tools-only Sentry Commit Messages
Follow these conventions when creating commits for Sentry projects.
Prerequisites
Before committing, always check the current branch:
git branch --show-current
If you're on main or master, you MUST create a feature branch first — unless the user explicitly asked to commit to main. Do not ask for confirmation; default to creating the branch.
# Create and switch to a new branch
git checkout -b <type>/<short-description>
Branch naming should follow the pattern: <type>/<short-description> where type matches the commit type (e.g., feat/add-user-auth, fix/null-pointer-error, ref/extract-validation).
Format
<type>(<scope>): <subject>
<body>
<footer>
The header is required. Scope is optional. All lines must stay under 100 characters.
Commit Types
| Type | Purpose |
|---|---|
feat |
New feature |
fix |
Bug fix |
ref |
Refactoring (no behavior change) |
perf |
Performance improvement |
docs |
Documentation only |
test |
Test additions or corrections |
build |
Build system or dependencies |
ci |
CI configuration |
chore |
Maintenance tasks |
style |
Code formatting (no logic change) |
meta |
Repository metadata |
license |
License changes |
Subject Line Rules
- Use imperative, present tense: "Add feature" not "Added feature"
- Capitalize the first letter
- No period at the end
- Maximum 70 characters
Body Guidelines
- Explain what and why, not how
- Use imperative mood and present tense
- Include motivation for the change
- Contrast with previous behavior when relevant
Footer: Issue References
Reference issues in the footer using these patterns:
Fixes GH-1234
Fixes #1234
Fixes SENTRY-1234
Refs LINEAR-ABC-123
Fixescloses the issue when mergedRefslinks without closing
AI-Generated Changes
When changes were primarily generated by a coding agent (like Claude Code), include the Co-Authored-By attribution in the commit footer:
Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>
This is the only indicator of AI involvement that should appear in commits. Do not add phrases like "Generated by AI", "Written with Claude", or similar markers in the subject, body, or anywhere else in the commit message.
Examples
Simple fix
fix(api): Handle null response in user endpoint
The user API could return null for deleted accounts, causing a crash
in the dashboard. Add null check before accessing user properties.
Fixes SENTRY-5678
Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>
Feature with scope
feat(alerts): Add Slack thread replies for alert updates
When an alert is updated or resolved, post a reply to the original
Slack thread instead of creating a new message. This keeps related
notifications grouped together.
Refs GH-1234
Refactor
ref: Extract common validation logic to shared module
Move duplicate validation code from three endpoints into a shared
validator class. No behavior change.
Breaking change
feat(api)!: Remove deprecated v1 endpoints
Remove all v1 API endpoints that were deprecated in version 23.1.
Clients should migrate to v2 endpoints.
BREAKING CHANGE: v1 endpoints no longer available
Fixes SENTRY-9999
Revert Format
revert: feat(api): Add new endpoint
This reverts commit abc123def456.
Reason: Caused performance regression in production.
Principles
- Each commit should be a single, stable change
- Commits should be independently reviewable
- The repository should be in a working state after each commit