How do I install the Git Conventions skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add musserlab/git-conventions 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 Conventions safe to use?

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

Which AI agents work with Git Conventions?

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 Conventions free to use?

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

Who published Git Conventions?

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

Git Conventions by musserlab — Agent Skill

Name: Git Conventions
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: MusserLab

File contents

Git Practices

Before Starting Work

# Check current branch and status
git status
git branch

# Pull latest changes if on a shared branch
git pull

Committing Changes

Commit frequently — after completing each logical unit of work
Write descriptive commit messages — explain the "what" and "why"
Include the co-author line at the end of commit messages:
```
Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>
```
Check what will be committed before committing:
```
git status
git diff --staged
```

Commit Message Format

IMPORTANT: Use multiple -m flags for commit messages — do NOT use heredocs (<<'EOF').

Heredocs create multi-line Bash commands that don't match permission allowlist glob patterns (the * wildcard doesn't match newlines). Multiple -m flags keep the command on a single line.

Single-line message:

git commit -m "Title line here" -m "Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>"

Multi-line message (title + body + co-author):

git commit -m "Title line here" -m "Body paragraph explaining the why." -m "Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>"

Each -m flag adds a separate paragraph to the commit message (separated by a blank line in the git log).

Don't Commit

Large output files (check .gitignore)
Credentials or secrets (.env, credentials.json, etc.)
IDE-specific files unless project convention says otherwise
Claude Code worktrees (.claude/worktrees/)
Rendered HTML from Quarto/Rmarkdown scripts — these are large, regenerable artifacts

When to Prompt User About Commits

After completing a significant task
Before switching to a different area of the codebase
At the end of a working session (use /done skill)
After updating documentation

Troubleshooting

"Command not found" for git tools → Git should be available system-wide; check PATH if issues arise

Merge conflicts → Alert the user and explain the conflict before attempting resolution

Git push fails with SSH permission denied → SSH keys aren't available in Claude Code's terminal environment → Switch remote to HTTPS: git remote set-url origin https://github.com/OWNER/REPO.git → The gh CLI provides HTTPS authentication automatically

---name: git-conventionsdescription: Git commit practices and conventions. Use when committing changes, writing commit messages, creating branches, or making PRs.---# Git Practices## Before Starting Work```bash# Check current branch and statusgit statusgit branch# Pull latest changes if on a shared branchgit pull```## Committing Changes1. **Commit frequently** — after completing each logical unit of work2. **Write descriptive commit messages** — explain the "what" and "why"3. **Include the co-author line** at the end of commit messages: ``` Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com> ```4. **Check what will be committed** before committing: ```bash git status git diff --staged ```## Commit Message Format**IMPORTANT: Use multiple `-m` flags for commit messages — do NOT use heredocs (`<<'EOF'`).**Heredocs create multi-line Bash commands that don't match permission allowlist glob patterns (the `*` wildcard doesn't match newlines). Multiple `-m` flags keep the command on a single line.Single-line message:```bashgit commit -m "Title line here" -m "Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>"```Multi-line message (title + body + co-author):```bashgit commit -m "Title line here" -m "Body paragraph explaining the why." -m "Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>"```Each `-m` flag adds a separate paragraph to the commit message (separated by a blank line in the git log).## Don't Commit- Large output files (check `.gitignore`)- Credentials or secrets (`.env`, `credentials.json`, etc.)- IDE-specific files unless project convention says otherwise- Claude Code worktrees (`.claude/worktrees/`)- Rendered HTML from Quarto/Rmarkdown scripts — these are large, regenerable artifacts## When to Prompt User About Commits- After completing a significant task- Before switching to a different area of the codebase- At the end of a working session (use `/done` skill)- After updating documentation## Troubleshooting**"Command not found" for git tools**→ Git should be available system-wide; check PATH if issues arise**Merge conflicts**→ Alert the user and explain the conflict before attempting resolution**Git push fails with SSH permission denied**→ SSH keys aren't available in Claude Code's terminal environment→ Switch remote to HTTPS: `git remote set-url origin https://github.com/OWNER/REPO.git`→ The gh CLI provides HTTPS authentication automatically

Frequently asked questions

Git Conventions