git-branch-pr-workflow

Git Branch PR Workflow

Expert guidance for branch management, pull request workflows, and GitHub integration using modern Git commands and linear history practices.

Core Expertise

• Main-Branch Development: Work on main locally, push to remote feature branches for PRs
• Modern Git Commands: Use git switch and git restore instead of checkout
• Branch Naming: See git-branch-naming skill
• Linear History: Rebase-first workflow, squash merging - see git-rebase-patterns for advanced patterns
• GitHub MCP Integration: Use mcp__github__* tools instead of gh CLI

Main-Branch Development (Preferred)

Develop directly on main, push to remote feature branches for PRs. This eliminates local branch management overhead.

Basic Workflow

# All work happens on main
git switch main
git pull origin main

# Make changes, commit on main
git add file.ts
git commit -m "feat(auth): add OAuth2 support"

# Push to remote feature branch (creates PR target)
git push origin main:feat/auth-oauth2

# Create PR using GitHub MCP (head: feat/auth-oauth2, base: main)

Multi-PR Workflow (Sequential Commits)

When you have commits for multiple PRs on main, push specific commit ranges to different remote branches:

# Commits on main:
# abc1234 feat(auth): add OAuth2 support       <- PR #1
# def5678 feat(auth): add token refresh        <- PR #1
# ghi9012 fix(api): handle timeout edge case   <- PR #2

# Push first 2 commits to auth feature branch
git push origin abc1234^..def5678:feat/auth-oauth2

# Push remaining commit to fix branch
git push origin ghi9012^..ghi9012:fix/api-timeout

# Alternative: push from a specific commit to HEAD
git push origin def5678..HEAD:fix/api-timeout

Commit range patterns:

• git push origin <start>^..<end>:<remote-branch> - Push commit range (inclusive)
• git push origin <commit>..<commit>:<remote-branch> - Push range (exclusive start)
• git push origin <commit>..HEAD:<remote-branch> - Push from commit to current HEAD
• git push origin main:<remote-branch> - Push entire main to remote branch

Benefits

• No local branch juggling - Always on main
• Always on latest main - No branch drift
• Clean local state - No stale branches to clean up
• Remote branches are ephemeral - Deleted after PR merge
• Simpler mental model - One local branch, many remote targets

Modern Git Commands (2025)

Switch vs Checkout

Modern Git uses specialized commands instead of multi-purpose git checkout:

# Branch switching - NEW WAY (Git 2.23+)
git switch feature-branch          # vs git checkout feature-branch
git switch -c new-feature          # vs git checkout -b new-feature
git switch -                       # vs git checkout -

# Creating branches with tracking
git switch -c feature --track origin/feature
git switch -C force-recreate-branch

Restore vs Reset/Checkout

File restoration is now handled by git restore:

# Unstaging files - NEW WAY
git restore --staged file.txt      # vs git reset HEAD file.txt
git restore --staged .             # vs git reset HEAD .

# Discarding changes - NEW WAY
git restore file.txt               # vs git checkout -- file.txt
git restore .                      # vs git checkout -- .

# Restore from specific commit
git restore --source=HEAD~2 file.txt    # vs git checkout HEAD~2 -- file.txt
git restore --source=main --staged .    # vs git reset main .

Command Migration Guide

Legacy Command	Modern Alternative	Purpose
git checkout branch	git switch branch	Switch branches
git checkout -b new	git switch -c new	Create & switch
git checkout -- file	git restore file	Discard changes
git reset HEAD file	git restore --staged file	Unstage file
git checkout HEAD~1 -- file	git restore --source=HEAD~1 file	Restore from commit

Branch Naming

For comprehensive branch naming conventions including type prefixes, issue linking, and validation patterns, see git-branch-naming.

Quick reference: {type}/{issue}-{description} (e.g., feat/123-user-auth)

Linear History Workflow

Trunk-Based Development

Preferred: Main-branch development (see above) - no local feature branches needed.

