dart-branch-cleanup

dart-branch-cleanup

Use this skill to run the DART dart-branch-cleanup workflow. The editable workflow source lives in .claude/commands/; this generated skill is its entrypoint for Codex and Muse.

Invocation

• Claude Code: /dart-branch-cleanup <arguments>
• Codex: $dart-branch-cleanup <arguments>
• Muse: /dart-branch-cleanup <arguments>

Treat the text after the skill name, or the user's request when the skill is loaded on demand, as $ARGUMENTS. When the workflow references $1, $2, etc., map those to the positional values supplied by the user.

Command Body

Analyze or clean branches: $ARGUMENTS

Required Reading

@AGENTS.md @docs/onboarding/ci-cd.md @docs/onboarding/contributing.md

Modes

• analyze: inspect only, no deletions
• action: prepare follow-up, or delete only after ownership/safety are clear and the maintainer/user gives explicit approval for each local or remote branch deletion

Default to analyze if the requested mode is ambiguous.

Workflow

1. git fetch --all --no-prune
2. List stale remote-tracking refs without deleting them:

   git remote prune origin --dry-run
   

   If origin uses SSH and port 22 is unavailable, keep the check read-only and use a temporary HTTPS rewrite instead of changing repository config:

   git -c url.https://github.com/[email protected]: \
     fetch --all --no-prune
   git -c url.https://github.com/[email protected]: \
     remote prune origin --dry-run
   

   To confirm that a remote PR branch was deleted without updating refs, query GitHub directly over HTTPS:

   git ls-remote --heads https://github.com/dartsim/dart.git <BRANCH>
   

3. Determine the target/base branch from the PR or task, usually origin/main for development work.
4. For each branch:

   git rev-list --left-right --count <TARGET>...<BRANCH>
   git log --oneline <TARGET>..<BRANCH>
   git diff --stat <TARGET>..<BRANCH>
   git cherry -v <TARGET> <BRANCH>
   

5. Before any explicitly approved local branch deletion, check whether the branch is checked out by a linked worktree:

   git worktree list --porcelain
   git -C <WORKTREE> status --short --branch
   

   Dirty linked worktrees must not be removed, detached, or reset during branch cleanup. Only after explicit maintainer/user approval, switch that worktree to a preservation branch at the same commit to free the obsolete branch name before deleting the merged branch.
6. The command git branch --merged may not prove ancestry for PR branches that landed through a squash or merge commit. Use the merged PR state plus an empty tree diff or equivalent git cherry -v output as the deletion signal; if the history relationship is unclear, keep the branch.
7. Classify recommendations only; deleting a candidate requires explicit maintainer/user approval:
   • ahead=0: safe deletion candidate
   • equivalent commits already landed: deletion candidate
   • no-PR branch whose fix may already be solved differently on the target: confirm supersession with a focused A/B or content check before deciding; superseded is a deletion candidate, otherwise keep or open a follow-up
   • small, current, useful diff: keep or rebase into PR
   • large or unclear diff: document follow-up before action
8. Ask for explicit maintainer/user approval before pruning refs or deleting any local or remote branch, even when ownership, branch purpose, and remote impact look clear.