Git Delete Branches

Git Delete Branches

Deletes confirmed obsolete git branches and prints a structured log summary to console.

When to Use This Skill

• User confirms the list of obsolete branches after running "git-identify-obsolete-branches"
• User explicitly asks to "delete branches" with a confirmed list
• Scheduled cleanup after user approval
• IMPORTANT: Branches must be explicitly confirmed by user before deletion

Prerequisites

• Git repository initialized
• User has confirmed the list of branches to delete

Safety Check

MUST verify user confirmation before proceeding:

1. Display the list of branches to be deleted
2. Ask user to explicitly confirm: "Do you want to proceed with deleting these [N] branches?"
3. Only proceed if user confirms with "yes", "confirm", or similar positive response
4. List includes branch names, reasons, and last activity dates

Workflow

1. Verify current branch

git branch --show-current

Critical: Ensure you are NOT on a branch that will be deleted. Switch to main/master if needed:

git checkout main

2. Delete local branches

Single branch:

git branch -D <branch-name>

Multiple branches (Bash):

for branch in <branch1> <branch2> <branch3>; do
    git branch -D "$branch" 2>/dev/null && echo "Deleted: $branch"
done

Multiple branches (PowerShell):

$branches = @("<branch1>", "<branch2>", "<branch3>")
foreach ($branch in $branches) {
    git branch -D $branch 2>$null
    if ($LASTEXITCODE -eq 0) { Write-Host "Deleted: $branch" }
}

3. Delete remote branches (if applicable)

git push origin --delete <branch-name>

Ask user before deleting remote branches - this affects all team members.

4. Print log to console

Output a structured summary:

=== BRANCH DELETION LOG ===
Timestamp: 2026-07-15T10:30:00Z
Repository: /path/to/repo
Initiator: user|scheduler

Deleted branches:
  - feature/old-thing (merged)     ✓
  - fix/old-bug (inactive 66 days) ✓
  - wip/experiment (merged)        ✓

Total deleted: 3
Status: success

5. Verify cleanup

git branch -vv

Confirmation Template

=== BRANCH DELETION CONFIRMATION ===

The following branches will be deleted:

1. feature/old-thing    | Last commit: 2026-06-01 | Reason: Merged
2. fix/old-bug          | Last commit: 2026-05-10 | Reason: Inactive 66 days
3. wip/experiment       | Last commit: 2026-06-15 | Reason: Merged

Repository: <repo-path>
Action: Delete local branches only

Do you confirm deletion? (yes/no)

Safety Notes

• ALWAYS require user confirmation before deleting any branches
• Local branches are deleted first; remote deletion requires extra confirmation
• Deleted local branches cannot be easily recovered
• Remote branch deletion affects all team members
• Never delete protected branches: main, master, develop, release/, hotfix/