Alternative: Local feature branches for complex multi-day work:

# Feature branch lifecycle (max 2 days)
git switch main
git pull origin main
git switch -c feat/user-auth

# Daily rebase to stay current
git switch main && git pull
git switch feat/user-auth
git rebase main

# Interactive cleanup before PR
git rebase -i main
# Squash, fixup, reword commits for clean history

# Push and create PR
git push -u origin feat/user-auth

Use local branches only when:

• Multi-day complex features requiring isolation
• Experimental work that might be abandoned
• Need to switch contexts frequently between unrelated work

Squash Merge Strategy

Maintain linear main branch history:

# Manual squash merge
git switch main
git merge --squash feat/user-auth
git commit -m "feat: add user authentication system

- Implement JWT token validation
- Add login/logout endpoints
- Create user session management

Closes #123"

Interactive Rebase Workflow

Clean up commits before sharing:

# Rebase last 3 commits
git rebase -i HEAD~3

# Common rebase commands:
# pick   = use commit as-is
# squash = combine with previous commit
# fixup  = squash without editing message
# reword = change commit message
# drop   = remove commit entirely

# Example rebase todo list:
pick a1b2c3d feat: add login form
fixup d4e5f6g fix typo in login form
squash g7h8i9j add form validation
reword j1k2l3m implement JWT tokens

Advanced Rebase Patterns

For advanced rebase techniques including --reapply-cherry-picks, --update-refs, --onto, stacked PR workflows, and combining flags, see git-rebase-patterns.

GitHub MCP Integration

Use GitHub MCP tools for all GitHub operations:

# Get repository information
mcp__github__get_me()  # Get authenticated user info

# List and create PRs
mcp__github__list_pull_requests(owner="owner", repo="repo")
mcp__github__create_pull_request(
  owner="owner",
  repo="repo",
  title="feat: add authentication",
  head="feat/auth",
  base="main",
  body="## Summary\n- JWT authentication\n- OAuth support\n\nCloses #123"
)

# Update PRs
mcp__github__update_pull_request(
  owner="owner",
  repo="repo",
  pullNumber=42,
  title="Updated title",
  state="open"
)

# List and create issues
mcp__github__list_issues(owner="owner", repo="repo")

Best Practices

Daily Integration Workflow

# Start of day: sync with main
git switch main
git pull origin main
git switch feat/current-work
git rebase main

# End of day: push progress
git add . && git commit -m "wip: daily progress checkpoint"
git push origin feat/current-work

# Before PR: clean up history
git rebase -i main
git push --force-with-lease origin feat/current-work

Conflict Resolution with Rebase

# When rebase conflicts occur
git rebase main
# Fix conflicts in editor
git add resolved-file.txt
git rebase --continue

# If rebase gets messy, abort and merge instead
git rebase --abort
git merge main

Safe Force Pushing

# Always use --force-with-lease to prevent overwriting others' work
git push --force-with-lease origin feat/branch-name

# Never force push to main/shared branches
# Use this alias for safety:
git config alias.pushf 'push --force-with-lease'

Main Branch Protection

Configure branch rules for linear history via GitHub MCP:

# Require linear history (disable merge commits)
# Configure via GitHub settings or MCP tools
# - Require pull request reviews
# - Require status checks to pass
# - Enforce linear history (squash merge only)

Branch Comparison: Always Use origin/main

CRITICAL: When comparing branches for PR creation, always compare against origin/main (or origin/<base-branch>), never local main. Local main may contain commits that haven't been merged to the remote, causing PRs to include unrelated changes.

Why This Matters

# WRONG: compares against local main (may include unpushed commits)
git log main..HEAD --format='%s'
git diff main...HEAD --stat

# CORRECT: compares against remote main (matches what GitHub will show)
git fetch origin main
git log origin/main..HEAD --format='%s'
git diff origin/main...HEAD --stat

Common scenario: You commit changes on local main for one PR, push to a feature branch, then start working on a second PR. If you compare against local main, the second PR's diff looks correct. But if the first PR hasn't merged yet, origin/main is behind — and comparing against it reveals that both PRs' changes would be included.

Rules

1. Always fetch before comparing: git fetch origin main
2. Use origin/main in all diff/log commands for PR context
3. Base PRs on origin/main when creating branches: git switch -c feat/foo origin/main
4. The pr-context.sh script handles this automatically

PR Context Gathering (Recommended)

Before creating a PR, gather all context in one command:

# Gather PR context (defaults to main as base, compares against origin/main)
bash "${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/git-branch-pr-workflow/scripts/pr-context.sh"

# Specify different base branch (compares against origin/develop)
bash "${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/git-branch-pr-workflow/scripts/pr-context.sh" develop

The script fetches the latest remote state and compares against origin/<base> to ensure accurate PR context. Outputs: branch info, remote status, commit range and types, diff stats, issue references found in commits, existing PR detection, and CI check results. Use this output to compose the PR title and body. See scripts/pr-context.sh for details.

