-pull
#    (`git pull --rebase` won't do it; they need `git fetch && git reset --hard origin/main`)

What <numeric-id> is

GitHub's privacy noreply email format is <numeric-id>+<username>@users.noreply.github.com. Find your numeric id with:

gh api users/<your-username> --jq .id

Both forms (<numeric-id>+<username>@users.noreply.github.com and bare <username>@users.noreply.github.com for newer accounts) route to your inbox if email privacy is enabled in GitHub settings.

Gotchas

• filter-repo removes origin on purpose, expecting you to push the rewritten history to a fresh repo. If you're rewriting in-place, re-add origin (step 4 above).
• Paths-filtered CI workflows don't trigger on a metadata-only force-push (no file content changed → paths: filter sees no match). Add workflow_dispatch: to your workflow so you can manually re-run validation post-rewrite.
• All commit SHAs change. Anyone who pinned to a SHA, anyone who has the repo cloned, anyone who has a fork — they all need to invalidate their state. Plan a heads-up message.
• Public-cache residue: GitHub's web UI clears immediately, but external mirrors (Sourcegraph, Software Heritage, GitHub search index) may retain the leaked content for hours-to-weeks. The rewrite stops the leak from propagating; it does not fully erase it. If the secret was a credential, rotate the credential too — don't trust the rewrite to fix it.

Quick Reference

Common Mistakes

Skipping test verification

• Problem: Merge broken code, create failing PR
• Fix: Always verify tests before offering options

Open-ended questions

• Problem: "What should I do next?" → ambiguous
• Fix: Present exactly 4 structured options

Automatic worktree cleanup

• Problem: Remove worktree when might need it (Option 2, 3)
• Fix: Only cleanup for Options 1 and 4

No confirmation for discard

• Problem: Accidentally delete work
• Fix: Require typed "discard" confirmation

Red Flags

Never:

• Proceed with failing tests
• Merge without verifying tests on result
• Delete work without confirmation
• Force-push without explicit request

Always:

• Verify tests before offering options
• Present exactly 4 options
• Get typed confirmation for Option 4
• Clean up worktree for Options 1 & 4 only

Integration

Called by:

• subagent-driven-development (Step 7) - After all tasks complete
• executing-plans (Step 5) - After all batches complete

Pairs with:

• using-git-worktrees - Cleans up worktree created by that skill

Related skills

• writing-plans — generates the plan document that you reference in the merge commit message. Use this skill after writing-plans is complete.
• verification-before-completion — verify tests pass before presenting merge options. This skill's Step 1 depends on verification evidence.
• requesting-code-review → receiving-code-review — handle code review feedback using these skills before finishing the branch.