odoo-commit

Workflow

1. Run git diff --stat and git status --short to see what changed, plus git log -1 --oneline (and git log @{u}.. --oneline if a remote-tracking branch exists) to see the last local commit and whether it's still unpushed.

2. If the change is a direct continuation or fix of that unpushed HEAD commit, skip drafting a new message and fold it in instead of creating a second commit for the same logical change:

   git add <file>
   git commit --amend --no-edit   # or drop --no-edit to also revise the message
   

   Otherwise, draft a new commit message.

3. Stage relevant files by name - never git add -A or git add ..

4. Write the commit message to a temporary file, then commit with git commit -F:

cat > /tmp/odoo-commit-message.txt <<'EOF'
[TAG] module: short description

Optional body line.
EOF
git commit -F /tmp/odoo-commit-message.txt

Any equivalent temp-file flow is fine (for example, using PowerShell's Set-Content or another editor) as long as the final commit is created with git commit -F <file>.

5. Before opening a pull request, squash your own back-and-forth commits into one clean commit per logical change (per OCA guidelines): the rest of the world doesn't need your intermediate "fix bug 1", "fix bug 2" history - only the final state and a clear summary. For a single trailing fix, git commit --amend (step 2) is usually enough; for folding several commits into one, use an interactive rebase instead:

   git rebase -i HEAD~N   # N = number of commits to fold
   

   Keep the first line as pick with the real [TAG] module: description message, mark the rest fixup (drop their messages) or squash (merge messages):

   pick 1949129 [IMP] module: Introduce feature A
   fixup d2cf643 Fix bug 1 of feature A
   fixup 42bd9e8 Fix bug 2 of feature A
   fixup 7f767d5 Fix bug 3 of feature A
   

   Either way, only rewrite commits that are still local/unpushed, or on a branch you alone own - never amend or rebase shared history without confirming with the user first.

6. Report the resulting commit hash and subject.

Do not bypass pre-commit hooks. If a hook fails, fix the issue, re-stage the changes, and create the commit again.

Format

[TAG] module: short description

Optional body explaining WHY, not what. What is visible in the diff.
Focus on motivation, constraints, and decisions made.

task-XXXX, opw-XXXXXX

Subject Line Rules

• [TAG] module: description - tag in brackets, then module name, colon, space, description
• Target the whole header ([TAG] module: description) at about 50 characters for readability; 72 is a hard ceiling, not something to aim for
• Self-test: the header must read as a valid sentence after "if applied, this commit will <header>" - e.g. [IMP] base: prevent to archive users linked to active partners -> "if applied, this commit will prevent to archive users linked to active partners"
• Never use single, vague words like "bugfix" or "improvements" as the description - it must be self-explanatory and state the reason for the change
• Imperative mood: "add", "fix", "remove" - not "added", "fixes"
• No trailing period
• Module = technical module name (e.g. hhc, plc, nhso_stddataset, imc)
• Avoid touching multiple modules in one commit - split per module so each can be reverted independently. If truly unavoidable, list the modules or use various

Tags

• [FIX] - bug fix; used in stable versions, also valid for recent dev bugs
• [REF] - refactoring: feature heavily rewritten
• [ADD] - adding new modules
• [REM] - removing resources: dead code, views, modules
• [REV] - reverting commits
• [MOV] - moving files (no content change; use git mv)
• [REL] - release commits: major/minor stable versions
• [IMP] - improvements: most incremental dev changes
• [MERGE] - merge commits / forward port of bug fixes
• [CLA] - signing Odoo Individual Contributor License
• [I18N] - translation file changes
• [PERF] - performance patches
• [CLN] - code cleanup
• [LINT] - linting passes

Body Rules

• Skip body when subject is self-explanatory
• Include body for: non-obvious WHY, breaking changes, migration notes, task references
• Explain WHY, not WHAT - the diff already shows what changed. WHAT is only worth spelling out when a technical choice or trade-off was involved, and then explain WHY that choice was made
• Don't force brevity for its own sake: official Odoo guidance explicitly says not to hesitate being verbose when the reasoning deserves it. Every line should still earn its place - no restating the diff, no filler
• Wrap at 72 characters per line
• Reference task IDs at the end: task-XXXX, opw-XXXXXX, Fixes #123, Closes #123

What Never Goes In

• "This commit does X" - the diff says what
• "I", "we", "now", "currently"
• AI attribution
• Restating the file name or module when the subject already says it

Examples

Examples from the official Odoo git guidelines:

[REF] models: use `parent_path` to implement parent_store

This replaces the former modified preorder tree traversal (MPTT) with the
fields `parent_left`/`parent_right`[...]

[FIX] account: remove frenglish

[...]

Closes #22793
Fixes #22769

[FIX] website: remove unused alert div, fixes look of input-group-btn

Bootstrap's CSS depends on the input-group-btn element being the first/last
child of its parent. This was not the case because of the invisible and
useless alert.

Header-only, illustrating the "valid sentence" self-test:

[IMP] base: prevent to archive users linked to active partners