Gt Sync

What It Does

One-command repo sync: pulls the latest from trunk, restacks your branches, and cleans up merged PRs.

When to Use

• User says "sync with main", "rebase my stack", or "pull latest".
• After PRs merge, or when gt reports "needs restack".
• Not for deleting stale local-only branches — use the gt-cleanup skill instead.

Usage

Optional arguments:

• --no-delete — Skip deleting merged branches by passing --no-interactive through to gt sync so it does not prompt for (or perform) deletions (gt sync has no --no-delete flag itself)
• --force — Restack even if the stack appears clean (still stopping at conflicts for manual resolution) instead of skipping the restack step (Phase 2 Step 3) when there are no divergence markers; gt sync itself (Phase 2 Step 1) always runs regardless

The argument text provided after the skill name (if any) is available as context for this invocation.

Phase 1: Pre-Sync State

1. Capture Current State

Record the starting point so we can report what changed:

echo "=== Current branch ==="
git branch --show-current

echo "=== Trunk branch ==="
gt trunk

gt log short

echo "=== Local branches ==="
git branch --list

Phase 2: Sync

1. Sync with Trunk

Run Graphite repo sync to pull the latest trunk and identify merged branches.

If --no-delete was passed:

gt sync --no-interactive

Otherwise:

gt sync

If gt sync fails (network error, authentication issue, etc.), report the error to the user and stop. Do not proceed to restacking with stale state.

This will:

• Fetch and fast-forward trunk
• Detect merged branches and prompt for deletion (when --no-delete is not passed)

2. Check Post-Sync Stack State

gt log short

Inspect the output for divergence markers. Graphite indicates a branch needs restacking when it shows (needs restack) next to a branch name, or when a branch is shown with ◯ instead of ◉ (indicating it is no longer based on its parent's current tip). If none of these markers appear and --force was not passed, skip to Phase 3; otherwise continue to the restacking step in Phase 2.

3. Restack if Needed

If branches need restacking (they've diverged from their parents after trunk moved):

gt stack restack

If the restack fails, check whether it's due to conflicts or another error:

If conflicts:

1. Report which branch has conflicts
2. Report which files are conflicted
3. Tell the user to resolve conflicts manually, then run:

   git add <resolved-files>
   gt continue
   

4. Or to abort the restack entirely:

   git rebase --abort
   

5. Stop execution — don't try to auto-resolve conflicts

If non-conflict failure (network, auth, corrupted state):

1. Report the error output from gt stack restack
2. Suggest running git status and gt log short to diagnose
3. Stop execution

Phase 3: Report

1. Final State

echo "=== Final stack ==="
gt log short

echo "=== Branches ==="
git branch --list

2. Summary

Output a report:

Sync Complete
─────────────
Trunk:       <trunk branch> (updated to <short sha>)
Restacked:   <yes/no/not needed>
Conflicts:   <none / list of conflicted branches>
Cleaned up:  <list of deleted merged branches, or "none">
Current:     <current branch>

Stack:
<gt log short output>

Success Criteria

• Trunk is up to date with remote
• Merged branches are cleaned up (unless --no-delete)
• Stack is restacked on latest trunk
• Any conflicts are clearly reported with resolution instructions
• User sees a clear before/after summary