Pull Request Workflow

PR Title Format

Use conventional commit format in PR titles:

• feat: add user authentication
• fix: resolve login validation bug
• docs: update API documentation
• chore: update dependencies

PR Body Template

## Summary
Brief description of changes

## Changes
- Bullet points of key changes
- Link related work

## Testing
How changes were tested

## Issue References
<!-- Use GitHub autolink format - ALWAYS include relevant issues -->
Closes #123
<!-- Or use: Fixes #N, Resolves #N, Refs #N -->

Issue Reference Guidelines:

• Use Closes #N / Fixes #N / Resolves #N to auto-close issues on merge
• Use Refs #N / Related to #N for context without auto-closing
• Cross-repo: Fixes owner/repo#N
• Multiple: Fixes #1, fixes #2, fixes #3 (repeat keyword)

PR Creation Best Practices

• One focus per PR - Single logical change
• Small PRs - Easier to review (< 400 lines preferred)
• ALWAYS link issues - Use GitHub autolink format for traceability:
  • Closing keywords: Closes #123, Fixes #456, Resolves #789
  • Reference without closing: Refs #234, Related to #567
  • Cross-repository: Fixes owner/repo#123
  • Multiple issues: Fixes #1, fixes #2 (repeat keyword for each)
• Add labels - Use GitHub labels for categorization
• Request reviewers - Tag specific reviewers when needed

Troubleshooting

Branch Diverged from Remote

# Pull with rebase to maintain linear history
git pull --rebase origin feat/branch-name

Note: git reset --hard is rarely needed. Most "diverged" states resolve cleanly with git pull.

Committed to Main (Expected Workflow)

With main-branch development, committing to main is the expected workflow:

# Commits are already on main - just push to remote feature branch
git push origin main:feat/new-feature

# Create PR using GitHub MCP (head: feat/new-feature, base: main)

# After PR is merged, local main resolves itself:
git pull origin main  # Fast-forward merge handles this cleanly

Why git pull works (no reset needed):

• Commits exist on both local main and remote feature branch
• When PR merges to remote main, your local main is behind by the same commits
• git pull recognizes the commits and fast-forwards cleanly
• No history rewriting, no data loss, no merge conflicts

After pushing to a PR branch: Wait for the PR to merge, then use git pull to sync automatically.

Rebase Conflicts Are Too Complex

# Abort rebase and use merge instead
git rebase --abort
git merge main

Safe Operations

Recognizing Normal States

These states are expected during development - proceed confidently:

State	Meaning	Action
Unstaged changes after pre-commit	Formatters modified files	Stage with git add -u and continue
Modified files after running formatters	Expected auto-fix behavior	Stage before committing
Pre-commit exit code 1	Files were modified	Stage modifications, re-run pre-commit
Branch behind remote	Remote has newer commits	Pull or rebase as appropriate

Confirmation-Required Commands

Request user confirmation before running destructive commands:

# These require explicit user approval:
git branch -d/-D       # "Delete local branch X?"
git push origin --delete  # "Delete remote branch X?"
git reset --hard       # "Discard uncommitted changes?"
git clean -fd          # "Remove untracked files?"

When State is Unclear

When encountering unexpected state:

1. Run diagnostic commands (git status, git log --oneline -5)
2. Report findings clearly
3. Present options and wait for guidance

Recovery Workflows

Pre-commit Modifies Files

This is normal formatter/linter behavior:

# 1. Check what changed
git status

# 2. Stage modified files
git add -u

# 3. Continue with commit
git commit -m "feat(feature): description"

Push Rejected (Non-Fast-Forward)

Remote has newer commits:

# Option 1: Rebase local changes on top (preferred for linear history)
git pull --rebase origin <branch>

# Option 2: Merge remote changes
git pull origin <branch>

# Option 3: Overwrite remote (your branch only, use cautiously)
git push --force-with-lease

Commit Fails

1. Read the error message
2. Common causes:
   • Pre-commit hooks failed → Fix issues and retry
   • No staged changes → Stage files first
   • Empty commit message → Provide message
3. Fix the underlying issue and retry