# Rebase

> Interactive rebase onto a base branch, resolving conflicts along the way and verifying tests pass. Compares against remote when done.

- Skill: `ryanb/rebase` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 3 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add ryanb/rebase`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/ryanb/rebase/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: ryanb (https://skillmd.com/u/ryanb)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/ryanb/rebase

---


# Rebase

Rebase the current branch onto a base branch, resolving conflicts and verifying tests along the way.

## Step 0: Check for an in-progress rebase

Before anything else, check whether a rebase is already underway:

```bash
git rev-parse --git-path rebase-merge >/dev/null 2>&1 && ls "$(git rev-parse --git-path rebase-merge)" >/dev/null 2>&1 && echo "rebase in progress" || (ls "$(git rev-parse --git-path rebase-apply)" >/dev/null 2>&1 && echo "rebase in progress")
```

If a rebase is already in progress, skip Steps 1–2 entirely. Assume the task is to resolve the outstanding conflicts and continue the rebase: go straight to Step 3. Treat the base branch as the one already being rebased onto — you do not need to determine or fetch it.

Otherwise, continue to Step 1.

## Step 1: Determine base branch

Determine the base branch in this order:
1. Use `$ARGUMENTS` if the user specifies a branch
2. Use the tracked parent from `git config branch.$(git branch --show-current).parent`, if set and it still resolves to a commit
3. Use `bin/base-branch` if the script exists and is executable
4. Ask the user which branch to rebase onto

## Step 2: Start the rebase

Fetch latest and begin the rebase:

```bash
git fetch origin
git rebase origin/<base-branch>
```

If the rebase completes with no conflicts, skip to Step 6.

## Step 3: Resolve conflicts

1. Identify the conflicting files with `git diff --name-only --diff-filter=U`
2. Read each conflicting file and understand both sides of the conflict
3. Resolve the conflict by taking both sides into account — don't blindly pick one side. Understand the intent of each change and produce a result that incorporates both correctly.
4. Stage the resolved files with `git add`

If a conflict is ambiguous and you can't confidently determine the correct resolution, ask the user.

## Step 4: Run related tests

Run the tests related to the files that had conflicts. If tests fail due to the conflict resolution, fix them before proceeding.

If tests fail but seem **unrelated** to the rebase, verify by stashing and testing:

```bash
git stash
# run tests again
git stash pop
```

- If tests also fail without your changes, the failures are pre-existing. Note this for the user and continue.
- If tests only fail with your changes, the rebase introduced the problem. Investigate and fix.

If you are unable to resolve test failures, let the user know what's broken and what you tried.

## Step 5: Continue the rebase

```bash
git rebase --continue
```

If there are more conflicts, go back to Step 3. Repeat until the rebase is complete.

## Step 6: Update the tracked parent

If a tracked parent is set for this branch (`git config branch.$(git branch --show-current).parent`), update it so later tooling stays in sync and doesn't act on a stale parent ref:

```bash
branch=$(git branch --show-current)
git config "branch.$branch.parent" "<base-branch>"
git update-ref "refs/parent/$branch" "$(git rev-parse origin/<base-branch>^{commit})"
```

Skip this step if no tracked parent is set.

## Step 7: Check remote and compare

Check if a remote tracking branch exists:

```bash
git rev-parse --verify @{u} 2>/dev/null
```

If a remote branch exists, follow the comparison procedure in `~/.claude/skills/rebase/remote-diff.md` (read the file and carry out its steps) to compare the rebase result against the remote and flag any potential issues. Use the base branch you rebased onto as `<base-branch>`.

If no remote branch exists, skip this step and report that the rebase is complete.